If we want to grow in grace, there is no better place to look than Jesus. Jesus’ habits show us how to live in right relationship with God and with others. We can learn to do what is right by doing what Jesus did.

Jesus had two key habits we can cultivate in our lives:

The Habit of Proximity

I have a love-hate relationship with camping. I’m no fan of sleeping on the ground, dealing with mosquitos that are bigger than my car, or eating food that is burnt on the outside and frozen on the inside. What I love about camping is the bonding. Even the process of getting there deepens relationships. When you are in a car with someone for four or five hours, you can’t hide who you really are. The only way we can ever hope to change is by being in such close proximity to God and to others that we reveal who we really are.

Jesus knew this. Do you ever wonder why Jesus didn’t just get the crucifixion over with? Why not march into Jerusalem, do some miracles, provoke the authorities, and have it done? Jesus knew it would take time for the apostles to change just like it takes time for us to change. It’s hard to change, but we can change if we spend time close to Jesus and close to one another.

How did Jesus change the disciples?

• Jesus issued them an invitation. He gave them a challenge to leave their old lives behind and follow him. If you follow Jesus, sooner or later he’s going to offer you the same invitation. “This stuff you’re holding on to — these relationships, this job, these dreams? Leave it behind and follow me.” Take him up on it. Jesus’ invitation is always worth it.
• Jesus offered them involvement. He challenged the disciples to contribute. Even while they were still growing and still immature, Jesus challenged the disciples to go do the same things he did. Change requires us to get involved. If you wait until you’re perfect, you’ll never jump in.
• Jesus defined their identity. He challenged the disciples to rethink who they really were. Jesus still challenges us to rethink our identities. More than that, Jesus insists on being the only one who will define your name. If you want to change, learn to listen to who Jesus says you are.

The Habit of Prayer

I know this seems basic. It’s not anything you haven’t heard before, but prayer is one of those keystone habits that helps us replace four or five bad habits by cultivating one good habit. If you want to do what Jesus did, you have to learn how to pray.

Mark 1:35–39 shows us the power of prayer in Jesus’ life. Early in his ministry, Jesus preached in the synagogue in Capernaum. After the sermon Jesus and his disciples went back to Simon Peter’s home. When they got there, they found that Peter’s mother-in-law was very sick. Jesus healed her. The whole town heard about this, and by evening the entire community was waiting outside the door, asking Jesus to heal them. Jesus did. He didn’t hesitate — just walked out into the crowd and started healing them.

Where did Jesus find that kind of power? Verse 35 tells us. “Very early in the morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house and went off to a solitary place, where he prayed.” Jesus cultivated the habit of prayer. If Jesus needed to pray, how much more do we? Through prayer, Jesus understood his purpose and what his next steps should be. When the disciples came looking for him, they wanted him to return to town and do some more miracles. Jesus told them no. “Jesus replied, ‘Let us go somewhere else — to the nearby villages — so I can preach there also. That is why I have come’” (Mark 1:38). Prayer was what kept Jesus rooted in his mission and his relationship with the Father.

We can take three steps to cultivate the power of prayer in our lives:

• Find a place. Choose the same place every day to pray. Pick a spot — your bed, your car, your closet, your bathroom. It doesn’t matter where — just that you choose a place. Pick a spot and get in the habit of beginning your day with prayer.
• Find a plan. God uses prayer to reveal what our next steps should be. God may not show you the next five steps, but he will show you the next step, and then the one after that.
• Find a purpose. Prayer helps us understand God’s purpose for our lives — a big picture kind of purpose. The kind of purpose that helps you understand why you were knit together in your mother’s womb or why Jesus thought you were worth dying for. God is the only one who can reveal that purpose to you, and he chooses to do it through prayer.

Change is hard, but change is possible. Jesus knew how to change people — just look at how he transformed the disciples. And by his grace, Jesus can change you. If you want to change, follow Jesus’ example. Cultivate the habit of proximity and the habit of prayer. Put on the cloak of grace and watch God transform you.

Originally published at thriveconference.org.

The American Church will be anemic as long its people are apathetic. Tipping instead of tithing, spectating instead of serving, complacent instead of committing. We are now on the cover of national magazines for our growing irrelevance.

Depressed yet? It doesn’t have to stay that way!

The prescription for change is still the same:

“Fan into flame the gift of God which is in you.” (2 Timothy 1:6)

How do you wake up your church? How do you help people to get their fire back? Turning your audience into an army happens when people understand three things.

1. Everything is not impossible. Jesus said, “With God all things are possible.” It is too easy to be ruled by what can’t be done. What we can’t afford. What we are afraid we’ll be criticized for… there is always a reason why not. There is no chapter in the Bible where God calls anyone to something easy.

2. You have one life — use it to make something great happen. All of us have people in our churches who, if they ever got more excited about what they were making happen than they are about their next purchase, the world would be a different place.

3. There are no self-centered, happy people. Serving is the only way to avoid becoming an old, cranky, boring Christian adult. At Bayside, once each year we shut our church down. No weekend services. We send everyone to serve our community for the entire weekend. The next week’s services explode with a joy that is never there the weekend before. Why? Passion and purpose go together. The only truly happy people are those living for something more important than themselves. When was the last time you met a self-centered, happy person?

The American Church is a sleeping giant that, if it ever wakes up, could once again shake the world.

Originally published at thriveconference.org.

Ever hear a cult leader speak on TV? Ever hear someone preaching a faith that sounds like Christianity, but when you get below the surface it’s just… not?

Scary, isn’t it?

You wouldn’t buy a watch off a guy selling them on the street, would you? No way. So why would you listen to someone offering you a counterfeit faith?

In 2 Timothy 3, Paul gives Timothy a warning against these kinds of people. He also gives Timothy (and us) five characteristics to look for to spot an authentic Christian leader. If someone has these characteristics, they’re not “men of depraved minds, who, as far as the faith is concerned, are rejected.” (2 Timothy 3:8). They’re people who make a real impact.

So, how do you spot them?

The Five Characteristics of an Authentic Christian Leader

1. Their Lives are an Open Book

“You, however, know all about my teaching, my way of life, my purpose, faith…” (2 Timothy 3:10)

I’ve spent ten years of my life writing books, traveling, and speaking. I loved it. It was easy. When you’re a traveling speaker you get to walk in, throw grenades, and leave. When you’re a pastor it doesn’t work that way — if you throw a grenade you get eight billion letters the next week.

During that time I realized it’s possible to travel and speak and not build anything. You can travel and speak every night of the week, but no one really knows you.

Paul had lived and labored with Timothy. They knew each other well. And as Paul said, Timothy knew his doctrine, how he lived, what is his purpose was, and saw his faith in action. Paul’s life was an open book, and the lives of authentic leaders are the same.

2. They Teach True Doctrine

There’s a lot of information out there. Be careful what you take in. Be careful who you listen to. There are people on Christian colleges that are teaching destructive doctrine. There are people in churches who are simply not preaching the truth. They may look legit, but their doctrine is anything but.

3. They Practice What they Preach

It always disturbs me when the Christian community sets people up as celebrities, not servants. When someone can get up there and preach a life of sacrifice, giving, and serving, then go home and do anything but that — there’s a problem there.

The apostle Paul spent his entire life as a servant. He practiced what he preached. An authentic leader lives his life with the humility of a servant, not the arrogance of a celebrity.

4. Their Purpose is to Glorify God

Paul tells us that his purpose is set before God, and that God approved of what he was living for. You can see that purpose shining through in every word that Paul wrote, and with the passion with which he lived his life.

How do you tell if someone’s purpose is to glorify God? Look for their passion. Passion and purpose go together. When someone only has a little bit of purpose, they only have a little bit of passion. When someone has a compelling purpose, their passion is blinding. Paul never lost his passion because he never lost his purpose. Today’s authentic leaders are the same.

5. They Are Willing to Pay the Price

“You, however, know all about my… persecutions, sufferings — what kinds of things happened to me in Antioch, Iconium, and Lystra, the persecutions I endured. Yet the Lord rescued me from all of them.” (2 Timothy 3:10–11)

Paul faced persecutions. He paid a price for his purpose. He didn’t shy away from them or give up on his calling. He faced them, because he knew that God is faithful.

Creating an Impact

Do you want to make an impact at your job, in your marriage, in your family, in your community, in your church? Build these five things into your life. These five characteristics are crucial to creating hope, both in yourself and in others. And with hope like that, anything is possible.

Here’s the bad news: we all have weaknesses.

But here’s the really, really good news: where we are weak, God is strong.

In Galatians 12:9, God tells us that His power is made perfect in weakness. In those spaces where our weaknesses lie, God’s strength is able to work through us. Our weaknesses create a place for God to transform our lives, and the lives of others.

So this leads to a fantastic question: what would you like to be weaker in?

The Places Where Weakness is Strength

Many of us are very strong in many of these places. It’s time to get a little weaker, to make space for God to work:

Growing weaker at worrying: Constant worry eats away at you, putting space between you and your family, community, and God. When you grow weaker at worrying, you’re able to grow stronger at peace.

Growing weaker at pride: When you grow weaker at pride, God helps you grow stronger at humility. It’s so easy to mistake pride for self-strength. It’s even easier to assume that the opposite of pride is self-weakness. But we all need things, and we need humility to admit that we can’t make it on our own. Jesus was the most humble man on earth — we need to be weak in pride to be more like Him.

Growing weaker at perfectionism: We all want to get it right, but if we pour our energy into perfectionism, we become rigid. Skyscrapers and bridges stand because they’re built to be flexible. Their foundations are firm, but because they’re able to move when the winds pick up, they’ll stand for generations. When we grow weaker at perfectionism, we grow stronger in flexibility, which gives us the grace to better navigate our relationships, both with each other and with God.

Growing weaker at apathy: It can sometimes feel like strength when we’re unmoved at the problems of others, but true strength is found in compassion. When we grow weaker in apathy, God moves us to be stronger in compassion, allowing Him to work through us to make amazing changes in the world.

Growing weaker at fakeness: Putting on a happy face is something we’ve all done at church, at work, and even at home. But pouring our energy into being fake is exhausting, and ultimately separates you from the community. Ecclesiastes tells us that a cord of three strands isn’t easily broken. When we grow weaker at being fake, we grow stronger in authenticity, which leads to the types of real relationships that truly give us strength.

Growing weaker at holding on to hurt: No one gets through life unscathed. When hurt comes our way we can either hold onto it or make the choice to experience those emotions fully. When we get weaker at holding on to hurt, we grow stronger at grieving. Jesus gives us the ultimate example of this: He grieved when he learned His friend had died, then He went on to raise Him from the dead. What’s stronger than that?

Where Do You Want to Be Weaker?

Which applies most to you? One of the above, or: Growing weaker in thanklessness, to grow strong in gratitude? Growing weaker in anger, to grow strong in grace? Growing weaker in deception, to grow strong in honesty? Growing weaker in irritability, to grow strong in patience? Growing weaker in greed, to grow strong in generosity? Growing weaker in bitterness, to grow strong in forgiveness?

There are so many areas in grow weak in our life, and so many places where God’s strength can fill us instead. Take a close look at where you could stand to be a little weaker, and invite God in to fill you with His strength. He will get you much further than you could ever get on your own.

What’s the first commandment? Thou shalt have no other gods before me.

You could make the case that there is really one sin beneath all other sin: idolatry. It’s when we begin to bow down and worship at some counterfeit god. It’s when we take the one true God off His throne.

We’re received this commandment. So did the children of Israel. In Exodus Chapter 32 we find them in a place of tension. They’ve made it out of Egypt, but now they find themselves waiting. They’re waiting for Moses, who’s up on a mountaintop. They’re waiting for God.

Have you ever found yourself in a place of waiting? You’re walking with God, but He seems silent. Distant. Far away. Or you’re in the middle of a storm, and you find that the greatness, the voice, the power, the presence, the deliverance of God seems very, very distant.

We don’t like to talk about this part of our faith, but it’s there. You find yourself gazing to heaven, wondering what to do with a god like this, who goes off script, who doesn’t answer prayers in the way you want them answered. You wonder what to do with a disobedient God.

The children of Israel chose to replace God with one of their own making — a golden calf that they could push around at will. We’re no less likely to create idols today than we were thousands of years ago.

What Happens When You Replace a Disobedient God?

You don’t see very many golden calves today. Instead, you’ll find idols of the heart. These idols are good or bad things that become ultimate things. They’re the things we put savior-like expectations on. We look to these things to save us. We reach for what is familiar at the expense of the one who is faithful.

If you’re not reaching for God, what are you reaching for?

Money: So many of us reach for money when we’re really longing for security. We don’t realize that security will never come from money. The only security comes from God. But enough is never enough. No matter how much you try, money is an idol that will never save you. Money isn’t bad on its own, but chasing it, thinking security will come from it, will never get you where you want to be. Security is not built on money — it’s built on nothing less than Jesus’s blood and righteousness. Even if you only have a dollar in your bank account, one dollar plus Jesus equals security.

Pornography: We reach for pornography when we long for intimacy. We reach for what’s easy and accessible, but what we really want is to be known. We want to be known in the way that only a god who can see us and love us can provide. We want someone who knows the extent of our failures and faults and loves us anyway. We long to feel the kind of connection that only comes from Jesus. What we reach for instead is cheap, shallow, and fruitless.

Relationships: We jump from relationship to relationship, but what we’re longing for is someone to complete us. No matter what Jerry Maguire says, earthly relationships can’t complete us. Only Jesus can make us whole. If you look for completion in another person, when they leave you’re left in pieces. Jesus is the only one who will never leave or forsake us. When you invest the energy you would have spent chasing relationships into pursuing Him, you’ll be a much better spouse, a much better parent, and a more complete person.

Control: You may not call it control. You may call it being organized, having a plan, sticking to a schedule. But trust us — everyone around you is calling you a control freak. We reach for control when we’re longing for peace, but it rarely works out that way. If you reach for control, people are stressed when they’re around you. You don’t bring peace. You don’t feel it either. God’s peace doesn’t rely on your ability to keep your life together. His peace is strongest in the midst of chaos. It’s only then that his strength is made perfect.

What Do You Do with a Disobedient God?

So how do we shake that desire to reach for an idol we can control? How do we live with what we consider a disobedient God? How do we transition from reaching for the things of the world to reaching for God?

Get in His presence.

That’s it. Just reach for Him.

In the presence of the one true God, the failures, the shame, the guilt… it doesn’t matter. When you are in the presence of the creator of all things, the things of the world fade away and you are consumed by His splendor.

What do you do with a disobedient God? You wait on Him. You trust Him. You meet with Him. You dwell with Him. You allow yourself to be changed by His presence and become more like Him. You stop reaching for the things of the world and reach for Him instead.

When God seems disobedient, distant, or silent, reach for Him. Reject the idols of this world and reach for Him instead. When you do, you’ll find Him.

Ever get nervous when you preach? Ever get scared standing in front of a crowd? Do you wonder if you’re going to say the right thing? Wonder if you’ll be able to impress the people in front of you?

Nerves happen. But here’s the thing — when you get nervous, the root is sin. The root of nerves is being too focused on yourself. It comes from wanting to please other people more than you want to please God. Nervousness stems from an incomplete understanding of who God is. Fearless preaching comes from understanding His holiness.

Isaiah’s Vision of God

Have you ever heard someone say “Oh, when I die I’m going to have a good, long talk with God and have Him answer for some of the things that have happened in the world?” Sure you have. But that’s not what’s going to happen when any of us reach heaven.

Isaiah had a glimpse of God. He didn’t see someone who’d be a great conversation partner. Read Isaiah 6 and here’s what you’ll find: a God seated on a throne. A God whose robes are so massive that the train fills a temple. A God surrounded by angels shielding themselves with their wings because His holiness was too much for them to look on.

When Isaiah saw God, he didn’t ask Him questions. When he saw God, here’s what he said:

“Woe to me!” I cried. “I am ruined! For I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips, and my eyes have seen the King, the Lord Almighty” Isaiah 6:5

When Isaiah saw God, he didn’t see the nice, friendly picture of Jesus holding a lamb (you know the one). What he saw was a God so powerful, so holy, so set apart that the only thing Isaiah could express was his own unworthiness to be in His presence.

That’s the God we have on our side.

But God wasn’t just going to let Isaiah see Him. As the prophet fell to his knees before Him, one of the angels flew to him holding a live coal. The angel touched the coal to Isaiah’s mouth and said “See, this has touched your lips; your guilt is taken away and your sin atoned for.” (Isaiah 6:7)

When Isaiah entered God’s presence, he got to the end of himself He got to a place where he realized he deserved to be punished. In that moment God forgave him. And it’s the same with us — when we’re in God’s presence, we’re nothing. Only when we accept that can God forgive us.

But God still wasn’t done. He asked Isaiah “Whom shall I send? And who will go for us?”

And Isaiah said “Here am I. Send me!” After that experience, do you think Isaiah was worried about what he was going to say? Do you think he worried about upsetting people, or about his own popularity? No way. Because he had experienced the holiness of God, he could spread His word fearlessly.

God’s holiness is the key to fearless preaching.

Preaching for the God of Isaiah

Every time we preach, we preach for the God of Isaiah. Here’s what that means:

Nervousness Stems from Sin: When we get nervous up there, it’s because we want to impress others. It’s because we want to cover for ourselves. It’s not because we want to impress God. If you understand and accept even a fraction of God’s holiness, trying to impress anyone else seems pointless. There’s no one else worth impressing.

Nothing is in Our Control: Take a breath. And another. Were you able to do so under your own power, or because the God of the universe allowed you to do so? God is the only sovereign — we’re not in control of anything. Whatever happens in our lives comes from Him.

It’s Not About What Happens in This Life: When you get to heaven, when you hear those words you want to hear, when God says “well done,” do you think you’ll be worried about what happened here on earth? Surrounded by His holiness, nothing that happened in this life will matter.

Know Who You’re Praying To: If you found yourself before the God of Isaiah, do you think you would talk to Him the same way you do in your prayers? We seldom approach God with the proper reverence. Next time before you pray, take 10 seconds to think about who it really is you’ll about to speak to. Take that time — it will change everything you’re about to pray.

God is With You: Wherever you go, whenever you preach, the God of Isaiah is behind you. His holiness leads to life. It gives you security. It keeps you from fearing your audience. God is with you — you are His messenger.

Living your life in reverence of God’s holiness is an amazing way to live. When He is with you, there is no need to be afraid.

Originally published at: ThriveConference.org/Now

Is Jesus a Part of Your Ministry?

If you said “yes,” you’re one of many people who have made Jesus part of something He should be all of. Not a great place to be, but at least you’re in good company.

Peter knew how it felt to mistake Jesus for being just a part of something. Look at Mark 9. Jesus takes Peter, James, and John to the top of a mountain. When they were alone, he is transfigured, and Elijah and Moses appear.

Can you imagine being in that kind of situation? What would you do? What would you say?”

If you were Peter, you’d say “Rabbi, it is good for us to be here. Let us put up three shelters — one for you, one for Moses and one for Elijah.” Mark 9:5

Jesus is transfigured before your eyes, and two of the greatest players in the Old Testament show up to see Him — “do you guys want some tents?” isn’t the most elegant response. But it’s more than that. Peter got caught up in the great things going on around him and made Jesus a part of them, instead of being the whole point.

How often does this happen to us? How often do we become caught up in the great things going on in ministry — the programs, the people, the staff, the work — only to reduce Jesus to a part of it. Jesus didn’t die on the cross to be a part of your ministry. That’s not the deal. Either he’s the one source of your power and purpose, or he’s not a part of it at all. It’s all or nothing.

What Happens When Jesus is a Part of Your Ministry

Here’s what happens when Jesus is a part of your ministry: you end up tired, depressed, and lonely. Bitterness and competition sets in.

The disciples found this out. While Jesus and three of them were on the mountain, nine more stayed behind. What did He find on His return? An argument had broken out. A man had brought his possessed son to them for healing. They tried to cast out the demon on their own. They failed. Conflict set in.

The disciples tried to solve the problem with their best giftedness. So do we. The disciples were relying on themselves, their past achievements and knowledge, instead of on Christ. Does that sound familiar?

The Greatest Enemy Is Your Giftedness

The greatest enemy you’re going to face is your own giftedness. Your gifts make it possible to try to do ministry on your own. You can even pull it off to some degree. But where’s that leaving you? Tired, frustrated, and depressed. Encumbered by conflict, blinded by competition, overcome by bitterness. So caught up in the good things of ministry that we lose sight of the one great thing.

Is Jesus a part of your ministry? If He is, how do you make the leap? How do you keep your gifts from blinding you to the true source of power? Jesus tells us, and it’s simple: serve.

Are you the one serving your staff, or is your staff serving you? Jesus gives us a definition of greatness: to serve. It’s to be last — the very last. How do we get there?

1. Call Sin “Sin:” We have to understand that the pecking order on our team and how we see ourselves is sin. Plain and simple. It’s pride. It’s ego. “God’s called me to be a leader,” you say. Great! That means you’re the greatest servant. When that rubs you the wrong way, when there’s backbiting, competition, and disunity in your team — it’s sin. Call it what it is.
2. Embrace Last As Our First Choice: It’s hard. Sharing leadership is hard. It gets harder when we construct titles and pecking orders. Why can’t we embrace being last as our first choice? We’re big on preaching servant leadership… until someone treats us like one. Jesus asks: Do you want to invent the church? See who can outserve each other.
3. Don’t Be the Best Leader You Can Be — Be the Best Jesus You Can Be: There’s so much of the flesh involved with ministry. We’re up there in front of people. Pride and ego show up constantly. Wrestle with it. Call it sin. Do your best to always choose last as your first choice. Go in every day with the determination to serve. Forget the title on the door. Don’t be the best leader you can be — be the best Jesus you can be. When that becomes your focus, the bitterness, competition, and discord will recede.

Do you want to be the greatest leader on your team? Then be the greatest servant. Keep your giftedness from making Jesus a part of your ministry instead of the only thing that keeps it alive. Get over yourself. Serve. Love, because that’s what He’s done for us.