On character formation:
“For Jesus, character formation of an individual is personal but it’s never private.”
Tim Mackey, The Bible Project Podcast: Jesus’ Vision for Sex and Desire
Reflection:
The formation of our character, while deeply personal, never stays a secret. The Bible says this: “For the mouth speaks what the heart is full of. A good man brings good things out of the good stored up in him, and an evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in him (Matthew 12:34-35).” For a season in college, I went through a Friends stage. I watched A LOT of Friends. Everything that happened in life reminded me of something in Friends. I was slowly forming my mind by my consumption of something that had no redeeming qualities, and it leaked out in many ways. My private life slowly began to inform my public life. While what happens privately is personal, it will become public. May your private life honor God. For more on this subject, read this article on my private shame becoming publicly known.
On the character of a leader
“The key to successful spiritual leadership has more to do with a leader’s internal life than a leader’s expertise, gifts, or experience.”
Peter Scazzero, The Emotionally Healthy Church
Reflection:
At New Life, one of our values is that “Character outlasts charisma”. Character outlasts competency, too. Going back to a quote from last week from Scot McKnight, “Who we are becoming is more important than where we are going.” We lead from the depths of our hearts. Our character will still matter as our expertise fades, our gifts are unappreciated, or our experiences are outdated. Check out this article on the dangers of hiring talented jerks and why character matters most. Since spiritual leadership is all about modeling and inviting others to follow the example of Christ, our character qualifies and disqualifies quicker than anything else.
On Obedience and Ignorance
“To find God and to accept Jesus Christ is a very inconvenient experience for most people. It would involve our rethinking our whole outlook on life and lead to major changes to the way we live. Such a combination of intellectual and moral cowardice makes us hesitate. We do not find because we do not seek. And the truth is that we do not seek because we do not really want to find. And the best way to be certain that we won’t find is to decide against looking in the first place.”
John Stott, Basic Christianity
Reflection:
We often find Jesus too demanding and the call to obedience too inconvenient. We then keep our beliefs superficial, avoiding anything to do with obedience. Yet, can Jesus really be our Lord if we avoid his voice? There have been times when I haven’t asked questions, ignored prayer, or haven’t spoken to certain people, because I know all of those will lead me to this vital question: What am I going to do with what God’s inviting me into?
To automatically receive future articles, subscribe here.