Week Eight -- Advanced Bible Study

Eric Barlow taught in my school this week on what is typically called, "Advanced Bible Study." He changed the title to "Bible-Centered Leadership" because of how vital it is to live this way as Christians. A Bible-Centered Leader refers to one whose leadership is informed by the Bible, who has been personally shaped by Biblical values, has grasped the intent of scriptural books and their content in such a way as to apply them to current situations, and who uses the Bible in ministry so as to impact followers.

A few key verses (there are a lot more) we looked at which emphasize the value of the Word are...

"The grass withers, the flower fades, but the word of our God will stand forever."

~Isaiah 40:8~ it's a lasting source!

"All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work."

~2 Timothy 3:16-17~ the guarantee!

"Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who has no need to be ashamed, rightly handling the word of truth."
~2 Timothy 2:15~ the proper response to the guarantee!

The only thing that will ALWAYS equip us in ministry is the Word of God. Why wouldn't we want to take advantage of that? There are people in other parts of the world who literally offer their right arm for a portion of the Bible. We have all the resources available to us to dig into the Word, yet we don't do it. Be encouraged to start; we are so blessed! :)

By the way, I highly recommend "Blue Letter Bible" for really studying Scripture verse by verse. I had never heard of it until a few weeks ago, and it has been an incredibly helpful tool!

The past week was a lot of hands-on class time: studying Scripture, reading commentaries, and figuring out what our Bible-reading game plan is. We created a 3 year and a 10 year plan to study books, themes, passages, etc. more in depth, choosing about 3 for each year.

I'm really thankful for the teaching we received because it is a huge foundation that we are completely lacking in the body of Christ. One of my prayers is for a fresh revelation of the value of the Word. I don't want to take it for granted!

Week Seven -- The Cost of Discipleship

I feel like I say this after every week of teaching, but this was literally the most impacting week of teaching I've ever had! Last week we had Dean Sherman, and this week we had his son, Troy. I have 43 pages of notes, which I wish I could somehow share with you. But I'll try to condense the main points. :)

Troy's teaching on "The Cost of Discipleship" was based out of 1 Corinthians 4.

He talked about how easy it is to "pick at rotten fruit." By this he means we generally choose to focus on sin instead of good things when we look at other people. But really, we need to get to the root of what's wrong or else we'll just strengthen the spirit of religion. And it's so easy to focus on the sin in other people's lives instead of calling out the good. What are we so focused on that makes us actually blind to the beautiful things? I want to be a person who calls out the good so much that when I tell someone I need to talk to them, their assumption is that I want to say something positive! When we condemn someone for their sin, what we do is encourage other people to "keep the mask on." I never want to be guilty of discouraging transparency. If I'm the one bringing the conviction, I'm failing that person. I have to let the Holy Spirit bring conviction or else the change won't last! Change through shame is never effective.

One main point of the week is that it's not a matter of if but when you'll be hurt by people in leadership. "The Christian army is the only army where the soldiers shoot each other." Jesus was killed by, not the pagans, but the religious!

Often the very things that you think might be disqualifying you from leadership might actually be the reason God's calling you to it. What you do doesn't define you, it's what you do with what you've done. Troy talked about how he's had moments where he fell on his face before the Lord and asked Him, "Why are you using me?" And He responded with, "Because of what you're doing right now." What you do with failure is everything!

There's nothing more unfair in life than leadership--look at Jesus! If there was anyone who earned a great, easy life, it would be Him! But instead He was brutally beaten and crucified for loving people and living a life of service. Suffering is always a part of leadership. The reality is we are called to a ministry of obedience, not success. If you're drawing value from your work, you'll compromise and burn out. If you need to see results, you're compromising. 

Work and serving should be the natural overflow of abiding in the Vine. He wants us to be obedient out of love. Servant-hood is not just "important" in leadership, it's everything!

Another point that hit me hard was that the higher you get in "position," the more you're going to have to seek out discipleship. If you get to the point where people stop approaching you, something is wrong. We should never be unapproachable. We have to choose to surround ourselves with people who will tell us the hard truth. Surrounding yourself with people who tell you what you want to hear instead of what you need to hear is evidence of pride.

I wish I could do this week's of teaching justice, but that will have to do. If you have any questions or comments, I'd love to hear from you personally. :)

Blessings!

LC

Week Six -- Effective Personal Ministry

This week we were blessed to have Dean Sherman teach us about Effective Personal Ministry. He taught during my DTS on Spiritual Warfare, and I remember more one-liners from his week of teaching than I do from any of the other weeks.  He has a way of saying things that sticks with you!

Class time

We asked ourselves, "Am I effective in personal ministry?" And, "What do I do personally that changes lives?" Dean addressed that the idea of being "called into ministry" is tradition--not Biblical truth. We are all called into ministry, in one way or another, which is exciting!

Something else he taught that made SO much sense was the difference between Greek and Hebrew thinking. I have often tried to determine the root cause of the "gap" in thinking between my generation and the generation before us. Obviously this gap can be more or less depending on where you grew up and what kind of environment you were raised in. However, Dean explained that my generation naturally leans Hebrew thinking, and the generation before us is made up of Greek thinkers.

Here's the differences between the two:

Greek                                                      ______          ______         _________Hebrew

Know/believe because your brain contains/agrees vs Know/believe by life experience

"Educated" means going to school vs Education is experiential

Categories vs Integration

"The Word" vs Experience

Understanding vs Practice

Being vs Doing

Older generations vs International Youth

Western vs Islam, Hindu, Buddhist, Animist

It's important to realize that one of these is not right or wrong. One is not better than the other. There must be both to effectively reach all people and spread the Gospel. We don't ever want to put the Word of God against Experiences with Him. But it is also incredibly helpful to understand that the reason why Muslims, Hindus, Buddhists, and Animists are the most unreached by Christians is because we've been mostly Greek thinking. Whereas in these cultures, their religion determines their lifestyle.

A simple example that shows the difference in thinking between the two generations is whether hats should be allowed to be worn in church.  The older generation (Greek thinking--categories) says hats should not be worn in church because it calls for something different than the rest of the week. My generation (Hebrew thinking--integration) says, "I wear hats during the week, so why not Sundays?"

This made so much sense to me when Dean explained it. A way I've seen this played out today is I've heard many older people voice their disdain regarding people's experiences at places like Bethel Redding. But with my generation, that's what we need, simply because that's the way we learn! We need to have an experience that surpasses head knowledge to really "get it." I don't know where you are with your opinions about God showing up in supernatural ways or what you think about Bethel Redding and places like it. (And I'm not trying to change someone's opinion of it :)). With that being said, I have grown up in an incredible Godly home and gone to private Christian school and church all my life. I had a lot of head knowledge coming into DTS and loved God already. But I have to say, when I had an encounter with the Holy Spirit last fall and had gold dust on my hands, it ignited my faith in a way that being "educated" about it never would have. (If you don't know what I'm talking about, feel free to ask me about it :))

Some other points that Dean made were:

-There has never been a spiritual event or movement that hasn't been called demonic.

-Don't limit ministry to a position. And if you don't get the position you wanted, you might actually have more time for ministry.

-The better you get at what you do, the more choice necessary to depend on God.

-If we do things out of obligation in our own strength, we will burn out quickly. We must choose to depend on the Lord and work out of the joy He's given us to be our strength! (Nehemiah 8:10)

-Religion is doing it because we did it. It's okay to do things again. It's wrong to think we have to!

-One way we administer blessings to others is by receiving from them. (Philippians 4:17) It's a ministry to others to allow them to give to you.

-The world system is buying and selling. The kingdom is giving and receiving.

-Kingdom laws are just as reliable and true as gravity is.

-The Bible never says the evangelist is the only soul-winner. This idea has kept millions from being reached.

-There's ZERO possibility that God will not be with you when you fulfill the Great Commission.

-It's not "your" ministry. If it is "your" ministry, it's not ministry.

-If you don't know where to start in ministry, start by being a friend. Everyone needs one, and you can start right now.

-All character and behavior needs to be measured from Jesus Christ.

This was such a rich week. I recognize the depth of the content I learned and know it will take a while to truly process and put it into practice. But what a sweet time of gleaning from Dean Sherman. Thankful that this guy who is 70 years old, who has been in YWAM 46 years, and who speaks about 300 days out of the year, saw great value in investing in my school!

I'm officially halfway through this school, which is mind-blowing. I would appreciate prayer as we continue through the next six weeks and learn more about what being a leader in ministry really means.

Thankful for YOU and your prayers! :)

Week Five -- Acts One & StrengthsFinder

What a whirlwind of a week! We began with our Acts One Conference, where five YWAM bases came together for two full days of completely Spirit-led worship and teaching. It was a phenomenal time of simply seeking the Lord's face and whatever He wanted to do! Many people were set free from lies and chains the enemy bound them with for years, and people were healed of physical ailments as well. Jesus is so good!

The latter half of the week was focusing on us as individuals and our personalities. We took a DISC test (which you can take for free here), and we also took a test called StrengthsFinder 2.0. I absolutely love this kind of stuff. :) It's a huge passion of mine to teach people about their personalities and strengths so that we can better understand ourselves and others. I learned SO much about the gifts God has given me and what they look like in my life.

Thank you so much to everyone who has supported me in prayer and finances. I'm so appreciative of all the people who have seen me as worth investing in! In this season, I would love prayer as I'm learning to rest in God and trust in Him even when I don't see the next step clearly. He's slowly putting the pieces of the puzzle together, but I am comfortable knowing that He knows what's next. I'd rather follow His plan than my own!

Blessings,

xo LC