“Your path led through the sea, your way through the mighty waters, though your footprints were not seen. You led your people like a flock by the hand of Moses and Aaron. (Psalm 77:19-20 – NIV 2011)

The Psalmist writes what I think are two profound insights. First, he sees the hand of Moses and Aaron as the hand of God leading his people. Now I know that these two were unique prophets of God who spoke to him directly, but I still think there is a lesson here. A true Godly leader is reading their Bible, praying, asking for wisdom from others, and doing their best to lead the way God directs them. If they do that, then one day, people will look back and not be able to distinguish the hand of God from the leaders he allowed to lead.

Second, I am amazed how the people came to view the crossing of the Red Sea. Every reflection in the Bible sees the parting of the sea as a mighty work of God’s hand. If you read your Bible, you might remember that the people of Israel followed Moses out of Egypt, but eventually, Pharoah took off after them. As his armies get closer, the people turn to Moses and say, “Was it because there were no graves in Egypt that you brought us to the desert to die?” (Exodus 14:11 – NIV 2011)

At the moment, people did not see God leading them, and Moses was an idiot. It wasn’t until they looked back on the event that people saw this as a mighty work of God. At the time, they were mad, disappointed, and thought they were doomed.

Godly leadership is in tune with God’s direction and leading even when it might not entirely make sense. They are willing to risk being thought of as crazy to make a move the way they see God directing them. Sure, there are times people have misunderstood Godly leading, and things did not go well, but then again, we might not know the complete outcome for years. Sometimes even failing ministries have impacted one person who did a mighty work that changed many people for Jesus.

I believe Godly leadership is seen when people listen to God and lead people forward. It might not be clear what God is doing now, but that should not stop them. I think one day, we will look back and see that the unseen hands were doing something beyond our understanding.

Because of our reading of the Old Testament, many people have the idea that if God shows up, it will be with smoke, fire, and a loud voice. There will be bright lights and loud noises that shake us to our very core. 

I would like to suggest that these are not the only way that God works. When he shows up in our lives, it is often in much smaller, simple ways.

God speaks to us through a Christian friend sharing a story from their life. He nudges us in our souls when we hear that emotional story at Church. He reveals himself to us through a kind gesture done in the name of Jesus. Our mindset is changed through a single piece of scripture. 

The question is not, “Is God working in my life?” The question is, “Am I looking for all the little ways God is working in my life?”

I like to lean in when people tell stories about their life. 

Do they paint themselves as the hero or as the fool? Do they acknowledge their failures or gloss over them and speak of other people’s mistakes? Do they keep their information at surface level or dive deep into their emotions? Do they tell stories with happy endings or ones with pain? Do their stories tell of a life that has changed with time or one that is firmly the same?

The stories we tell about ourselves show the world how our mind works. These thoughts are also a reflection of our faith. 

Someone may think they are sharing just a little story about their lives, but maybe we are getting a glimpse into their souls. I encourage you to listen closely the next time someone says, “That reminds me of a story.” Sure, they want you to laugh and smile or cry, but there is something deeper going on at that moment. They are opening themselves up to you and inviting you into their story. 

Perhaps no one has told you today. 

You are intelligent, strong, and beautiful. Your life brings joy to others and makes a difference. You are unique, special, and one of a kind. 

You are not what all those negative voices say about you, especially those inside your own head. 

God made you, loves you, and forgives anything wrong you have ever done in Jesus Christ.

We do not say this enough to each other, and when we do, the other person is often not listening. It is funny how we hear every mean word and miss the good ones. Well, today, I encourage you to listen closely. Other people, like me, think you are an amazing creation of God and are his special gift to the world. 

The word love is overused today. We speak of loving food, teams, our spouse, and the Lord with the same level of enthusiasm. As a result, we tend to think of it with emotional connection. If you love something or someone, then your relationship’s primary dynamic is how you feel.

Then we read the Bible that tells us to “love one another.” There is this immediate pushback as we do not have good feelings about all the people who attend Church. We tolerate them. We are pleasant to them when the situation requires it. We do not do much more than that.

It is essential for anyone connected to a group of believers to know that real Godly love is acting in ways that benefit others. The only emotional connection is that we love God and have strong feelings toward him, so we treat one another with kindness, respect, and grace at his request.

This understanding allows us to even “love our enemies,” as Jesus commands. We do not have to feel positive vibes toward them; instead, we put aside our negative feelings and do the thing God requires of us in blessing them. 

When we change our thoughts from love being an emotion to action, we can perhaps do the love God desires. 

Following Jesus means you accept the facts about him. You are convinced that he lived, taught, died, and rose from the grave. He then showed people that he was alive with many convincing proofs. Finally, he ascended to the Father’s right hand, where he remains until he comes back to earth for a final judgment.

There is also a long list of truths that you believe as a follower of Jesus. The Godhead exists in the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. God gave us the Bible, and it has everything we need for life and Godliness. We believe there is one Lord, one faith, and one baptism. Doctrine is essential to know and accept. 

Christianity is not just the acceptance of certain knowledge. It is the transformation of a person to live like Jesus. We are a new creation in Jesus, and now we will live in the way God desires. 

It is essential to believe in Jesus. It is crucial to have the correct doctrine. But unless it changes your life, having faith is worthless. Christianity is rooted in faith and demonstrated in action. 

I was working on the sermon for this Sunday and found an interesting note that I cannot use in the final draft. I wanted to share it here.

The sermon is about the Church being full of hypocrites. The two most significant issues people have with Christians and Christian groups are their intolerance of different views and the hypocritical nature of believers. Almost 50 percent of people in one survey said they hated that most people who claim to follow Jesus act nothing like him. This concept seems to be agreed upon by everyone outside of the faith.

One writer and speaker has developed a way of handling that objection. He asks people, “when was the last time you were in Church to see this?” The truth is that most people who throw around this accusation have never darkened the doors of a Church building. Instead, they have these convictions about Christians that are totally unfounded.

To anyone who questions the commitment of Christians in their area, my encouragement is to go and find out for yourself. You might discover that the followers of Jesus are a bit more kind, loving, and gracious than you imagine. You will never really know until you try.

It is difficult to let a once-thriving ministry at the Church end. 

Yet, it often needs to happen for the Church to move forward positively.

Let me explain what occurs in every community of believers. First, someone new starts connecting to the group of people who worship together every week. They are new to town, changing Churches, or are a new believer. They get excited about something that God has laid on their heart. For example, they are driven to do prison ministry. They share their excitement with others, recruit volunteers, and they make things happen. Because of their enthusiasm, the ministry has success, and the people who serve are blessed along with the people being served. The Church soon has this dynamic prison ministry of which everyone is proud.

Then the unexpected happens. This new person has one of life’s three significant events: they move, quit, or die. Suddenly the excitement is gone, and there is no vision for what happens next. People keep doing the ministry because we are the Church with the dynamic prison ministry, after all. The work becomes tedious, and volunteers are difficult to find. The leaders struggle to manufacture enthusiasm, and soon no one is blessed by the work, even though it continues to happen. 

One of the lessons I have learned as a pastor is that a ministry must have a committed leader with a God-inspired calling for it to succeed. If not, it struggles to survive and can be a burden for those who try to carry on the work. 

Here is the tough bit of wisdom; it is okay to let a ministry die when the leader moves on. It is a healthy practice to eliminate once-great ministries that are no longer a blessing. I know it is a complicated decision because of the history and how we were known for doing this job well, but it still needs to be made. 

“I am sorry to inform you that this ministry will no longer happen” will be emotional for some people to hear. But a necessary part of Church leadership is deciding that some events and practices need to die. It is not a part of the job that I enjoy, but it is vital for the overall health of the Church and the people involved in it. 

Jesus came to proclaim the kingdom of God on earth. 

This statement is loaded with meaning that can be applied in numerous ways. What caught my attention lately has been two-fold. First, the kingdom is not about a place but a people. Christians speak a lot about the Church not being a building but people, but we don’t say much about the kingdom. Well, the kingdom of God is not about geography; it is about people also. 

The second thing I noticed recently is that it is not about individuals. The Church nor the kingdom are neither focused on God’s work in my life alone. Both are about a community of people working together for the good of the king or the bridegroom. 

Biblical images of the followers of Jesus are always plural. We live together, work together, love one another, and seek the good of everyone. We are a body with many parts, a family with numerous relatives, and a community with lots of residents. As a result, our lives and ministries impact other people. There are no lone Christians. 

The kingdom of God is composed of people. Every believer is a part of something far more extensive than themselves. Maybe the next time you feel alone, you should remind yourself that in God’s kingdom, you are never alone.

A children’s ministry leader taught me that teachers should say to the kids every week, “We are having a good time,” repeatedly. Then they stated that if you tell the children at least five times in an hour that they are having a good time, they will believe they had one. 

I don’t know their data to support that statement, but it makes sense because we are constantly being shaped by the ideas shared with us. This is what is often called “the power of suggestion.”  This concept means that something is communicated to a person until that idea becomes a reality. 

The potential in this idea can be negatively used with someone, especially with a young person. Tell them over and over that their life has no value, and they believe it to be true. Speak to them about a dark future and no potential for love, and you can crush their soul. 

It can also have an overwhelmingly positive impact too. Say to someone repeatedly that they are loved, possess value, and have unlimited possibilities for their life, and they will accept it as a fact. Stating good things to others will help them see the good in themselves. 

If one key to a well-balanced Godly life is hearing the right voices speaking truth into your life, there are two final questions. Whose voice are you listening to each day? And what are you saying to others consistently?

Words shape worlds.