Whenever you name something, specific meanings are invoked by the word you use.

The Church of my childhood was led by a board with a chairman. He assigned people to committees for the work that needed to be done. The words evoke a picture of people sitting at big tables whose primary responsibility is to make decisions. There are presentations, discussions, and probably a vote.

I was dying under the weight of all the committees and meetings when I became a pastor. I was standing in my alma mater’s bookstore when a man overheard the conversation and said, “Perhaps ministry teams could save your Church.”

The word “ministry” conjures up the image of people serving the Lord. The group is doing something for other people in the name of Jesus. It is an active word with spiritual overtones.

The word “team” is exceedingly familiar to most people. It is a group of people working together for victory. They put aside their differences for a singular goal of success in their activity.

When used together, those two words capture what the Church is about. We are about serving the Lord Jesus together to make and grow disciples.

Decisions must be made, but those are not the end goal. The hope is that people will work for the kingdom of God and do it together. I think the man in the bookstore was correct, “Perhaps ministry teams could save the Church” from the onslaught of committees. 

The Church leadership article stated, “As the Bible says, ‘Where there is no vision, the people perish.'” The writer was referring to the future plans of the organization as inspired by the pastor. It was a challenge to be forward-thinking.

A quote like this sounds great until you do some digging. If you looked up the verse they are quoting in the New International Version, you would see it reads like this, “Where there is no revelation, people cast off restraint. (Proverbs 29:18)”

Those two things do not sound much alike, so what is happening?

The writer was quoting the King James Version of the verse. It is not so much a mistranslation as words coming to mean different things historically. The word “vision” was not used as forward-thinking until the last 50 years. The English Standard Version translates it as “prophetic vision.” The word for vision is the concept of special revelation from God. We might understand it as the Bible.

“Perish” is also a little tricky to translate into English. The word “restraint” is reasonably close. The primary connotation is that people will do whatever they want. They will make up their own rules and laws, which often lead to destruction. This unrestrained lifestyle leads people away from God, where they will perish.

This verse is not a plea for visionary leaders or an organization like the Church will die. Instead, it is a plea for people to turn to the Bible, so they do not have to live in chaos. 

There is an increasing push on the leaders of the local Church to become like the CEO and board of a growing business. The leaders are decisive, draw hard lines, the bottom line dominates discussions, and everyone has an equal vote. In fact, many Church leaders who blog continually refer to the business books they are reading and teach how those influence their thinking. The common thought is that businesses like Chick-fil-A, Starbucks, Amazon, and Apple have much to teach the Church about leadership. 

In contrast, I continually see that a family is one of the primary metaphors for the Church in the New Testament. The local Church is one big happy family. Numerous analogies are used, but I find this one to be the most challenging regarding leadership today. 

Family leadership is so unlike the business world. In the family grace rules, forgiveness is required, some lines are hard to draw, everyone’s opinion is considered, and each member’s physical, mental, and emotional health is primary.

When you are in a family, you learn to deal with aging parents and the value of compassion. You walk through the searing pain of loss together. We all have that crazy relative we have to learn to handle in group functions. There is the heart-wrenching difficulty of forgiving and being forgiven. With children comes the nearly unbearable emotional trauma of the prodigal son. Every day in a family seems to teach you more about communication, love, mercy, along with dependence on others. 

I firmly believe that great Church leaders are not forged in the board rooms of corporate America; instead, they are made at the dinner tables and living rooms of our homes. 

Often, I will ask someone to step up as a leader in some area of the Church, and they give me a list of reasons they are not qualified in response. I am convinced that if you have faith in God and years of family experience, you have all you need.  

Sometime … it will be the last time.

The last holiday together as a family. The last gift you will ever give. The last conversation you will share. The last time you will see those people. The final goodbye.

Everything you do will one day be the last time you do it on this side of eternity.

The tricky part is that you rarely know when that time will come. 

The wisdom of age is drinking deeply into your soul the shared moments of love and connection, knowing this could be it.

It also means acting wisely today. Doing the right things day after day so there are no regrets. That means speaking your love, offering forgiveness, making the connection, and being right with your maker and the ultimate judge. It means telling your loved ones about Jesus, serving to make a spiritual difference, and giving generously in the name of our Lord. It is a life of obedient faith spent knowing our God through his word, prayers, and quiet time with him.

Whenever Jesus speaks of his return, it is always an unexpected and abrupt event. Yet he never drifts into sentimentalism about loss. He shifts the conversation to preparation for the next step on our journey with God.

Living with the reality that today might be our last day should help us appreciate what we have AND motivate us to be ready for where we are going. Don’t just do the former. 

I’m not particularly eager to use the words “friendship” or “relationship” when speaking about people in the Church. My preferred word is “connection.” I want people to connect to one another, feel connected, and make a meaningful personal connection.

What does it mean to make a connection?

First is to demonstrate to someone, “I see you.”  Most of the people I know are hiding in plain sight. They keep quiet, stand in the back, and do nothing to draw attention to themselves. There is an extraordinary power in making someone feel seen, and it states that I value you as a person.

Second is to subtly say, “I have room for you.”   Putting down your phone, making eye contact, engaging with a question, smiling, and giving someone your time are powerful gestures of inclusion. Let people know you are glad they are present, and include them in your conversation.

Finally, it is to “actively follow up.” All of us have met someone who made us feel special in the moment, and then we never saw them again. Drop a text, possibly make a call, sit with them the next time you see them, and even actively seek the other person out when you are in the same place. These actions demonstrate that you genuinely have room in your life for them. 

I truly believe that if you open your eyes, mind, and heart to other people, you can find someone to connect with. All of us are looking, but few find anyone looking back in return. You can be a walking demonstration of what it means to love one another as a Christian by doing these three simple things.  

Remember when you looked at them and, with anger coursing through your veins, stated, “I will never forgive you for this?” Maybe the words didn’t come out of your mouth but were emblazoned on your mind with indelible ink. What they did or said, their behavior or inactivity, seemed beyond forgiveness.

When you become a follower of Jesus, there is a time when you need to revisit that moment. Paul’s encouragement to the Christians in the city of Colossae is “Forgive as the Lord forgave you.” (Col 3:13). 

It has been said that Christians are to forgive the worst in others because God forgave the worst in them. Just as God is able to forgive your vial, evil, wicked, nasty, awful behavior, you are to do the same with others, no matter how unforgivable the incident may seem. 

For many people, the holiday season is a time of joy, but for others, it will stir those angry feelings. What if you took the message of Jesus and used it as a catalyst to forgive that person?

I am not saying you have to rebuild a relationship. I am not saying their actions were good, and your anger is unjustified. I am asking if you could give the gift of forgiveness to someone to end this year.

You will be amazed that the person you set free is you. 

Start.

Make incremental progress.

Don’t Stop.

Sometimes, what seems impossible simply means it takes longer than most people want to invest.

When ancient map makers reached a place of uncharted territory, they would write “Here be dragons” and draw a picture of the mythical beast. This served as a warning to anyone who dared venture into those areas that they were filled with potential danger, possibly of epic proportions.

We know the rest of the story. Eventually, those lands and regions were explored, and there were no dragons. There were dangers, and people encountered enormous obstacles in taming the wild unknown. But there was nothing that could not be defeated through raw strength.

When we paint a picture of our possible futures, we often dream of doing great things for God. Yet, we have never attempted anything like it, so we label those areas with “Here be dragons.” The potential risks overshadow the possibilities. We give up our dreams for fear of the unknown.

Occasionally, we must be reminded that there are no dragons there, just obstacles we can overcome with faith, strength, and perseverance.   

“The whole town is talking,” my parents used to say. 

That meant that something unpleasant had happened. Someone has done something that created gossip. Phone calls were made. The men sharing coffee in the morning were assigning blame. And people were trying to figure out what exactly went wrong and why. 

Yet it doesn’t have to mean that. Sometimes, everyone talks about the new restaurant, the home being built, or the award someone received.

People are always talking. It can be about negative things or positive things.

When people talk about you, do they have anything to say that shows your faith? When you live differently than the people around you, they will start asking questions and talking to one another.

What would it take for their conversation about you to focus on your faith in Jesus?

Along with preparing food for the Thanksgiving holiday tomorrow, I think it is equally important to prepare your heart. We need to take the time to review all the ways we are blessed, especially as followers of Jesus. 

Here is a little something to get you started. These are some of the things this Christian is thankful for …

1. God. Our Creator, Sustainer, and author of our salvation. He gives our lives purpose and meaning beyond random chance.

2. Jesus. Our Savior and Lord. He died on the cross to pay our debt of sin.

3. The Holy Spirit. He fills our hearts with God, empowers us to live the Christian life, enables us to pray, and comforts us when life seems impossible. 

4. The Church Family. These misunderstood misfits are brought together by our mutual salvation in Jesus. These people taught, blessed, and stood beside me for a lifetime.

5. My family. It may have flaws, but God has blessed many of us with spectacular family members.

6. The Bible. Most believers forget how incredible it is that we have God’s collected writings in a place that we can access at any time.

7. The Internet. This seems trivial, but it is a more significant revolution than the printing press. We can communicate worldwide in seconds and connect with more information than the most extensive library can hold. It is a fantastic time to be alive.

8. Hope. Because of our faith in Jesus, we have the hope of eternal life. We do not have to face our death with gloom and doom. Rather, it is a passageway to a new life and a reward in heaven.

I could go on and on with my personal list, but these are the things Christians share. One or possibly two of these may not be as prominent in the lives of some, but for most of us, they are all enormous blessings. And these are just the start of reasons to be thankful.