This blog is going to be a flow of my heart. I was at a conference a while back where there were some amazing speakers. The atmosphere was open and filled with excitement. There were people and leaders from all over the region gathered to learn and to grow. Most of them with a desire to learn how to lead well.
The speakers challenged us on many leadership issues. One of the things the Lord put on my heart during this event was where is the time and place to actually minister to the leaders who are needing help? The teaching was awesome, but how do we actually minister to those of them who are stuck and needing help moving to the next level that God would have for them?
I left this conference with a desire. A desire to create a community of leader's where they could be real with the struggles they have as a pastors and leaders. Where they (and we) could share the struggles that come with ministry, with leading and find the encouragement and the prayer support that we need as we lead.
There is passion in me to create a network of leaders around the globe who can find community, relationship, and transparency with one another. A place where leaders do not have to worry about what will be shared with others, nor worry that their ministry will be taken away if they are battling something. A place where we become armor bearers for one another for the cause of advancing the gospel.
Now hear me, I am not saying that leaders have the freedom to sin and still be in leadership. This is a tough subject to address because there are times if we are battling something intense, there might be a need to step out of leadership for a season in order to deal with issues going on in our life. However, there are also times where we are battling something that is more spiritual in nature and not sin related, where we need the encouragement of other leaders, prayer support and we need the encouragement from comrades in the faith.
We as leaders must rise up and take off the masks we at times wear. We must talk about what is going on in the inner parts of our hearts. We must share the temptations and bring to the light the things that assail us. This is the only way we will walk the overcoming life in Christ, and advance the gospel in the earth - is if we walk in intimate relationship with God and with one another as leaders.
I remember hearing another story of a pastor of a large church in California. He said that for a season he was being tempted with impure and pornographic thoughts. He said that in his church they set up a system that when he had those thoughts, he was to call one of the other pastors immediately to tell him. Within a short time frame, the thoughts ceased to come because Satan knew he could no longer keep this man in darkness because he was willing to expose the thoughts to the light as soon as they came. We as leaders must be willing to live in the light, with all our thoughts.
We must not be afraid to share what is happening in our mind and in our hearts. We must not come under the mindset that leaders need to be perfect or look perfect. We are all in process with God, and we all are tempted.
Although, we must learn that the way to combat temptation is by living an open, transparent and an authentic life with others! We must create atmospheres for transparency in our churches, in our homes, in our meetings, so that the enemy can have no foothold in us. We must allow people to share and be in process with God.
Scripture tells us to confess our sins to one another so we can be healed. We must create ministries, churches and atmospheres where people, YES, where leaders are NOT afraid to share our inner world with others. We must defeat the darkness in our own lives, so we can defeat it in the lives of others. We must want the light in our lives, in our churches, in our ministries, and in our homes!
I will tell you the truth. Satan is real. How do I know? Well, let's just say, I've had my own struggles to overcome! You can read my testimony here. The enemy is truly a liar, a thief, and he comes seeking someone to kill and destroy (John 10:10). He is after God's leaders. Although, there is more to this story. Better news. Although the enemy comes to destroy - we have one who came to destroy the work of the devil! Yes, to destroy our enemy. His name is Jesus!
Jesus came to give abundant life and to the point of overflowing (greek is perissos). He came to give us a life where as leaders we can thrive and make a huge impact for the Kingdom of God in the earth. His cross has given us the power, the authority to explode the gospel message in the earth. The same power that the early disciples had, is available to us!
We must be willing to give God access to our hearts. To the hidden places of sin and we must be willing as leaders to go there, to allow God to heal us, to set us free, and we must allow others to join us on that journey. We must lead by example. We must allow others to know our weak places so our churches, those we lead, and our comrades can battle for us in our weakness so that Christ might be strong.
We must be willing to let go of pride and what people think so that we as leaders can get free and stay free for the sake of the gospel message.
I will never forget the humility of one pastor, his name is Francis Anfuso with The Rock of Roseville. In the middle of one of his sermon a few years ago, he stopped, and he said (paraphrased), "I need to stop and ask you all to pray for me. For the last few days, I have been battling impure thoughts. I need to bring this to the light and ask you all to pray for me". In that moment, hundreds of people came up and laid hands on him and prayed for him. They prayed in the power and authority of Jesus, and victory came. I was forever moved by his boldness and his transparency in asking for help.
His transparent leadership modeled something significant for me. We must bring our struggles to the light immediately if we want to walk in victory. And we must ask for help from those we lead. We must ask others to help us on this journey. We must push through shame, the fear of what people will think, the fear of losing our ministry and all the other lies that run through our heads, and we must bring those nagging thoughts and/or sin to the light. We must walk in the light with other leaders and contend for the gospel to go forth. We must contend for the purity in God's leaders. We must join arms with other leaders and walk this journey out together for the sake of Christ's gospel.
Again, God's word says in James 5:16, "Confess your sins to one another so that you might be healed". We must be willing to come forth and talk with others about what is going on in our hearts. We must be willing to minister to one another, and to pray for one another, so victory can come!
I want to encourage you today. Decide as a leader to live a transparent life. It is a good thing and it will bring you life! Don't be afraid to let people know you that you are struggling. Don't live one way in private and another way in public. Don't let Satan keep you in bondage as a leader by keeping your secret a secret. Find a trustworthy friend and tell them what is going on. Seek ministry. Seek freedom from trusted ministries who know how to walk leaders to freedom to to disciple you in truth, the truth of God's Word.
God wants the fullness of His calling realized in your life! This is his plan for you. It is His will for you to thrive. Satan does not want you to realize your full potential in ministry. So, set your face on Jesus and set your resolve on doing things God's way. His Word will never fail you. He is always faithful to the ones He loves, and He loves you immensely.
Throw off the sin that is entangling you and set your eyes on Jesus and the call of God on your life! (Hebrews 12:1-2)
Lord,
I pray for any leader that might be reading this. Lord, I pray you would help them to walk through the veils of fear that keep them from telling others about what is going on in their life. Lord, I pray you would raise up a ministry to leaders. A place where we can pray for, encourage, minister to, and offer freedom ministries to leaders in need. Lord, I know Satan is wanting to destroy your leaders in the earth. Lord, I pray through Perissos that you would create a ministry place, a sacred place for leaders to come to as a place of refuge, to come and throw off the things that are keeping them from fulfilling your calling on their life! Jesus, use us as a ministry, to encourage your leaders, and to help them walk into the fullness of your calling on their life. Jesus, we adore you! Help your leaders rise up in the strength and power of your Holy Spirit.
In your name I pray, Amen!
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