Submit to God-Given Authority

This excerpt from The Maxwell Leadership Bible caught my attention this morning. It's one of those teachings that's sometimes hard and sometimes easy - depending on whose authority we're under. Yet there's no exception or caveat provided.

"Let every soul be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and the authorities that exist are appointed by God. Therefore whoever resists the authority resists the ordinance of God, and those who resist will bring judgment on themselves."  Romans 13:1-2

"Paul gets practical in how to apply our beliefs to our lives by challenging us to submit to God-given authorities. For children, this means parents; for adults, this means leaders in government, the workplace, and the church."

"Why should we submit? Is it because these leaders are the smartest, most reliable individuals on earth? No. God simply provides us with an authority test. Before we will ever become leaders of integrity, we must learn to follow other leaders, regardless of differences. In fact, the acid test of character comes when we disagree with legitimate authorities. When we refuse to demand our own way and instead submit to others, our hearts are right. This is when God can trust us to lead others."

Of course the trick is in balancing honor and submission with advocacy when we disagree with an authority over us. Is there room for conscientious objection and even defiance? What about on moral or Bibical grounds? Perhaps - but it's dangerous territory to be sure. As Maxwell points out - the larger work is the development of our own character. So there is a clear burden we bear here. While we defend values and advocate for principles and conventions we believe in, we must also maintain appropriate honor, respect and submission to those in charge. Even if while doing so we are praying for the completion of their tenure. 

Team Building & Cardinals Baseball

Well it's happened again. The Saint Louis Cardinals have won another NL pennant - their 19th overall and 4th in the last 10 years. They are in the post-season this year for the 10th time in the last 14 years. How do they do it? In an era of free-agency, salary caps and the resulting high mobility of players, how do they continue to put together winning teams year after year?

As I was thinking about that I remembered a discussion at work a couple weeks ago. Our Operations Team was talking about hiring practices and building teams. The question then was very similar - how do we continue building a winning team in all of the various departments throughout our organization? In that conversation we identified 5 C words to pay attention to when choosing people. Now that I think about it, those 5 C's of Team Building can be seen in most any organization, business, or church that is successful over a long period of time -- just like the Cardinals.

1. Character - In the long run it doesn't matter how much a person knows or how good they are at their job. If they don't  live with honesty and integrity, if they're not dependable, if you can't trust what they say and do, if they continually put their own interests ahead of the team's or organization's, if they're not ethical in their dealings, both on and off the job, they will eventually cause more pain than profit. More often than not teams that consistently "win" are made up of men and women of high character and a strong moral core.

2. Chemistry - How many times have we seen very talented teams fall apart at the end of a season, only to learn later of the chaos and discord in the locker room. Every coach knows that good team chemistry is critical to long term success. When team members like and respect each other, trust each other and have shared values and organizational goals, they tend to support each other's efforts. That collaboration produces a synergy that multiplies the team's effectiveness and overall performance. Conversely, as my grandpa used to say, "one bad apple can spoil the whole barrel." Bad chemistry is toxic to a team.

3. Competence - Winning teams have talent. Even the greatest coach in the world can't win without players that can play.  Average skills will usually produce average results. Highly competent and highly skilled team members can not only perform at a high level themselves, but their work often raises the performance of others as well.

4.  Calling - In vocational ministry a divine calling is a given. Men and women hear the whisper of God in their heart and that calling fuels their efforts. But a calling, or a passion, or an intrinsic desire to go to work can make a big difference to every person in every job. Whether it's because they like the product, support the mission, believe God has called them to the work, or just enjoy the task or the challenge or the people or the culture, when a person likes their job they are simply more effective at it.

5.  Capacity - One of the keys to the Cardinals success this season has been the development of their "home grown" talent. Over half of their World Series roster came up through their minor league system. When assessing talent, a couple great questions to consider are:  "How good could this person be in a few years?" and "How much can I grow them?" Finding raw or baseline talent that is both teachable and full of potential can provide a winning edge to any team or organization.

Go Birds!

Random Thoughts about Death, Life, Moms & Friends

We buried mom this week. She would have been 73 next month. It had been 11+ years since a massive stroke robbed her of most of the faculties that I take for granted. Much of that time she spent in and out of hospitals or rehab and nursing facilities. Last Tuesday morning she was finally set free from that nearly dead body and today is with Jesus! Thank you God! On this Saturday morning after I'm thinking about several things...

Moms
Mom loved her kids... all 3 of us. No matter her circumstances she always cared and provided for us - sometimes working 3 jobs to do it. Growing up I thought moms loving their kids was a given. But after years of working with children at camps, on mission projects and in schools I'm aware that's not true. There are simply way too many kids navigating life without a mom's love and way too many moms abandoning what has to be one of life's greatest callings. Thank you mom for your great and enduring love!

Death
It stinks! Figuratively, literally, absolutely, conclusively! No matter how long or how severe a disability is it seems we are never completely ready for a loved life to end. Yet ready or not...! Even as I had prayed for mom to be freed from her awful condition I always sensed that I was not quite ready to say goodbye. I was right. And that's all I have to say about that!

Hope
While I may not have been ready to say goodbye - mom was certainly ready for death! Not only was she way past tired of that broken body, mom also had a rock solid conviction about her future in the next life! She believed passionately in the promises of Holy Scripture summed up in these two declarations: "...to live is Christ and to die is gain" (Phillipians 1:21) and "To be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord" (2 Corinthians 5:8) She was a life-long follower of Jesus Christ and because of that she knew that the life she has today would be far, far better than the one she had last week! And because I share her belief and have committed my life to Christ I'll see her again someday in Heaven. So really my goodbye is more like a "I'll see you later mom." In fact, that's exactly what I said the last time I spoke to her last Sunday!

Heaven
I'm not really sure what it's like. The Bible is crystal clear on some things. Like that it's reserved for those who trust their life to Jesus Christ and commit to following Him. But it seems foggy on other matters with only snap shots and blurry glimpses of that reality. Maybe God knew we couldn't handle knowing much more. Streets of gold? Mansions? Crowns? Singing? Whoa - now if that one's for real then mom's right at home. She loved music! She had an absolutely beautiful voice and was an accomplished pianist - both of which the stroke robbed her of. Yet even though in her later years she struggled to form the simplest single words in conversation, she somehow could sing along in complete phrases while listening to her favorite gospel songs. I bet I know what she'll be doing for the next thousand years or so!

Life
When mom went to the nursing home we all knew that would be her final residence in this life. A few weeks after she went there she and I were talking one day and she seemed so sad. The nursing staff had told me that she wouldn't eat or respond much. (btw - that staff of nurses and aids at Lake Point in Augusta, KS were incredible in the way they cared for mom and loved on her.) As we talked I remember hearing a God whisper to encourage her to find a ministry. So I told her something like - "Mom, the only way you'll ever find joy in this place is if you first give it to others. This place is full of hurting people. Find a way to serve them - even with your disability. Give them some joy and I promise God will give you back more than you give."

To be honest I never really knew how she did with that. She usually seemed sad when I visited, crying when I arrived and when I left. But at the funeral one of her nurses shared that mom was considered the resident greeter. Evidently she was always at the front door in her wheelchair smiling and acknowledging folks as they came in. I knew she was usually there when I arrived but I thought she was just waiting for me. Then came these words from the nurse: "She had a smile that would light up the room and always wanted to make others smile." Wow - way to go mom! And thanks for reminding ME! I won't forget.

 Friends
A few days before mom died my sister had called to tell us mom wasn't doing well. I called my brother, told our daughter and son, let a few friends know, and then we all headed to Kansas to be with her. From that moment on we began receiving texts, calls, Facebook messages, cards and emails from so many friends, family and co-workers. They were coming in literally from all over the world. Each offered their prayers and support. It has been so encouraging and we have felt so loved.

Mom's funeral was planned to be a small grave-side service. We all anticipated that it'd be mostly immediate family and maybe a couple of life-long friends. Before the service we gathered at a little Methodist church for lunch before heading out to the cemetery. As we sat down to eat I looked up and almost couldn't believe it as extended family and friends I hadn't seen for years began to show up. How did they know? Where did they hear? We felt so honored and again so loved. We didn't eat much but oh what a great time it was to reconnect.

When we arrived at the cemetery we stepped out of the car into a cold January-in-Kansas wind. It was about 20 degrees and we were all bundled up. As we walked toward the grave we suddenly noticed that even more had arrived at the cemetery for the service. My co-pastors at NorthBridge had driven 4 hours one-way from Springfield to stand in near zero windchill weather for a 30 minute service. Others had traveled from all around the area. We were overwhelmed and again felt so loved and supported!

I have a fresh understanding of why God urges us not to get lazy, as we're so inclined to do, and forsake connecting and encouraging each other (Hebrew 10:25 MG version). During this past week we have felt so encouraged by our families, friends, co-workers, those we see daily and those we haven't seen in some time. God has used them all to bless us during this difficult time!