Serving Bread

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Some of our students compiled this video…

Every single presidential candidate is promising that he or she will make our lives better if we elect him or her to the White House. He or she will give us change, offer us hope, make our breath sweeter, make us more prosperous, more productive, happier, better educated, holier and healthier if we cast our vote for him or her.

Presidents simply cannot change much for most of us. For the huge majority of Americans, how much we earn, how healthy we are, how well our kids are educated, that’s all up to us, not the federal government. No government program will make us middle class or rich if we don’t get educated in some way and work hard. No government program will make us healthy if we eat too much or smoke or drink too much, or don’t get exercise. The government cannot provide a lavish retirement for us if we don’t save and invest well. Oh, and all that money the candidates promise to spend? That’s your money, not their money, they’re spending.

In a free society, what we are and who we are depends on us, except for the very most poor among us, where the government can indeed make a difference. But for the huge bulk of us Americans no matter what any Republican or any Democrat promises, it’s up to the people in our house, not the White House. For most of us, what the politicians say is just sideshow barking, and when the circus leaves town we’ve got to get back to basics: work, save and teach your children well, and enjoy the political show. But it’s just show business, not real business.

Ben Stein, CBS News: Sunday Morning, cited in Forbes (May 19, 2008), page 22

Granted Ben Stein leans right politically, but there is something to be said about how much hope we put in a presidential candidate. I do think that who we elect to the White House does matter (a bit more than Stein’s conclusion). Had Al Gore been president in 2000, we most likely would not be at war in Iraq and would not have had the “Bush Tax Cuts.” It seems things would have been fundamentally different for us as Americans.

However, I do agree with Stein in how we may put too much stock in the power of a president or legislator.  We speak of Presidential candidates as serving sort of Messiah’s for us. We have high hopes for what they can and should accomplish.  I recognize that our leaders must inspire us to believe in them and their brand of politics, but at the end of the day, our candidate will have far less impact than we credit them.

Leadership is messy. There are an obsessive amount of books on how do leadership well, and sometimes they make it seem that if you just do the prescribed formula, then you’ll be fine as a leader. Many of the books are fantastic with great tools and insights that have shaped my leadership. However helpful the books and concepts may be, leadership is still messy.

My insight on the messiness of leadership comes in reflection about the role of our personal lives, the complexity of humans, and unavoidable variables that affect life.

Leadership doesn’t have a beginning. People don’t follow me because I have clocked at 7:30pm to lead and speak at my fellowship meeting. People don’t just listen to me when I’m leading a Bible Study. True leadership would mean that people are influenced and follow me in community. On-Time and Off-Time mean nothing when it comes to true leadership. My life matters. I could deliver fantastic sermons, lead people in vision, and pastor people through difficult moments, and yet if I do not have my personal life in order, I have broken trust rather than built it.

Second, people are complex. There are so many variables that lead people to make decisions and stick to commitments. No two people are alike, so how we think about influencing people requires us to entertain various methods.

Finally, there are so many variables that affect our leadership. Insurance policies usually have an exclusionary clause that takes into account “Acts of God” incidents that protects the company from having to insure against acts so extraordinary that humans may not be creative enough to conceive the possibility.

Leadership often presents us with “Acts of God” moments where all our assumptions are false and the rules no longer apply. For example, someone’s sin comes to the surface and they are no longer able to partner with us in leadership, or a crisis hits our particular ministry or mission field that forces us to change focus. “Acts of God” moments require us to react and lead through the crisis as best as we can, knowing that there is no book on the subject.

Leadership is messy. To think of leadership as going through tasks and following the formula set out by others simplifies and cheapens a role and calling that require us to get into the mess and figure out as best as we can.

I’m not much of a prayer warrior, but with gas prices up (with no relief in sight), I may have to join this group of the faithful. It seems that when all else fails (politics, capitalism, boycotts, economics), turn to God. The price of oil continues to rise, and people are now bracing themselves for $5/gallon at the pump. So my friends, why not join the “Prayer at the Pump”?

I’ve been co-leading a small group Bible Study this semester out of the book of James. My only impression of the book until studying it this semester is that it’s practical and that it provides a sort of “anti-thesis” to the argument that it’s all about faith and no works. But James and his letter have been dropping some conviction on our small group. A couple observations about James the writer: 1. He’s blunt and direct (things are black and white, no gray); 2. He seems to be yelling at me (out of love of course).

Here are my ten most convicting verses: (You may want to turn down the volume on your computer, James can get a little hot!)

1. 1.5 If any of you is lacking in wisdom, ask God, who gives to all generously and ungrudgingly, and it will be given you.
2. 1.26 If any think they are religious, and do not bridle their tongues but deceive their hearts, their religion is worthless.
3. 2.6 But you have dishonored the poor. Is it not the rich who oppress you? Is it not they who drag you into court?
4. 2.13 For judgment will be without mercy to anyone who has shown no mercy; mercy triumphs over judgment.
5. 2.17 So faith by itself, it if has no works, is dead.
6. 3.8 but no one can tame the tongue–a restless evil, full of deadly poison.
7. 4.2b-3 You do not have, because you do not ask. You ask and do not receive, because you ask wrongly, in order to spend what you get on your pleasures.
8. 4.4 Adulterers! Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Therefore whoever wishes to be a friend of the world becomes an enemy of God.
9. 4.14 Yet you do not even know what tomorrow will bring. What is your life? For you are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes.
10. 4.17 Anyone, then, who knows the right thing to do and fails to do it, commits sin.

I’m putting together a teaching seminar for ministry leaders on Emotional Intelligence (or EQ). A few years back, I was sitting in one of my seminary classes when I was introduced to the works of Daniel Goleman on the topic of EQ. I was fascinated by the insights of Goleman into human emotions and it’s effects on our leadership. After taking that class, I developed an Independent Study program with a professor at Fuller Seminary to further study the topic.

What EQ basically says that being book smart (i.e. one’s IQ) is not enough for leadership. Smart people could be terrible leaders if they don’t pay attention to their EQ. After ten years of ministry, I have seen the effects of poor emotional management on someone’s ability to lead, despite their academic intelligence or even leadership potential.

Our emotions matter to our leadership. Poor emotional health or intelligence will trump leadership potential and abilities.

Goleman identifies 6 characteristics of EQ. They are:

• Self-Awareness: The ability to monitor our own feelings is important for self-  understanding. The more we are aware of our feelings, the easier it is for us to  make personal decisions.
• Managing Emotions: How do we handle life’s most disappointing and  difficult circumstances? Our ability to manage our emotions allows us to  recognize anxiety or irritability, and bounce quicker from life’s setbacks.
• Self-Motivation: Motivation is a very difficult character to teach. The person  who is not motivated will find every excuse to not fulfill his or her  responsibility. Self-motivation allows the person to take control of one’s life  and decision. They become more and more like the shepherd in John 10,  rather than the hired-hand.
• Empathy: The ability to recognize other’s emotions and be able to respond  well to other people’s emotional gauge. Empathy allows a leader to recognize  the mood of the people he or she is leading, and how to properly lead people  toward vision.
• Self-Control: There are many temptations that come our way, and it would be  very easy (especially for young leaders) to act on impulsiveness. The leaders  who are able to delay gratification and practice self-control will be able to  perform better and make better decisions for the greater good, rather than for  the good of the moment.
• Relational Handling: Like empathy, it is important to handle relationships.  Conflict resolution is one of the most important character traits of a young  leader who is learning to work on a team and take risks in ministry and vision.

There is a lot to be said about Emotional Intelligence. During my independent study, I devised an assessment, reflections and a growth plan. I’ve uploaded my Emotional Intelligence Seminar. Feel free to download it for personal or team use.

From the extended syllabus of Systematic Theology 3:

10. A man’s place is in the army.
9. The pastoral duties of men who have children might distract them from the responsibility of being a parent.
8. The physique of men indicates that they are more suited to such tasks as chopping down trees and wrestling mountain lions. It would be “unnatural” for them to do ministerial tasks.
7. Man was created before woman, obviously as a prototype. Thus, they represent an experiment rather than the crowning achievement of creation.
6. Men are too emotional to be priests or pastors. Their conduct at football and basketball games demonstrates this.
5. Some men are handsome, and this will distract women worshipers.
4. Pastors need to nurture their congregations. But this is not a traditional male role. Throughout history, women have been recognized as not only more skilled than men at nurturing, but also more fervently attracted to it. This makes them the obvious choice for ordination.
3. Men are prone to violence. No really masculine man wants to settle disputes except by fighting about them. Thus they would be poor role models as well as dangerously unstable in positions of leadership.
2. The New Testament tells us that Jesus was betrayed by a man. His lack of faith and ensuing punishment remind us of the subordinated position that all men should take.
1. Men can still be involved in church activities, even without being ordained. They can sweep sidewalks, repair the church roof, and perhaps even lead the song service on Father’s Day. By confining themselves to such traditional male roles, they can still be vitally important in the life of the church.

The Democrats have some odd rules in trying to figure out who their candidate will be this fall. Everyone agrees (including the Clinton campaign) that Obama is ahead in the delegate count. But no one knows the exact number, but there are plenty of guesses (pre-Pennsylvania):

Politico: 1631 to to 1501
AP: 1648.5 to 1509.5
CNN: 1648 to 1504
Eddy: 1647.375 to 1503.22

An element of doing leadership in ministry is that we are often leading people who are volunteering. People are giving their time and energy beyond their other responsibilities. In my case, I am leading people and calling people into leadership who also have to contend with academics, family, and jobs.

Most of the resources and books on leadership tend to focus on the business world, with metrics that measure success along business lines. In business, a supervisor can give financial incentives for people to perform at a higher level. We can’t (or don’t/shouldn’t) do that in ministry.

Leading “volunteers” is difficult because they have less incentive to stay. If someone did not like our vision or my leadership, she could leave and join another campus ministry or perhaps leave the faith altogether. I have had several experiences in the last ten years where someone in my leadership influence walked away. Some organizations and churches may employ pressure tactics and manipulation to make it more difficult for people to leave, but not only does that violate basic Biblical principles, it rarely works in the long run.

As the church, we do have a rich history of the power of volunteerism. The Church is built on the back of “volunteers.” And though the model of church congregations and leadership shortly after World War 2 tended to focus on a pastor doing all the work while the congregation consumed the product that the pastor produced, the tide is turning with more focus on the congregation doing the ministry of God.

For example, at the church I grew up in, the bulletin cites the various leaders of the church. It begins with “Ministers: The entire church”. I think what’s helpful of the emerging church movement is that (at it’s best) it focuses on a community of people doing the work of God rather than focusing on a paid pastor to do that work.

What I am learning about leading volunteers is that there still needs to be an incentive for a volunteer to lead. And that incentive is not monetary or anything that I can offer, but it is God and the goodness of God. In my leadership, I have to create space for people to hear from God and to be excited for the things of God. The best accountability then comes in their desire to know God deeper rather than in anything I can offer them to do their best.

Second, I am learning to listen to people. It is easier for me to set forth my agenda of how I want people to “step up” than to hear how they want to minister. When I create space to hear what moves people and how they want their lives to matter, it allows me to come alongside them and help them articulate and discern God’s calling on their life.

Third, I am learning to learn more about leadership from the organization that knows how to empower volunteers–the church. A couple years ago, Bill Hybels wrote The Volunteer Revolution. But the revolution has been happening for the last 2000 years. One of my historical mentors has been John Wesley. His ministry is but one example of the ways someone empowered volunteers to ministry and bring transformation to their society.

Praise God for the disciples of past, present and future who love Jesus and the mission of God far more than any incentive that could be offered to them!