We had a more contemplative time of worship, and Terry did one of his famous “book plug” sessions. He doesn’t just tell you to read a book he tells you why. The books he mentioned were
Planting Churches, Changing Communities by David Stroud. Terry explained the book was full of faith and methodology, information and expectancy. It is full of practical details of what to do that will be helpful for both a church planter and a small group leader.
The second book he mentioned was Just Like Us by Steff Liston is about the ordinary heroes of the Bible.
Stef was also the preacher for this session. It was a free-flowing sermon which ranged all over the Bible and made it a bit harder to take notes on, so I will share just a shorter outline of some of the bullets that stood out to me.
From our hearts flow everything. Above all else we should guard our hearts. He wants to govern and rule the seat of your affections. Everything starts and ends in our hearts.
If leadership is influence, then we are all leaders to some degree or other. People will look to us and be shaped by us. People are around us watching us. So words to the shepherds are relevant to us all.
The shepherds in Israel had forgotten who they were meant to look after. They have assumed that the people belonged to them, and that they existed for their benefit and feeling good about themselves. God says they are not your sheep, they are my people.
God says to them, I will not allow you to feed them because you are eating them. What you are teaching them is breaking them down and leading them astray. He says, I am bringing in a different kind of people. Me, I am going to leave them and the new David – Jesus. It’s a theocracy. I will lead them through a man. That is God’s plan for his people and how they will be lead.
Jesus owns his church. He told us not to call each other “Father”, so it is strange that churches do this. Stef told the story of a time when someone he met introduced himself as follows
“Im Father John but I don’t suppose you will want to call me that”
“No I cant do that really, can I call you John?”
“Not really”
“Mate then?”
“How about Father Mate?”
“No I can’t do that”
“Well in my church you have to call me Father”
“Its not your church!”
If you want to be a leader after God’s heart then you are to do it in such a way so they are being led by the Lord.
There is a reason why Jesus is called David as there are elements of David about Jesus. Matthew 18:1-6. Jesus called up a child and said that only people like a child can get in to heaven. What does it mean to be child like but not childish?
Humility is childlikeness. God is childlike. God never commands us to be something that he is not like himself. God showed his humility by becoming a man, a baby.
Kids delight in simple things. The world has been going on for a long while. Sun comes up, over she goes, and then its gone. God is delighted at the work of his own hands. God has not been tainted by the sin in the world. It struck me as I was listening that God is not cynical like us! He is unblemished.
Kids love to follow. David was a leader, but he was also a sheep. He wrote Psalm 23, as well as Psalm 131 says to not be lifted up, but calmed and quieted. It’s the king of Israel writing this. Spurgeon the city shaker was described by a visitor as someone who was “cradled in the Holy Spirit”
Kids are medicinal – Matthew 19:13-15 Jesus has important things on his mind, the disciples assume he wants to talk to the leaders and important people around. But kids are important. God’s image is in them. Jesus is probably thinking the disciples are bugging me, they don’t understand me, I need someone to pull my eyebrows and ask me what my favorite color is.
Kids are oblivious to hierarchy. They don’t get it. Someone might be an earth-changing apostle, but to the kids perhaps he’s just their granddad.
Kids ask for loads of things and are bold, we can be like that in prayer
Kids know how to enjoy themselves. Don’t be so driven that you cant relax.
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