I was honored to be the preacher for my home congregation's 125th anniversary service this past weekend. Trinity Lutheran Church in Sauk Rapids, Minnesota got a nice little write-up in the St. Cloud Times. My father, Paul, has served this congregation for 17 years. In that time many things have happened, including a relocation from a historic building to a brand new facility on the edge of the growing city. They also birthed a Sudanese immigrant ministry, and are training a man to be the pastor of this new mission. Imagine these dark-skinned Sudanese dotting the landscape of lily white central central Minnesota.
At 125 years you begin to learn something. You can look back at your heritage and track God's providential hand in the blessings as well as the tragedies. I am grateful for heritage, especially as I stood next to my father in the worship service. We represent a 5th and 6th generation of Lutheran pastors in the United State. That is not a source of boasting or even a source of pride. Rather, it is a source of humbling perspective. There is an overwhelming sense that God has been up to something for a long time, and I get to participate in it.
0 Comments
"Success has many mothers; failure is an orphan."
- Folk proverb People line up to take credit for success. No one wants failure on their resume. It is a remarkable person who takes responsibility for failure. And when success comes, the remarkable person gives the credit to others. And no one knows how successful they really are. And "blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth." It seems there are 3,458 books on Christian leadership. “Seven Principles.” “Lead Like Jesus.” “Twelve Steps.” I’m burned out on such literature. Here are a couple things I’ve come to conclude on leadership from a Christian vantage-point. For more reading, my favorite leadership book is an unexpected book called In the Name of Jesus by Henri Nouwen.
Christian Leaders Serve: Christian leadership is distinctly humble in its posture. It is servant leadership. In the Kingdom of God, first is the servant and great is the slave (Matt. 20:20-28). The leader puts himself/herself under others. This is leading from “below.” The business world has a model of leadership with this title. Yet the goal of this servant leadership is still “success” or “revenue” or “outcomes.” Servant leadership finds its goal in the well-being of others. Christian Leaders are Strong: Servant Leadership is NOT weak leadership. Humility requires strength. A common perception is that the Christian leader is only nice, kind, and gets stepped on. But for the sake of others, the Christian leader is willing to assert a muscular persistence in pursuit of God’s will. Christian Leaders Take Responsibility: Leadership is largely about responsibility. 1.) Be faithful in what you are responsible for. 2.) Grow in your responsibility – for more people, for greater tasks. 3.) Leadership means taking responsibility for things that aren’t your fault (ie. Jesus on the cross). It will mean pain and trial. The greater the leader you are, the more responsibility you can handle. Many shun leadership because they don’t want the responsibility. Many shun responsibility and are poor leaders. Christian Leaders Learn and Earn: Leadership is both learned and earned. 1.) Learned from Mentors. Paul in I Cor. 11:1: “Be imitators of me, as I am of Christ.” 2.) Earned in Experience. Dallas Seminary Professor Howard Hendricks: “Between 80-90% of leadership development is on-the-job training.” “Taught by the Holy Spirit in the school of experience.” FYI: Easter isn't over. Dr. Jeff Gibbs of Concordia Seminary, St. Louis, offers appropriate resurrection focus for our Easter celebration. Enjoy.
The shooting death of Trayvon Martin has grown into a national discussion. In this Holy Week, a re-read of the biblical record gives us cause to ponder another unjust death. With the background of the Trayvon Martin case, I’ve become further aware of the injustice bestowed on the first century Teacher from Galilee. The death of Trayvon Martin has rekindled national debates about racism, stereotypes, and profiling. At the heart of the emotion and outrage is a deep sense of injustice. It is remarkable that there was no petition for justice in the case of Jesus of Nazareth. No protestor proclaiming, “No justice, no peace.” Nothing like the “I am Trayvon Martin” t-shirt. The gospel writers clearly underscore Jesus’ innocence, but absolutely no one stands up for him. Neither did the early Christians protest. Instead they actually celebrated the injustice. The very “logo” of Christianity is the device by which Jesus was unjustly executed. The death of Trayvon has permeated the news media cycle. Family and friends say, “We will not forget.” But as is typical with tragic events, they slowly dissipate from memory. The 24-hour news cycle grabs the next tragedy. It is remarkable that news of the cross event has not gone away. Not only has Jesus “not been forgotten,” but he has advanced into the very lives and activity of his followers for 2,000 years. He is not only a memory, but a “living present,” and “future.” The death of Trayvon has vilified the shooter, George Zimmerman. Rightly or wrongly, he is clearly the national “bad guy.” It is remarkable that Jesus dies for the “bad guys” and villains. For the thief on his periphery. For his executors as he says, “Father, forgive them.” What we have in the case of this first century Jew is nothing short of remarkable. No news media outlet could have spun this story. Maybe there is a divine author after all. |
JOIN My Tribe
|