Y Sunday, May 25, 2008Y
8:05 pm
Charisma is defined as, "The ability to inspire enthusiasm, interest, or affection in others by means of personal charm or influence." Leaders who have this special ability share four things in common:1) They Love Life
Leaders who attract a following are passionate about life. They are celebrators, not complainers. They're characterized by joy and warmth. They're energetic and radiant in an infectious way.
Look no further than the smile to illustrate the power of charisma. When people see a smile, they respond with a smile. If you're skeptical, try it. Smile at cashiers, waiters, co-workers, etc. You'll find your smile earns a reciprocate smile almost every time. We are hardwired to take on the energy of those around us. Leaders who love life have charisma because they fill the room with positive energy.
2) They Value the Potential in People
To become an attractive leader, expect the best from your people. I describe this behavior as "putting a 10 on everyone's head." Leaders see people, not as they are, but as they could be. From this vantage point, they help others to build a bridge from the present to a preferred future.
Benjamin Disraeli understood and practiced this concept, and it was one of the secrets to his charisma. He once said, "The greatest good you can do for another is not to share your riches but to reveal to him his own." When you invest in people and lift them toward their potential, they will love you for it.
3) They Give Hope
People have an inner longing to improve their future and their fortunes. Charismatic leaders connect with people by painting tomorrow brighter than today. To them, the future is full of amazing opportunities and unrealized dreams.
Napoleon Bonaparte once said, "Leaders are dealers in hope." They infuse optimism into the culture around them, and they boost morale. While attentive to the current reality, they do not resign themselves to present circumstance.
4) They Share Themselves
Leaders with charisma add value to people by sharing wisdom, resources, and even special occasions. They embrace the power of inclusion, inviting others to join them for learning experiences, brainstorming sessions, or simply a cup of coffee. Such leaders embrace team spirit and value togetherness. As a result, charismatic leaders are not lonely at the top.
When it comes to charisma, the bottom line is othermindedness. For leaders, the greatest satisfaction is found by serving. They find great pleasure celebrating the successes of those around them, and the victory they enjoy the most is a team triumph.
SUMMARY
In closing, charisma has substance. It's not manipulative energy or a magical gift endowed upon select personalities. Rather, it's an attractive blend of learnable qualities.
Furthermore, charisma compounds a leader's influence. Without it, leaders have trouble inspiring passion and energizing their teams. With it, leaders draw out the best in their people, give the best of themselves, and find the greatest fulfillment.
7:36 pm
If you ever wonder how in the world God could use you to change the world, look at the people God used to change history. A ragbag of ne’er-do-wells and has-beens who found hope, not in their performance, but in God’s proverbially open arms.Abraham- God took what was good and forgave what was bad and used “old forked tongue” to start a nation. Moses- would you call upon a fugitive to carry the Ten Commandments? God did. David- his track record left little to be desired, but his repentant spirit was unquestionable. Jonah- God put him in a whale’s belly to bring him back to his senses. But even the whale couldn’t stomach this missionary for too long.
On and on the stories go: Elijah, the prophet who pouted; Solomon, the king who knew too much; Jacob, the wheeler-dealer; Gomer, the prostitute; Sarah, the woman who giggled at God. One story after another of God using man’s best and overcoming man’s worst.
The reassuring lesson is clear. God used (and uses!) people to change the world. People! Not saints or superhumans or geniuses, but people. Crooks, creeps, lovers, and liars—he uses them all. And what they may lack in perfection, God makes up for in love.
Jesus later summarized God’s stubborn love with a parable. He told about a teenager who decided that life at the farm was too slow for his tastes. So with pockets full of inheritance money, he set out to find the big time. What he found instead were hangovers, fair-weather friends, and long unemployment lines. When he had had just about as much of the pig’s life as he could take, he swallowed his pride, dug his hands deep into his empty pockets, and began the long walk home; all the while rehearsing a speech that he planned to give to his father.
He never used it. Just when he got to the top of the hill, his father, who’d been waiting at the gate, saw him. The boy’s words of apology were quickly muffled by the father’s words of forgiveness. And the boy’s weary body fell into his father’s opened arms.
The same open arms welcomed him that had welcomed Abraham, Moses, David, and Jonah. No wagging fingers. No clenched fists. No “I told you so!” slaps or “Where have you been?” interrogations. No crossed arms. No black eyes or fat lips. No. Only sweet, open arms. If you ever wonder how God can use you to make a difference in your world, just look at those he has already used and take heart. Look at the forgiveness found in those open arms and take courage.
And, by the way, never were those arms opened so wide as they were on the Roman cross. One arm extending back into history and the other reaching into the future. An embrace of forgiveness offered for anyone who’ll come. A hen gathering her chicks. A father receiving his own. A redeemer redeeming the world.
No wonder they call him the Savior.
From No Wonder They Call Him the Savior
© (W Publishing Group, 1986, 2004) Max Lucado
7:10 pm
Next sunday is the first day of the 21 day of prayer. I am so excited and enthusiastic about it. I believe that this 21 days will be the catalyst to a series of breakthroughs in my life! I pray that I will have the tenacity and discipline to focus on praying for this 21 days. I wanna hear from God during this period, seeing visions and dreams. This 21 days will make me become a more effective witness for Christ! =)
6:50 pm
Went to today's prayer meeting after serving today as door usher. Thank God I stayed back for it. It was really wonderful and amazing.I appreciate Pastor Ming's discipleship today. First, he prayed for those people who couldn't speak in tongues. Tongues is the language of angels. I believe those people who made the breakthrough today, must have been tremendously impacted.
Then, he also taught us what must we do when we pray, asking 3 ppl to act out what to do when they pray. He also says that we can minister to ourselves by laying one hand upon our head and the other at our heart or lifted up.
Then after that, there was mighty move of God, people began falling under the power of God, and breaking out in holy laughter. It was a really wonderful experience. There was an amazing atmosphere of peace after that.
I think he really renewed our mind towards prayer meeting, changing most people's belief system that prayer meeting is boring, into the fact that prayer meeting is one of the most important highlights of our church. I tink I will remember this prayer meeting for years to come as it was out of the ordinary and usual.
Y Monday, May 19, 2008Y
11:55 am
Thank God for the long weekend! Yet, somehow I feel that I didn't make full use of this weekend as much as I would have liked. It wasn't really very fruitful. Suddenly, time seems to pass so fast, and nw its the last day of this long weekend. I tink next time, need to prepare a list of a "what-to-do" list for a long weekend. I don't want another long weekend to pass me by. The opportunity to do something great and fruitful during this weekend has slipped out of my hands. I tink i need to add "Seize the moment" to my goal list for 2008. Been reading this week's Dr. Robb Thompson's Daily Success Keys. I find them very motivational and inspirational. An extract from one of them really strikes me:
"God has already given you everything you could ever need to achieve victory in your mind. Yet, here are two crucial questions:
1.How are you going to bring that victory into a real experience?
2.How do you accomplish mind renovation where, and when, it really counts?"
The first question really hits me hard. In the bible, Paul could rejoice in the Lord even when he was in prison and chains. He says "Rejoice, and again I say Rejoice!". Wow, a man of great faith leaning upon God! Yet so many people are miserable outside of prison, living according to their circumstances. Someone once said that the biggest prison in the world is between your ears. How true! The moment your thinking changes, your life changes. That's why we must constantly renew our minds through the reading of God's Word! =)
11:42 am
Cries of loneliness. Tune out the traffic and turn down the TV. The cry is there. You can hear their cries. You can hear them in the convalescent home among the sighs and the shuffling feet. You can hear them in the prisons among the moans of shame and the calls for mercy. You can hear them if you walk the manicured streets of suburban America, among the aborted ambitions and aging homecoming queens. Listen for it in the halls of our high schools where peer pressure weeds out the “have-nots” from the “haves.”Many of you have been spared this cruel cry. Oh, you have been homesick or upset a time or two. But despair? Far from it. Suicide? Of course not. Be thankful that it hasn’t knocked on your door. Pray that it never will. If you have yet to fight this battle, you are welcome to read on if you wish, but I’m really writing to someone else.
I am writing to those who know this cry firsthand. I’m writing to those of you whose days are bookended with broken hearts and long evenings. I’m writing to those of you who can find a lonely person simply by looking in the mirror.
For you, loneliness is a way of life. The sleepless nights. The lonely bed. The distrust. The fear of tomorrow. The unending hurt.
When did it begin? In your childhood? At the divorce? At retirement? At the cemetery? When the kids left home?
Maybe you have fooled everyone. No one knows that you are lonely. On the outside you are packaged perfectly. Your smile is quick. Your job is stable. Your clothes are sharp. Your waist is thin. Your calendar is full. Your walk brisk. Your talk impressive. But when you look in the mirror, you fool no one. When you are alone, the duplicity ceases and the pain surfaces.
Or maybe you don’t try to hide it. Maybe you have always been outside the circle looking in, and everyone knows it. Your conversation is a bit awkward. Your companionship is seldom requested. Your clothes are dull. Your looks are common. Ziggy is your hero and Charlie Brown is your mentor.
Am I striking a chord? If I am, if you have nodded or sighed in understanding, I have an important message for you.
The most gut-wrenching cry of loneliness in history came not from a prisoner or a widow or a patient. It came from a hill, from a cross, from a Messiah.
“My God, my God,” he screamed, “why did you abandon me!” (Matthew 27:46)
Never have words carried so much hurt. Never has one being been so lonely.
Out of the silent sky come the words screamed by all who walk in the desert of loneliness. “Why? Why did you abandon me?”
I keep thinking of all the people who cast despairing eyes toward the dark heavens and cry “Why?”
And I imagine him. I imagine him listening. I picture his eyes misting and a pierced hand brushing away a tear. And although he may offer no answer, although he may solve no dilemma, although the question may freeze painfully in midair, he who also was once alone, understands.
From No Wonder They Call Him the Savior
© (W Publishing Group, 1986, 2004) Max Lucado
10:15 am
I know I’d read that passage a hundred times. But I’d never seen it. Maybe I’d passed over it in the excitement of the resurrection. But I won’t miss it again. It’s highlighted in yellow and underlined in red. You might want to do the same. Look in Mark, chapter 16. Read the first five verses about the women’s surprise when they find the stone moved to the side. Then feast on that beautiful phrase spoken by the angel, “He is not here, he is risen,” but don’t pause for too long. Go a bit further. Get your pencil ready and enjoy this jewel in the seventh verse (here it comes). The verse reads like this: “But go, tell his disciples and Peter that he is going before you to Galilee.
Did you see it? Read it again. (This time I italicized the words.)
“But go, tell his disciples and Peter that he is going before you to Galilee.”
Now tell me if that’s not a hidden treasure.
What a line. It’s as if all of heaven had watched Peter fall—and it’s as if all of heaven wanted to help him back up again. “Be sure and tell Peter that he’s not left out. Tell him that one failure doesn’t make a flop.”
Whew!
No wonder they call it the gospel of the second chance.
Not many second chances exist in the world today. Just ask the kid who didn’t make the little league team or the fellow who got the pink slip or the mother of three who got dumped for a “pretty little thing.”
Not many second chances. Nowadays it’s more like, “It’s now or never.” “Around here we don’t tolerate incompetence.” “Not much room at the top.” “Three strikes and you’re out.” “It’s a dog-eat-dog world!”
Jesus has a simple answer to our masochistic mania. “It’s a dog-eat-dog world?” he would say. “Then don’t live with the dogs.” That makes sense doesn’t it? Why let a bunch of other failures tell you how much of a failure you are?
Sure you can have a second chance.
Just ask Peter. The message came loud and clear from the celestial Throne Room through the divine courier. “Be sure and tell Peter that he gets to bat again.”
It’s not every day that you get a second chance. Peter must have known that. The next time he saw Jesus, he got so excited that he barely got his britches on before he jumped into the cold water of the Sea of Galilee. It was also enough, so they say, to cause this backwoods Galilean to carry the gospel of the second chance all the way to Rome where they killed him. If you’ve ever wondered what would cause a man to be willing to be crucified upside down, maybe now you know.
It’s not every day that you find someone who will give you a second chance—much less someone who will give you a second chance every day.
But in Jesus, Peter found both.
From No Wonder They Call Him the Savior
© (W Publishing Group, 1986, 2004) Max Lucado
Y Sunday, May 11, 2008Y
1:21 pm
Of the original Fortune 500 companies listed in 1955, only 71 remain on the list today. Companies once deemed indestructible have fallen by the wayside. Corporate titans of enormous influence have completely disappeared in the span of a few decades. Staying power has been rare atop the Fortune 500. Instead, the list has undergone a steady turnover from year to year. Reaching the top is a monumental achievement, but remaining there may be the most spectacular feat of all.The fate of the Fortune 500 begs the question: Why haven't the best of the best been able to maintain success?
In this edition of Leadership Wired, we'll explore reasons why first place is not an easy place to stay, and we'll look at suggestions to help leaders keep hold of the top spot.
FIRST PLACE ERASERS
The biggest detriment to tomorrow's success is today's success. Winning carries with it a slate of temptations dangerous enough to topple the grandest of corporate CEO's. I call these temptations the first place erasers. Falling prey to them is a surefire ticket to the second tier.
The Momentum Myth - Leaders presiding over good times and high profits begins to relax. Comfort sets in, and the leaders lose their edge. Hard work and a sense of urgency are replaced by naive optimism and idleness. Falsely believing they can coast, leaders fall asleep at the wheel. The end of their vigilance coincides with the end of their time at the top.
The Reputation Factor - Leaders begin to place their position above their production. They live off of yesterday and their best moments. Having already notched big victories, they quit fighting to reach their potential. Consequently, they drive the organization downhill toward mediocrity.
The Entitlement Mindset - Leaders believe they have a right to be number one. Oftentimes these leaders have been given their position rather than having earned it. Expecting preferential treatment, they have an underdeveloped work ethic. As a result, they are unable or unwilling to make the sacrifices required to stay in first place.
The Revolving Door - Leaders quit attributing their success to talented performers at all levels of the organization. People tire of laboring in obscurity, and they move on to new opportunities. Leaders fail to patch the slow leak of talent leaving their teams, and they eventually sink from first place to the middle of the pack.
The Ego Issue - The ego issue trips up leaders who cannot face or admit failure. Since their identity is wrapped in their accomplishments, they do not take ownership of mistakes. To avoid taking responsibility for poor decisions, they may have remarkably high degrees of denial or self-deception. Out of touch, they cannot steer the ship to a first place finish.
Playing Not to Lose - Leaders become cautious and defensive of their perch at the top. They begin to be motivated by fear rather than purpose. Instead of playing to win, they play not to lose. Risk averse and small-minded, they are deficient of the boldness and courage necessary to command a first place team.
HOW TO STAY IN FIRST PLACE
To preserve their first place status, leaders should give extra attention to their passion, practices and people.
Passion
When passion fades, so does a leader's trustworthiness. Gallup conducted a poll in which passion ranked as the leading indicator of credibility within an organization. The results of the survey are hardly surprising. After all, if the leader isn't excited about the purpose of the organization, then why should he or she be trusted? On the flip side, when leaders passionately sacrifice, commit, and invest in their business, they earn the respect of followers and the good faith of constituents.
Passion creates energy. When a leader exudes joy and excitement, he or she magnetically pulls co-workers and customers into a shared vision. Passion is exceptionally strong when linked with a leader's values. When leaders demonstrate principled passion, they are able to appeal to the moral and emotional instincts of those around them.
Practices
Leaders don't rise to the pinnacle of success without developing the right set of attitudes and habits. Healthy habits, practiced consistently over time, will always reap dividends. On the contrary, occasional compromises of values eventually snowball into poor decisions with negative consequences. To keep hold on number one, a leader has to make every day a masterpiece.
People
The best leaders are humble enough to realize their victories depend upon their people. When finding themselves in first place, leaders recognize they are indebted to the ingenuity and talent of those they lead. To stay in first place, leaders have to hand out credit and shine the spotlight on the contributors all around them.
Taken from http://www.maximumimpact.com
Y Sunday, May 04, 2008Y
4:23 pm
The service yest was so awesome! It really stirred up my faith towards soul-winning. The part of the sermon that captured my heart most was about a son being brought back to life by Jesus cos his father will never let him go. Pastor challenged us yesterday to fill the Alpha and Echo zone in hall 8. I believed in 3 mths time, we can do it! I tink this yr will be the yr of breakthru in terms of attendances. The time will come when we can finally say we have 30,000 members! As we move from glory to glory, strength to strength, more disciples will be raised! I tink the great commission will be so evident, that its not just 1 person being sent to his marketplace, but 2-3 people, cos the great commission is the great co-mission!
Of course, there can be no breakthru without the Holy Spirit. He is the Great councilor, a helper , a guide, a friend! No amount of human ingenuity can match God's wisdom! Cos in Isaiah 55:9, it says that "For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways, and My thoughts (higher) than your thoughts." Furthermore in Zech. 4:6, it says "'Not by might, nor by power, but by my spirit', says the Lord"
Furthermore, the greek word "Ekballō" for the word "send" in the verses Matthew 9:37,38 Then He said to His disciples, "The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few. Therefore beseech the Lord of the harvest to sendout workers into His harvest.", means cast out, expel out. This shows the urgency we need to have for soul-winning.