Quick! What do the following statements have in common?
“Spare the rod, spoil the child”
“This too shall pass”
“God helps those who help themselves”
Give up? They cannot be found anywhere in the Bible. If you don’t believe me, go ahead and find the verse that corresponds to the aforementioned statements. Trust me, you can’t.
God Helps Those Who Help Themselves…Really?
Although it sounds great, it’s not in the Bible. No matter how good it sounds, if we demonstrate some effort to improve, God will give us a little push in that direction. So we decide to make it by sheer willpower and discipline. The problem is, we run out of steam.
This year, millions will make and break resolutions because they’re trying to solve a spiritual problem through earthly means. The challenge we all face is that we want to be transformed. However, we tend to look within ourselves for the solution. The solution resides outside of ourselves. The solution is God.
Transformation is a problem that we cannot solve. That’s why God sent Jesus! Apart from him, we can do absolutely nothing! In Galatians 3:3, Paul reminds the Galatians that God has given them His Spirit and with this – combined with their faith, they can make it.
Who Does God Help?
God doesn’t help those with themselves. God helps those who abide with Him and those who walk with Him in faith (John 15:1-5). Our efforts were never the impetus for God’s transforming grace. Nor will they be the impetus for our changed hearts.
The Bible says that we are justified by faith. We don’t need willpower or self-effort as much as we need faith that God will accomplish in us and for us what we can’t do ourselves. He is the source of what we long for and need. Willpower and self-effort can only take us so far in our desire to change.
A few years ago, I had the opportunity to read David Allen’s book, Getting Things Done. Above all, his book taught how yesterday’s methods just don’t work. We now live in an information society and are constantly bombarded with new information.
In order to be more effective in 2013, we must work smarter… not harder. Allen’s premise is simple:
Our productivity is directly proportional to our ability to relax. Only when our minds are clear and all thoughts are organized can we achieve effective productivity and unleash our creative potential.
Although I read the book a few years ago, I ran across this video and it gave me a refresher on how to be more productive in 2013.
Thank you TEDx for providing this talk about “Stress-Free Productivity.”
How many times have you said, this year will be different? As you prepare for your New Year’s Resolutions, I thought you might enjoy knowing about them according to the University of Scranton, Journal of Clinical Psychology.
New Year’s Resolution Statistics
Percentage of Americans who usually make New Year’s resolutions: 45%
Percentage of Americans who never make New Year’s resolutions: 38%
Percentage of Americans who are successful in achieving New Year’s Resolutions: 8%
People in their 20’s who achieve the resolutions: 39%
People over 50 who achieve their resolutions: 14%
What’s The Point
People make New Year’s Resolutions are 10 times more likely to achieve their goals than those who don’t make any resolutions. In 2013, let’s try something radical – don’t make a New Year’s Resolution!
Successful leaders don’t rest on their laurels, because leadership is not a title on a business card. Leadership is a living process – and that means growth, according to Ken Blanchard & Mark Miller in Great Leaders Grow. Ask any leader “what it takes to become a great leader” and I guarantee you sacrifice is right at the top of every successful leader’s list.
My previous postsuggests, as a leader you sacrifice your time. In case you missed it, you can read it HERE. I once heard someone say, “in order to go up, you must be willing to give up something.” A true leader will sacrifice their personal agenda for the sake of an organization’s goals. In addition to sacrificing time, as a leader you sacrifice your energy.
The task of being an effective leader requires diligent effort and sacrifice. The principles of servant hearted leadership encourage an aspiring leader to invest themselves in others. This means that you need to pour energy into your team and organization. As a result there will be many emotional, mental and physical demands on you.
When preparing for leadership, know that you will have to sacrifice your energy. To counter this, find ways in which you can keep your energy levels up so that you can remain effective as a leader. Physical fitness has great benefits and is one way in which you can keep your energy resources renewed. The important thing is that you be prepared. Don’t underestimate the sacrifice of energy that leadership requires.
It is not just a leader who needs to be encouraging in an organization. A leader needs to know how to surround themselves with a strong team that can also provide them with support when needed. A leader takes on a lot of responsibility. Because they have a position of prominence their actions are often criticized.
Who is encouraging you when you are having a bad day?
Encouragement should be a two way tool. When as a leader you develop an encouraging work environment you should be able to lean on your team for support occasionally. Encouraging words strengthen relationships and make you a stronger team. On days when challenges seem huge, that is when encouragement is most vital. A leader says to the team “Yes you can do it” and the team’s encouraging response is getting to work and believing the leader’s words. When things are going wrong, a leader who is willing to roll up their sleeves and do whatever it takes to turn the situation around encourages without words. In cases like this, actions are more encouraging, earning a leader respect and helping to build stronger relationships.
Genuine encouraging words can only be spoken if believe in your team. People can quickly see through empty praise. If you are the type of person that struggles to delegate and prefers to do everything yourself, then you won’t find it very easy to be encouraging. The reason for this is that most of the time you will think you could be doing a better job yourself.
One of the best ways to encourage people is to give them responsibility. Simply trusting them to take on a task can be more encouraging than any words you may say. A second check is how are you engaging with your team? Do you know them as individuals? How do you know that you are encouraging them in the right direction unless you know their strengths and weaknesses? A good leader develops skills that will help the organization reach their goals. Put the right people in the right position and you will be encouraging them to succeed.
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Best regards,
Clarence E. Stowers, Jr.
