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Horrible Leaders…

Jun 2

Posted by Jim Botts in Hearing God | 2 Comments

What makes for a horrible leader?

Most people are admittedly not experts on great leadership.  But I believe that most people are experts on horrible leadership–because most people have lived under it first hand.

So, in order to grow into a better leader, I recently asked a bunch of Facebook friends and Twitter followers to fill in the blank regarding horrible leadership.

Fill in the blank: Horrible leaders_____________!

…are indecisive

…judge

…lead horribly

…are oxymoronic

…abound (they’re everywhere)

…assume

…say they will do something and don’t

…lack clear vision and purpose

…take more than they give

…demand more than they risk

…blame others for their failings

..project their dysfunction throughout the organization

…find themselves leading no one

Ouch!  I found myself guilty of several of these infractions.  This list compels me to re-evaluate a few things in my approach to leadership.

How about you?

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Living In Your Time Zone

Mar 6

Posted by Jim Botts in Hearing God, Relationships | 2 Comments

800px-You_are_here_-_T-shirt

A while back my family and I relocated into a different time zone.  We moved from the CST time zone (Central Standard Time) to the PST time zone (Pacific Standard Time).   “What’s the big deal?” you ask.  Well, just a two-hour time difference.  Two hours may seem like a small change, but it created huge upheaval for me.

All of my life rhythms got knocked off balance.  I felt as awkward as a dog in the back seat on a car ride.  My fitness routines were disrupted.  My spiritual disciplines became disheveled.  Every routine in my life got knocked into a state of disequilibrium.  I really could’ve used a time zone converter to help me adjust to living in my time zone.

There are times in life when all of us find it hard to live in our current time zone–not geographically, but existentially.  Past mistakes (or successes) as well as future worries (or expectations) can keep us from peace in the present.  Here are some lessons I learned about living in my current time zone.

1.  Get past the past ~ The biggest obstacle to present-tense-peace was my own desire for things to be the way they were.  I loved the consistency of routines that helped me grow physically, spiritually, and relationally.  However, those days were gone and they weren’t coming back.  Moving to a different place meant moving on to new rhythms.

2.  Build the future today ~ Everyday I preached to myself, “The road to tomorrow runs through today!”  Like a song that makes the day go faster, I kept reminding myself that I was creating tomorrow’s life-rhythms today.  Every awkward action became another stepping stone carrying my feet into the future.

3.  Live in the present ~ Living in the present moment is much harder than it sounds.  Distractions, frustrations, dead lines, and obligations confronted me like a bullies in the lunch line with their hands out.  Present-tense-peace is something I had to fight for; over and over, and moment by moment.

I’ve discovered that God is in-tense.  He is fully present “in” the present “tense.”  And if God is in-tense, I needed to learn how to live in-tense too.  In-tense living has been all about the moment-by-moment realization that I can only experience God’s Presence in my present tense.

I’m really learning how to live in my time zone.  Everyday I fight to be in-tense with God, my wife, my kids, and whoever God puts in front of me.

After all, the past is past.  The future flows through the present.  And I can only experience God in this present moment.  Just like God, I want to live in-tense!

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People = carriers!

Oct 19

Posted by Jim Botts in Following Christ, Relationships | 5 Comments

swine-flu

With the spread of H1N1 (aka swine flu), lots of people are worried about catching diseases from others.  And they should worry–because people are carriers!

Everybody’s carrying something, not just physically, but spiritually too!  Scripture teaches that you can catch spiritually transmitted diseases from people.

“Don’t you realize that this sin is like a little yeast that spreads through the whole batch of dough? Get rid of the old ‘yeast’ by removing this wicked person from among you.” (1 Cor 5:6-7, NLT)

People can be contagious carriers without ever realizing it.  In fact, some of the most spiritually infected people have no clue that they are sick…or that they are harming others.

Here’s what to watch for in order to avoid spiritually transmitted diseases…

1.  An uncovered mouth ~ everyone knows that an uncovered mouth is the portal to serious sickness.  All too often, people open their mouths and spew division, suspicion, and negativity on you.  If you put up with it, it’ll make you sick.  When dealing with verbally infected Christians,  Scripture cautions us to keep our distance.

2.  Unwashed hands ~ infectious germs spread rapidly through unclean hands.  Some people never deal with their dirt, and thereby infect others with the junk they never dealt with.  If you get too close, their dirt will become yours.  When it comes to unrepentant Christians, Scripture says to quarantine those who WILL NOT come clean.

3.  Inconsiderate attitude ~ some people never think about how their sickness affects others.  These people bring their runny-nosed kids to school.  They sit by you all day, and later admit they had the flu all night long. Everyone gets sick, but not everyone cares about not spreading their sickness. When it comes to infected Christians, Scripture tells us to give them a dose of loving truth.

God doesn’t want us to live like germophobes, seeking to isolate ourselves in a bacteria-free world.  He wants us to care about and protect the health of His community.

As for me…I’m gonna cover my mouth, keep my hands clean, and be mindful of the affect I’m having on others.

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Read about how one person created a pandemic of spiritual sickness affecting a whole community here ~ read Joshua 7.

**Post your thoughts / comments below**

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The Body Language of Leadership

Sep 16

Posted by Jim Botts in Leading Others, The Jesus Mission | No Comments

12198090531909861341man silhouette.svg.hiWhat image comes to mind when you hear the word “leader”?

For so many people, the word “leader” conjures up negative images of people who were in a leadership position over them, but never really brought the best out of them.

Most of us need image replacement therapy!

We need new images of what healthy Biblical leadership looks like!

If we look at Jesus, we’ll see the body language of a healthy leader…

An Ear ~ To Listen

Jesus asked 183 questions in the four Gospels.  Not because He lacked information, but because He valued interaction.  Jesus interacted with, and listened to, the people that He led.  Great leaders are great listeners, and great listeners ask great questions.

Don’t get me wrong, Jesus did not lead by popular vote!  He led people by earning people’s trust, and listening builds trust for leadership.

A Shoulder ~ To Lean On

Jesus compared His leadership to an ancient device used to lighten the load on an animal.  Healthy leaders do NOT dump on their people or unload on their followers.  Instead, like Jesus, they bear the burdens of those they lead!!!

A Hand ~ To Lift You

Jesus had dirty hands.  He reached down and lifted up people who stumbled and fell.  After Peter had denied Jesus three times, he gave up on his own leadership and went back to his old life of fishing.  Jesus met Him at that place, reached out and lifted him back up, restoring Peter’s life and leadership.   John 21:15-25 shows Jesus lifting up, NOT putting down, one of His fallen followers!

Sadly, all too often leaders punish those who fail them.  Unhealthy leaders retaliate by withholding good, shaming, or by failing to lift up and restore fallen followers.

An Eye ~ To Cast Vision

Jesus was the Master Vision-Caster.  He constantly painted a picture for His followers of God’s vision and perspective.   Healthy leaders lead with the Bible!  People need to see what God sees, understand what God is up to, and enter into what God is doing.  Just as a gold fish grows to the size of its bowl, followers grow into the size of the vision cast for them.  Jesus modeled how BIG vision develops BIG followers.

A Foot ~ To Move You

Honestly, what most of us need more than anything, is a swift kick in the pants from a trusted leader (in Christian love, of course).  Jesus often put His foot in the small of His followers backs and gave them a gentle nudge.  Jesus demonstrated that healthy leadership means nudging people out of complacency and into mission (Matthew 10:1-42).

A Heart ~ To Love You

Jesus loved His followers, and they knew it!  They knew it because He prayed over them, He patiently instructed them, He lovingly corrected them, and He always gave His time to them.  Healthy leaders love those they lead by giving them ~ time, attention, affirmation, direction, perspective, and prayer support.  If you’re being led well, you are being loved well, because leaders love those they lead.

I’m trying my best to allow Jesus to lead through me in this same way.  As a result, two times in the last 24 hours I’ve had people tell me, “this is the first time anyone has ever taken the time to lead me like this.”  I’ll never be a perfect leader, but I can be a healthy leader growing into Christ.

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It Takes Two…

Jul 8

Posted by Jim Botts in Leading Others | 1 Comment

…to have a relationship.

two way

This week I was reminded that genuine friendships are marked by mutuality (two people freely sharing a give-and-take life together).

Here’s how it all went down…

MONDAY ~ My good friend Roger Poteet asked about coming by to check my leaky hot water heater in my house.  Since my house is on the market, and he is a professional technician, he wanted to make sure the leaky tank didn’t create issues for us.

While I was at work Roger stopped by to work on the tank.  With one turn of  a wrench he turned my hallway turned into a waterway–not a little drip drip, but a full force river…in my hallway!  In less than 3 minutes my good friend Roger released 30 gallons of water into my hallway, warping my hardwood floors.

Imagine the look on my face when he met me at my front door to tell me about my the new water park he installed in my house.  Roger assured me that, together, we’d replace the tank and install the new lines–even if it took all night.

Here’s the tricky part…Roger promised his wife he’d have dinner with her (for the first time in weeks due to his busy work schedule).  Instead, he spent several hours at my house removing and installing a hot water heater.  Roger gave up an evening with his wife to bail me out (literally).

TUESDAY ~ I received a call from a friend saying, “Roger has been in a terrible car accident, his truck is totaled and he’s being taken to the hospital via ambulance right now!”  Since Roger is more than a friend, I dropped everything and raced to the hospital.

When I got to the hospital I met his wife Liz who was totally distraught (to say the least), and assured her that God is still good and in control.  The whole staff team from LifeChurch.tv SouthSide rallied around her to pray and sit with her.

Rather than wait in a waiting room, Liz and I waited together in the ambulance bay to catch Roger when he arrived.  As they wheeled him out of the ambulance we were relieved to see him in decent shape.  As he rolled by I looked over him and said, “We’re right here, you’re gonna be alright!”

As I went in to see my friend Roger in the ER, I prayed over him, encouraged him, and hung out with him there!

Here’s the punchline…1 year ago Roger asked me to be his mentor.  For one whole year we have travelled the two way street of relating together.  God has grown us both tremendously over the last year for the following reasons…

  • We travel the two way street of helping each other.
  • We travel the two way street of serving each other.
  • We travel the two way street of challenging each other.
  • We travel the two way street of praying with each other

Leadership looks like relationship!  Relationship looks like traveling the two way street of mutuality!  It turns out that it takes two to have a relationship!

What about you?   What do you think makes friendships genuine?  What does mutuality like in your relationships?  What do you think of one way relationships?

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