Solid Relationships...Leadership....Effective Team Ministry (PT. 1)

 Greetings,

Relationships are important to God as evidenced by God (the Father), Jesus, (the Son) and Holy Spirit. According to the scriptures, each function according to the role and responsibility established by God the God Head. MacMillan (2001) notes that solid relationships are one of the characteristics of effective team performance (MacMillan, 2001, chapter eight).

Temple reminds that the goal of teams in ministry is to make disciples and that without goals and a valid mission becomes a social club (Temple, 2019, part 2).

In consideration of MacMillan and Temple's discussion, this writer's value statement promoting the value of solid relationships among team members believes that an effective team ministry requires an intentional development of team members submitted to working together in commitment to each other, communication that is positive and respectable, and collaborative relationships not solely as individuals, but through a team effort objectively geared toward a common philosophy of winning souls for the Kingdom as mandated by God for the Church in Matthew 28:18-20. This value statement is in effect the ministry team’s way of staying focused on what is important to the team and what is not important to the team. 

Some key essentials undergirding this writer’s value statement is that building the ministry team is:

·         Intentional and effective in what the team believes.

·         Teams achieve greater goals as team members rather than as individuals.

·         A Team is on body with diverse talents and skills.

·         Teams have specifically geared skills that help enrich and build the team united in

·         its scope.

·         Team building is positively grounded in one body, with one common philosophy (Temple, 2019, part 1).

The question asks can teams be effective without solid relationships? This writer says no because, as the name states, it is team ministry, not solo ministry. Lowe and Lowe (2018) research discovered patterns of mutual submission are witnessed through ecological systems, growing not in isolation but rather thrive in "interconnectedness" (p. 37) and communal models of "interrelationships" (p. 37), results-producing assigned "nutrients and resources" (p. 37) benefiting the whole system (Lowe & Lowe, 2018, p. 37).  For example, the parable Mark 4:26-29 illustrates the teaching by Jesus that each person plays an active role in the growth of the Kingdom; however, through the collaborative efforts of a man working with God that produces a harvest (Lowe & Lowe, 2018, pp. 42-44).

Secondly, are teams limited by the level of genuineness and depth of relationships, or the lack thereof, among team members? Yes, teams restrict their potential to create healthy relationships when cultivating healthy relationships is not the team's value. For instance, Temple (2019) stresses that teams that lack relationships among groups produce weak areas in the team's building. Moreover, cultivating healthy relationships should be the objective all Christians seek equally in their individual and working relationships. Understandably, working with others is not an easy task, but with God's help and willingness to forge forward, success is achieved.

Bountiful Blessings,

Minister Sylvia Joyner 🎕

References

MacMillan, P. (2001). The performance factor. Unlocking the secrets of teamwork. Broadman &

Holman.

Temple, T. (2019). Building the ministry team part 1. [Video]. https://libertyuniversity.

Temple, T. (2019). Building the ministry team part 2. [Video]. https://libertyuniversity

Lowe, S. D., & Lowe, M. E. (2018). Ecologies of faith in a digital age: Spiritual growth through online education. IVP Academic.

 

Rebellious Spirits...God's Judgement: Numbers 16: 1-14; 23-35

 Greetings,

Learning from one's mistakes is one of the hardest lessons learned. One lesson is sinning against God and continuing to sin again and again in the same fashion. To do so will undoubtedly get God's attention! Learning and doing requires intentional attention in stopping patterns of disobedience, rebellion, and unbelief from taking up residence in our lives. The narrative journey of the children of Israel is a timely lesson of the importance of learning from their sinful nature and the development of a gracious heart toward God. 

Case in point, Korah's rebellion. Korah was a descendant of the tribe of Levi, the third of Jacob's sons, and a first cousin of Moses and Aaron. According to the Biblical narrative, he experienced the Exodus and the journey through the Red Sea. In fact, he was with the Israelites as they received the Torah (Law) at Mount Sinai (Altein, "Korah: The Rebel of the Bible," chabad.org). 

Despite his personal and intimate fellowship in the experiences shared with the Israelites, Korah decided to incite a rebellion against Moses, the leader of the Israelites. Harboring and acting on actions to derail God's leader and His people never ends well for the inciter of the action and those choosing to follow as well. Critical to analyzing and learning from Korah's decision of insurrection is understanding the word apathy. What is Apathy? According to Mirriam-Webster dictionary, apathy is "the feeling of not having much emotion or interest in things or something." Our decisions, beliefs, and actions point us toward belief or unbelief. The choices one makes in life either suggest confessing Christ entirely or living a life of apathy. Apathy is a word all Christians should familiarize themselves with. 

Matthew 5:37  reminds us to “But let your communication be, Yea, yea; Nay, nay: for whatsoever is more than these cometh of evil.”

Apathy is rebellion!!!

Remember, Satan used the same rebellious actions to influence a third of Heaven to see him as God. Apathy is one of the most effective tools because it can deceive individuals into believing it is a neutral position they can take. Apathy is not neutral!!! Furthermore, it is a severe offense to place one's desires in things God has not called us to or even equipped us for. Each member of the Body of Christ is essential and plays a vital role in fulfilling the mandate of God.

Point of Wisdom: Be satisfied in where God has planted you, and watch God bless you immediately.

However, go ahead and read what happens as a result of his rebellious spirit in Numbers 16:23-35 (it doesn't end well for him). Hopefully, Korah's story will not be your story.

Blessings and Assuredness,

Minister Sylvia Joyner

Hello...This is the Complaint Department...How May I Help You?

 Greetings,

One of the strangest behavior all humans have in common is the tendency to complain. In most cases of human complaining, the complaining about a matter is not true to the facts, but instead, the events are contrived romanticisms. True to form, our failure to remember the details accurately undermines the real issues that may be an authentic list of wrongdoings.

A case in point is the wilderness account of the children of Israel after leaving Sinai as they proceeded to the Promised Land (Numbers 10: 11-12). However, true to human forgetfulness, they continue in their behavior of complaining. Exposed is their complaining against God (Numbers 11:4-6), complaining to God (Numbers 11: 10-15), and God as the solution (Numbers 11:16-23). 

What were they complaining about-Manna provided by God (now you will have to read the story).

Their behavior teaches two lessons: complaining distorts the facts, leading to a romanticized view of past events, as well, embellishes past hardships, and provides no articulate distinction for the present. Essentially, complaining, as seen in the Israelites complaint narrative, provided them with a false sense of the past and blinded them to the present blessings of God.  

However, the beauty of their story is that Moses, although displeased and frustrated with their complaining, reveals God's provision, patience, and promises to a nation of people that complained and were unappreciative for His blessings.

Overall lessons for us today, remembering God's goodness is the antidote to complaining. 

Joyful Blessings,

Sylvia Joyner                        

Human Nature and Decision Making

 Greetings....

Yes, this writer agrees that the most challenging action to do is tell the truth for most humans. However, in this writer's experience, that is the essence of human nature, and it probably will not change unless people are willing to accept the consequences or rewards of honesty. Bandura (2006) relates that most people are moral agents, which is rooted in personal standards of human behavior and is guided by an individual's "cognitive foundation of morality" (Bandura, 2006, p. 171). Decision making is or should be considered an important event in one's life. This writer agrees with "In all your ways acknowledge Him and He will direct your path" (Proverbs 3:6).

There's an old adage this writer always uses, you may know it too, it says, a person cannot stop the birds from flying over their head, but a person can stop them from building a nest in their hair (hope I said it right, sometimes I can mess it up). In a nutshell, even when an individual voices their concern with scriptural support, it still may not be enough to help the other person see a better solution. One of the things this writer has learned about human nature is that people will do what they want to do, whether they are Christians or not Christians. 

Another consideration is that in Harvey's (1988) stories, the common thread of human nature opposes the self for the benefit of pleasing others. This writer has often pondered why would an individual of good intellect choose to go against their better judgment for the sake of making everybody else happy. Psalms 31:24 admonishes the Christian leader and follower to "Be of good courage, and he shall strengthen your heart, all ye that hope in the LORD" (King James Version).

In those quiet moments on the way back after deciding, we come to ourselves and wonder why that decision and not another. This writer remembers the Prodigal Son's perils in the context of making decisions and going against what he knew in his heart was the right decision. However, after coming to himself, he realized that his decisions were not in his best interests but others. This writer also believes that the stories' point of view is that they can help individuals focus not on past mistakes but future decisions. 

References

Bandura, A. (2006). Toward a psychology of human agency. Perspectives on Psychological

Science, 1(2), 164–180. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1745-6916.2006.00011.x

Harvey, J. (1988).  The abilene paradox and other meditations on management. Jossey-Bass.

King James Bible, King James Version. (2020). King James Bible Online.

https://www.kingjamesbibleonline.org/Psalms-31-24/.  (Original work published 1611)

The Thief Within Ourselves...

Hello...

Have you ever given thought to all thieves do not enter from the outside? But many can be easily found within ourselves.

The nature of a thief is not to announce when he will break into your home, place of business, your heart, and even your life. Reminder his strength is his ability to surprise. There are no announcements made about when he will break in; he just does. How so, you say? To begin with, his strategy starts with an element of surprise, right? The Word of God says, the enemy's purpose is strategic in stealing, killing, and destroying, and God's purpose is to give us a life filled with a satisfying end-John 10:10.

 

Not all thievery is committed by thieves found outside of one's self; there are thieves within ourselves too.

So, if we genuinely can process John 10:10 in its complete conception, one thing one can learn is that the enemy, whether from within or without, has a plan for your life called total destruction of your life.

The same weapons used by the enemy are the same weapons we adopt that are found within ourselves to fulfill the same plan the enemy has for us. For example, a few are time, commitment, consistency, integrity, and procrastination. Now, of course, this list is not exhaustive but does represent a good representation of things that can steal one away from God's purpose for life that is satisfying and abundant.

The question I pose is, why are we helping the enemy on the outside bring his plan for our destruction to fruition? You must know the enemy hates you, right? So why waste our life as thieves of our time, commitment, consistency, integrity, and procrastination. I challenge you in knowing and believing that God's plan for your life is better. 

The plan of the enemy in John 10:10 is a living reality with a deadly purpose. 

Blessed Abundance,

Sylvia Joyner