Sometimes you can spend a countless hours with a person praying with them, for them, mentoring them, pouring into them, taking “hits” for and from them, etc. and while they will never publicly share this with others, yet send accolades, shout outs, happy birthday messages, public support for various things they are never ashamed to stand behind in the public eye, we must stay loyal and faithful to what God has placed us in their life to do, no matter the cost.
We must hold our position God places us, even when “shots are fired” when they manifest and fight back in rebellion and retaliation because this fight is for their purpose and their destiny.
We must remember we are standing, holding firm for what God has shown us is ahead for them…what the adversary does not want them to reach.
The battle, this fight is not about us. We must not take anything personally. Instead, we must discern the spirit that is at work trying to hold them locked down in a place where they do not belong. We must recognize the spirit that is attempting to keep them in bondage, enslaved and trapped.
When we keep our eyes on the Lord and follow the guidance of the Holy Spirit, we can discern accurately, thus provide direction, love, grace, and mercy allowing them to still see HOPE. For, if we take our eyes off of the Lord, we lose the inability to see who they are as The Father sees them. Therefore, we lose the inability to see HOPE for their future and become advocates in their bondage, enslavement, and death of their souls.
So, as we are called to lead, we must also remember that we are called to lead in LOVE. That means that love is unconditional and we stand…stand strong, fighting for the present and future we are entrusted with no matter the cost. We must be willing to put it all on the line for the lives we are assigned.
Do you think the life of Christ was just an example for all Christians to follow just in generality?
Take a closer look and see another perspective.
The perspective of a leader.
The leader who showed us how to teach, love, mentor, guide, and raise disciples while giving all of himself yet wanting nothing for himself. He gave up EVERYTHING for EVERYONE, even those who did not believe in Him BUT He believed in them. As He hung high on the cross, which stood high on Golgotha where he could see all of those below, not just through his vision, but through the eyes of the Father, He saw a void that needed filling…He sought mercy for all who stood before Him. He did not look simply on the outside, but rather who they were and what was going on inside and what was keeping them from moving forward.
The challenge we have with moving forward is what our minds comprehend and what our eyes see. What Christ would show us is that as we are drawn close…closer to The Father, giving up ourselves, willing to sacrifice everything, coming out of our natural minds and our natural vision, taking the mind and vision of The Father, we gain a greater perspective.
So, here He is, on the cross which is ON Golgotha, “the place of the skull.” Keep in mind two major functions of the skull is to protect the brain and the eyes. These two organs we use to literally see the world around us, as we make judgment calls on what to do, when, and how to do it. As we walk through life leaning on our understanding, where does this lead us?
Many times, we are walking around troubled, confused, worried about how things will work. We have highs and lows because one-day things work and the next day, we are unsure if it will, again. Our moods are inconsistent because they are based on situations and circumstances, what we can see and what we cannot.
So, when we operate this way, we wonder why we have difficulty leading and teaching those we come in contact with. We wonder why we have difficulty or inconsistency leading those who are sent to us. It is because we are trusting in what we see and what we understand. We are trusting in what seems to be “normal.”
We forget the demonstrative leadership example Christ gave us in His ultimate sacrifice.
We simplify His sacrifice to the “Easter” type messages we give to the general congregations about how Christ died so we all could live and have everlasting life. Yet, we forget that whenever we are given a message, it is first meant for us. We forget that as we study intensely, we gain the greater message that speaks to us to build us and push us forward. This must happen before we give the shorter and more narrow version to the general public or congregation. I fail to understand how leaders walk into a space believing the same message for the sheep was also for the Shepherd. As one who is leading should your message be of greater substance to help nurture you where you are and not drinking the exact same formula as the rest of the sheep? Honestly, even the sheep do not eat the exact same meal as a lamb. Babies are unable to digest what an adult eats. So why, as a leader, are we watering down the Word for our consumption? How is that helping us grow? How is that helping those we are entrusted to serve, grow?
We want to grow, we must be willing to give something up. We must be willing to follow Christ. Really follow Christ. We must be willing to do whatever it takes, no matter the cost. When Jesus prayed on the Mount of Olives before he was arrested, he asked, ” Father if you are willing remove this cup from me; yet not my will but yours be done” (Luke 32:42). While He understood what was coming was not something we would have “selfishly” volunteered for, would cost Him a great deal, and would rather this not be the case, he says YET not my will but yours be done. Meaning, this is not about me, not about my personal wants, needs or desires, but about my Father’s will and I will surrender everything for that. And so He did. When He committed, help was sent to provide Him the strength He needed for what was immediately coming. Help was provided along the way, when He became weak, beaten and tormented by chastisers, accusers, naysayers, and tormentors. He was able to withstand the harshest treatment that we all cringe and cry when reading about or seeing portrayed in dramatized events. Even through it all, when on that cross, beaten, bruised, whipped, nailed, He hung at a high point, over the people. Not in a place of honor but in a place of humility and high above the place of the skull, closer to the Father where vision is not obscured. He SEES.
He SEES who is really broken. He SEES who is really hurt. He SEES who really needs help and it is not Him. It is those below. Those who in their audible, previously cried crucify him. Those who in their audible mocked and were scornful but the soul cried out pain and suffering from being trapped in their own understanding. The suffering of being stuck in a place with obscured vision. Stuck in a place where hope was not visualized. Stuck in a place where greater was unimaginable. Stuck in a state of unbelief. Stuck in a state…Just stuck…
So understanding what Mercy is, He says, “Father forgive them for they do not know what they are doing” (Luke 23:34).
Mercy is a gift. A precious gift. One that was given to us all, and thus we must continue to give what has been given to us. It comes at a cost. It takes a sacrifice and that sacrifice first is giving up self, your ways, your will, your understanding, and your vision and taking on that which belongs to the Father. As we allow ourselves to become stripped of everything, so we can be raised up and drawn closer to The Father…allowing Him to bring us outside the ways of what our natural mind and eyes would normally comprehend, then we can begin to see the world, His creation and created beings through His eyes. We begin to see them for who He created them to be, therefore begin to gain greater insight to lead them down the path He designed for them. When they begin to rebel or retaliate, we won’t take it personally. When they fail to cooperate, become difficult, or never acknowledge whatever work you have done or continue to do for them, you will not become unraveled. Instead, you will remain Calm and know that because of these actions, you must be on the right back and they are getting closer to another stage in their victorious journey. Celebrate the challenges as that means progress is taking place and you have been following God therefore hell is not happy. Do not leave your post, for this is not the time to give up. Instead…PRAISE.
Give God all the PRAISE, in JESUS name. This is where you have no MERCY and take no prisoners…In YOUR PRAISE.
The Power of your Praise will give your strength to pull through the next phase as you help lead others to live life in Purpose and on Purpose
Welcome to the MERCY Seat!
[As leaders, especially in ministry, we often teach how important it is to love those we are called to lead, but we miss how critical the gift of Mercy is to life and future of we are called to. As believers, we look at who we consider “others” misjudging because of what we believe. The truth is we have failed to see them the way we needed to. We leaned our understanding and our vision, rather than surrendering our EVERYTHING to take on the mind, heart, and vision of The Father so that we may SEE His created beings as he made them. Even as Christ had been beaten, tormented, and crucified, He hung there high over the people in humility and in a place where He could see from His Father’s perspective those who were in a greater need than He. Then He hung there, in His “brokenness” between The Father and those below, seeking MERCY on behalf of the truly broken and hurting. He is not focused on himself, what has happened to Him, and the people below most who are the reason He is there suffering. Instead, He focuses on what is really going on. They are in a place of suffering well beyond any pain that He is experiencing. Why? Because they cannot see the very HOPE for the future before their eyes they were promised. They are so blinded by their unbelief that they are killing the very thing they have longed for, waited for, prayed for, for years. They have their minds made up of what their HOPE should look like, how it should arrive, when it should arrive, that when it came, in an unexpected way, they crucified their greatest gift out of fear and unbelief.]
