I’ve just had one of those moments. Having spent a few minutes sat in the toilet (no, not in the toilet. I hadn’t fallen down legs shooting into the air grasping for the sides. I was simply sat on the toilet) and then came the crisis moment. I turned to where the toilet paper should have been – the clue, of course, being the word ‘should’. The toilet paper wasn’t there. The very thing I wanted was not in the place I expected it to be. I turned to alternate 1: … no. Alternate 2: reaching behind to the place impossible to see, grasping with my hands for that velvety smoothness which promised relief. No. I was getting a little desperate now, looking around this way and that, desperate in a way I hadn’t been before. My wife! I know she had done this to me. She probably used the last piece on purpose and had not put another roll in. She must have been laughing away to herself while she took the kids to school.

Options were starting to flow through my tortured mind; pull them up but not quite all the way, then casually wander to the other bathroom. Pull them all the way up wander into the bedroom and then change. I could use a page from Glyn’s book or risk it all and do the shuffle. You know the shuffle where you can’t walk properly because of the position of your pants! Shuffle was looking good. But as I resigned myself to the ignobility of the shuffle of shame I spied the roll, directly behind my left leg. In my panic I had missed it. All this time the very thing that I had hoped for, searched for, believed for, even made faith declarations over, had been with me; unnoticed, unused and ignored.

Stop today and look at the young people you have with you. See who they are, the massive talents that they posses, the passion they have for life, and realise that they are who you have been searching for. The key is simple – belief in them coupled with releasing them to be the person God has uniquely called them to be. There isn’t another group out there better than them. These are the people that God has put you with. These are people that have been drawn to you.

Ask your young people great questions about who they are and what they feel God has called them to do with their lives. You will be stunned by the answers, but only if you invest the time to discover them.

Then offer to partner with them in walking the journey of destiny. Focus not only on fulfilling your dreams but theirs as well.

Most of the answers to your problems, you’ll find in your amazing group of young people and through them, you can take the world that you each inhabit.

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Stop, Look and Listen by Stuart Keir was published in the December 2006 edition of JOY Magazine.

Stuart Keir is a core team member of Audacious. Stuart is the Associate Director of Youth Alive UK and the Senior Pastor of London City Life Church.

Ten Characteristics of Audacious Leadership

If you were to look at 2 Samuel 23:8-37, you would read about David’s Audacious Men (‘mighty men’ to be exact).Guys like Josheb-Basshebeth, Eleazar & Shammah were awesome leaders who accomplished great feats because they were Audacious. There are 10 characteristics of Audacious leaders. If we had a nation of young leaders who embraced these – imagine what we could accomplish!

1. Be there

This is so simple – it’s profound. The reason that Josheb, Eleazar & Shammah inspired the nation through their leadership, is because when it counted the most – they were there!

Josheb (v8) means – ‘to whom people turn!’ The reason people could turn to Josheb was because he was proven in battle & life. He was there when it counted most, people had watched his life & had liked what they had seen.

I can imagine Eleazar as an old man, telling his grand children about the time when they ‘taunted’ the philistines before winning a great battle against them (v9). He had the story to tell because he was there – on the battle field!

Shammah was able to take ‘his stand’ (v11) – because he was there!

Audacious leadership is about making the decision ‘to be there’ when it counts the most. To be in the lives of the young people when they are going through difficult times & to be in their faces when they are about to make crazy decisions.

One of the great things you can do for your young people this year is make a decision on there behalf to be at ‘Audacious’ – to be there when God is moving, so that after the summer your young people can say – “I was there when that happened!”

2. Stood their ground in single combat

In verses 8, 9 & 11 we read about each of the three Audacious leaders standing their ground in single combat. There are times when I feel invincible & there are other occasions when I feel like I couldn’t fight my way out of a paper bag! Josheb, Eleazar & Shammah stood in the face of an oncoming enemy & retreating comrades – they didn’t have courage in numbers, they just simply stood their ground!

There are times in leadership when you simply have to stand your ground!

In verses 10 & 12, we see that their stand turned defeat to victory! When you stand, you have to have the confidence that you can turn potential defeat into victory (see Eph 6:10-14a).

Sometimes all you have do is stand!- even if those with you have run!

3. Excuse became opportunity

Someone once said – ‘One man’s junk is another man’s treasure!

Eleazar was on a battlefield where the excuses were flying thick & fast as his army fled before the oncoming enemy. He had an excuse to run away too. In v10 it says that his hand was so tired, it froze to the sword! Others at that point would have retreated, but Eleazar didn’t, he turned his potential excuse into an opportunity to stand!

This year, there will be lots of reasons why you can’t accomplish your God-given desires for your youth / young adults. In reality, the excuse can provide the opportunity you need to become an Audacious leader who rises above the obstacles & sees great things come about.

There will probably be reasons why some of you can’t make Audacious in the summer – Hey why not change the excuse into the opportunity you need, to see a miracle & commit to being part of the week!

4. Comradeship

In v9 it says ‘Eleazar was WITH David!’. In v11 it says ‘next to him was Shammah’. Their fight & service for Prince David wasn’t an independent one. They weren’t Lone Rangers attempting to make a name for themselves, they were in it with the Three Musketeers motto ‘One for all – all for one!’ Their service for David was a relational one!

In Judges 18:1-2a ; 7 ; 27-28, the tribe of Dan were still waiting to take possession of the promise land. They had fought battles previously against other cities & towns – but had lost. Then they saw the city called Laish & noticed that the people of Laish had no relationship with anyone else. The Danites attacked Laish & won because the people of Laish had no-one to call on for help.

The strength of Davids Mighty men, was who they were with.

The Audacious Culture is a relational culture. It’s about building networks & relationships with like-minded leaders who won’t let obstacles & excuses stand in the way of taking the nation for Jesus! Audacious leaders are relational!

5. Grace

In V9-10. Eleazar whipped the enemy single-handedly! By right, the spoils of Victory were Eleazars – but graciously he allowed his fellow soldiers to join in & collect the spoils of war because he was gracious.

Grace is best defined as- ‘Undeserved Favour & Mercy’. The soldiers didn’t deserve the spoils of war – but that’s grace – it’s undeserved.

You are recipients of God’s Grace every day. Audacious leaders show grace. They forgive; they choose not to write people off & choose to go the extra mile for those who need it!

6. Bold

In v12 it says that Shammah took his stand in the middle of the lentil patch! Notice that he wasn’t cornered like a rat in a trap, he boldly stood & faced the challenge of the enemy!

I remember hearing a preacher years ago make the point of noting that out of all the armour of God listed in Ephesians 6, there is none for the back of the body!

God has designed you to be bold, full on, with no retreat. Next time you are in a place of conflict in leadership – be bold!

7. Fought for supply lines

In v 13 it says that ‘During Harvest Time, the philistines camped in the valley of Rephaim’. Otherwise known as the “Valley Giants”, this valley was 1 mile long. It was here that the food was growing for the people & the enemy set up camp there. David’s mighty men made a decision to fight for the supply lines – the food that the people desperately needed in order to live!

Some of the most important battles you will fight, are for your supply lines!

In the Old Testament, Daniel had to fight for the supply line of communication / relationship with God. Esther had to fight for the supply line of Identity. David had to fight for the supply line of Sexuality. Job had to fight for the supply line of what is real.

If the Devil can corrupt or destroy the right supply line into you as a leader, he can affect your influence.

Question – what battles do you need fight with regard to supply lines concerning – Identitiy, sexuality, priorities, spirituality, future, and career etc.

8. Honour

In v14-17, David expressed his desire to drink from the well in Bethlehem. Some of his men then fought their way through enemy lines just to get him the water he wanted. David probably wasn’t overly thirsty – there would have been water in the mountains where he was hiding. More than likely he was expressing a desire to be home.

David was the prince of the mighty men & they chose to honour him by their actions.

The dictionary defines honour in the following ways, (i) “to show great respect for someone or thing especially in public (ii) “to do what you said you would…” (iii) “A quality that combines, respect, pride, honesty”

Audacious leaders honour those they serve.

Question – Who is your prince & how can you honour him/her? Your prince may be – a lecturer / boss / parents / pastors / leaders. Certainly we are called to honour the leaders of our nation ie the Prime Minister etc.

It would be awesome if the motto of Audacious was = Those who come learn forgotten code; HONOUR!

9. Generational

In v33 we read about Jonathon . Jonathon was Shammah’s son & he sought to follow in his fathers footsteps. Later, Jonathon was to be included in David’s 37 might men! To be an Audacious leader, our outlook on life has to be a generational one! – This not just about us, it is about those we lead & the generation that will come after them.

Leadership is so important because, the legacy we leave will affect generations to come! The future really is in our hands.

10. Cause

In 1 Chronicles 11:10, we read the same passage as 2 Samuel 23, but it defines the cause of the mighty men. Their cause was to give ‘David’s kingship strong support & extend it over land’.

Our cause as Audacious leaders is to give strong support to the King (Jesus) & shout His fame through the land! Everything we do as leaders should be aimed at lifting up the name of God & doing everything within our power to see the Nation won for Jesus! We can only really do that by living out the characteristics of the Audacious leader –

1. Be there
2. Stand your ground in single combat
3. Let your excuse be the opportunity
4. Comradeship
5. Grace
6. Boldness
7. Fight for your supply lines
8. Honour
9. Have a generational outlook
10. Live the Cause!

 

 

Glyn Barrett is the Director of Audacious and Youth Alive UK. He is a sought after communicator and author. Glyn and his wife, Sophia, are the Senior Pastors of Audacious City Church. They live in Manchester with their two children, Georgia and Jaedon.

The Art of Generational Leadership

“…Asa begat Jehosophat, Jehosophat begat Jehoram, Jehoram begat Uzziah, Uzziah begat Ahaz…” (Matt 1v8-9) Let’s be real for a minute; “How many of you enjoy reading the genealogies in the bible?” – “I see two hands out there!” If you are anything like me; I skip Genesis five & eleven. I give some of 1 Chronicles a miss & I definitely don’t spend much time pondering the deeper meanings of the genealogies in Matthew chapter one. Too many men “…begetting other men…” What’s that all about?

In 2 Timothy 3:16, Paul reminds the young pastor Timothy that; “…all scripture is God-breathed…” Which means that we can’t escape the fact that the word; begat, begot, begettest, begetteth & begotten, which appears well over 200 times in the King James Version, is in there for a reason! “…All scripture is God breathed!” Where do you go with something like that? God is clearly highlighting something to us.

It’s clear in Genesis chapter two, that man & woman were created to reproduce! To become the Father or Mother of another is not merely a nice thing, it is fundamental to the purposes of why man was created in the first place. God made man & woman, so man & woman could make man & woman!

But there is more to the passages in Geneses, 1st Chronicles & Matthew chapter one (amongst many others) than just having babies. The reason we read so many types of genealogies in the Bible is because God is a generational God! God does not just have a heart & a passion for one particular age group, living in a certain period of time.  

§ John 3:16 tells us he died for “…the world…”

§ 2 Sam 14:14 reminds us that “God…devises ways so that a banished person may not be estranged from him…”

§ Rom 10:9 says; “If you confess Jesus is Lord…you will be saved…” irrespective of age!

§ Matthew 19:14 Jesus says; “…let the little children come to me…”

§ Psalm 92:13 says; “…they shall still bear fruit in their old age…”

God has a heart for all age groups, all generations at all times! He is not confined by time! He sits outside of time & looks in on us. He is not just everywhere, but He is also EVERYWHEN! He is in tomorrow already & can see the consequences of the decisions you make today; for your life & also in the generations to come. In fact much of the Bible was written to highlight how one generation in turn affects the next!

The word “Begat” merely highlights the commencement of the next generation. God is into the generations because he made them!

§ That snotty nosed 6 year old on the street corner – God loves him!

§ That 16 yr old girl in youth who is so self conscious – God created her!

§ That 27yr Old who is married, settling down & has little time for church – God in interested in him.

§ That 43 year old businessman, who has got it all together – God is into him

§ That 67 year old Grandma who has seen it all – God is into her

§ That 93 year old Great Grandfather–“…they shall still bear fruit in their old age!”

If God is so much into the generations, then why do many of our churches have “generation gaps?” Why are the teenagers missing? OR why are the Baby boomers absent on Sundays & in the small groups? It’s simply because “…the art of generational leadership…” has been forgotten!

The Generations alive in 2006

There are currently four generations walking the streets of our nation. They are best defined as;

§ 0-17’s – Generation Y

§ 18-37’s – Generation X

§ 38-56’s – Baby Boomers

§ 57+ – Builders

What is Generational Leadership?

Leadership, as defined by Jon Maxwell is; “Influence!” We all have influence in varying degrees & therefore by definition are all “leaders” to some extent.

The art of Generational leadership is all about training the movers & shakers of each generation, so they in turn can influence their peers to pursue the purposes of God.

Characteristics of people Jesus identified as Generational leaders

Jesus identified 12 men who were to become the influencers who would forward the cause of the Kingdom. The characteristics of the disciples were many & varied. They were:

1. Able to work hard – Mk 1:16

2. Obedient / willing to try -Lk 5:4-5

3. Able to work well as a team – Lk 5:7

4. Able to Leave everything – Lk 5:11 / 5:28

5. Decisive – Mk 1:18-

6. Skilled – Mk 1:7

7. Faith filled for provision – Mk 1:18

8. Ready – Mk 1:20

9. Not swayed by human expectation

10. Able to carry insult / be rejected by men – Mk 2:14

11. Not bothered by social taboos – Mk 2:15

12. Bold – Matt 16:16

13. Audacious – Jn 1:3

14. Team builders themselves – Mk 1:41

15. Full of Integrity/Transparency -Mk 1:47

Generational leaders don’t come ready made like this. And they certainly fail at times. But through persistence, patience & training, generational leaders are identified & developed, who in turn are instrumental in raising up a strong generational church.

Training the generational leaders

I heard a story some years ago about a sales executive who persuaded his Boss to invest millions of pounds into a project. After several months, it became apparent that the venture was going to fail & all the monies would be lost. The sales executive sheepishly entered his boss’s office & offered his resignation, to which the boss replied; “Why should I accept your resignation? I have just spent millions training you!”

Some “generational leaders” who have some of the characteristics outlined above, simply do not know how to do the tasks given them. Expectation is placed upon un-trained “leaders” to accomplish a task, & then frustration sets in as expectation is met with disappointment. Fundamental to having a generational church is the task of training those identified as the movers & shakers of each generation.

How do you become the generational leader?

1. Establish Relationship (Matt 4:18-22)

I once heard someone preach on; “how amazing it was that the disciples would instantly drop their nets & follow someone they did not know, let alone ever have seen before.” But from scripture, this is clearly not the case – Jesus seemingly called those he had relationship with. Follow this thought pattern:

• Jesus was born Bethlehem (Matt2:1)

• He was raised Nazareth (Matt 2:23)

• He was baptised in Jordan (Matt 3:13)

• He was tempted in desert (Matt 4:1)

• He live in the region of Capernaum (Matt 4:13)

o All of this happened before he called the Disciples.

• The Sea of Galilee where Jesus called many of the Disciples was in Capernaum. Jesus would have walked by the Sea of Galilee, even swam in the water as a child. The Sea of Galilee was his “turf”. Jesus would have seen the Peter James & John Before. He may have even fished with them?

• In fact we know for sure that Jesus had relationship with Peter. The Bible records at least 2 occurrences where Peter & Jesus interacted before he called Peter by the Sea of Galilee:

o In John 1:42 Jesus visited Peter’s home

o In Luke 4 & Mark 1 we read of Jesus healing Peter’s Mother in Law

o In Luke 5, Jesus asked to get into Peter’s boat so he could preach.

The point is that Jesus had relationship, and continued to build his mentoring of the disciples on “relationship” & not just position alone.

2. Develop trust (Matt 15:25-32)

In the Story of Peter & Jesus walking on water, we are reading not only about faith but also trust. The disciples are in a boat, in a storm when they see Jesus walking on the Water. Jesus is not walking on a mill pond, but he is walking over crests & into the troughs of waves. Peter is relatively safe in the boat, but his mentality was; “ I would rather be “out there” walking with Jesus on the water, in the storm, doing the impossible, than relatively safe here in the boat!” Most of us would have opted for “safety”, Peter opted for “trust”. At Jesus command – Peter stepped out of the boat into “trust-land!”

With any mentoring / training, there has to be a certain level of trust. The person you are training must know that they can trust you. There are no discouraging or disparaging remarks made about them behind closed doors, but that you as the mentor have their best interest always at heart. Lack of trust can create havoc in the attempt to build generational church.

3. Establish a degree of informality

As a child I had a weird concept of Jesus, probably because of the way the movies had portrayed him. I saw him walking around, with his arms slightly outstretched, palms open towards heaven & with a deep booming, labouring voice. Literally, the view I had of Jesus & his teaching was; “Very formal & officious!”

In actual fact, the majority of Jesus teaching was informal.

In John 8:12 Jesus says; “I am the light of the World!” Jesus said this at the end of the feast of tabernacles, at a time when the great flame from the temple in Jerusalem would have been extinguished. Perhaps Jesus had been walking with his disciples, passed the temple & saw the smoke bellowing from the canister that housed this great light. Now that the light was extinguished, Jesus saw it as an opportunity to reveal to the disciples that “He was in fact the light of the world, & that he would never go out!”

Conversely, Jesus story telling ability was second to none. The parables were the informal method of teaching truth. In actual fact, Jesus was less formal & more informal then we may care to imagine.

4. Plot A – B (Jn 14:12)

In John 14:12, Jesus says; “Anyone who has faith in me will do even greater things than I have done…” Looking at the disciples at the time, this was hard to imagine, & yet the disciples were to become “miracle workers” like Jesus. John 14:12 was where the disciples would end up. A group of “confused, argumentative, & fearful” warriors are what they were at this point. And yet, training leaders is about identifying where they are now & seeing the person as they will be. To keep the eye of Point B, whilst keeping an eye on the reality of present day will avoid unrealistic expectations being placed upon the trainee.

5. Observe strengths & capitalise upon them (Matt 16:21-23)

Peter’s strength was that he was “Outspoken!” Jesus chose not to look at it as a weakness, rather strength. In fact Jesus, capitalised on this characteristic of Peter’s.

How did Jesus capitalise on it?

• Matt 17:1 – He took Peter to the Mount of Transfiguration whereby there was an outburst of a ridiculous nature form Peter

• Matt 17:24 – He included Peter in a Conversation about money & asked him for his thoughts n the issue.

• Matt 18:24 – He tolerated Peter’s questions on issues of the culture

• Matt 26:37 – He took Peter to the Garden of Gethsemane, to watch & be there

• Matt 26:69 – He allows Peter to deny Him.

• But then in ACTS 1 v12 Peter is mentioned FIRST

• In V15 Peter Speaks FIRST – Peter is now the leader.

• In Acts 2 – Who preaches? Peter! And 3000 people get saved!

This outspoken, brash characteristic was honed & fine tuned over three years so that Peter could arrive at the place where he began to speak out as the generational leader. That which you think may be a weakness in you trainee, may actually be a strength that you can capitalise on & use in the generational church

6. Sandwich Discipleship

The sandwich discipleship simply means to;

• Encourage

• Discipline

• Encourage!

Any discipline should come in the middle of a good healthy batch of encouragement, Some leaders discipline out of a place of position. The better alternative is to discipline from a place of relationship. Franklin Covey encourages us to see people’s lives as a bank account. You have a personal bank account in each person you are in relationship with. If you discipline a person, then you make a withdrawal from that account. When you encourage, you deposit into that account.

Some leaders are in their overdraft with people they are training because they have made more withdrawal than deposits. Choose to develop leaders from the place of relationship & you’ll get the best out of those you are developing. They not only enjoy serving God, but have times when they are privileged because they get to serve you

7. Give homework & evaluate (Lk 10)

In Luke 10 – Jesus sent out the 71. They later returned to Jesus rejoicing because; “…even the demons submitted to us in your name…”

In this passage, Jesus had sent out those he was training with some homework. They were to take the Kingdom of God into towns & villages. The report they gave wasn’t enough to satisfy Jesus & so he began to evaluate their work & also tell them about what their priorities should be. Jesus was evaluating what they had done.

When you sit & train, you should always give the trainee something to do. The practical application of what they have learnt is vital if they are to retain the wisdom received. Make a point of evaluating their work once it is completed.

The raising of generational leaders in the church can be a lengthy process, but it is fundamental if the church is to truly represent all ages.

 

Glyn Barrett is the Director of Audacious and Youth Alive UK. He is a sought after communicator and author. Glyn and his wife, Sophia, are the Senior Pastors of Audacious City Church. They live in Manchester with their two children, Georgia and Jaedon.