John Maxwell's "25 Ways to Win with People":
16. Find the Keys to Their Heart - Nehemiah and builders
(Nehemiah 2:17-18)
Mike's Thoughts:
When Nehemiah needed to motivate a work force that was divided between support for Nehemiah's "cause" and the local leaders, he made an appeal to the hearts (emotions) of the work force to attain their support. Nehemiah was a true Legacy Leader in that first he prayed, then he took action and when he needed help he appealed to the emotions of the people he wanted to motivate. As a leader, Nehemiah left an excellent legacy for me to learn from. Karl Stephen Brunig wrote a song called "Nehemiah Man" (www.karlbrunig.com) which I really like and talks about working with my tools in one hand and guarding my work with my sword in the other hand. This is very good advice for me today. I do need to work hard with the tools I have to work with and, at the same time, I need to be a good steward of the work I'm doing whether I'm doing it for my company, my family, my community or myself.
Mike's Action Points:
1- First, I should seek God's guidance before taking action.
2- Next, I should take the appropriate action.
3- If I need to motivate others, I should appeal to their hearts/emotions.
4- I should do the best work I can with the tools provided.
5- I need to be a good steward of the work I am performing.
6- I need to always strive to be a "Nehemiah Man".
Please see my Leadership blog: http://legacycoach.blogspot.com
Saturday, October 17, 2009
Tuesday, October 6, 2009
Building Leaders Today, Creating Legacies for Tomorrow
Jeremiah 29:1-14:
This is from a Bible study led by Linda Aubert of Grace Community Church in Houston. I won't show all the text here, but please take a few minutes to read it. It is the story of the Israelites who are in exile in Babylon and through Jeremiah, the Lord sends them a message to move forward with their lives while in captivity and that He will return them to their land in seventy years. They are instructed to make peace with their captors, create a comfortable
and peaceful life where they are at and prepare the next generation for their return to their home land.
Mike's Thoughts:
Often, as a leader, Christians tell me they are just going to pray about a situation and wait for God to deliver them or our nation. This is not Biblical! God always demanded appropriate action from His people in addition to their prayers. In these verses in Jeremiah, God gave his people specific actions to take to improve their current situation and prepare the way for the next generation. Prayer alone was not enough. This is the essence of Legacy Leadership; being in prayer, taking appropriate action for today and preparing the way for the next generation.
Mike's Action Points:
1- I will pray for God to reveal the appropriate actions He wants me to take.
2- I will take the actions revealed to me.
3- I will work to prepare the way for the next generation.
Please see my Leadership blog: http://legacycoach.blogspot.com
This is from a Bible study led by Linda Aubert of Grace Community Church in Houston. I won't show all the text here, but please take a few minutes to read it. It is the story of the Israelites who are in exile in Babylon and through Jeremiah, the Lord sends them a message to move forward with their lives while in captivity and that He will return them to their land in seventy years. They are instructed to make peace with their captors, create a comfortable
and peaceful life where they are at and prepare the next generation for their return to their home land.
Mike's Thoughts:
Often, as a leader, Christians tell me they are just going to pray about a situation and wait for God to deliver them or our nation. This is not Biblical! God always demanded appropriate action from His people in addition to their prayers. In these verses in Jeremiah, God gave his people specific actions to take to improve their current situation and prepare the way for the next generation. Prayer alone was not enough. This is the essence of Legacy Leadership; being in prayer, taking appropriate action for today and preparing the way for the next generation.
Mike's Action Points:
1- I will pray for God to reveal the appropriate actions He wants me to take.
2- I will take the actions revealed to me.
3- I will work to prepare the way for the next generation.
Please see my Leadership blog: http://legacycoach.blogspot.com
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