As iron sharpens iron,
one person sharpens another. (Proverbs 27:17)
“In her recent book, Jesus and John Wayne: How White Evangelicals Corrupted a Faith and Fractured a Nation, Calvin University historian Kristin Kobes Du Mez situates Gothard and Piper in a long line of white, alpha-male leaders whose devotion to a militant Christian patriarchy and nationalism inevitably led to…” - Christianity Today
My absentee ballot went into the mail last week. It looked a lot like 2016’s ballot: conservative selections for various state and local positions, write-ins for President and Vice President of the United States.
“Any society thus dominated by its lust will do whatever it takes to satisfy it….Our political and religious landscape is littered with leaders who exemplify this kind of thinking and action—so densely so that there’s no need to name any examples. And we have chosen to follow them. We have elected them, or we have joined their churches.
Of all the great characters found on the pages of Holy Scripture, none—outside, of course, of our Lord Jesus Christ—serves as a greater example to us than the prophet Daniel.
Transported to Babylon in the first wave of the captivity of Judah in 605 B.C., Daniel’s life was upended at an early age. This could have been an excuse for him to abandon any ties to his people and his God. He was taken to a strange land, given a new name and offered all the worldly comforts available in the king’s court (Dan. 1:7-10).
“I have been devouring news and studies of churches and other organizations that are poised to move positively in the future. These organizations are not succumbing to the inevitability of life getting worse and organizational health deteriorating…. they are looking up and looking around to see the new paths and the new possibilities in this new reality.” - Thom Rainer
“A little over a month ago, a good friend posed a scenario to me: ‘If a family member or friend asks why you won’t be voting for Trump, how would you succinctly answer them?’” - John Ellis
“Every so often, a friend and I indulge a favorite argument. The debate is over what matters more when it comes to leadership: Character, or competence? While we both have similar worldviews, I have contended that character matters more, while my friend argues for the greater worth of competence.” - Ref21
“A leader who is a reader places a priority on learning. Learning takes time. For many in leadership, the crowded calendar has already squeezed out every available moment. So, a leader who is a reader is one who has made learning a priority and marked off time to read.” - F&T
“Conflicts are actually opportunities. That doesn’t mean the desired end always happens, but conflicts do give us opportunities to grow and change. This is true for roommates, families, neighbors, churches, institutions, cities, and nations. ” - TGC
Discussion