The Message of Leadership Day 22

STOP. LOOK. LISTEN

Genius always gives its best at first; prudence, at last."
-Lucius Annaeus Seneca

Do you have a tendency to leap into situations without weighing them carefully? That can be a good thing if a person is lying on the side of the road, bleeding to death, and in need of immediate
assistance. However, being impulsive can be fatal if in your haste you are run over by oncoming traffic. Control your impulses and respond prudently.

The writer of Proverbs warns against being imprudent. A careful person will not be right in every decision he or she makes, but will not enter into any decision too lightly either. The prudent person understands that everything does not turn out the way it seems it will at first glance. So think your decisions through, especially the ones with wider implications.

President Jimmy Carter was proud to be known as a peanut farmer from Plains, Georgia. I first met him in 1994 and was impressed with how fit and alert he was for a man of his years. He was one of the most diligent and hardworking leaders we have ever had in the White House, but he has not always been known for his prudence. I well remember the high-stakes gamble he wagered in calling together the leaders of Egypt and Israel that resulted in the astounding success of the Camp David Accords.

But President Carter was also responsible for the daring, but failed, rescue attempt of the Iranian hostages in 1980, which resulted in a fiasco for the would-be rescuers. President Carter was not afraid
to take chances but they didn’t always result in success. The wise caution of Proverbs to exercise prudence is not mere peanuts—it could change the way people think about you—so be prudent.

Essential Insight 22: Weigh your decisions carefully. You can smear a lifetime of accomplishment with doubt in a moment of haste.

Do you know your calling?

I read the devotional message below on the Bible app and felt the need to share this with you! The devotional is titled DISCERNING YOUR CALLING! Enjoy the message:

Passions

Throughout Scripture, God reveals three primary pointers on the road to discerning our calling: our passions, our giftings, and our opportunities to use the combination of those two to glorify God and serve others.

Have you ever wondered why God created the earth and humankind? He certainly didn’t need to. So in one sense, it appears that God created for the pure joy of creating. It’s impossible to read the creation account in Genesis 1 without imagining the thrill God must have had bringing the earth into being, flinging the stars into the sky, and turning the oceans loose. This truth points us to the first question on the road to discerning our calling: What are you passionate about? In other words, what work brings you unspeakable joy?

Isaiah 64:8 says that “We are the clay, and [God] our potter.” Through Scripture and human experience, we innately understand that God uses our passions to mold and shape who we are as individuals. One of the ways in which He molds us and helps us to discern our vocational calling is by designing us with unique passions, the things in life that bring us pure joy. Are you passionate about entrepreneurship, photography, music, arts, law, coffee, sales, or medicine? Those passions are from the Lord! As Psalm 139:13-14 reminds us, God is the one who knitted us together, passions and all.

But while discerning our calling requires that we first identify our passions, passion alone is not enough to make our chosen work a calling. If we stop with the passion question, we will have identified the work we are most eager to do, but we will not have found our calling. Why? Because our work can only be a calling if God calls us to it and we work for His glory and the service of others, rather than the service of self. How do we glorify God and serve others through our work? By choosing work that aligns our passions with the gifts God has given us, allowing us to do exceptional work.

Read more of this devotional on the Bible app.

Devotional

A Spiritual Mind

by Joyce Meyer - posted December 31, 2016

For those who are according to the flesh and are controlled by its unholy desires set their minds on and pursue those things which gratify the flesh, but those who are according to the Spirit and are controlled by the desires of the Spirit set their minds on and seek those things which gratify the [Holy] Spirit.
—Romans 8:5

If you are walking in the flesh, it’s because you put your mind on fleshly things. If you’re walking in the Spirit, it’s because you put your mind on spiritual things.

Imagine a truck filled with concrete. The concrete is eventually going to take the shape of whatever mold it’s poured into—a driveway, a patio, a retaining wall, a road, or a foundation. The concrete cannot take any form unless a mold is created. Your thoughts are like the mold.

Your thoughts create a shape for God to pour His power into, to do something with your life. If you want a powerful life, choose to keep your mind on things that agree with God’s will so He can work with you toward your goals.

Power Thought: My mind is set on spiritual things.