Aldwin Naruse (Miyagi)
30 November 2013
Leadership Integrity
This past week’s course material was on the topic of Integrity. Hybels asked two questions- “am I going to survive my calling” and “am I going to cross the finish line” (231)? In retrospect, I believe survival is not the issue. If the high calling is God-driven, then there is no such thing as surviving the calling. It is fulfilling it. A person who follows that calling will just BE and he will accomplish the calling. The evidence of a God-driven calling is the anointing of the Holy Spirit upon him and signs and wonders will follow him, especially in the area of healing and deliverance. If he has to survive the calling, then the calling was probably from man and not from God and he will be subjected to discouragement, doom and burnout. For example, one of my high calling of God is to pray without ceasing (Hayford, 1 Thess 5:17). There are many more. When a person is operating in His own strength, he is outside the hedge of protection. He is not in the will of God. He is operating from His own strength. Being in the will of God protects him from doubt, confusion, burnout, stress, discouragement, distraction and the biggest one of all is temptation (lust of the eyes, lust of the flesh, the pride of life as per Philippians 3:18-19). The joy of the Lord will be present instead of the backbiting and complaining of the ministries. This is the main evidence of the high calling of God. There must be the evidence of continuous joy in the Lord.
Hybels calls his course “the graduate school of endurance”(234). He talked about making your calling sure and staying focus ( Hybels 234). He talked about knowing your calling and staying with your calling. He warns against other ministry opportunities that may come your way to distract you from your original calling. He urges us to learn to say “no” (235).
What this statement tells me is according to Proverbs 29:18, “Where there is no revelation, the people cast off restraint; But happy is he who keeps the law” (Hayford). As per Proverbs, a leader without a mandate, a God-given vision will go off track. He may take on ministries that God did not call him to. Doubt will set in because it is not God-given. One of the reason why a person gets off track is because he wants to be seen and heard and will look for opportunities to shine for himself. A leader in Christ must have the Spirit-lead vision with meaning and purpose. Without a clear vision, man will get discouraged easily. When God gives man a clear vision, He will also empower him with tools, resources, power and authority to accomplish these goals. .
The next thing that Hybels talked about was endurance by developing the courage to change (237). I am reminded of the life of the apostle Paul. Paul had the courage to change. Faith that is not tested cannot be trusted. Paul was placed under tutorial for 3 years. According to the book of Galatians 1:11-24, with references to verses 17-18, which reads, “ nor did I go up to Jerusalem to those who were apostles before me; but I went to Arabia, and returned again to Damascus. Then after three years I went up to Jerusalem to see Peter, and remained with him fifteen days. (Hayford, Galatians 1:17-18)
What this tells me is that Paul remained in Damascus for three years and was being trained up by God Himself. God separated him and called him through His grace so that His son Jesus Christ could be revealed to Paul through divine direct revelation and not through any man. This is to prepare him to bring the gospel to the Gentiles. His mission was first to bring the gospel to the Gentiles and then to the Jews. He was not lead to go to Jerusalem right away. He was being trained up in Damascus by God. He learned directly from God. He received the gospel of Jesus Christ by divine revelation. No one taught him this. When he went to the church of Judea, they were saying he was the one persecuting them and now he is preaching the faith that he once tried to destroy. (Boa) So God brought him full circle, once a persecutor of the Jews, and now an advocate for Christ Jesus.
Integrity was a key word for this week. Taylor Jones said “no leader can lead without integrity.” Dr. Paul Plew said “you are who you say you are.” That is integrity. Words and actions are consistent. This is where character shines through. According to Frances Hesselbein, “It is the quality and character of the leader that determines the results.” Based on what these speakers have said, integrity is mandatory and the prerequisite for leadership. It is not optional. If there is no integrity, there is no leadership.
The apostle Paul’s integrity came from God. During the years in Damascus, God showed him the message of the gospel of salvation. God showed him what His only begotten Son Jesus Christ was all about. Paul did not receive this revelation from man. He got it from God Himself. (Boa)
This week, the topic of core values were discussed. The core values of God are basically found in the book of Matthew 5 in the Beatitudes. What is valuable to Jesus becomes what is valuable to me. The beatitudes talks about being humble, seeking God’s righteousness as opposed to man’s, having an insatiable thirst for God, and being merciful to extend grace. (Boa) The greatest core value is found in Colossians 1. “To them God willed to make known what are the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles: which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.” (Hayford, Col 1:27). Therefore, the greatest core value is Christ Himself. If Christ is not first in my life, then none of my other core values would matter.
My action plan for this week will be to continue to have my quiet time with the Lord, except I will get up an hour earlier. I will rise at 3 a.m. and spend time in prayer, meditation and studies. I will fast and pray. I will remain focused on my high calling which is Isaiah 61:1-3, Acts 2:42-47, and Matthew 28:19-20. I will regroup and rethink all that I am doing in ministry and making sure that I allow no man-driven vision to cloud my God-driven calling. God took me out of the local church twenty years ago so that I will no longer need to subject myself to second hand revelation. I now received first-hand revelation from Jesus Christ. He is my senior pastor. I ascribe to no man, but only to the Lord Jesus Christ.
With regards to my Bible study group, I will share about integrity and what it takes to stay the course. I will talk about the quality of leadership. I shall demonstrate integrity by speaking truth and shaming the devil and following through with action that is consistent with what I say. The Holy Spirit reminded me to keep focus on my high calling. I am to allow no one and nothing to distract me from my calling. Just as General Douglas McArthur sought God before every battle, I too shall seek God before every ministry assignment. I must fast and pray to get clear directions from God before executing every assignment that He gives to me. This way, I will ensure success and victory every time.
Works Cited
Boa, Kenneth, et. al, Open Bible Expanded Edition, Nashville: Thomas Nelson. 1980. Print.
Hayford, Jack W., Spirit filled Life Bible NKJV, Nashville: Thomas Nelson Publishers, 1991.
Hesselbein, Frances. “Definition of leadership.” Youtube. Mentors gallery. 26 Jan 2010 web 29 Nov 2013
Hybels, Bill. Courageous Leadership. Grand Rapids: Zondervan. 2009. Print
Jones, Taylor. “The Master’s College Faculty on Integrity.” Youtube. the masterscollege. 8 Feb.2011. Web. 29 Nov. 2013
Nouwen, Henri. “Being the Beloved, Part 1”. Youtube. belovedson12. 24 Sept. 2009. Web. 29Nov. 2013
Plew, Paul. “The Master’s College Faculty on Integrity”. Youtube. the masterscollege. 8 Feb.2011. Web. 29 Nov. 2013
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