Reading some John Maxwell stuff and wanted to share:

Effective leaders are always on the lookout for good people. I think all of us carry around a mental check list of what kind of people we would like on our team. Believe it or not, who you get is not determined by what you want. It’s determined by who you are.

It is possible for a leader to go out and recruit people unlike themselves but it’s crucial to recognize people who are different will not naturally be attracted to them.

If you think the people you attract could be better, then it’s time for you to improve yourself.

THE TRUTH ABOUT ATTRACTION:

1. Every leader has a measure of magnetism.

All leaders attract people. Highly charismatic ones often attract large numbers of people, but even modest leaders have a following. If they didn’t they wouldn’t be leaders.

2. A leader’s magnetism may impact others intellectually, emotionally, or volitionally.

Not all leaders affect all people in the same way, not do they use the same means of influencing others. The greatest leaders connect on multiple levels: with follower’s minds, hearts, and wills.

3. Magnetism is neither good nor bad in itself – it depends on what a leader does with it.

Charismatic leaders come in all shapes and sizes. There are Adolf Hitlers and mother Teresas. Magnetism is like money. It’s neither bad nor good. It’s just a tool.

4. While all leaders draw similar followers, secure leaders draw both similar and complementary followers.

Your natural tendency as a leader will always be to attract people similar to yourself: similar in values, age, and attitude, among other things. But secure leaders will be the ones that acknowledge and accept their weaknesses as well as their strengths and are able to attract people who complement their strengths and make up for their weaknesses.

5. Leader’s magnetism is not static.

A leader’s magnetism can be cultivated, shaped, and matured. Like every other quality found in good leaders, magnetism can be developed. The ability to cast vision and connect with people can be improved.  If you will look at people you have been attracting as a leader you will find out a lot about yourself. What you observe may please you. But if it doesn’t – if you’re not getting the kind or number of followers you’d like – there’s good news. You need not be stuck where you are. You can grow and change in this area of your leadership.

Question for thought: What kind of people are drawn to you?

Just a quick recap of our series called HOLY $#@!.

I. WHO IS THE HOLY SPIRIT?

1. The Holy Spirit is a Person. John 14:16 “I will ask the Father, and He will give another Helper, that He may be with you forever..”

2. He is 3rd Person in the Trinity. John 14:26 “But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all that I said to you.”

II. WHAT DOES THE SPIRIT DO IN OUR LIVES?

1. He comforts us. John 14:16 “And I will pray to the Father, and He shall give you another Comforter, that He may abide with you forever.”

2. He Convicts us. John 16:5-8  ⁵“Now I am going to him who sent me, yet none of you asks me, ‘Where are you going?’ ⁶Because I have said these things, you are filled with grief. ⁷But I tell you the truth: It is for your good that I am going away. Unless I go away, the Counselor will not come to you; but if I go, I will send him to you. ⁸When he comes, he will convict the world of guilt in regard to sin and righteousness and judgment:

3. He guides us. John 16:13 ¹³But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come.

4. He gives us power. Acts 1:8 ⁸But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”

5. He produces fruit. Galatians 5:22-23  ²²But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, ²³gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.

6. He gives us gifts. 1 Corinthians 12:4-11  ⁴There are different kinds of gifts, but the same Spirit. ⁵There are different kinds of service, but the same Lord. ⁶There are different kinds of working, but the same God works all of them in all men.  ⁷Now to each one the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good. ⁸To one there is given through the Spirit the message of wisdom, to another the message of knowledge by means of the same Spirit, ⁹to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healing by that one Spirit, ¹⁰to another miraculous powers, to another prophecy, to another distinguishing between spirits, to another speaking in different kinds of tongues,  and to still another the interpretation of tongues.  ¹¹All these are the work of one and the same Spirit, and he gives them to each one, just as he determines.

III. LIVING AN “HD” LIFE.

One of the main purposes of the Holy Spirit in our lives is to connect us to an HD life. God desires to give us;

1. Dreams. A dream is a picture you have in your mind of a desired future; that dream comes from inside of you and is beyond reason and is bigger than you on your own

2. Visions. A vision is that which is seen, an awake dream; you see something already done; you see your dream in “how to steps”.

3. Prophesy. To prophesy is to speak forth Biblical truth in the mind and counsel of God that cannot be known through natural means.

Hope this series was a help to you and your growth; if you missed any of the conversations you can get all three on our web-site, www.epicchurch.tv and click “Media”.

• Pray out loud.
• Write your prayer out.
• Read your Bible out loud.  
• Apologize to someone.  Even if it’s not primarily your fault.
• Talk to someone you trust.  If you don’t have someone, hire a professional.
• Rest.
• Exercise.
• Start eating better.
• Drive around listening to a sermon.
• Turn up some worship music really loud.  Shut the door.  Sing along.
• Go back and do the thing you know you were supposed to do.
• Get organized.
• Repent.
• Encourage somebody who would never expect it.
• Get back in church.  Serve somewhere.
• Quit complaining.
• Go on a date with your wife.
• Tell somebody thank you.
• Give some money away.
• Call on the name of Jesus.
• Remember how far He’s brought you.
• Realize that He’ll never ever leave you.

I hope this helps you get started….

The rest is up to you……

Affair Proof Your Marriage

Hebrews 13:4 Marriage should be honored by all and the marriage bed kept pure.

What does that look like? How can I honor my marriage and insure I keep it pure?

It’s not easy to do but it is simple to do.

You set standards for your conduct and your life that are so high that if you were to compromise them there would be no consequences.

If your married let me ask you; How extreme do you want, not you, but how extreme do you want your spouse to be when it comes to protecting himself or herself from unnecessary sexual temptation.

How far do you want your husband or wife to go when it comes to protecting themselves morally? How far, REALYY FAR, right? Then let me ask you; “Isn’t that the standard for you as well?”

Let’s try this; how far are you willing to go to protect your children from the shrapnel of a marriage that blew up? You should go that far.

Can I tell you where a good start may be? And, don’t ask if these are wrong or right; ask is it WISE? God calls us to be wise, honor marriage and keep it pure.

1)    Chatting on line with members of the opposite sex.

2)    Meals with the members of the opposite sex.

3)    Working late with members of the opposite sex?

4)    Personal trainers of the opposite sex?

5)    Confiding in members of the opposite sex about personal problems?

6)    Guys going to clubs with other guys.

7)    Girls who go dancing with their girlfriends because their husbands don’t like to go dancing.

But most of us will justify these things in the same ways, we will say; “There’s nothing wrong with”…..”I would never do”…..”I don’t plan to”……..

I know this is tough. But, what degree will you go to; to protect what is important?

You will never regret extreme measures, because you live in the same culture I live in. The one that tells me marriage is not sacred, that’s old fashioned.

How many of you know someone who made a bad decision concerning their marriage and when you talk to them on the other side of that terrible explosion they all say the same thing. “I would do anything to be able to go back and undo what I’ve done.”

In other words I would go to extreme measures to reverse the process. Always, on the other side, it’s amazing the extremes people are willing to go to, to undo what they have done.

Here’s just an idea; Why not be extreme on this side, instead of running the risk of wishing we would have been extreme on the side of a poor choice concerning honoring marriage and keeping it pure?

You know when Jesus walked the earth; He lived in a time when religious leaders jockeyed for position and favor. For the most part Jesus stayed out of it. Most of the people who followed Jesus around wondered why He wasn’t leading a revolution, as they expected the foretold Messiah to do. But here’s the deal, Jesus did start a revolution, just not the way everyone expected. He led a revolution of the heart. A revolution that was filled with self-sacrifice, kindness, patience, forgiveness and grace. No wonder they crucified Jesus. Have you ever tried doing ANY of those things? It’s REALLY hard! Patience and forgiveness? Are you serious?  I can see how killing a few soldiers, burning a place or two, would be a way easier and logical option for them. No wonder those barbaric first century people didn’t get it. It is such a relief to know that we have progressed way beyond that here in the 21^st century.

There are people who share their views on evolution by plastering it all over Facebook and twitter. There are people who share their views against abortion the same way. Also people will picket a gay pride parade instead of spending that same time volunteering in a homeless shelter. There are so many ways for people to announce their opinion without actually having to listen to anyone else, because, as everyone knows, listening to someone who has a different opinion is a complete pain in the butt.

There are also people who go on TV to proclaim that the leader of a foreign country had a stroke because he made God mad. There are people who blame America’s moral decline on activist judges while excusing our selfish, materialistic compulsions. There are people who feel the division in America is justified and inevitable because they are right and the others are wrong.

Now, the dilemma I have with these people is I share their faith; they’re Christians and I’m a Christian. Deep in their being they have a love for the Creator and Savior, just like I do. We worship a God with the same name, we read the same Bible, so to simply throw them under the bus would be unfair.  To be clear, I do not understand why they’re saying and acting the way they are, because we share the same faith. That’s why I’m confused and a little aggravated.

How, as a follower of Jesus, am I to ignore when two days after the attack on the twin towers Rev. Jerry Falwell appears on The 700 Club and blames the attacks on his personal hit list. Among the ones he blamed were the ACLU, secular humanists, and the gays. Sorry, don’t see the connection between Islamic extremists and Falwell’s comments. Now, I cringed at this statement and understand when people say; “That’s why I hate Christians. They are so judgmental and hateful. What do the gays have to do with this?”

After this no one wanted to hear about the charity work Falwell’s organizations do, they didn’t want to hear anything about a man they saw as hateful and bigoted. But you know what hurt most? That most people assume Falwell was speaking for all Christians, even for Jesus Himself.

Then Pat Robertson said that U.S. special forces should “take out” Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez. You know what? Just speaking from a money stand point assassination is cheaper than a full-scale invasion, but I’m a little hazy on where Jesus would come down on that question. I’m guessing He would say, “Assassination or Invasion? You’re asking the wrong question, son.” My personal favorite, until recently, was when Pat said the hurricane was an act of judgment on New Orleans.

Just when you think it can’t get any worse Dr. Robertson broadcasts over the air that the earthquake in Haiti is a result of them “making a deal with the devil”.

I don’t know about you but I’m conflicted. Because Pat has used TV to deliver the Word, not all of it whacked, to millions who may not otherwise have heard it. And he’s affiliated with nonprofits that do amazing work. And if I were honest I’ve had diarrhea of the mouth over the years. I guess the difference, at least in my mind, is my stupid, opinionated statements have offended and alienated friends and family, who eventually will forgive and forget.

I suppose I still love Pat and Jerry even if I don’t agree with them. Can you love someone and still throw them under the bus?

Here’s the deal! As believers, I think we simply don’t know how we sound to others; what’s worse, we don’t care because we’re right anyway – and to add insult to injury, we won’t listen. We have developed these ways of one way communication and we’re not willing to engage in a two way meaningful conversation. What if, with all our talking, people aren’t actually hearing what we intend? If we listened for a minute, we might understand how “I want to preserve the traditional institution of marriage” comes across as “I hate gay people.” So what if we don’t think that’s what we’re saying. If that’s what others are hearing, what the difference?

You see we can’t be concerned with whose fault it is – we cannot accept this communication breakdown. Should the burden be on our lips or their ears? I guess it depends on whether we want to have a conversation or we just want to be right.

OK Epic…. We want to be a host and drop off location sight for supplies needed for Haiti. We need you to look over the list below and go into “Epic action”. One of our own, Jan Owen, will be collecting the supplies after 3^rdservice and making sure they get to Louisville to be delivered to Haiti. Jan partners with G.O. Ministries, go online and check them out. If you have any questions just email me at bene@epicchurch.tv for more information.  I will have the red buckets in the atrium for you to drop off the supplies this Sunday. We will only be collecting this Sunday so that they can get there quickly. Thank you for not only be willing to open your arms to your city but also around the world to love on God’s children who are hurting!

Here is a list of things to bring:

1.     Dressings supplies
2.      IVs ( Ringers Lactate, NACL, D5W, D50
3.      IVs start Kits
4.      Betadine
5.      Peroxide
6.      Antibiotics ( all kind)
7.      Serum Antitetanique
8.      Ace bandages
9.      Bandages
10.     lot of gauze
11.     lot gloves
12.     masks
13.     Scapels
14.     Adhesives tapes
15.     ointment antibiotics
16.     Glucometers
17.     Insuline Regular
18.     Anti diarrhea
19.     High blood Pressure meds
20.     Zantac
21.     Xanax
22.     Valium
23.     Tagamet

When a person is out of touch with God and people they lose thier teachability.

If you read the story of Samson, Judges 13:1 – 16:31 you will see, of all his flaws and problems, the one that got Samson into more trouble than any other was that he was unteachable. No matter what happened to him he never seemed to get any wiser. He kept going his own wrong direction until his destructive end. Samson is the picture of a person who was so self-centered, so undisciplined, so arrogant, that he lost his teachability.

When a person loses thier teachability:

1. They Lean on thier own strength and understanding.

They stop seeking guidance from God and others. Proverbs 3:5-6 “Trust in the Lord with all you heart, and lean not on your own understanding; In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will direct your paths.”

Samson didn’t do this; he went the opposite direction. Samson always used brute force to handle struggles. Rather than deal with his character flaws he used violence. When he was embarrassed at his wedding feast, he killed thirty men ( Judg. 14:19 ). When the men of Judah turned him over to the Philistines he killed one thousand Philistinnes ( Judg. 15:15 ). When he was caught with a prostitute he ripped apart the city gates ( Judg. 16:3 ).

We see no record that Samson ever took advice from his parents, from friends, from his people, not even God. Worse than that Samson never acknowledged God as the source of his strength. He took all the credit for himself. He went from a man of annointing to a man of arrogance.

2. They fail to Learn from their mistakes

A person’s life either goes uphill or downhill depending on whether they fail backwards or forwards. In Samson’s life you see no improvement.

For a person to learn from thier mistakes they must:

• Be big enough to admit their mistakes. Put on your “big boy pants” and admit when your wrong.
• Be smart enough to profit from them. It’s one thing to know when your wrong it’s another to figure out why you made the mistake. But, you mist be able to do this or you will be doomed to repeat it.
• Be strong enough to correct them. Knowing why you erred is essential to correcting mistakes, but if you can’t implement the necessary changes in your life, you won’t be able to improve yourself and your situation.

Nothing is a mistake if you don’t learn from it.

3. They react instead of live.

People that are proactive will experience life. But unteachable people spend almost all of their time reacting. You cannot live your life being tossed around by emotion. Remove yourself from the situation, pray about it and get wise counsel before you make a decision.

4. They are easily defeated.

Unteachable people are always defeated eventually. Even great talent can take a person only so far. In the end, Delilah deceived Samson, and that was the end of his life. What’s funny, is when he relied on his own strength and understanding he was defeated, and along with defeat came the most damaging results. G.K. Chesterton “Anything done in our own strength will fail miserably or succeed even more miserably.”

Samson’s defeat began with a character flaw. That character flaw was left unrepaired because of an unteachable spirit which led to moral erosion and unchecked sin in his life. And that brought destruction. If during the course of his life he had ever humbly connected with God or sought the guidance and accountability of people, who knows what might have happned.

How well are you connected with God and people?

We had a great conversation today at Epic. One of the things we talked about was; “What is your mental picture of Heaven?”  Now I realize I may have ruffled some feathers with this point so I wanted to talk about it further here.

Let’s begin with the most famous prophet in the Bible, Isaiah. A prophet is just someone who delivered messages on behalf of God about something that was gonna happen in the future.

The reason Isaiah is the most famous prophet is because of the volume of prophecies that God revealed to him. Isaiah lived about 700 yrs before Jesus came but he predicts the events of Jesus’ life in an amazing way. Not only that, but when Jesus comes here and starts His ministry He quotes Isaiah. So God gives us a picture of what He is going to do in eternity and He tells us through Isaiah.

Isaiah 65:7 Behold I will create new heavens and a new earth.

 Now this phrase new heaves and new earth is a monumental phrase. The reason it’s so important is because this is what people believed that God was going to do. He’s going to create new heavens and a new earth. Now this phrase is a descriptive phrase that is used  to describe the entire universe inclusive of the earth. And to make sure we don’t miss it God says it again in the very next chapter

Is 66:22 For just as the new heavens and the new earth which I make will endure before Me declares the Lord, so your offspring and your name will endure.

Then we see it again as Peter, one of the followers of Jesus, writes it.

2 Peter 3:13 But according to His promise we are looking for new heavens and a new earth, in which righteousness dwells.

Now here’s why that’s a big deal. When we try to understand what eternity with God will be like we should not dream up some religious imagery. We should not try to hyper-spiritualize it. If we want to get an accurate picture of what eternity with God is going to be like, you know what we should do? We should go outside and look around.

Why? Because this earth is a glimpse to what eternity with God is going to be like. Consider what this world would be like with no more sin. With no more death, no more suffering, no more cancer, mo more leukemia, no more AIDS, no more hate, no more violence. Imagine living here forever and forever dwelling in harmony with God, in harmony with His creation and in harmony with each other. That’s the promise your Heavenly Father has promised you. It’s not floaty, it’s not fuzzy, it’s none of that!

Let me ask you; have you ever had those pure untouched moments in life where you enjoyed God, you enjoyed what He has created, and you enjoyed the people He placed in your life?

Have you ever gone out on a cool fall morning in the mountains and your on a hike and you’re breathing in the cool mountain air and you’re just enjoying this sense of peace and exhilaration? If you’ve ever done that, you know what that is? It’s not Heaven but it is just a glimpse of what eternity with God on the new earth is going to be like.

When we begin to understand this we also begin to understand that these little mental images we have in our minds about heaven are not true. Basically God is telling us this; “What I did in the book of Genesis, when I created this perfect existence before sin entered the world, that was such an awesome idea that I’m going to bring it back.” That is what He has promised us.

There are two words in the NT that are used to describe the word “new”. Neos and Kainos. Neos is used to describe something that is brand new. That’s not the word used in these passages. The word is Kainos. Kainos means to be redeemed, it means to be renewed, its means to be restored to its original intent. When 2 Peter says we are looking forward to the “new heaven and new earth” God is promising that He will return and restore the earth back to what God had intended. That’s what the new earth is. So where will belivers in Jesus spend eternity in Heaven. Believers in Jesus will spend eternity right here.

That’s why Heaven is a lot closer than you think. That’s why you know more about heaven than you give yourself credit for. It’s not floating around on clouds all day. Believers in Jesus will spend eternity here on the new earth.

Why is this important? Because when we understand the vivid imagery that our Heavenly Father has given us, it gives us a hope, it gives us an endurance, it gives us perseverance to know that this life is but a glimpse of the life to come, instead of saying, I guess Heaven is going to be some boring place, so I better squeeze all I can out of this life.

When we are faced with the Biblical truth that God is going to return and restore the earth back to its intended state, we realize that this life is but a glimpse of things to come and we no longer focus on the trivial things of this life that so easily entangle us. This truth, if you let it, will break those chains and set you free to live a life that echos in eternity.

I look forward to your comments…………………

I want to say a huge Thank You for giving up precious time and serving last Thursday! We had over 130 people delivering meals and serving food to the inmates! That is what it means to love like Jesus! Epic served the inmates in Moran and Lawrence counties! A big thank you to Pastor Kenny who served all of Lawrence County by himself!

I wanted to update you on a few ways we will be serving our community in December. On Monday, December 7, Decatur will host the annual Christmas Parade. Connie Parker who owns Connie’s Floors and More, a fellow EpicanJ, has called me with a great idea!! We are going to meet at her store at 302 2nd Ave at 4pm to set up a table and at 5pm start passing out hot chocolate and cookies to the community. We will be providing the cups and hot chocolate. I need you to help me with the cookiesJ If you cannot come on Monday but you want to provide cookies we will be collecting them this Sunday, December 6. We will need several dozen, so any you can buy or bake will be extremely helpful. Look for Amy and Revolution students at the back door to drop off your cookies. If you want to serve, just put on your Epic tee’s and meet us there. All Revolution Students will also meet around 5pm to help. If you have a student contact Justin or Amy @221-0257 for details.

Our food drive for the NCC is going great! Thank you for bringing in your canned goods. This is an ongoing food drive. Pamela said they are seeing more families than ever so they are still in desperate need of food. I will have the food barrels up in the atrium all month long for your items.

Last but not least, Epic is partnering with Habitat for Humanity to build housing for families in our community. Next Sunday December 13 at 2pm they will be dedicating a new home for a local family and have invited Epic to come and celebrate with them. The new house is at 821 3rd Ave SE. I would love for you to visit this home so you can get an idea of what we will be building in April. Also don’t forget that we are building our home from recycled products. I have placed a recycling box in the back by the Pepsi machine. Elaine is having us a recycling station built by the fence that will be ready soon. We need all of your recycled goods from home. If you would like your own box I can get those to you. Habitat for Humanity will be picking up each Friday at Epic. If you have a business and would like to be on the pickup route please email me bene@epicchurch.tv or landis@morganhabitat.org for more info.

Thank you for seeing past Epic and seeing God’s Kingdom! Serving our community is the best way to keep our focus outward and not inward!

Have an incredible week! See you SundayJ Follow me on Twitter @marshbene or on Facebook for updates.

Bene’ Marsh
Community Relations
Epic Church

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