Leadership

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ODJ: multi-hat syndrome

A pastor recently listed 36 different ‘hats’ he might wear. The roles included community activist, theologian, financial advisor and life coach. These roles evolved from the different needs of churchgoers. While it’s important for all of us to respond to others’ needs, if the demands consume us, we may begin to serve people instead of serving God.
To prevent this, we need to orient

ODJ: not leaving

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I am just 3 months into my elected role as youth deaconess in the local church that I attend, and I’ve already received three requests from people who want to step down from serving. A few have simply gone MIA (missing in action). So I feel like a general who’s trying to rally his army to fight a battle even as he’s losing his soldiers.

I was discouraged until I studied Amos 7:10-

ODJ: boys to men

Studies of children who grow up in fatherless homesreveal that they often face major challenges in life. The statistics are alarming. Youths who grow up in fatherless homes are twice as likely to end up in jail as those who come from traditional two-parent families. Eighty-five percent of children who exhibit behavioural disorders and ninety percent of homeless and runaway children are from father

ODJ: knowing our place


I recently read of a man who started a church and saw it grow and flourish over the years. But unlike some pastors whose fingers have to be pried from the pulpit, this man began grooming a younger man to take over his church. Why? Because he felt God was calling him to do so. And, at just 51 years old, this healthy, dynamic pastor humbly moved on as his 30 year old protégé took his place.


ODJ: cynical


I leafed through the book Can’t Be Bought (not the real title). The book told the challenging story of a ‘megachurch’ pastor who realised he had built his ministry on marketing strategies rather than on Christ’s call. He decided he would no longer cater to the crowd but instead preach the cost of discipleship and let the chips fall where they may. Sadly, the book isn’t good. And on the l

ODJ: dangerous concessions


In 1857 a few white members of the Dutch Reformed Church (DRC) in South Africa asked permission to celebrate the Lord’s Supper separately from their black brothers and sisters. The General Assembly believed their request was wrong, but acquiesced “due to the weakness of some”. This concession soon became the norm. And this racism prompted the unwanted black Christians to leave and start thei

ODJ: taking the wheel


Last spring Jeremy Wuitschick was riding on his school bus with 11 other secondary school pupils when the bus driver passed out. Wuitschick sprang from his seat and ran up and took the wheel from the unconscious driver. He then steered the bus away from traffic and turned the ignition off. The bus rolled to a stop. Jeremy had saved the day!
When God called Joshua to fill the big sandals left by

ODB: The Mark Of Leadership

While visiting the campus of Purdue University on a frigid winter day, I came upon two young men chipping away thick ice on the sidewalk next to a fraternity house. Thinking they must be underclassmen who had been assigned the tough job by older fraternity brothers, I said, “They didn’t tell you about this when you joined, did they?” One looked up with a smile and said, “Well, we’re both

ODJ: work


The first thing you notice are the nets. They stretch tautly between buildings, hung to catch workers who might attempt to leap to their deaths. This is Foxconn, the behemoth factory in Shenzhen, China, where crowds of young Chinese people manufacture iPads, iPhones and computers for the world. As the nets attest, the job isn’t always fulfilling. 
To be fair the suicide rate at Foxconn is lowe