How would you evaluate what your church is doing for those in need?  Who besides widows, are people in your church that need some help the church can provide?  What is your church doing about it?

Of the various instructions in chapter 5, which one has your name on it?  Why?

Servant Ministry-In the Name of Jesus

The second temptation to which Jesus was exposed was precisely the temptation to do something spectacular "Throw yourself from the parapet of the temple and let the angels catch you and carry you in their arms."  But Jesus refused to be a stunt man.  He did not come to prove himself.  He had something worthwhile to say.  "Don't put the Lord your God to the test," he said.

If we have anything at all to show, it is something we have to do solo.  Ideally, we should have been able to do it all and do it successfully.  We must avoid being well, we need to become a team player.

But when Jesus speaks about shepherding, he does not want us to think about a brave lonely shepherd who takes care of a large flock of obedient sheep.  In many ways, he made it clear that it is a team effort.

First of all, Jesus sent the twelve out in pairs, (Mark 6:7).  We are called to proclaim the Gospel together:  "If two of you on earth agree to ask anything at all, it will be granted to you by my Father in heaven.  For where two or three meet in my name, I am their among them" (Matt. 18:19-20).  It is hard to be truly faithful to Jesus when you are alone, it is Jesus who heals; Jesus who speaks words of truth;  Jesus who is Lord.  It is easier for people to recognize Jesus' work when we are in a team.  We should not only live together as a team but also minister as a team. 

he wants us to care for people as valuable brothers and sisters who are known, who are forgiven, who love.  All of this involves the team.  How can we lay down our life for someone, if we do not have a relationship.  Laying down your life means making your own faith, hope and joy available to others, as ways to get in touch with the Lord.

It is a servant-leader position in which the leader is a vulnerable servant who needs the people as much as they need him or her.  How can people truly care for their leader, and keep them faithful to their sacred task when they do not know them and so cannot deeply love them.

Leaders are accountable to them and need their affection and support.  Much Christian leadership is exercised by people who do not know how to develop healthy, intimate relationship, and have opted for power and control instead.  Jesus asks servant-leaders to be led to unknown, undesirable, and painful places.  It is downward mobility ending on the cross.  It is a leadership in which power is constantly abandoned in favor of love.  This refers to people who are deeply in love with Jesus that they are ready to follow Him wherever He guides them, always trusting that with him they will find true leadership.

Christian leaders have the arduous task of responding to personal struggles, family conflicts with an articulate faith in Cod's real presence.  A Christian leader is called to help people to hear Jesus' voice and so be comforted and consoled.

he asks us to move from a concern for relevance to a life of prayer, from worries about popularity, instead we critically discern where God is leading us and our people.  A image of the praying leader, the vulnerable leader and the trusting leader.

What are the most important sources of authority in your congregation?

How many of those are dependent on the gifts of the minister and which ones are dependent on God?

The key to becoming servant/leader is to: "Generate the faith required."  An important test for this is: are they seekers.  Also If a prophet speaks and is not heard, the prophet's vision may wither away.

Prophet, seeker, and leader are inextricably linked.  The prophet brings vision and penetrating insight.  The seeker brings openness, aggressive searching and good critical judgment.  The leader adds the art of persuasion backed by persistence, determination, and the courage to trust God.

One must want to be a servant over being a leader.  Being the leader doesn't make you one, because leaders don't automatically get the respect and acceptance of their group members; so in order to earn the leadership of their group and have a positive influence on the group members, leaders must learn some specific skills and methods.

Obviously, you can't be a leader without followers.  How does a leader acquire followers?  The answer to this basic question emerges clearly when we understand the needs all human beings possess and how they struggle to satisfy these needs.

1. "To survive, ever person is engaged in a continuous struggle to satisfy needs

2. "Some means is required to satisfy a need (tools, food, money, physical strength, knowledge, etc.).

3. "most needs of individuals are satisfied in relationships with people or groups, so people and groups become the means we rely on most heavily for the satisfaction of our needs. (We do not grow our own food, etc.).

4. "People actively seek out those relationships in which the other person is seen ass having the means for satisfying their needs.

5. "People join groups, then, because they hope that membership will offer them the means for satisfying their needs.  Conversely, they leave groups when they no longer get their needs satisfied.

6. "Group members accept influence and direction of a leader only if they regard him or her as a person through whose means they will get their needs satisfied.  people follow (and permit their activities to be directed by) a leader whom they believe will get them what they need or want."  (Leader Effectiveness Training-Dr. Thomas Gordon).

This course will identify and provide training on the critical attitudes, skills, methods, and procedures required.  The ideal group would marshal the creative resources of every member.

Why Build a Team

1. " Individual members of an organization will be more identified with the goals of the organization and concerned about it's success if they participate in making decisions about those goals and how to reach them.
2. "Being a member of a team gives group members a feeling of greater control over their lives; it frees them from the fear of the leader's arbitrary use of power.
3. "When group members participate in solving the group's problems, they learn a great deal about the technical complexities of whatever the group's task is; they learn from each other, as well as from the leader.
4. "participation on a team provides opportunities for the members to satisfy many of their higher level needs for self-esteem, acceptance, and self actualization.
5. "A team helps break down status differentials between the members and the leader, which fosters more open communication between members and leaders.
6. "A team becomes the principal vehicle enabling the leader to exemplify the kinds of leadership behavior he or she wants the group members to learn and use in relationships.  In this way effective leadership moves down through the organization.
7. "Higher-quality decisions often result from bringing into play the combined resources of the group.

"...effective leaders must behave in such a way that they come to be perceived almost as another group member; at the same time they must help all group members feel as free as the leader to make contributions and perform needed functions in the group."  (Leader Effectiveness Training-Dr. Thomas Gordon).

An effective servant-leader, then does not need to solve all the problems, but to see to it that they get solved.

Homework

Read the material at
 http://george0361.tripod.com/Kingdom.htm and spend 1 hour entering a report on how you are going to implement in your life, what Jesus' said.