ARCHIVES

DEVOTIONAL

Past Devotions


Month Archives

Starfield 'I Will Go Tour' Phase 2 - Fall 2008

with Johnny Parks and Speaker Will Graham

Sept 05 – Belleville, ON
Sept 06 – Barrie, ON
Sept 07 – Newmarket, ON
Sept 08 – Sudbury, ON
Sept 10 – Thunder Bay, ON
Sept 11 – Brandon, MB
Sept 12 – Caronport, SK
Sept 13 – Prince Albert, SK
Sept 14 – Medicine Hat, AB
Sept 15 – Lethbridge, AB
Sept 17 – Lloydminster, AB
Sept 18 – Fort McMurray, AB
Sept 19 – Grande Prairie, AB

Life Tour

with Vicky Beeching, Bluetree and speaker Phil Cann

Oct 10 – Gander, NL
Oct 11 – Moncton, NB
Oct 12 – Montreal, PQ
Oct 14 – Ottawa, ON
Oct 15 – Brampton, ON
Oct 16 – St Catharines, ON
Oct 17 – Winnipeg, MB
Oct 18 – Saskatoon, SK
Oct 20 – Calgary, AB
Oct 21 – Edmonton, AB
Oct 22 – Langley, BC
Oct 23 – Victoria, BC

Brian Doerksen + Kathryn Scott Tour

Nov 05 – Abbotsford, BC
Nov 06 – Calgary, AB
Nov 07 – Steinbach, MB
Nov 08 – Ottawa, ON
Nov 09 – St Catharines, ON

Robin Mark / Paul Baloche Fall Tour

Oct 11+12 – Gander, NL
Oct 13 – Yarmouth, NS
Oct 15 – Halifax, NS
Oct 16 – Ottawa, ON
Oct 17/18 – Cambridge, ON
Oct 19 – Oakville, ON

When Heaven and Hell Break Loose

Posted on July 22, 2008

Revelation 2:26

When all heaven breaks loose, hell is not far behind. When the apostles were having some of their greatest breakthroughs, hell wasn’t far behind trying to derail these men and women from the focus God had provided them with. In Acts 5:12-16 we see the apostles “performed many miraculous signs and wonders among the people…and all of them were healed.” Immediately following in vs. 17, “The Sadducees were filled with jealousy. They arrested the apostles and put them in the public jail.”

The enemy hates it when heaven breaks loose and we gain spiritual ground on him. How many times after a great spiritual victory in your life has all hell broken loose? This is not some earthly coincidence that we can dismiss. The devil never sleeps and is relentless to pursue us until we give up. His strategy is simple as he taunts us: “If you put your weapons down, I’ll put my weapons down.” How many of us have fallen for this ploy because we are just too tired and fed up to try any longer?

The enemy wants to put us “in the public jail.” That is, he wants to shut us up, keep us hidden, and immobilize any momentum we have gained in the battle for whatever circumstance we have been trying to win. Although Christ is the final victor, we still have a responsibility to pray and overcome (Rev.2:26). Are we sleeping in the light as we allow the enemy to pillage our marriages, our initiative, our faith, and our future rights as over comers in Christ? Are we too attached to this present world and pre-occupied with carnal living and weighed down with the cares of this life? We are in a war! Are we allowing fear to control our choices?

In Acts 6:7 we read that, “The word of God spread. The number of disciples in Jerusalem increased rapidly, and a large numbers of priests became obedient to the faith.” Then after Stephen’s speech to the Sanhedrin in chapter 8, he is brutally stoned to death and silenced. Again, whenever heaven breaks loose, hell is aroused and wakened to assign us the enemy’s death plans. In the end, Stephen’s voice was not silenced. As a matter of fact his blood still cries out today with the message of Christ’s salvation for all those who believe. However, it took the persecution of the church to scatter the disciples and force them to come to terms with the reality of what they had been given. This was no mere ‘just accept Jesus and everything will be alright’ message they had been entrusted with. They now understood they had been given the keys to unlock the prisons of fear, injustice, and spiritual blindness for many generations to come.

We cannot settle for a brand of Christianity where we just struggle and make it by everyday. We also cannot just use empty triumphalism and hope that things go away. Our marriages can be glorious! Our jobs can be exhilarating! Our finances can be abundant! However, the enemy knows this more than we seem to know this and so is hell- bent on keeping us from obtaining the sweet life Jesus provided for us when he said that He came that “we might have life and have it more abundantly!” Are you living the abundant life? I’m not asking if you have a bigger house or a bigger car. I’m asking you if your marriage can be more than what it has become. Can your outlook on life and love and faith and people be more than what it has become? The devil is a thief and I believe he is trying to steal our resolve to live the abundant Jesus life.

So, fight the good fight. Pray, fast, and be vigilant. Posture your heart towards your heavenly Daddy and stand in His shadow. Light always displaces darkness so keep singing, worshipping, dancing, and shout to the Lord!

 

Own It!

Posted on September 11, 2007

“The body is a unit…” 1 Corinthians 12:1a

One of the most exhilarating things I like to do is watch how people respond when something in their lives has been awakened. These “revelation moments” are incredible signposts along the road of our destiny and assignment. This is awesome because when people are awakened and take ownership for a vision they see themselves developing or being a part of, then the momentum of the vision increases in so many other ways. One of these revelation moments we need to wake up to is the revelation that “the body is a unit” and that we need to take ownership of this truth.
Ownership is about taking personal responsibility for my role in the big picture. I not only give mental assent and verbal affirmation to the process, but I actually give my body, mind, and spirit and become part of the process. This means that I make personal sacrifices in order to accommodate what I claim to be something that God is in. We cannot live by convenience. We have to live in the realm of sacrifice.

Many people in church have a distorted view of owning a vision. They think that having control over all the decisions is ownership. Some think that because they contribute financially to the vision that they have ownership. Others believe that because they have been there from the beginning then they have ownership.

However, ownership is about showing up. It’s about showing up spiritually, emotionally, and yes, even physically. When we begin to understand that the vision is diminished because of my lack of ownership, and that my contribution is essential to the big picture, only then I am awakened to the reality of community and commitment. When I actually get in the game beyond just wearing the team uniform or reciting the team motto, I have a chance to shape the history of the community I’m in and to fulfill my own destiny and assignment at the same time. When I get in the game my uniform becomes dirty because I am actually making plays and having fun while doing it. When I’m away because I don’t ‘feel’ like being in the game then I am selfish and only thinking of my own comfort and space rather than the team I have chosen to be a part of.

There will be circumstances whereby we may only contribute partially to the vision in the different seasons of our life. For awhile I may be able to give emotional support and encouragement. At other times my spiritual gifts will be utilized. How about my physical presence? How does that make a difference? Well, when a professional athlete is injured, the coach requires him or her to remain on the bench or on the sidelines. Why is this? This is important because even the physical presence of a team mate is vital to the other members of the team. It just gives a sense of solidarity and commitment to the big picture. It communicates the integral truth that we are all in this together no matter how injured or healthy we are. Everyone is important and if one piece of the proverbial puzzle is missing…well, you know what I’m getting at.

The Kingdom of God is like a team and the world is waiting, even groaning, to see the church revealed. Let’s all take our God-given assignments and move forward. Own it!

Rick D’Orazio
Conference Pastor

 

The Kingdom of God

Posted on June 20, 2007

‘The Kingdom of God is within you” …. Luke 17:21

With these words Jesus gave us permission to think like God. If the King’s domain (Kingdom) is in us then there is limitless imagination and creativity embedded in every believer. There are medical secrets that are only one prayer away from revolutionizing medicine and the way people live. There are melodies that have never been heard on earth that are ready to be released from heaven. This is kingdom thinking from God’s perspective

You will always reproduce the kingdom in you around you. Whatever dominates your mind and your heart is reproduced through the life you live. So, a kingdom perspective changes all the negative stuff. You know you have a kingdom perspective because the impossible will look logical. The loss of a kingdom perspective has been costly to the church resulting in a blurred identity, undefined purpose, and diminished authority. One of the ways to recover a kingdom perspective is for us to realize that we are not human beings having a spiritual experience but rather we are spiritual beings having a human experience. How does this play out in our everyday living? You’ll have to check in our next month’s devotional!

Rick D’Orazio
Conference Pastor

 

Stand Up!

Posted on February 15, 2007

‘The Lord said to Joshua, “Stand up! What are you doing down on your face?’ – Joshua 7:10

It was a time for action and Joshua just kept praying. It was time for a breakthrough and Joshua needed to deploy the direction and instruction that the Lord had already imparted to Him. Joshua did not need to employ a geographical shift, he needed to deploy a mind shift.

I have often said that the devil is not concerned with driving you backward as much as he is with containing you where you are and keeping you from getting to where God wants to take you. “Containment” by definition is keeping something or someone within limits by restraining, controlling, checking, or halting. This is precisely the devil’s plan for our lives in regards to our faith, freedom in Christ and stepping up and into new realms of the Spirit. Containment is not limited to the spiritual areas of life. It also attacks your mind. You may be contained about what you think about yourself, your family, and other people. Or you may be contained in the material realm by your attitude and practices regarding money and possessions. Fear is also a cause of containment and so are unresolved emotional hurts.

In these last days God is calling us to be “apostolic people.” God always desires to do a new thing and He will use apostolic people to do it. Apostolic people have the strength and mentality of a pioneer and have the ability to persevere in the face of opposition. God has granted you a “breakthrough anointing.” The word “breakthrough” is defined as an act or instance of breaking through an obstruction; an offensive thrust that penetrates and carries beyond a defensive line in warfare.

As pioneers entrusted with God’s authority, we have the ability to break through fear, doubt, lack of resources and other obstacles that keep us from advancing. The only thing that will limit us from advancing as individuals and as a church is the comfort of containment and the fear of change. We must be risk-takers if we wish to be historymakers. We must foster an atmosphere in our churches where people feel free to risk in their gifting because they know they are free to fail. If people are not free to fail then creativity is minimized while an attitude of cautiousness is maximized. This overly cautious climate will stifle the entrepreneurial spirit and ministries will become stale and sterile.

Breakout character on the other hand includes a hunger for God, a teachable spirit, freedom from shame, and ongoing transformation through God’s intervention. Joshua was a man of God but he needed to be reminded by God that sometimes we need to move out and posses the breakthrough here on earth that God has already provided in heaven.

I want to urge all of us to be praying into this word and see where God would want to have a break through in our lives. We need only to trust Him and step up and out in faith no matter how uncomfortable or unstable it may seem in the natural. If He is blowing the trumpet we can be assured that His timing to lead us forward is trustworthy and precise.

Rick D’Orazio
Conference Pastor

 

So, You Want to Count for Something?

Posted on September 22, 2006

“…those who are led by the Spirit of God are the sons of God” – Romans 8:14

Sociologists tell us that one of the sweetest sounds to the human ear is the sound of our name when we hear it. Now, you may not like your name but when you hear it called there is a positive reaction in your emotions. Our ears perk up and we anticipate something. I think we love to hear the sound of our own name because we all want to count. In our heart of hearts we all want to be remembered for something and we may even ask ourselves at times, “Am I more than what I have become”? or “Who am I”?

Some of the problems we face about ourselves may be because we have tried to answer these questions apart from our identity as sons and daughters of God. The question isn’t so much, “Who am I”? as it is “Whose am I”? You see, when we understand, by the Spirit of God, that we are our heavenly Father’s son or daughter, then so much more makes sense. Actually, one of the greatest offerings of worship we can give to God is to accept and acknowledge that He is our Father and we are His children. More than our gifting, more than our money, and more than our work, nothing glorifies God more than when we surrender to sonship.

If we really want to count for something in this world; if we really want to be revolutionaries, history makers, and world changers then it all begins by accepting the fact that we are accepted. We are accepted not because we are acceptable but because Jesus suffered, gave His life, and rose from the grave for us so that we could become the children of God.

So, you want to count for something? Then count yourself as God’s beautiful child and stop trying to be acceptable to Him because you already are!

Rick D’Orazio
Conference Pastor

 

Why We Need Superman

Posted on August 23, 2006

“Hear my voice when I call, O Lord” Psalm 27:7b

When God becomes Clarke Kent to us we have learned to live without God. In the movie ‘Superman Returns’, Lois Lane writes an essay entitled ‘Why We Don’t Need Superman.” You see, because Superman had left for five years, Lois and society in general had learned to live without him. In order to protect herself from the painful heart ache of seeking him out and the disillusionment of his apparent absence, Lois settles into life without Superman.

Sometimes when God seems far away and His presence is difficult for us to feel we too can be tempted to learn to live without Him. Especially when life and love are going smoothly, God is Clarke Kent. However, as soon as a crisis comes along we all of a sudden cry out for ‘Superman’ God to come and rescue us. God loves to rescue us but He also loves it when we need Him and desire Him during the ‘smooth’ seasons of our life.

In learning to live without God we become self-resourceful and self-reliant. Our job is great, money is flowing in, and relationships are intact so who needs God? Who needs ‘Superman’? We need to learn to seek Christ all the way and at all times. He can’t just be our superhero when we need Him. He wants to be our Lord and Saviour because we want Him to be. Keep seeking and keep calling on Him even when His presence does not seem to be among you. So take a moment and answer the question, ‘Why I need God?’

Rick D’Orazio
Conference Pastor

 

It's All Good

Posted on July 21, 2006

“Discharge all the duties of your ministry…” 2 Timothy 4:5b

I don’t know about you, but whenever I used to hear the word ‘ministry’, I immediately thought of something I did within the building we call the church. I remember being an usher and being so proud of that badge I had on. I mean my name was actually inscribed on the badge and so I had arrived at God’s calling for my life. I was an usher and my destiny had been realized. I was faithful, always on time, and greeted everyone with a warm smile (even the ones who looked like they had just entered a prisoner of war camp).

Of course, as I began to grow in the Lord and as He began to show me the utter lostness of people without Christ, I quickly resigned my post on isle 16 and eagerly enrolled in the 6 month evangelism ministry course being offered. Wow, all this knowledge about how sin entered the world and how people can come to Jesus if they only obeyed those four simple laws (or were they steps?) was very exciting.

Then something else began to happen. I began to long for the reality of the streets and the street people I was so accustomed to interacting with. The conversations and experiences I was having at work with people were so profound. The evangelism ministry course ended but my passion for people without Jesus was out of control. Being a young Christian I thought, “If only I can get these heathens to church, I know the music, the people, the excitement, will all have an impact.” Wait a minute, “the people”? Most of these people are dressed up and speak church language that I still didn’t get after a whole year of hearing it. What was I supposed to do?

The point I’m trying to make here is that my concept of ministry was limited to what went on within the four walls of the church. True ministry, I thought, can only be spiritual in the setting I was used to having ‘church’ in. As I began to mature in the Lord, seek out people who were like-minded, and search the scriptures to find out how Jesus did ministry, my eyes were opened to be able to enlarge the concept of what ministry means.

All that I was doing before this was great. Ushering, teaching classes and other activities are very valid and are actually a vital part of the gathering aspect of church. I don’t believe it’s an either/or situation but rather a both/and situation that can really work. However, the emphasis of ministry within the church has been greater than the emphasis on the church beyond the congregation or “beyond the box”.

In the light and shadow of the symbol of the cross, our vision of ministry outside the box becomes clearer. The cross was planted in the ground, in a real world of dire need and as we behold this image our concept of ministry expands. It’s inevitable. With the comfortable borders of the church exploded, the limits for the work of the church and the church at work are practically endless. What matters now is simple: good deeds done with God’s heart that display the love of Christ and glorify Father.

The truth is finally revealed: Anything done in the name of Christ, in the name of love, is ministry. Indeed, not only anything but anywhere. Of course, the more it touches real needs and vital areas, the more influential it will be. But nowhere does the bible “qualify” good works and neither should we. Instead, we should celebrate the infinite ways people can “go in Christ’s name.” We must broaden and enrich the concept of personal ministry to include our workplaces, our neighbourhoods, schools, and anywhere else where people are influenced by us. We must bless, affirm, and be willing to release people into areas that may not directly benefit the church itself. Did you get that? In the words of one of my teenagers, “It’s all good.”

I realize this journey is a new one for many of us. But, like any journey the Lord leads us on, He will give us the details when we need them. He simply asks us to keep it simple and to keep it real. Who is the church?

Press In. Press On.

Rick D’Orazio
Conference Pastor

 

Damn the Torpedoes

Posted on May 31, 2006

“and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.” 2 Corinthians 10:5b

Have you ever wondered about the spiritual torpedoes that are aimed and fired at the Christian? I wonder just how many of those missiles are actually blanks that the enemy uses to try to get us to react and be distracted by? I think it’s safe to say that some of those torpedoes are real and others, many others are just not real at all.

The movie “A Beautiful Mind” documents John Nash’s battle with mental illness. The Princeton mathematician suffered from schizophrenia most of his adult life. The film portrays how Nash learned to question the reality of illusionary people who appeared to him often, and seemed as real to him as your spouse or the friend you visited last night. Just as important, he learned to deny their negative predictions of doom, and refused to accept their guidance as valid for his life. His example is encouraging to all of us. Nash went on to win the Nobel Prize in economics and gives further hope to anyone who suffers with this debilitating disease and condition.

We too, may suffer fears that bear little relation to the truth, yet are still effective in shutting us down and holding us back from taking a step with our life that would succeed. We may be tortured by second thoughts in a decision, even though we have prayed, thought it through carefully and have substantial reason to move forward. These are ‘blanks’ that the enemy is firing at us.

The perceptions we fall into can limit us just as greatly as psychotic delusions did in Nash’s case. We have to come to grips with the way our mind and the devil are capable of misleading us, then make our best efforts at these points, to separate fact from illusion and deception.

Just as crucial, we need to learn to question perceptions influenced by runaway emotions, and refuse to let them be our final take on reality. I’m not talking about mind power or mind over matter techniques here. No, we need to, by the help and discipline of the Holy Spirit, take our emotional state strongly into account in all our decisions and filter out assumptions induced too easily by anger, fear, or distraught feelings.

As we submit our fears and emotions to the Holy Spirit daily, we will begin to see with the clarity and focus that we need to fulfill our destiny. So, damn those torpedoes, full steam ahead!

Rick D’Orazio
Conference Pastor

 

Servant Warfare

Posted on April 24, 2006

“Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord.” Romans 12:11

Sometimes serving the Lord is more about the small stuff than the big splash that everyone can see. Steve Sjogren writes, “In the 1970’s comedian Steve Martin became famous for appearing on stage with a fake arrow stuck in his head and commenting, ‘Boy, do I have a headache!’ At some point later in his act he would lose the arrow and say, ‘I think I know why I had a headache. There was an arrow stuck in my head!’ With the audience roaring at the humour of his understatement, Martin would comment, ‘You know, it’s amazing how a small thing can make you feel a lot better.’

Today it seems that many overlook the power of a small thing. For years the church has valued only the biggest, fastest, largest, and strongest within the ranks of Christianity. We didn’t notice the small, menial, and lowly. But Jesus used these more subtle forms to communicate his Good News. Like Steve Martin removing the arrow, we’ve begun to see that it’s the small things in life that make the biggest difference. In fact, small things done with God’s love can change the world! Your spiritual fervor or passion is the fuel for serving the people around you at home, at work, and at church.

When we connect spiritual warfare to serving we begin to change our view of this traditionally scary topic. What is servant warfare? It is using the power of kindness to penetrate the spiritually darkened hearts of people with the love of God. With this simple approach to battling darkness, virtually all of us who follow Christ can break the grip of darkness all around us.
Get into your community armed with God’s love and acts of kindness. Intercessors are bombing the heavenlies. It is time for the ground troops to occupy and take the land! We are passionate lovers of God. Let’s also be doers of his Word.

Rick D’Orazio
Conference Pastor

 

Excerpt taken from 'The Last Eyewitness:The Final Week'

Posted on March 29, 2006

“I am the vine, and you are the branches. If you abide in Me and I in you, you will bear great fruit.” John 15:5 The Voice Bible

“How can you follow Christ if you don’t know what it means to be joined with God, to become a living branch in God’s vineyard?

Grapes do not grow in isolation. Many have romanticized the spiritual path of monasticism—brothers and sisters known for their private journeys into the wilderness to be with God. This word monastic comes from the Greek word monazein, meaning, “to be alone.” This seems selfish really, and contradicts all that Christ is. Our call is to community, not isolation, to be present with one another, to share, and to raise one another up.

Seasons may come when we are allowed some space that helps us to see the world more clearly and identify God’s work in our lives. But we belong to one another. We are to abide in Christ and one another; this is central in Jesus’ teachings.

I know these are hard truths. Some of you wonder what difference it makes to believe that we are in Christ and that we are intimately connected with one another. It makes all the difference in the world. You see the world’s way is to seek personal advantage, put self first and to live disconnected to everyone else. It is to celebrate the myth of the “self-made man” and to jockey for position over everyone else. But Christ’s way is a way of love and connection between God and neighbor. Because we are connected like vines and branches, when we serve one another, we actually serve Christ. And when we serve Christ, we find we have gained great rewards in this life and in the life to come. As Jesus said over and over to us, the way to greatness is service. And no one served us more than Christ.”

by Chris Seay and David Capes

 

Foresight is 20/20

Posted on March 7, 2006

“Where there is no vision, the people perish.” Proverbs 29:18a

The New American Standard Bible states, “Where there is no vision, the people are unrestrained…” The word vision, according to Strong’s Concordance, means “mental insight or a revealed word from God.” The word unrestrained denotes “the absence of clear guidance or definite direction.” In other words, if you do not have a revelation or an unveiling of God’s purpose and vision for your life, you will be without direction having no means of receiving His guidance in the various areas of your life.
However, when you receive a picture of what your spiritual DNA is, then your identity, in regards to your function in life, will catapult you to higher realms of motivation and passion for God. The great evangelist Billy Sunday said that “More men fail for lack of purpose than through lack of talent.”
From having a passion for God we can determine to follow through in His vision for our lives by following some practical steps:

1.Passionately believe in your goals, destiny, and purpose: it is mandatory to sustain spiritual motivation for the long term.
2.Decide not to quit no matter what gets in your way. Always go back to your calling.
3.Write out your goals in detail. Write the vision down.
4.Plan proactively, looking at the details of your goals and covering every resource.
5.Anticipate possible problems. Count on opposition as the enemy will want to derail you from your vision.
6.Seek a mentor who can impart to you and encourage you.
7.Cultivate your primary gifting through teaching and deployment.

The future is yours. Are you going to show up for it? Pursue God as He pursues you and let your vision come from His eyes.

Rick D’Orazio
Conference Pastor

 

Give the Church Away

Posted on February 27, 2006

“Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse those who have leprosy, drive out demons. Freely you have received, freely give.” Matthew 10:7-8

When we think of giving, most of us think of money. In the upside- down Kingdom of God, Jesus thinks of healing, deliverance, life, and peace. For too long the church has horded the gifts of God for herself. It’s the lost multitudes who are in need of all that Christ has freely given us. For the Christian, self-preservation and the fear of risking it all for the Father’s heart, will eventually turn us into spiritual tightwads who are all dressed up with no where to go.
Giving the church away means giving ourselves away. All that Christ has invested in us, our talents, gifts, fruit of the Spirit, can only be truly useful to the maximum when they are abandoned for the use of bringing in the lost. Jesus was extravagant with us when He gave Himself on the cross. We too can be extravagant to the lost with all we are blessed with.
For those who tried to withhold justice and mercy and the Kingdom from those who needed it most, Jesus skewered his opponents with words to this effect: “The harlots who have no imagined righteousness to protect will be dancing into the Kingdom, while you have your alleged virtue burned out of you. Hear me well: I have come to announce the dawn of a new age, an era of incredible generosity. Allow yourselves to be captivated by joy and wonder at the surpassing greatness of my Father’s love for the lost; set it over against your own joyless, loveless, thankless, and self-righteous lives. Strike out in a new direction. Cease from your greedy ways, and be compassionate. Celebrate in the homecoming of the lost.”
Giving the church away is about risking our comfort zones and small thinking for the possibilities of God to be accomplished. It means to accept without reservation all that Jesus has ordained for my life. It means to have the attitude of Jesus when he prayed in the Garden, “not my will but yours be done.” It means to make for my own the prayer of Dag Hammarskjöld, “For all that has been, thanks. For all that shall be, yes.”

Rick D’Orazio
Conference Pastor

 

*God's Proper Timing

Posted on February 7, 2006

*“Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.” Galatians 6:9

After a long period of faithfulness have you ever become worn down, spiritually depressed, and ready to give up? Perhaps your spiritual vision has become impaired and it is difficult to endure what seems to be a time of stagnation and limbo. You feel like you are in spiritual suspended animation. Your prayers seem to go unanswered as they hang between heaven and earth.

Anyone who hopes to be effective in the Kingdom of God must learn to look beyond the seeming frustration of the present and look for what God Himself has timed. Field Marshall Ferdinand Foch possessed this anticipation during a great battle when he stated, “My center is giving way, and my right is retreating, situation excellent. I shall attack.” Timing is everything!

There are two words in the Greek New Testament for the English word time. The first, chronos, is quantitative time as we count it in hours, days, weeks, and years. But the second word, kairos, or qualitative time that God arranges, is far more important to us. It is God’s appointed moment for what He has planned for us to come into focus and fruition. Kairos is the timing of God on the terms of God. If we see only the chronos we miss the timing and provision of the Lord and are destined to grow increasingly frustrated with what isn’t happening for us. When we accept and adopt the kairos perspective on time, life is fruitful and exciting.

So, what time is it for you? God’s proper time will allow you to reap the harvest He has appointed in your life. Be patient and resist the temptation to compare your circumstances to others who might seem to be progressing faster and easier than your own. Do not give up. God is always on time. His Time!

Press In. Press On.
Rick D’Orazio
Conference Pastor

 

Credible Leaders

Posted on January 10, 2006

We are influencers and influencers need to be credible so read on with hopeful anticipation.

“To be persuasive, we must be believable. To be believable, we must be credible. To be credible, we must be truthful.” Edward R. Murrow.

Headlines tell us that people have lost faith in their institutions and the individuals who run them. We have read too many times in recent days of organizations and leaders that have substituted power, control and manipulation for trust, honesty and respect. And if we allow self-interest to continue to motivate our actions the result will be a breakdown of character, integrity and credibility.

One of the acid tests of true leadership is credibility. Credibility forms the foundation not only of leadership but of all relationships. Credibility gives you the authority to lead as it builds trust and loyalty within your organization or ministry. Credibility facilitates a spirit of cooperation and teamwork, as you are known for your commitment to honesty, integrity and fairness.

One of the by-products of credibility is increased influence. The more confidence people place in you and your leadership the greater influence you will have. Cavett Roberts has observed; “If my people understand me, I’ll get their attention. If my people trust me, I’ll get their action.”

Credibility is not the result of a position or title. It isn’t gained in a seminar, symposium or workshop. Credibility is a lifestyle, not a single event. It is a pilgrimage rather than an incident. There are no shortcuts to credibility, as it is only earned over time. Image is what people think you are but credibility determines what you really are. And it can be lost in a moment with a careless word, an inappropriate action or an indiscretion.

If credibility is to be an important ingredient of Kingdom success then we need to make the following commitments daily:

  1. I will do what I say. Are you the same person, no matter who you are with or what the circumstances?
  2. I will live what I teach. Despite the difficulty, can others model your behavior as well as your words?
  3. I will be honest with others. Whatever the personal cost, are you committed to absolute honesty?
  4. I will put what is best for others ahead of what is best for me. Do you make decisions that are best for you when another choice would benefit others?
  5. I will be transparent, authentic and vulnerable. Is the “visible” you and the “real” you consistent?

Leadership isn’t a place of position as much as it is the positioning of character. And credibility is the distinguishing mark of character.

Carole Mayhall summarized well the message of credibility; “The how of being people worth listening to is by letting our lives be filled with God Himself. The why of being people worth listening to is because we are His and He wants us to radiate Him.”

As we walk more passionately with the Savior our lives will impact others with the life-changing message of the gospel. And only as credibility characterizes our conduct will others listen to that message. Martin Luther, the great reformer pronounced a brief, but expressive eulogy at the funeral of Nicholas Haussmann, a pastor at Zwickau. “What we preach, he lived.”

Rick D’Orazio
Conference Pastor

 

 | Subscribe

RSS is a standard for syndicating frequently updated content from a site via a newsreader. Modern browsers such as Firefox & Safari support RSS and it is scheduled to be released in the next version of Internet Explorer.