Do We Have The Gift of Leadership?

And we have different gifts according to the grace given to us. If the gift is prophecy, that individual must use it in proportion to his faith. If it is service, he must serve; if it is teaching, he must teach; if it is exhortation, he must exhort; if it is contributing, he must do so with sincerity; if it is leadership, he must do so with diligence; if it is showing mercy, he must do so with cheerfulness. Romans 12:6-8 NET

God has given us all specific gifts and with the empowerment of Holy Spirit, we should be able to function in our gifts–with a goal of excellence–to His glory!

There’s a reason why all of us do not have the same gifts. Within a specific body, there is no need for duplication of effort with too many chiefs in one place. Having too many leaders in one environment could be as hazardous as too many cooks in the kitchen–at the same time. The end result is chaos and confusion and eventually angst that sometimes spills over into other venues.

In order to see the gifts given function at maximum potential, we must know what our gifting is and fine-tune it so God will not regret what He’s given. Though this passage of scripture is primarily about the spiritual gifts needed for any local church to thrive, it can also be applied to other areas of our lives–in the workplace or with other social groups or organizations. The thing is we must know the gift in order for it to benefit the masses.

How do we know what gift resides within us? We seek God for revelation and understanding and then allow Holy Spirit to guide us in all we do. In the natural, what we have been gifted to do shows in our lives by what we’re drawn to do and have a unique proclivity to do and do it well.

When it comes to operating in positions of leadership, we really need to know that God has placed that gift in us and that we are listening to Him. If we don’t understand that being a leader–does not equate to being a dictator–we’ll mess up what could have been a good thing for ourselves and others. Not everyone is equipped–spiritually or naturally to be in a leadership position and only those God intends to lead–should ever attempt to do the job.  Do you have the gift of leadership? Know what it entails before making a mockery of the position.

 

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Are You a Notch On The Devil’s Belt?

Being notch on someone’s belt is a phrase that is indicative of someone merely taking advantage of a situation–there is no attachment to the person or the event–just a game to keep count of those foolish enough to participate.

Women who sleep with men, indiscriminately, are usually just a notch on the man’s belt. He has no real affection for her and is usually involved in a macho-sadistic game with peers to see who can sleep with the most women in a given time period.

Young folks–who think and do stupid and dumb things are just a notch on the devil’s belt. He influences their their thinking and manipulates them into doing. He doesn’t care about them or the consequences they face; he just laughs every time people–especially our young people do stupid.

Doing drugs and becoming addicted–stupid–another notch on the devil’s belt; he doesn’t have to worry about you any more–your life will be filled with negativity and the consequences will include loss of friends, family, trust from others and eventually, you’ll end up in jail or dead. Can you hear him laughing at you?

Playing stupid games with people’s lives–such as the “knock-out” game–another notch on the devil’s belt. You knock out a person “just because” and they end up seriously injured or dead and you end up in jail. Another notch on the devil’s belt. Can you hear him laughing at you?

Participating in foolish challenges–risking your life to fit in with the stupid crowd. Social media is being perverted by those who are influenced by the devil and you have the nerve to jump right in and join them, never thinking about the risk. How many people died from the Cinnamon Challenge? Was that you who was rushed to the hospital, unable to breathe? Can you hear the devil laughing at you? If you had died, the devil would have been really ecstatic–another notch on his belt.

Whenever we do stupid–drinking and driving, texting and driving, having promiscuous sexual relationships with every Tom, Dick, and Harry or Sally, Sue, and Jane, doing drugs to relieve our boredom, contemplating suicide or homicide, ignoring instruction from parents and teachers or anyone in authority who actually cares about us–stupid things that lead to disastrous consequences–are just another notch on the devil’s belt.

Remember this–the devil hates all who God loves and he really loves to get you confused and doing stupid things so he can add that new notch in his belt. Don’t give him the satisfaction! Think before you do anything and learn to seek God for wisdom--turn the tables on the devil and every time you resist his influence, make that a notch on your belt. It’s your turn to laugh at him!

At the end of the day, count the notches–who’s winning–the devil or you?