Saturday, 11 February 2012

5 People Play 1 guitar: Somebody that I used to know cover by Walk Off the Earth

Thursday, 9 February 2012

Journal of Biblical Counselling Free Issue 2012

After a four year hiatus, the Journal of Biblical Counseling is back. Beginning with the new Winter 2012 issue, each new publication will be posted online, free to read and free to download. David Powlison announced the re-launch and new format in this video:

A number of JBC articles have appeared in Pastor John's messages and books over the years, these four in particular (posted with permission):

Ed Welch, “Self-Control: The Battle Against ‘One More’” (Winter 2001)
David Powlison, “‘Peace Be Still’: Learning Psalm 131 By Heart" (Spring 2000)
Ed Welch, “Counseling Those Who Are Depressed” (Winter 2000)
Ed Welch, “Words of Hope for Those Who Struggle with Depression” (Winter 2000)

Photographs from Syria

The Big Picture photo blog has photos from the Syrian situation as shelling of the city of Homs continues for a fifth day. You can see all the photos by going over to their blog by following the link.

Wednesday, 8 February 2012

What are the Keys to the Kingdom (Matthew 16:16)

Jonathan Leeman's thoughts on this much debated question.

The apostles had heaven’s authority for declaring who on earth is a kingdom citizen and therefore represents heaven.

The authority of the keys is the authority to assess a person’s gospel words and deeds and to render a judgment.

Free Online Seminary Class: Developing Godly Leaders

A free Seminary class from BiblicalTraining.org (Gordon Conwell). I've listened through some of their other classes and they were great.

DEVELOPING GODLY LEADERSHIP

Speaker:

Dr. John Johnson

This is a core leadership course designed for those who intend to be future leaders in ministry. This course will move from definitions to the core values of a leader; how to take a ministry through a vision process; engage in strategic planning, decision-making, and implementation; build great teams; work through conflict and change; delegate tasks; and effectively mentor the next generation of leaders. Models from the corporate, political, and military worlds will be compared and contrasted with biblical definitions and illustrations of leadership.

Class Outline

Definition
Overview	The great hope of the world is the church and the great hope of the church is great leaders. (29 min. 40 sec.)
Defining Leadership	Leadership is difficult to define. It is a mixture of science and art.
Defining Leadership (pt 2)	An institution doesn’t necessarily die, but it will tend to die without good leadership.
The Need for Leadership	Leaders shape the values of an organization, bring together a common vision, act as catalysts and keep things going. Four important aspects of pastoral leadership are prophet, priest, sage and king.
Skills
The Acquisition of Leadership	Are leaders born that way or is leadership an acquired skill? The people who think it’s innate believe that leadership is revealed in crisis not produced by crisis. Some people say it’s acquired because it is an ability that anyone can learn. Some people say leaders are summoned by circumstances and rise to the occasion.
Develop Leadership Skills	A person will only excel by amplifying strengths never by simply fixing weaknesses. Your personality does not change as you grow. Once you find your sweet spot, spend the majority of your time working on your strengths. Convergence is where your greatest passions and strengths line up with the greatest opportunity.
The Context of Leadership	Every leader must understand the context in which they work in order to be effective in having the impact they desire. Three contexts you face as a leader are cultural context, social context and situational context.
The Context of Leadership (pt 2)	When you are identifying the social context of a group, it is important to recognize the structural, human resource, political and symbolic aspects of the group. (1 hr. 00 min. 34 sec.)
The Situational Context	The situational context can be described by saying that leadership style must match follower readiness. We have influence with someone when we adapt our behavior to the performance needs of the individual. (1 hr. 07 min. 48 sec.)
The Core Values of a Leader	One of the greatest challenges of leadership is self-leadership. We can only take people as far as we are willing to go ourselves. Core values are our inner beliefs, not what people think we are but what we know we are.
The Core Values of a Leader (pt 2)	Three core values of a leader should be humility, compassion and courage.
The Core Skills for Leadership	It’s important to have values and skills. Values are critical but they aren’t enough. There will be some variation in the way leaders express these skills that will depend on their personality.
Implementation
The Value of Teams	Good leaders apply their values and skills effectively as they think and analyze situations intuitively. Building and working with teams is an important element of being a successful leader.
Build with the Best	Having good people on your team is important because the team is only as strong as the weakest link. Get the right people on your team and the wrong people off your team. Trust lies at the heart of a functioning team.
Mission and Leadership	It is essential to have a mission that defines the key objectives. Key elements of a mission statement include one that is focused, inspiring concise and memorable.
Vision and Leadership	A Mission is a philosophic statement that answers the question, “Why are we here?” Vision is a strategic statement that answers the question, “Where are we going?”
Vision and Leadership (pt 2)	The further you can look back, the deeper you can look into the present enables you to better look out into the future. Great leaders don’t impose a vision, they liberate the vision that’s inside their constituents.
Strategies and Leadership	Without an effective strategy, a vision will lack credibility and remain an illusion.
Objectives and Decision Making	Identifying objectives is the process of moving from vision to reality. Objectives are the tactics employed to carry out the strategies, the action plan of what needs to happen now. Decisiveness is an important quality of a good leader.
Leadership and Change	Leadership is transformational by nature. Leaders are those who are committed to deep changes in themselves and those they lead. Change equals dissatisfaction plus vision plus strategy plus support systems that overcome resistance.
Challenges and Transitions	Expect challenges because it’s normal for people to challenge those in leadership. Good leaders are able to adapt to challenges and learn from them. We will eventually leave what we are leading, so do what you can do to lead in a way that will make the transition easier. The most significant test of leadership is not present performance but the legacy you leave behind.
Challenges and Transitions	Expect challenges because it’s normal for people to challenge those in leadership. Good leaders are able to adapt to challenges and learn from them. We will eventually leave what we are leading, so do what you can do to lead in a way that will make the transition easier. The most significant test of leadership is not present performance but the legacy you leave behind.

Sunday, 5 February 2012

Accountability Questions (from a variety of sources e.g. Wesley)

This list of accountability questions was gathered together by Ed Stetzer and comes from a variety of sources e.g Wesley, Colson, etc.

Accountability Questions

Yesterday, I finished up my series through James. I promised to include some accountability question list examples here. These lists are fromCultivating a Life for God (Church Smart Resources 1999 pp.125-131).

Typically, these questions are asked in groups of 2-3, are specific to men or women, meets regularly, and hold each other accountable.

John Wesley’s Small Group Questions:

1. Am I consciously or unconsciously creating the impression that I am better than I am? In other words, am I a hypocrite?
2. Am I honest in all my acts and words, or do I exaggerate?
3. Do I confidentially pass onto another what was told me in confidence?
4. Am I a slave to dress, friends, work , or habits?
5. Am I self-conscious, self-pitying, or self-justifying?
6. Did the Bible live in me today?
7. Do I give it time to speak to me everyday?
8. Am I enjoying prayer?
9. When did I last speak to someone about my faith?
10. Do I pray about the money I spend?
11. Do I get to bed on time and get up on time?
12. Do I disobey God in anything?
13. Do I insist upon doing something about which my conscience is uneasy?
14. Am I defeated in any part of my life?
15. Am I jealous, impure, critical, irritable, touchy or distrustful?
16. How do I spend my spare time?
17. Am I proud?
18. Do I thank God that I am not as other people, especially as the Pharisee who despised the publican?
19. Is there anyone whom I fear, dislike, disown, criticize, hold resentment toward or disregard? If so, what am I going to do about it?
20. Do I grumble and complain constantly?
21. Is Christ real to me?

Wesley’s Band Meeting Questions:

1. What known sins have you committed since our last meeting?
2. What temptations have you met with?
3. How were you delivered?
4. What have you thought, said, or done, of which you doubt whether it be sin or not?
5. Have you nothing you desire to keep secret?

Reference: John Wesley’s Class Meetings: a Model for Making Disciples, by D. Michael Henderson, Evangel Publishing House, 1997, pp. 118-9

Chuck Swindoll’s Pastoral Accountability Questions:

In his book, The Body, Chuck Colson lists the questions used by Chuck Swindoll.

1. Have you been with a woman anywhere this past week that might be seen as compromising?
2. Have any of your financial dealings lacked integrity?
3. Have you exposed yourself to any sexually explicit material?
4. Have you spent adequate time in Bible study and prayer?
5. Have you given priority time to your family?
6. Have you fulfilled the mandates of your calling?
7. Have you just lied to me?

Neil Cole:

1. What is the condition of your soul?

2. What sin do you need to confess?

3. What have you held back from God that you need to surrender?

4. Is there anything that has dampened your zeal for Christ?

5. Who have you talked with about Christ this week?

HT: Journey

The questions I use are from these cards from Church Multiplication Associates. I keep one in my Bible.

The ten questions are as follows:

1. Have you been a testimony this week to the greatness of Jesus Christ with both your words and actions?
2. Have you been exposed to sexually alluring material or allowed your mind to entertain inappropriate thoughts about someone who is not your spouse this week?
3. Have you lacked any integrity in your financial dealings this week, or coveted something that does not belong to you?
4. Have you been honoring, understanding and generous in your important relationships this past week?
5. Have you damaged another person by your words, either behind their back or face-to-face?
6. Have you given in to an addictive behavior this week? Explain.
7. Have you continued to remain angry toward another?
8. Have you secretly wished for another’s misfortune so that you might excel?
9. Did you finish your reading this week and hear from the Lord? What are you going to do about it?
10. Have you been completely honest with me?

Listen to Live Balmorhea Album Free: Live at Sint-Elisabethkerk

Their album 'Settler' was one of my favourite albums for some time. In the vein of explosions in the sky and those more melodic postrock outfits, although more chamber music and folk influences. If you know Rachel's then you'll have an idea.