Hope for the Overburdened Leader

I’ve been thinking a lot about you lately.  I’ve been thinking about your service and how you’re chasing hard after your calling as a leader. I’ve been thinking about the way you handle everything as well as you do.  The way you care.  The way you love the people you serve.

I see your passion.  I see your perseverance.  I see that sometimes, even when you don’t want to admit it, this leader thing in its finest and truest form can become too much for your soul to bear.

I’ve been thinking about how you pour your heart and soul into your small groups, your ministry projects, your family, and even your dreams. You want to give everyone and everything your best. You’re giving it all you’ve got, letting your passion and heart for the Lord push you from one thing to the next.

It’s all good work, right?  That’s what we tell ourselves.

We convince ourselves that we’re doing all this good work for everyone else, but we never stop and think about how it affects our own souls.

I see you, friend.  Called to lead.  Called to mentor. Called to give of yourself in mighty Kingdom ways.

But if you and I were across from each other right now, sipping on our favorite beverage, maybe a chai tea for you and a mocha for me, and we were brutally honest with one another, we would say the words we’re afraid to say.  We’re afraid to say them now because it might affect how we’re perceived as leaders.  Afraid that by voicing the very thing we’re scared to say, it might mean we somehow don’t care.

If we were to put our drinks down for a minute, look one another straight in the eyes, and say that brutally honest thing to each other, we would say this:

Head over to More to Be to read on friend.  

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It's Okay to Not Know Where You're Going Next

Recently I finished my journey through the book of Acts. It’s amazing to me that no matter how many times I may read something in the Bible, I always get something new out of it. If you haven’t read Acts yet, it is one action-packed book. Luke, the author of this book, compiles many stories of the early church and we also get a different perspective on the lives of Peter and Paul.

The deeper I studied the book of Acts, the more enthralled I became with the stories. Luke gives us several accounts of the disciples performing miracles through the power of the Holy Spirit (Jesus had already been resurrected) and shows various ways people became followers of Jesus. It’s all very exciting to read.

What stood out to me the most, however, was that after reading several stories revolving around a similar theme, I noticed that most of the people God gave an assignment to didn’t have a clue where they would be going next after receiving His instructions. For example, towards the end of Acts 8, we see a story unfolding involving a man named Philip, who was described as a believer and teacher of the word.

Acts 8:26-27

As for Philip, an angel of the Lord said to him, “Go south down the desert road that runs from Jerusalem to Gaza.” So he started out, and he met the treasurer of Ethiopia, a eunuch of great authority under the Kandake, the queen of Ethiopia.”

Did you catch that sequence of events? An angel of the Lord told Philip to go from Jerusalem to Gaza. Then, after he started out on his journey, he met a eunuch, an Ethiopian man. The angel only gave Philip the location he was to go to. The angel didn’t say, “Go here and you will meet an Ethiopian man and you are to do this and this.” Philip was given one detail at a time.

The Voice translation describes it this way:

A heavenly messenger brought this short message from the Lord to Philip during his time preaching in Samaria:

“Messenger of the Lord: Leave Samaria. Go south to the Jerusalem-Gaza road.”

The message was especially unusual because this road runs through the middle of uninhabited desert. But Philip got up, left the excitement of Samaria, and did as he was told to do.

He got up, left the excitement, and did as he was told to do.

I just love that.

I can imagine Philip starting his journey to Gaza wondering why in the world he was supposed to go there. But he did as he was told to do. This is where Philip and I differ. I would have probably been like “Um, angel . . .  I need further instructions. I need to know where I will stay, what food they have there, what language I need to know, and also, why are you having me go this way? Everyone knows that’s not the easiest way to go.”

But obedient Philip just did as he was told. So many times we find this in Acts. Someone is given instructions to go somewhere, most likely to preach to the people, but they are given little instruction after that . . . until they reach their destination.

Look what happens in Philip’s story, picking up at verse 27 through 31:

The eunuch had gone to Jerusalem to worship, and he was now returning. Seated in his carriage, he was reading aloud from the book of the prophet Isaiah.

The Holy Spirit said to Philip, “Go over and walk along beside the carriage.”

Philip ran over and heard the man reading from the prophet Isaiah. Philip asked, “Do you understand what you are reading?”

The man replied, “How can I, unless someone instructs me?” And he urged Philip to come up into the carriage and sit with him.

Philip was just handed an invitation to share Jesus with the Ethiopian man. As the story continues, we learn that Philip does just that–shares the gospel of Jesus with this man. The Ethiopian man becomes a believer and Philip ends up baptizing him in some water they come across while walking with the carriage.

For a man who had little clue of where he was going next, he sure was given a big assignment.

So one of the biggest things I learned in my study of Acts is this:

It's okay to not know where you're going next.

Head over to More to Be to finish reading this post!

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The Beauty of Just a Few: Encouragement for When Your Small Group is Struggling

You anxiously wait for their arrival.  You set out your materials, get out your Bible and turn to the story or scripture you want to share.  You go over your lesson in your head one more time.  You’ve been over it numerous times, but once more won’t hurt.  It makes you feel more prepared.  You see headlights shining as cars begin to pull in.  You put on your leader hat because the time has come to start.

You welcome people as they arrive.  It’s just a few for now. More will come.  You look at the clock. 

Give them five more minutes. 

You make small talk with those present and tell them that you’ll get started in just a few minutes, you’re just waiting for the others to arrive. 

But the time passes and no one else comes.  You need to begin.

You only have a few people.  You smile at the group and say something like “well it looks like it’s just going to be us!” 

You take one more look out into the parking lot. Nope.  No one.  You take a deep breath in and then you begin.   

Have you been in this situation before?  I certainly have.  It can be disheartening, certainly discouraging, even downright frustrating at times.  You feel like a failure, like you’ve done something wrong. 

Did I forget to remind people?  Did people not see the announcement in the church bulletin?  What about all those Facebook reminders? 

It happens.  So today I would love to give you some encouragement for when you feel like your small group is struggling. 

I use the term small group very loosely because for some of you “small group” may mean 5-6 people, for others its 20-30.  Some churches call them “life groups” or “mission groups.” In whatever way this applies to you, I hope you will get some encouragement today.

I would love to start with a personal example.  Just recently over the last year I really began struggling with one of the small groups I lead.  Attendance was at an all-time low, I felt burned out and to be quite honest, I felt like maybe the girls were losing interest in it and we all should move on to something else.   

I was measuring the success of the group based on the numbers.  While mathematically this probably makes sense, from a spiritual standpoint I couldn’t have been more off. 

I devoted time in prayer over it and I was able to discern The Lord telling me not to let it go yet. 

 But Lord, I thought, we only have a few girls, sometimes just one girl, how can we continue to grow with just a few?  

Don’t let it go yet. Pour more into it.

I was getting my answer and now was the time to trust that God would be faithful and He would begin a new work in our group.

Over the past six months I have seen more growth in our small group than ever before.  We have grown in numbers, welcoming two new girls into our group.  We have exciting mission projects planned and the best part of all, I have seen such spiritual growth in the girls. 

They are grasping Biblical concepts better than ever before.  They are coming up with their own ways to serve in their schools and within their circle of family and friends.  They are chasing hard after the God who created them and it’s simply beautiful to watch and be a part of.

And to think that I wanted to give up on it because we were only having “just a few.”

Friend, let me tell you.  There is beauty in just a few. 

The world and at times even our churches will place more emphasis on things that will reach the most people, draw in the biggest numbers.  This isn’t a bad thing, but I’ve learned that building a relationship with “just a few” is just as essential as reaching the masses. Relationships draw people in.  Relationships keep people coming back.     

I understand how frustrating it can be to only have a few people show up after you’ve spent so much time preparing for your lesson or your event.  But don’t get into the mindset that I did and let the numbers guide how you serve. 

There have been times when I have lead a Bible study and an average of 20 women showed up.  The next time I lead one, it was a great night if 6 or 7 women showed up.  What changed?  Was it me?  Was it the Bible study I picked?

It may have been one of those things, I don’t know.  But the more realistic perspective to have is that everything happens in seasons.  Your small group will ebb and flow.  Did you know that your group will go through seasons too?

People get busy, especially women.  Maybe their children are involved in a sport that meets on the same night as your group meeting.  Maybe childcare is an issue and they don’t have a babysitter.  Maybe it has nothing to do with church or with you at all.  Maybe they are going through a tough time in their lives and they are drained, spent. Going to group is just beyond their emotional abilities at the time. 

It’s normal to see attendance drop off in times of busy seasons and then see it rise up again.  With every small group there are seasons of pruning and there are seasons of growth.  It’s hard to be patient during these seasons, but John 15:2 tells us

^“He cuts off every branch of mine that doesn’t produce fruit, and he prunes the branches that do bear fruit so they will produce even more.” (NLT)

During these pruning seasons, ask God to show you how you can better serve your small group.  Do you need to order new and fresh materials?  Should your group do a different mission project this year than they have done in the past?  Is there a greater need that needs to be met in your group? 

I have seen the reward come from my seasons of pruning.  Growth happens.  Although not always in the way I think it will.  Maybe you don’t see growth in numbers, but you see spiritual growth.  Maybe you see relationships and bonds form between the women in your small group where there were none before. 

This is where the beauty of just a few comes in.

You don’t need to have a large group to make a lasting impact on someone.  You may not think you’re making an impact on the few people you are serving.  I guarantee that you are.  You never know how your group lesson will impact someone.  You never know how sharing some of your own story can effect someone so greatly that they become brave enough to boldly proclaim me too.  Your work for The Lord never goes to waste. 

I have been so encouraged by this verse from 1 Corinthians 15:

If your small group is struggling and you’re ready to give up and let it go, I would love to encourage you not to.  It’s easy to throw in the towel and give up.  It takes more faith and courage to keep going.  Your group will experience seasons, it’s up to you to decide how you will lead your group through those seasons.   

There is beauty in just a few.

We are told in Matthew 18:20:

"For where two or three gather together as my followers, I am there among them.”

If you are in a season of pruning in your small group, I pray you experience the blessing of growth!  If your current season is one of abundance, I pray that on the days when you are struggling, you will remember whose child you are and you will be encouraged that He has made everything beautiful in its time. 

Are you currently struggling with your small group?

Leaders, how can I pray for you?

If you are part of a small group, what do you enjoy the most about it?

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