E4February 2006
What Am I Reflecting?
Dear Leader,
It’s February and we are enjoying the freezing temperatures here in California, I believe today got all the way down to 72 degrees as we sipped our iced mochas in the sun…ok, I know what you are thinking. “You’re an idiot!” Let’s be honest, the tone of the opening remarks could be “unwelcomed” especially if you are in a current state of pain…like, let’s say… Nebraska. Whatever your current state or your current state of mind we all can, from time to time, reflect “unwelcomed” things to others. This months E4 will focus on our reflection. What are we saying when we don’t open our mouth? What type of attitudes and actions are we reflecting to our staff, leaders and children? We like to say things are caught not taught. We really believe in this statement…it’s not just a cute saying. If we really believe this we need to make sure that our reflection is that of our Lord. We want to reflect His image to others. Are we clearly looking into the “mirror” of His grace and mercy…cuz if we’re not, we may be reflecting something we don’t want to. This week, try to take that one extra step closer to spiritual growth so our reflection to the children we minister to each week can match our walk with our talk and oh yeah, don’t forget to carry a mirror.
Serving With You,
Craig
E1- Encouraging Quotes and VersesQuotes
Mirror: Any smooth or polished object whose surface reflects light and image: A true portrayal or representation; an exemplary model –Webster’s DictionaryReflect on your present blessings, of which every man has many; not on your past misfortunes, of which all men have some. -Charles Dickens (1812-1870)
Do what you know and perception is converted into character. - Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803-1882)
The real man smiles in trouble, gathers strength from distress, and grows brave by reflection. -Thomas Paine (1737-1809)
Verses
But the LORD told him, "Samuel, don't think Eliab is the one just because he's tall and handsome. He isn't the one I've chosen. People judge others by what they look like, but I judge people by what is in their hearts." 1 Samuel 16:7 CEV
The Son reflects the glory of God and shows exactly what God is like. Hebrews 1:3 NCV
So that you will walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, to please Him in all respects, bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God ; Colossians 1:10 NASB
As water shows you your face, so your mind shows you what kind of person you are.
Proverbs 27:19 ICB
Your attitude should be the same that Christ Jesus had. Philippians 2:5 NLT
Illustration 1
In February 1990 the Los Angeles Bomb squad received a call about a suspicious pickup truck parked in downtown L.A. They checked it out and found 400 pounds of explosives in 55 gallon drums. Had the bomb been detonated, it would have blown a crater seventy-five feet wide and twenty feet deep. A man was arrested for the attempted bombing. Why was this man going to do this? Well, the bombs were all in or near the IRS building in downtown L .A. It turns out that the man believed that the IRS owed him money and he wasn’t going to leave them alone until he got the money. The amount he believed they owed him? Fourteen dollars. A heated life sometimes shows itself through overreaction.
Illustration 2
Have you ever had a pebble in your shoe? Kind of an irritating moment. Have you ever had a burr in your sock? You know, those nasty sticky, prickly things that end up in your socks if you walk through a field. In 1948 the Swiss mountaineer/chemist George de Mestral got an idea while peeling burrs from his socks. He soon realized that these burrs were “natures” little fasteners. He turned his frustration into an incredible product now known as Velcro or “velvet hooks” in French. We need to take the “burrs” of life and turn them into something useful by surrendering the moment.
Illustration 3
An article in National Geographic magazine a few years ago provided a penetrating picture. After a forest fire in Yellowstone National Park, forest rangers began their trek up the mountain to asses the inferno’s damage. One ranger found a bird literally petrified in ashes, perched statuesquely on the ground at the base of the tree. Somewhat sickened by the eerie sight, he knocked over the bird with a stick. When he struck the bird out ran three tiny little chicks that scurried from under their dead mother’s wings. The loving mother, keenly aware of impending disaster, had carried her offspring to the base of the tree and had gathered them under her wings, instinctively knowing the toxic smoke would rise. She could have flown to safety, but refused to abandon her babies. When the blaze had arrived and the heat had singed her small body, the mother remained steadfast. Because she had been willing to die, those under the cover of her wings would live.
Webster defines a mirror as any smooth or polished object whose surface reflects light and images. It is a true portrayal or representation. A mirror can not change your reflection—, it is up to you to alter your image—, the mirror will only confirm the change. This raises the question: Can I change my reflection? The answer is “Yes! I’m going to give you three ways to change your reflection. The mirror doesn’t lie but you can change the way you look…from the inside out. Look at this verse.
But the LORD said to Samuel, "Don't look at how handsome Eliab is or how tall he is, because I have not chosen him. God does not see the same way people see. People look at the outside of a person, but the LORD looks at the heart." 1 Samuel 16:7 NCV
3 Ways to Change Your Reflection:
1. Change Your Angle
The Son reflects the glory of God and shows exactly what God is like. Hebrews 1:3 NCV
There are two types of reflection:
1. You are reflecting yourself by looking directly into the mirror. It shows you the exact representation of who you are.
2. You are reflecting yourself to others. They see you but you do not see yourself. For example: When you drive your car. You don’t see yourself but you are reflecting yourself to others. Next time you pull up to the light look in the person’s rear view mirror. The person in the car ahead of you is reflecting their eyes back at you.
Question: What are we in children’s ministry reflecting to parents? To the kids in your class? To your co-leaders in ministry?
Here are seven things we can reflect depending on our angle:
7 Angles of Life We Can Reflect To Others
1. A Hurried Life.
Taken From “If It Ain’t Broke Break It” By: Robert Kriegel (pg. 54) You’ve got the gotta’s if…
You are working harder but wondering if you are accomplishing that much more.
You always feel behind…running a little late.
You are more irritable, critical, or short tempered with those around you.
You see less of your friends and family.
You get more headaches, backaches and stomachaches.
You have a tough time relaxing
You feel guilty if you are not working.
It’s all work and no play.
You are married to your job.
You tire easily and feel fatigued.
You need to be continually busy.
You sometimes feel depressed or sad without any apparent cause.
Not surprisingly, research has found that the type “A” lifestyle is incredibly stressful. You are much more inflexible, impatient, and irritable and anxious when you are in a hurry. In fact the hurried lifestyle can literally kill you. The phenomenon has become such a concern in Japan that they actually have a word for it. “To the millions of Japanese who operate in perpetual overdrive this phenomenon has long been known as karoshi, or death from overwork.”
A Promise For The Hurried Life:
Let go of your concerns! Then you will know that I am God. I rule the nations. I rule the earth.
Psalm 46:10 GWT
2. A Hopeless Life
Someone who is searching but finding no fulfillment or purpose in life. This can happen even when you are serving in ministry. “They don’t really need me to serve at this church.”
A Promise For The Hopeless Life:
But those who hope in the LORD will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint. Isaiah 40:31 NIV
3. A Hazardous Life
This would be like a car driving down the road at 90 miles an hour and the driver has fallen asleep. The car is moving but the driver has no idea the direction he is headed. It’s the same thing in life.
A Promise For The Hazardous Life:
Trust in the LORD with all your heart; do not depend on your own understanding. Seek His will in all you do, and He will direct your paths. Proverbs 3:5-6 NLT
4. A Heavy Life
Feel like you are always carrying a burden. You may have a lot of responsibility. Sometimes this can come on you suddenly in children’s ministry. A few weekends ago there was a group of children that started crying in the toddler room. What a tremendous group of people who serve in our Birth – 3 year olds classes. I am not trying to take away anything from the rest of us that serve in another age group , but this group is constantly on. They do a fabulous job but sometimes life gets a little heavy.
The Promise For The Heavy Life:
‘Come to Me, all of you who are tired and have heavy loads, and I will give you rest.’ Matthew 11:28 NCV
5. A Heated Life
This is the “I am ready to snap” life. Little things are really big things to the person reflecting this lifestyle.
The Promise For The Heated Life:
Do not worry about anything. But pray and ask God for everything you need. And when you pray, always give thanks. And God's peace will keep your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. The peace that God gives is so great that we cannot understand it. Philippians 4:6-7 NCV
6. A Hollow Life
Empty. The car is out of gas. It’s hard to steer a parked car.
A Promise For The Hollow Life:
‘For I know the plans I have for you,’ says the LORD. ‘They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope.’ Jeremiah 29:11 GWT
7. A Healthy Life
How do you reflect a healthy life? Reflect the things of God, not the circumstances around you. Change your angle!
A Promise For The Healthy Life:
So that you may walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, to please Him in all respects, bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God. Colossians 1:10
How do you reflect a healthy life? Start with two questions.
1. Realization: Have I been doing a good job of reflecting what God is like?
2. Application: What can I do this week to reflect to my kids in my class, parents and others what God is doing in my life?
2. Change Your Lighting
As water shows you your face, so your mind shows you what kind of person you are.
Proverbs 27:19 ICB
What are some things that dim our light as we serve in children’s ministry? Things that may cast shadows :
1. Crying kids
2. Kids that won’t listen
3. Kids that won’t follow directions
4. Our joy is gone
5. When programs and curriculum change
6. When there are too many kids and not enough leaders
I have to be honest and say sometimes these things really bum me out. When these kinds of things get to me , I am reminded that it’s time to change my lighting. I am not in the light but in the shadows. Listen to this verse.
Here is the message we have heard from God and now tell to you: God is light, and in Him there is no darkness at all. So if we say that we have fellowship with God, but we continue living in darkness, then we are liars. We do not follow the truth. God is in the light. We should live in the light, too. If we live in the light, we share fellowship with each other. And when we live in the light, the blood of the death of Jesus, God's Son, is making us clean from every sin. 1 John 1:5-7 ICB
Sometimes we walk in our own light:
But instead, some of you want to light your own fires and make your own light. So, go, walk in the light of your fires, and trust your own light to guide you. But this is what you will receive from me: You will lie down in a place of pain. Isaiah 50:11 NCV
How can we walk in the light, God’s light , instead of the light of our own fires?
- Attend Church
You should not stay away from the church meetings, as some are doing, but you should meet together and encourage each other. Do this even more as you see the day coming. Hebrews 10:24-25
- Pray
Never stop praying. 1 Thessalonians 5:17 GWT
- Fast
- Memorize God’s Word
I have hidden Your word in my heart, that I might not sin against You. Psalm 119:11 GWT
- Study
- Quiet Time
Top 5 signs you are not reading your Bible enough:
#5. You think Abraham, Isaac and Jacob may have had a few hits in the 70’s.
#4. You think “hallucinations” is a book of the Bible.
#3. You are frustrated because Charleton Heston is not listed in the table of contents under “Moses.”
#2. When someone says turn to Galatians you turn to the table of contents.
#1. Your favorite Old Testament character is Bob the tomato.
Some Ideas to Get You Going:
1.5/5: You spend five minutes praying and five minutes reading the Bible.
2. In order for us as a team to have a boost during the week we will be sending out a weekly focus that will follow this idea.
Read : Read a verse or paragraph of scripture.
Reflect : Reflect on the passage you just read.
Remember : A quote or story that reinforces what you read.
Respond : What I will do as a result of this new learning.
Reminder : A reminder about some aspect of our ministry to children.
Questions:
1. Realization: Have I been standing in the light or the shadows lately?
2. Application: What step will I take this week to get into better “lighting?”
3. Change Your Makeup
For if you just listen and don't obey, it is like looking at your face in a mirror but doing nothing to improve your appearance. You see yourself, walk away, and forget what you look like. But if you keep looking steadily into God's perfect law--the law that sets you free--and if you do what it says and don't forget what you heard, then God will bless you for doing it. James 1:23-25 NLT
My wife tells me that you typically use make up one of two ways:
1. To cover up blemishes.
2. To enhance your features.
Questions:
1. Realization: Have I been using excuses to cover up blemishes in my life?
2. Application: What specifically do I need to enhance in my life this week to better reflect God to others?
Let’s Pause For...Reflection
I don’t know if you saw the movie Remember The Titans but at a key point one of the guys, Julius , says to the team captain, Gary :“Attitude Reflects Leadership…Captain” It was a great scene and a great reminder.
Last week I passed out 3 x 5 cards to my staff and I asked them to answer two questions for me : .
1. What leadership trait can I do a better job of reflecting to my leaders?
2. What leadership trait can (Craig) do a better job of reflecting to me?
Since “Attitude Reflects Leadership…let me ask you two questions : .
1. What character trait or value can I do a better job of reflecting to the children in my class?
2. What character trait or value can I do a better job of reflecting to my peers in ministry?
Four Reflections For Us This Month
1. S eek God
No one can please God without faith. Whoever goes to God must believe that God exists and that He rewards those who seek Him. Hebrews 11:6
2. S urrender The Moment
Your attitude should be the same that Christ Jesus had. Philippians 2:5 NLT
Two ways this works:
1. When things don’t go as planned.
2. When you feel like you are being treated unfairly.
3. S erve The Body
If you serve Christ with this attitude, you will please God. And other people will approve of you, too. So then, let us aim for harmony in the church and try to build each other up.
Romans 14:18-19 NLT
Gang, we are making a difference in the lives of kids. Sure, it takes sacrifice, and sometimes we can feel the flames surrounding us. But we simply put up our wings and serve the Body by serving our kids.
Two ways this works:
1. When you feel like stopping because the joy is gone.
2. When you feel like your ministry is a job and not a ministry.
4. S upport The Team
May God, who gives this patience and encouragement, help you live in complete harmony with each other--each with the attitude of Christ Jesus toward the other. Romans 15:5 NLT
According to Thomas Leppert, Chairman and CEO of the Turner Corporation in Dallas TX : . “A successful team boils down to two things: Mutual respect among team members and a common vision about where the team is going.” Question: Do we know where we are going? And can we get excited about it together?
Two ways this works:
1. When you don’t always agree with everyone on the team.
2. When you don’t know the direction the team is going.
Final Thought
Do not change yourselves to be like the people of this world. But be changed within by a new way of thinking. Then you will be able to decide what God wants for you. And you will be able to know what is good and pleasing to God and what is perfect. Romans 12:2 ICB
