Category Archives: Connection

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Faith Life Matters

Racial Divides in Spiritual Practice

Martin Luther King Jr. once stated that it is appalling that the most segregated hour of Christian American is 11:00am on Sunday. Progress is slow on racial reconciliation in this country, particularly given recent events. But why do lingering divisions exist in the Church, the very communities built on the promise of forgiveness and reconciliation? Finding racial unity in a congregation is a complex task that requires a deep recognition of racial differences in how Christians understand and practice their faith. 

Consider the following snapshots that were prepared between Barna Research and Navigators in 2015

These snapshots are not designed to elevate one group of worshippers over another group as though they are superior. Careful examination of the data in 2015 reveals there is a real need for improvement no matter the ethnic origin. However, it must be concluded that white congregations have much to learn about spirituality being “soulish”. Black worshippers feel their faith and it is expressed openly. I am not suggesting that any group of worshippers should emulate the style and expressions of other worshippers and force that style to become normative. Can we agree the miracles of scripture and the hope of Heaven will cause a bit of excitement in our soul? How do you keep that quiet? How do you remain expressionless while serving a Mighty God?

For reconciliation to work in the Faith Communities of American it seems we must own our need for a deeper and meaningful growth in our worship expression. We must also accept the fact that white and black worshippers are starting the dialogue from different starting points of belief and expression.  Question: If Faith-Life in Christ does not matter, then what matters?

Shepherds Advantage provides Servant Leadership that helps people close the gap between where they are and where they want to be. Shepherds Advantage closes that gap by providing Leadership Development, Key Note Speaking, and Executive Coaching. 

Shepherdsadvantage@gmail.com

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Have We Lost Critical Thinking?

6 Critical Thinking Skills

What is Critical Thinking? 

Critical thinking is defined as active use of a person’s reasoning ability to identify and analyze arguments, ideas and situations to reach rational conclusions or decisions. Critical thinking also involves developing reliable evaluations before believing something. 

Critical thinking is the process of synthesizing gathered information to decide on a course of action. About.com argues that in order to think critically, a person should be open minded and able to differentiate between reason and emotion. The process involves reflective thinking, problem solving, and arguing from knowledge or evidence. Successful critical thinking requires skills such as observation, evaluation, analysis, interpretation and inference, and it has a place in all academic disciplines and professional fields.[1]

Writer Will Erstad states that even if you want to be a better critical thinker, it’s hard to improve upon something you can’t define. Critical thinking is the analysis of an issue or situation and the facts, data or evidence related to it. Ideally, critical thinking is to be done objectively—meaning without influence from personal feelings, opinions or biases—and it focuses solely on factual information.[2]

Skills Needed

There is no set standard of skills in which to develop to become a better Critical Thinker. It really depends upon the circumstances of the moment and the author you choose to listen to at the moment. Erstad seems to offer a fair appraisal of what a Critical Thinkers skill set would look like. Here are 6 skills to work on.

  1. Identify the situation or problem and the factors that are influencing this issue. Ask Who is doing what? What seems to be the reason for this action? What is the end result or how could this change?
  2. Research the issue to learn the competing arguments of PRO and CON in the debate to gain context in the moment.
  3. Identify biases that exists. Who does this benefit? Who suffers as a result of this action? What is the agenda behind this information? What is the language pattern of the debate? Am I being swayed to an alt-position or am I being led to truth?
  4. What inference(s) are you drawing as a result of the data set in front of you? What is being presented as important truth may in fact turn out to be secondary truth.
  5. Determine the relevance of this issue. Am I attempting to solve a problem or am I observing a trend? What does this mean to me at this moment and what action should I take or deny?
  6. Productive Curiosity can be healthy if the end goal is change. If not it is a rabbit-hole!

Shepherds Advantage provides Servant Leadership that helps people close the gap between where they are and where they want to be. Shepherds Advantage closes that gap by providing Leadership Development, Key Note Speaking, and Executive Coaching. 

Shepherdsadvantage@gmail.com

[1] https://www.reference.com/article/critical-thinking-5d6322f29d4d4b09?aq=understanding+critical+thinking&qo=cdpArticlesACCESSED 18, June 2020.

[2] Will Erstad. 6 Critical Thinking Skills You Need To Master Now. Rasmussen College January 1, 2018.

Will you offer grace and compassion to those who feel terrified, angry, grief-stricken, or hopeless?

https://kurtbubna.com/troubling-times/

Whether your friend, neighbor, or pastor is right or wrong regarding an issue, will you first and foremost love others?

https://kurtbubna.com/troubling-times/
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American Gospel – Christ Alone

During our National Quarantine I felt strongly impressed to invest in my spiritual development and growth. I have accomplished this through reinvesting my time in the Biblical languages – Hebrew and Koine Greek. From this there has been a fresh awakening in my soul coupled with a deeper comprehension of the Gospel. This National Quarantine coupled with rioting has caused me to re-evaluate Biblical Discipleship. It all begins with a clear message – Jesus Christ is Lord.

American Gospel is actually a 2-hour presentation. This is a 40 minute portion of the entire program. I can only invite you to view, learn, and pray for a fresh desire to learn and be a disciple of Jesus Christ.

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Are We Experiencing A Modern Famine?

Do We Need More SMART Leaders or WISE leaders?

Christians today are Biblically malnourished—severely so. A dearth of Biblical preaching is the No. 1 reason the evangelical movement is so spiritually anemic. (John Macarthur)

The Bible foretold times like these. The Old Testament includes this prophecy: “‘Behold, the days are coming,’ says the Lord God, ‘That I will send a famine on the land, not a famine of bread, nor a thirst for water, but of hearing the words of the Lord’” (Amos 8:11, NKJV). Lamentations 2:9 seems to indicate that prophets will not be able to find a vision from the Lord. In others the Deity of God will become obscure not because He withholds himself, but because the people have rejected Him.

The Apostle Paul likewise foresaw an era that would be marked by a severe shortage of God’s Word. He predicted that a time was coming when people in the church “will not endure sound teaching, but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own passions, and will turn away from listening to the truth and wander off into myths” (2 Timothy 4:3-4). As you study the context for Paul’s instruction what you see is a stubborn resistance to the gospel message. Paul describes three features that indicates a restless craving for novelty. (1) Listeners would grow weary of sound doctrine (2) People will amass teachers to suit their own desires (3) They will do this to satisfy their “itching ears” – a satisfying message that is pleasing to hear. In other words, they want a gospel without the cross.

The primary question is “Are we experiencing a modern-day famine?” The implication is not that people are incapable of hearing with their ears. The issue is the passion of life have drawn people away from God to such an extent they cannot hear him any longer. Coupled with this fact, is the challenge for Ministers that speak regularly to their attendees. The Bible is a message about the Gospel! Christ declared that all that had been written in the Law, Prophets, and Gospels were about Him. The American church has allowed novelty to creep in to such an extent that sermons are being referenced as TEDx Talks. For a thorough review I strongly encourage you to watch American Gospel – Christ Alone.

It is interesting to note that Paul understood this gospel famine was already at work in his day. We can declare no less for our day. In fact, the spirit of this famine is strong. Present Christ to as many as you can, as often as you can, for as long as you can.

Shepherds Advantage provides Servant Leadership that helps people close the gap between where they are and where they want to be. Shepherds Advantage closes that gap by providing Leadership Development, Key Note Speaking, and Executive Coaching. 

Shepherdsadvantage@gmail.com

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Reshaping & Reclaiming Culture

We are re-opening – Now What?

As the world moves toward re-opening, a remarkable opportunity is also opening for leaders to re-claim and re-shape the culture of their team and organization. With crisis comes opportunity. Using the 5 Levels of Leadership from John Maxwell as a model, leaders can take intentional actions to fully engage their teams as they return to the new normal of business.[1]

Level 1 in the 5 Levels of Leadership is called Position and means that your influence is entirely dependent on the fact that you are the boss; you have the title. This is not an effective way to lead and why we encourage leaders to enjoy the fact that someone saw leadership potential enough in you and gave you the title and move quickly to Level 2. Level 2 is called Permission and is where leaders are investing in relationships to increase their level of influence with the people on their team.  Level 2 is the starting place for the culture you enjoy as an organization.

Consider these Level 2 actions to reclaim and reshape organizational culture:

  • Connect intentionally with every person on your team
  • Talk openly about the crisis and what you learned as a team
  • Share personally about your journey during the crisis
  • Collaborate with the team on a new standard of excellence
  • Communicate with clarity your purpose and mission
  • Confirm and verify your core values – add or change as needed

Level 3 in the 5 Levels of Leadership is about producing results together with your team. A strong team culture is cultivated when you generate results together.

Consider these Level 3 actions to reclaim and reshape organizational culture:

  • Reflect on learnings from the crisis and design new operating procedures for the team
  • Consider what’s now possible
  • Rethink roles and responsibilities to serve clients better
  • Rethink team dynamics to serve clients better
  • Communicate the value that each individual brings to the work you do
  • Get small wins early to build momentum over time

When crisis or adversity occurs, leaders have a fantastic opportunity to rethink how they communicate with their team, how they serve others.

[1] Re-Claiming & Re-Shaping  Culture As We Reopen Business ACCESSED 9 June, 2020.

The Prodigal Prophet: Jonah & The Mystery of God’s Mercy by Timothy Keller (New York: Viking, 2018)

God deals with this Old Testament prophet on issues like race, nationalism, obedience,  self-image, fear of death, trusting God and much more.  The predominant theme, however, is our understanding of God’s grace and its impact on how we deal with others. So the question begs, how do you seek the welfare of your city, the one where God has strategically placed you?  Keller offers 8 Qualities Of A Healthy And Prosperous City And Community in his book:

  1. A safe environment rather than a community that is plagued by crime or health hazards.
  2. Economic prosperity and humane workplaces rather than a community with few jobs where poverty is rampant.
  3. A state of peace rather than one marked by violence between individuals, races, groups, or nations.
  4. A just social order rather than one marked by corruption and by a justice system weighted against the weak and poor.
  5. Publicly available resources such as good educational institutions, medical services, parks, and recreation.
  6. Social harmony and civility in which people from different races, cultures, and moral frameworks relate to one another with respect.
  7. A community committed to caring for the weak, the elderly, the chronically ill, single parents and orphans, immigrants, and the poor.
  8. A government that works on behalf of all citizens, not just the rich and powerful.

You seek the welfare of your city by working toward these things.  Which one can you impact the most today

Christ and calamity go together. As Jesus said: “In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world” (John 16:33). When calamity strikes, you need Jesus.

Harold L. Senkbiel

(2020).

Christ and Calamity: Grace and Gratitude in the Darkest Valley (2020). (Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press, 2020)
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Philemon & The National Narrative

Slavery and The New Testament Church

Previously I have discussed the pathway of Mercy as a plausible construct to change the narrative from anarchy and lawlessness. Mercy is a compassionate love and care for others. God so loved that He gave us His Son Jesus Christ to die for us. That brand of love displayed on the cross is the heartbeat of mercy. We are to become living illustrations of God’s hesed love. The Mercy Pathway begins in our heart, is expressed in the home where we have our most cherished relationships, to the Church which becomes the collective voice of God’s passionate love and care for others, and finally how that society can become revolutionized by this brand of divine care and regard for others.

Tucked away in the New Testament is a one chapter twenty-five verse narration of a run-away slave named Onesimus. In what can only be a “Divine Moment”, Paul the prisoner, led Onesimus to salvation. It is in this context that Paul writes a letter to Philemon to receive Onesimus back not as a slave but a brother in Christ; “I appeal to you for my child Onesimus, whose father I became in my imprisonment. (Formerly he was useless to you, but now he is indeed useful to you and me)……”(vv.10-11).

“In Philemon, Paul built his case on the relationships that emerge in Christ. It is a Christian defense against the institution (of slavery). While others argued for the brotherhood of man,31 (Stoic Philosophers) Paul rooted his thoughts in the “in Christ” relationship. All “in Christ” were united, and they participated in a common task of knowing Christ. Right thinking people wish the best for their families, and right-thinking Christians wish the best for their spiritual brothers and sisters as well. Thus, manumission (release from slavery) of slaves logically proceeds from the message of the gospel. All persons are equal, and in Christ that equality can be freely expressed (Gal 3:28). “What this letter does is to bring us into an atmosphere in which the institution of slavery) could only wilt and die.”[1]

Slavery was collapsing in the Roman Empire. Christianity accelerated its demise. These twenty-five verses paint an amazing picture of Mercy being lived out fully in the New Testament Church. Keep in mind that Mercy is a compassionate care and love for all as illustrated in Christ Jesus. “28 yThere is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave7 nor free, zthere is no male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus. 29 And aif you are Christ’s, then you are Abraham’s offspring, bheirs according to promise”. [2]

31 The Stoic philosophers took that approach, and it is a valid argument. Its weakness is that Christians know more than that.

[1] Melick, R. R. (1991). Philippians, Colossians, Philemon (Vol. 32, pp. 344–345). Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers.

y [ver. 14; ch. 5:6; 6:15]; See Rom. 3:30; 1 Cor. 12:13

7 For the contextual rendering of the Greek word doulos see Preface

z 1 Cor. 11:11

a See Rom. 9:7; 1 Cor. 3:23

b ch. 4:1, 7; Rom. 8:17; Eph. 3:6; [ch. 4:28; 2 Tim. 1:1; Titus 1:2; Heb. 9:15]

[2] The Holy Bible: English Standard Version. (2016). (Ga 3:28–29). Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles.