Leadership – Page 2 – The Doug Ellingsworth Blog

Where Leadership Begins

by Doug Ellingsworth @https://twitter.com/DEllingsworth on October 28, 2016

It had been one intense day after another. David’s health was not improving despite every effort to revive him. One of Solomon’s half-brothers had taken advantage of David’s condition, and tried to pry the kingdom from his frail fingers. Only a last minute intervention by the prophet Nathan and Bathsheba foiled his plot. David, lucid enough to realize he had to act, ordered Nathan to anoint Solomon to take his place as King. As the news spread, the people rejoiced with such fervor that I Kings chapter one says that all their noise rent the Earth.

Solomon had been given the throne, but now it was time for him to establish his kingdom.

Leadership

A Little Help For Those Who Probably Don’t Want It

by Doug Ellingsworth @https://twitter.com/DEllingsworth on September 13, 2016

You would think that, with all the money they earn, these sports stars using their fame to sway public opinion could buy a clue. But then, the executives running those leagues aren’t showing us much but an abundance of arrogance themselves.

So, let me see if I can help.

Tip Number One: You don’t get respect for your cause by disrespecting someone else’s. Your freedom to earn millions of dollars playing a game — did you catch that — PLAYING A GAME was paid for with the blood of men who all we have left of are the memories that are embodied in that flag that you refuse to salute. And the police officers you criticize? They’re the guys who keep the thugs out of your mansions and custom rides, fanatic fans off your back, and the moms of those dead soldiers you disrespect off your neck.

Leadership/Ministry

Things I Didn’t Know I Needed (part one)

by Doug Ellingsworth @https://twitter.com/DEllingsworth on July 15, 2016

shoes-1238960-639x866 I didn’t know I needed a pastor to serve. I knew that I needed a pastor to serve me, and I was quite content to let that happen in as many ways as possible. But I didn’t realize that I needed a pastor to serve.

In the Old Testament, during every festival they celebrated, Israel was admonished to include the Levites who ministered to their families. When a family parceled out the food they set back to help the poor, God told them to include the Levite who ministered to their family. Even though they had already paid a tithe to support the Levites, they were still required to include them in all the celebrations that God included in Moses’ Law.

Today, we don’t have all those celebrations, but we are still encouraged to take care of our ministers (I Timothy 5:17). Hebrews 13 indicates that our preachers are essential to our eternal success, and I Corinthians 1:21 flat-out says that believers are saved by preaching. If for no other reason than to express our gratitude, we need to take good care of our preachers.

Leadership

Those Who Would Change The World

by Doug Ellingsworth @https://twitter.com/DEllingsworth on June 24, 2016

Little people spend their lives fighting other people. This kind lives and dies with their tombstones being the only noticeable change to the landscape.

The great ones, those who bring positive change to their worlds, are driven by passion and vision. These folks realize that time is too precious to waste fighting with those who disagree. Vision and Purpose are bigger than life and will outlast it. When you stop working on your vision to fight with your enemies, you become insignificant. The world is full of that kind.

Nehemiah did not build a wall around Jerusalem by forming an alliance with his enemies, but he moved men to action with his unwavering devotion to his vision of a protected city.

Leadership/Living

Focus. Automatic or Manual?

by Doug Ellingsworth @https://twitter.com/DEllingsworth on January 12, 2016

old-camera-1550965-1918x1200 I’m not all that old, but I remember when the first “point and shoot” cameras came out. Remember the old Instamatics? Drop in a film cartridge, spin the little wheel a couple of times with your thumb, and you were ready to go. No lens settings to worry about, no rings to adjust. Just aim, click, and wind.

What made those cameras so universal was that they were always in focus. Unless you had a mighty jittery hand or you snapped a picture while jumping on your neighbor’s trampoline, the odds were that every picture would turn out. Of course, you wouldn’t know for sure for a week or so – depending on how long it took to get them developed.

With today’s digital cameras, the auto focus feature makes us all good photographers. But good is all it can do. That wonderful feature that automatically focuses for you cannot see all that’s framed in the viewfinder, and often prevents you from seeing the detail that separates good from great.

Leadership/Living

2016 Reading List

by Doug Ellingsworth @https://twitter.com/DEllingsworth on January 6, 2016

old-books-1520670 Happy New Year!

2016 was ushered in on rain drops and flood waters here in west Tennessee. Epic floods were forecast, and folks began the daunting task of moving and storing their belongs before the rivers crested. Farmers moved all of their equipment out of what we call the bottoms – the low ground where the Obion and Forked Deer Rivers meet and flow into the Mississippi. The newspaper ran a picture of the sheriff leading a convoy of nearly 50 tractors headed for higher ground. Fortunately, the crest was not as high as predicted so it looks as if we might be spared this go around.

Time to stop watching the water and get to work.

I’ve put together a reading list for this year. I’ve mixed a few new books in with some old ones I just never got around to reading. I also had a few recommendations from friends, so I added them to the list.

Leadership/Living

Beating Fear This New Year

by Doug Ellingsworth @https://twitter.com/DEllingsworth on December 17, 2015

Okay, it’s that time again. Time for all Americans to embrace the new year and determine, in the next 12 months, how many pounds we will lose, how much money we will save, which bad habits we will change, and all the books we will read. For most of us, the task is easy: just dust off last year’s plan and we are good to go. We aren’t so good at making resolutions and sticking to them.

There are different reasons why – and all of them good ones. Who wants to drink water when you can have sweet tea? Despite the promises on the label, that fat-free stuff tastes nothing like ice cream. And no low-fat, sugar-free, watered-down substitute prepares you for sleep like that midnight snack of Oreos and whole milk.

But the most powerful reason that we fail to keep our New Year’s resolutions is because they force us to move out of our comfort zones and create new ones. It’s been proven that humans will often take a beating rather than face the unknown. (Can anybody say spousal abuse?). We don’t often identify it, but the underlying force that prevents our success is fear.

Family/Leadership/Ministry

More Prayer, Please!

by Doug Ellingsworth @https://twitter.com/DEllingsworth on November 13, 2015

A few months ago, doctors told a lady in our church that she had cancer. Her family and friends, obviously, were devastated. A follow-up visit was scheduled to gain more specific information about her condition. Folks agreed to gather at the church and pray for her the night before she was to report for that appointment.

Most of the crowd who came to pray that evening were younger – say, less than 40 years old. The sick woman has a brother who has children that age. Although he attends a Pentecostal church a few miles away, he came to our church that night to help pray for his sister.

Family/Leadership/Living/Ministry

The Bible Doesn’t Set Standards

by Doug Ellingsworth @https://twitter.com/DEllingsworth on October 30, 2015

The only thing more irritating than listening to a bunch of kids bicker is listening to a bunch of adults argue. How people can stand to listen to or watch those talk shows where each person tries to scream louder than the others is beyond me. If there is any intelligence involved, it’s lost in all the noise. Like my Uncle Floyd used to say, “Them folks ain’t got enough intellectuals to know how stupid they sound.”

Last week, I was listening to a few men debate whether churches should teach against using tobacco or drinking alcohol as a biblical standard or a man-made standard. From what I gathered, if the Bible prohibited something, then you could teach it as a biblical standard. But if the Bible did not specifically address a thing and you wanted to teach against it, you had to acknowledge that it was a man-made standard that God wasn’t necessarily obligated to acknowledge. I also discerned that by standard these fellows meant a rule that church members were expected to obey if they wanted to get to Heaven.

So, if the Bible says a specific thing, like stealing, is wrong, than you can teach against it – specifically and by name. But where the Bible says things like “denying ungodliness and worldly lusts,” you aren’t allowed to make a list of things that those words might describe or you will be guilty of teaching man-made standards.

Family/Leadership/Ministry

Men and Their Feelings, Part Two

by Doug Ellingsworth @https://twitter.com/DEllingsworth on October 21, 2015

Alright, back to where we left off last week. I was arguing that men do not have a feminine side. Remember?

The only emotion a man is allowed to own is anger. All other emotions, we’ve decided, belong to the females of the human race, and are completely inappropriate for men to display. He can’t cry, seem afraid, be insecure, appear hopeful, or acknowledge any of the feelings that God put inside him to help him appropriately navigate the challenges of life. Instead, he’s told a real man gets through life needing nothing from no one.

And we wonder why he punches the wall when he loses his job . . . or his kids get on his nerves . . . or his wife buys that purse . . . or the car breaks down . . . or just about any other time his life seems out of his control.

Great men in the Bible weren’t afraid to express what was in their hearts. They weren’t a bunch of sniffy-nosed hand wringers, but they understood that there were times when those around them needed to know what only they could express.

Category: Leadership