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Monday, May 12, 2008

Gas Prices & Leadership

The law from your mouth is more precious to me
than thousands of pieces of silver and gold. Psalm 119:72

Leadership that honors God must be consistent with what God says about himself in Scripture. As you grow in your Christian walk, your appreciation and awe for God and his Son must increase, not decrease. In any relationship, if you begin to take someone for granted the strength of that relationship begins to decrease. Taking God for granted, as in not having growing love for him, will lead to inconsistency in the things you say and the things you do. Children show particular expertise in detecting inconsistencies in parents. If you talk to you children about a God who is wonderful, about a Savior who means everything to you, but then you are down and discouraged about some event that didn’t go your way, you are being inconsistent. Your testimony about the wonder of God is diminished your children’s eyes.

For example, you may speak glowingly about the sovereignty of God but then be quickly discouraged by rising gas prices. This discouragement may spill over into worry and short tempers as the price of gas marches upward. Complaints begin about the price of food going up because of high gas prices. Trips to the gas station become an exercise in anxiety as you peek to see how high the gas price has risen since yesterday. You may hear yourself saying things like, No children we can’t go to the park today. It is too expensive to drive there and I don’t want to hear any whining about it. Then when you speak to a friend or coworker you say, “I just can’t believe the price of gas! This is outrageous. I can’t even go to the store without having to take out a loan to pay for gas!”

What difference does the sovereignty of God make to you? God is no less gracious to you now than when gas was selling for $1.95 per gallon. However, your children might think otherwise. Do they hear constant complaints and worry—or short, irritated responses?

To be sure, the rising price of gas presents significant budget challenges to your family. But Colossians 1:15-20 says that Jesus Christ has authority even over the price of gas. Romans 8:28 teaches that all things work together for the good of those who love him. If you teach your children that the control of God is a good thing, then you must also come to terms with rising gas prices. This does not mean that you must pray for the price of gas to go higher! But it does mean that even in this difficult situation and the financial hardships that may come, God is still the wonderful Lord of Creation. He is bringing these events about so that you will look more to him and less to yourself. It is important to teach your children to adjust to the lifestyle changes that may come with rising fuel costs in a way that honors God. God is still a good God even if gas prices continue to rise.

It may well be that rising gas prices are the result of poor governmental planning, trouble in the Middle East, and an over dependence on foreign oil. But none of these factors detracts one bit from the glory of God and the priceless gift of salvation found in Jesus Christ. Psalm 119:72 says:

The law from your mouth is more precious to me
than thousands of pieces of silver and gold.

Every trial is an opportunity to live out this reality in front of your children, your wives and the community around you. Rising gas prices will no doubt have a significant financial impact for many, perhaps your family. As Psalm 46 says, you can take comfort and refuge in the knowledge that the God of Jacob is for us. The Bible does not ignore hard times. It tells us to expect them. The difference between the wise and foolish builders in Matthew 7 is not that one faced storms and the other one did not. Storms came to the lives of both men. The difference was the foundation upon which their lives were built. May God grant grace to us as parents, and the ability to present God as faithful in both pleasant times and difficult times. The world can easily complain about high gas prices and fall into despair. God calls you to be different from the world. Use this opportunity to offer praise to the Lord of heaven and earth, and yes, have confidence in God even in the face of gas prices.

Have you reacted to the rising price of gas with irritation or anxiety? Remember, just last week we talked about the sufficiency of Scripture, and our commitment to growing in reliance on the Bible in areas of our lives where we fall short. As you grow in reliance on the Bible, you will respond to trials—such as the gas prices—with more wisdom and consistency.

Summer is almost here; vacations will begin. Don’t take a summer vacation from your leadership responsibilities. Plan some goals now for this summer.

  • Do you have specific, measurable goals for growing in your knowledge of the Bible? If you don’t, why not discuss this with your group, and set at least one specific goal for yourself for the summer months?
  • Remember to include what, when, and how. Your plan should have specific steps to do at least weekly.

Monday, May 5, 2008

The Bible, Leadership & You

  • I run in the path of your commands,

    for you have set my heart free. —Psalm 119:32

    Certainly one thing that can be said about the teaching at Redeemer is that the Bible is central to all that we do in life. This belief is the cornerstone of our counseling program. The challenge for us as men is to extend this reliance upon the Scriptures to all areas of our lives. On the basis 2 Peter 1:3-4 and other passages, summarized in our confessional standards, we affirm that the Bible is the only perfect or infallible rule for faith and life.

    It is important for us to examine how consistent we are in applying this truth to our lives. With the time pressures and many responsibilities of everyday life it is easy for us to unwittingly add to the standard of the Bible as our only infallible rule for faith and life. For example, do our wives and children see us consistently appealing to the Bible as the basis for our day to day decisions? Or do they see us relying on some homemade combination of dad's conventional wisdom and common sense?

    We must not let the Bible be crowded out by day to day pressures. Our world is so full of competing philosophies and perspectives that we have to make an intentional effort to start with Scripture. While it is often easier to do things the way we've always done them, or the way friends at work say to do them, or whatever the popular conventional wisdom says, God wants us to do the hard work using his word as our source of wisdom. Although challenging, this approach provides great freedom.

    Let's explore this theme for a moment. The goal is not to quote Scripture locations with every sentence that we speak. Rather, our goal should be to have the principles of Scripture be so familiar to us that they flow freely and naturally out of our mouths. As John says in his first epistle, the commands of God are not burdensome. Psalm 119:32 puts it this way:

    I run in the path of your commands,

    for you have set my heart free.

    This verse accurately reflects the mindset of someone who believes that the Bible really is our only perfect rule of faith and life. Here, intimate knowledge of the word of God produces a genuine heartfelt freedom. This verse does not describe someone struggling with a heavy burden, but someone who moves with eagerness and freedom along the path of life. This is what the Bible is designed to do for the people of God. Psalm 19 says that the word of God revives the soul, makes the simple wise, gives joy to the heart, gives light to the eyes and is much more valuable than precious gold.

    Men, if this is what the word of God is to you, then your attitude and behavior will encourage those around you. You will find yourself being excited about discovering new ways to apply the Scriptures to your life.

    Since last fall, we have covered a lot of ground in our discussions about leadership. In the next couple of weeks, as we approach the summer break, let's specifically thank God for the sufficiency of his precious word. Let's pray that God would produce in us the reality of having our hearts set free, as we run in the path of his commands.

    Remember, if we think the word of God is restrictive, our children will think the word of God is restrictive. If we act as if obedience to Christ is a heavy burden, then we will not be the encouragement to our wives that God calls us to be. If following Christ is drudgery to us, then others will have no desire to serve the God that we serve. Men, does your life reflect the joy of Psalm 119:32?

  • List some areas in which you do not rely sufficiently on Scripture for wisdom.
  • List at least two areas in which you commit to grow in your reliance on Scripture.
  • What will you do to accomplish this? Include what, when, and how. To whom will you be accountable?