Being Made Over Time – Jon Acuff

How do we not confuse making with achievement? In his (too brief) talk, Jon used the story of the Prodigal Son to explore what it looks like for God to make us.

Click here to visit Stuff Christians Like1. Remember Who You Are

You are not the things you make. Your identity isn’t wrapped up in things.

God doesn’t make things better. He makes things new.

The prodigal planned to return to his father and declare himself a slave. The prodigal could misname himself when he wasn’t in the father’s presence. But not when he fell at his father’s feet he couldn’t. Because his identity was set: he wasn’t a slave, he was a Son.

2. Remember who God is

God will not be handcuffed by your failures or handcuffed by your successes.

God solves problems by throwing parties.

The older brother missed the party because he was working in the field. The older brother insisted on being a slave. He denied his identity: he’s also a Son.

Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World that Can’t Stop Talking – Susan Cain

I spent way too long trying to become an extrovert instead of harnessing my unique powers of my introversion.

Click to buy Quiet on AmazonAs most introverts do, growing up, Susan received implicit messages about the insufficiency of introverts. But the truth is, we need introverts. When introverts don’t be introverted, everyone loses.

We should be thinking much more often about temperament pairings in leadership.

Temperament informs our person as deeply as does gender. And while to some degree, we’re all “Ambiverts” (there’s no such thing as a pure introvert or pure extrovert), we need to learn how to harness the power of introversion.

Introversion describes how you react to stimulation.Continue reading

The Making of a Leader – Andy Stanley

Click here to buy Deep & Wide by Andy Stanley
Many of these ideas are in Andy’s most recent book, “Deep & Wide”. Click here to buy it!

Information and Insight alone do not make a leader. What makes me into a leader is how I respond to

  1. Unexpected Opportunity
  2. Unavoidable Adversity
  3. Undeniable Calling

The leader is not the first to SEE an opportunity. They’re the first to ACT.

My response needs to be a story worth telling. The younger you are, the more important this is. But less significant this feels. Be careful!

Andy illustrated his thesis through several autobiographical stories:Continue reading