Developing Kingdom Leaders – Tom Yeakley

Taking the Mystery out of Leadership

Archive for the tag “character development”

28 Feb 2022

Speaking the Truth

All your words are true; all your righteous laws are eternal. Psalm 119:160 NIV

God is truth and His actions are always truthful.  God cannot lie.  God’s truth is absolute and found in His Word – the Bible.  It is unchanging because God is unchanging.  Because God’s Word is truth it is completely trustworthy.

As followers of Christ, we are always to deal truthfully with others.  Our words must be truthful so that others can trust what we say.  Because Jesus is ‘the Truth,’ believers are to share Christ, who is the truth, with others.

  • The Scriptures testify that God is truth.   What do the following passages say about God being truth? — John 14:6; John 18:33-37
  • God’s Word is the measuring rod for believers to gauge whether something is truthful or not.  What is said about the Word of God in the following passages? —  Psalm 119:142,151,160; John 17:17

Question to ponder:  Is there ever a time when you should not tell the truth, the whole truth?

Passages for further reflection: John 1:17; Hebrews 6:13-20

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14 Feb 2022

God’s Forgiveness

Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean; wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow.  Psalm 51:7  ESV

God’s love and forgiveness are great.  David experienced God’s forgiveness after the prophet Nathan confronted him about his adultery with Bathsheba.   This Psalm was written by David after the confrontation with Nathan, asking for God’s forgiveness for his sexual sin and for his murder of Bathsheba’s husband.

When we trust Christ as our Savior our sins are forgiven, all of them.  Jesus’ dying on the cross paid the death penalty for all our sins – past, present, and future.  When we sin as Christians, we must acknowledge them to God as the Holy Spirit brings them to mind (see 1 John 1:9).  We can thank God that our sins are forgiven because of the sacrifice of Christ.

  • God forgives.  What is said in the following passages about God’s forgiveness? — Psalm 130:1-6; Ephesians 1:7-10
  • As Christ’s ambassadors, we are to extend His forgiveness to others.  What is said about forgiving others in the following passages? — Luke 17:3-4; Colossians 3:12-14

Question to ponder:  How should the forgiveness extended to you impact your forgiveness of others as you lead?

Passages for further reflection:  Acts 13:38-39; Ephesians 4:32

Posted in #1 KNOW- How a Leader Thinks and tagged , , , ,
31 Jan 2022

Purity of Life

“I made a covenant with my eyes not to look lustfully at a young woman. Job 31:1 NIV

The battle is for control of our minds and what enters our eyes greatly influences our thoughts.  Job made a conscience decision to limit what he saw and not look lustfully at a woman.  He committed himself to moral purity in his thought life.  Moral purity begins in our thoughts and continues to our actions.  We are called to live holy lives in thoughts as well as behavior.

God is holy and therefore His followers are to be holy.  Personal holiness is a struggle between our bodies (the flesh) and God’s Spirit within each believer.  Though we are already positionally holy before God because we have trusted Christ as our Savior, experientially we strive to overcome our flesh and yield to the controlling power of the Holy Spirit.

  • What do the following passages say about God’s holiness? — Leviticus 11:44-45; Leviticus 20:7,26
  • Because God is holy, we as his ambassadors are called to live holy lives.  What is said about our calling to holiness in the following passages? — 2 Corinthians 7:1; 1 Peter 1:14-15.

Question to ponder:  What means is the enemy currently using in your life to gain entry to your thoughts?

Passages for further reflection: 1 Corinthians 6:12-20; Ephesians 4:20-24

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17 Jan 2022

Pride – Corruption of the Heart

But after Uzziah became powerful, his pride led to his downfall. He was unfaithful to the LORD his God, and entered the temple of the LORD to burn incense on the altar of incense. 2 Chronicles 26:16 NIV

Uzziah started well in his walk with God, but his pride caused his downfall.  Pride does not blast its way into our life, it is insidious. It comes creeping in with small steps.  It gains a foothold little by little, feeding on itself, it grows until it consumes a life and brings ruin.

God opposes the proud person.  He will actively work to humble the proud.  Because God is committed to building humility into us, we have two choices.  We can take the easy road and humble ourselves, or we can let God take us down a hard road where He humbles us.

  • What is said in the following passages about God’s opposition to pride? — Proverbs 6:16-17; James 4:4-6
  • Pride wrecks a life.  Nothing good comes from it. What are the results of pride noted in the following passages? — Proverbs 11:2; Proverbs 13:10

Question to ponder:  How can you recognize pride in your own life?

Passages for further reflection: Isaiah 25:11; 1 Peter 5:5-6

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10 Jan 2022

Integrity – A Matter of the Heart

I know, my God, that you test the heart and are pleased with integrity… 1 Chronicles 29:17 NIV

When God measures a person, He puts the “tape measure” around their heart.  Who we are is more important to God than what we do.  He looks at our hearts, not our activities.  If our hearts are right, then our actions will follow.

Integrity, a basic building block in our character, is rooted in our hearts.  It begins with a commitment in our hearts to honor and obey God wholeheartedly.  Integrity is then manifested by being truthful in all that we say and do.  Believers are people of their word, who fulfill promises—even to our own detriment if necessary.

  • God has integrity.  He does not lie, and we can count on Him always doing what He says He will do.  What do the following passages say about the importance of integrity? -— Numbers 23:19; Mark 12:14
  • The Lord uses people of integrity.  What do these passages say regarding the type of person God uses? -— 2 Timothy 2:20-21; Titus 1:6-7

Question to ponder:  Kingdom leaders represent God’s leadership of His people. Are you and your leadership known for integrity?

Passages for further reflection : Joshua 21:45; Luke 16:10

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27 Dec 2021

God’s Resources and Power

When the servant of the man of God got up and went out early the next morning, an army with horses and chariots had surrounded the city. “Oh no, my lord! What shall we do?” the servant asked. “Don’t be afraid,” the prophet answered. “Those who are with us are more than those who are with them.” 2 Kings 6:15-16 NIV

There are one-hundred billion stars like our sun in the Milky Way galaxy.  Traveling at the speed of light it would take one-hundred thousand years to cross the galaxy.  Our God made it all.  He spoke and it came into existence from nothing. He has unlimited resources and infinite power.  All of creation is His and He can do with it as He wants. 

When we are thrust into situations where we need to rely on God’s resources, we often respond like Elisha’s servant.  We can be fearful as we look at our own limited resources compared to the need of the hour.  We tend to look at the visible rather than trusting our invisible, heavenly Father.  Our Father’s resources are always sufficient to meet any need. 

  • The Lord possesses all that He created.  What do the following passages say about God’s ownership of His creation? — Psalm 50:10-12; Psalm 24:1-2
  • When facing challenging circumstances, we must be controlled by faith, not fear.  What do the following passages about trusting God and His resources? –- Psalm 23:1-4; Matthew 6:25-34

Question to ponder:  What makes it difficult for you to trust in God’s resources and power?

Passages for further reflection: Psalm 46:1-3; Romans 8:31

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20 Dec 2021

Praising God!

“The LORD lives! Praise be to my Rock! Exalted be my God, the Rock, my Savior!

2 Samuel 22:47 NIV

David’s heart overflowed with praise for the kindness God had shown him.  But so often our prayer time is self-centered rather than God-centered.  The Lord God Almighty is worthy of our praise.  We can praise God for who He is and thank him for what He has done or has promised to do.  Praise is worshiping, honoring, and exalting Him.  When we pray, we are acknowledging our dependency upon Him.

Praise can be done in song, like this song of David and the many Psalms of David; or it can be done in prayer.  Praising God can be done individually or corporately.  It is a deep expression from our inner being where the created one focuses on the Creator.

  • God rules over His creation as Lord.  He is the sovereign king over His universe.  What do the following passages say about God’s reign? -– Psalm 47:1-9; Psalm 103:19-22
  • God not only rules His creation, but He does so with goodness.  What do the following passages say about God’s goodness and His good works? -– Psalm 119:68; Nahum 1:7

Question to ponder:  What can you be praising God for today?

Passages for further reflection: Nehemiah 9:5-6, Revelation 4:9-11

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06 Dec 2021

Relativism vs. Truth

In those days there was no king in Israel. Everyone did what was right in his own eyes. Judges 21:25 ESV

Life isn’t fair, but God is.  Because God is just, He must have a standard ‘measuring rod’ with which to judge people fairly.  To be fair and just to all, this ‘measuring rod’ must be unchanging.  God’s ‘measuring rod’ is His revealed truth.  His truth is absolute and unchanging. It is the Bible!

The Word of God, the Bible originated from God and is truth because God is truth and in Him there is no falsehood.  If we saturate our minds with God’s truth, the Scriptures, we will be able to think God’s thoughts.  The Holy Spirit, God himself, who lives within all believers, will use His Word to guide us and keep us from the traps of our enemy, the devil.

  • Truth is absolute, not relative.  What is truth today will also be truth tomorrow, for truth does not change with time or context.  What does God say about truth in the following passages? — John 14:1,6,16-17; John 16:13-15
  • God will judge people based upon their response to His revealed truth.  What do the following passages say about God’s judgment of mankind? — Romans 1:18-20; Romans 2:1-2,8; Romans 3:21-26

Question to ponder:  Why can you trust God to do what is right when He judges people?

Passages for further reflection: Luke 12:47-48; Revelation 21:11-15

Posted in #1 KNOW- How a Leader Thinks and tagged , , , , ,
29 Nov 2021

The Promises of God

Not one word of all the good promises that the LORD had made to the house of Israel had failed; all came to pass. Joshua 21:45 ESV

Someone has said, “Promises are like pie crust–lightly made and easily broken.”  Promises are only as good as the character and the resources available to the one who makes the promises.  When God makes promises His perfect character and unlimited resources stand behind them. 

The Christian life begins by trusting the promises of God.  By believing Jesus’ promise of forgiveness and new life, we have our sins forgiven and are born again into God’s family.  We not only begin our relationship with God by believing His promises, but we also continue to live our daily lives proving the trustworthiness of His promises.  We can trust God’s promises for He never changes!

  • Eternal life and the forgiveness of sin are obtained by believing the promises of God.  What does God promise in the following passages? — John 5:24; John 6:40
  • When we examine God’s promises, we may be tempted to ask, “How can God do this?”  We need not focus on the “how,” rather, we concentrate on “what” and “Who” we are believing.  What promises about God’s answers to prayer are in the following passages? — Psalm 50:15; Luke 11:9-10

Question to ponder:  What is keeping you from trusting the promises of God for your life and leadership?

Passages for further reflection: John 16:24; 1 John 2:25

Posted in #2 BE - Who a Leader Is, #3 DO - What a Leader Does and tagged , , , , , ,
15 Nov 2021

Attitudes and Authority

The LORD is the one you and your followers are really revolting against! For who is Aaron that you are complaining about him? Numbers 16:11 NLT

God has ordained certain authority-submission relationships in His creation.  Examples of these are: God and people, government and citizens, employer and employee, spiritual leader and follower, husband and wife, and parents and children.  These relationships do not imply that those in authority have more value or worth in God’s eyes than those that are called to follow.  For even within the Trinity there is authority and submission (see 1 Corinthians 11:3). 

God in His wisdom and love, places His authorities over each of us.  These authorities are there for His purposes and rebellion against them is taken very seriously.  Moses saw Korah’s rebellion as not against his leadership, but ultimately a rebellion against God (v. 11).  We can willingly submit to the authorities over us knowing that God will care for us, even if our authorities are ungodly. 

  • What insights can you gain from how Daniel and his friends responded to the ungodly authority over them in Daniel 1:1-16?
  • What was the response of Daniel’s three friends when they faced another difficult submission decision in Daniel 3:1-30?  Pay special attention to their attitudes in verses 16-18.

Question to ponder:  When and under what circumstances would you ever not submit to an authority?

Passages for further reflection: Matthew 26:36-64; Matthew 27:11-14

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