Tag: soldiers

It is such a good feeling to be back with you. I have been down for almost a year do to technical difficulties. 

I lost over 108,000 follower over night. I am starting over. You can let the hackers know they didn’t win by subscribing. You can do this by clicking on the icon at the top of this page that says, “Subscribe.” You will then get a post in your inbox everything there is a post. 

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As a treat I have invited a young man to post. I was down for the veterans day celebrations, so this is a day late, but the thoughts are spot on. Please read Taylor Wilkins From Fellowship of Christian Athletes, aho is having a marvelous impact in the high schools of Salem Oregon.

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“When God’s people lead, hope is the outcome.”

“You therefore, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus. And the things that you have heard from me among many witnesses, commit these to faithful men who will be able to teach others also. You therefore must endure hardship as a good soldier of Jesus Christ. No one engaged in warfare entangles himself with the affairs of this life, that he may please him who enlisted him as a soldier.”
II Timothy 2:1-4

Yesterday was Veterans Day, a day to honor people of courage, love, and sacrifice. I grew up in a community where veterans day was a really big deal. The community, and especially my high school celebrated Veterans Day at a level I don’t think most ever experience. In fact, my high school put on a veterans day assembly that lasted the entire school day, and brought in veterans from around the united states. We had veterans representing both World Wars, Tuskegee airman, Jewish Holocaust survivors, and many more. One year our school was featured on national news to showcase the veterans day assembly. It was an incredible honor to have all those amazing people share their lives with us for the day!

I believe we have many things to learn from our war heroes, and I think 2 Timothy 2 does a great job identifying some excellent qualities in soldiers.

Here are 4 Leadership qualities that Christians can learn from soldiers:

1) Soldiers are Strong– That might sound overly simplistic, but I believe it’s at the core of every great leader. If you are going to begin your journey as a Christian leader you have to be strong! Faith is the ability to see hope in the midst of life’s trials— weakness in faith blinds you from seeing hope. What I love about this quality is everyone can grow in Spiritual strength, just like we can all grow in physical strength. Getting stronger might be uncomfortable, but we need to consistently exercise our faith if we want to see growth!

2) Soldiers are Listeners— Whether it’s boot camp or the commanding officer leading his troops into battle, soldiers have to be acute listeners, eager to learn, and committed to following through! Believers who haven’t learned how to listen will struggle to find personal breakthrough, and will fail to see the fruitfulness God designed them for. God is always speaking, but if we don’t learn to listen we will miss out on His encouragement, and the hope-filled adventures God wants to take us on!

3)Soldiers are Faithful— Soldiers are trained to respond to obstacles and a variety of challenges by putting others first. Whether sacrificing for their Country, fellow soldiers or family, soldier’s embrace a mindset that always puts others first. Jesus demonstrated perfect faithfulness in his journey to the cross. Jesus sweet great drops of blood before heading to the cross because the weight of His calling was so heavy, yet He didn’t waiver, but fixed his face like flint toward the cross! Even though his road wasn’t easy he remained faithful to the call on His life. As a believer, you were created for the same kind of faithfulness Jesus demonstrated. Don’t get down on yourself if you feel like you have fallen short, God is still working in you and through you. Closeness with Jesus will always draw faithfulness out of your life!

4) Soldiers Endure Hardship— Soldiers must count the cost of serving their country. Before soldiers train for war, they must be willing to lay down your life. If a soldier can’t do that, he won’t be ready for action when he’s called to the front lines. Christian leaders are called to count the cost. Faith in Jesus comes with many blessings and promises for abundance, but it also comes with the promise of persecution. Jesus said, “if they persecuted me, they will persecute you.” Enduring hardship is one of the most attractive qualities in Christian Leaders because it draws out confidence in other believers.

When we grow closer to God we will see these qualities exponentially increase in our lives. I believe we will see more Christians standing at the front lines of leadership within politics, business, education, psychology and every type of profession.

Soldiers live their lives on a mission and with purpose. As God’s Children I believe we need to do the same. When God gives us clarity in those areas I believe we and the world around us will be flooded with hope!

“You are loved more than you know, and God’s plan for you is bigger than your biggest dream!”

Taylor Wilkins
FCA
(503)754-3783

“In all your getting, get understanding”

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