From a SEED to a MIGHTY OAK - God's plan for your success.

What if you could reach a level of success that you never dreamed possible?  

What if I told you that the seed of great success is already inside you? Well, it's true.

"...seeing that His divine power has granted to us everything pertaining to life and godliness, through the true knowledge of Him who called us by His own glory and excellence. For by these He has granted to us His precious and magnificent promises, so that by them you may become partakers of the divine nature, ... 2 Peter 1:2-4

I have watched many people with God-given talents who never reach the pinnacle of success. Most people never really discover who they were created to be and never realize their full potential. Are you one of those people? Are you someone who has huge potential but never does much with it? Hopefully, this will inspire you to achieve the success that God intended for you.

THE GOAL
Before we go on, let me define success for you. Success is becoming the person God created you to be and accomplishing the mission He created you to accomplish. As you follow Christ and His plan for your life there will be times when what God desires for you and what you desire for yourself are at odds with each other. This is when you must come back to this definition of success. If you believe that your true success comes from fulfilling the life that your Creator designed for you, you'll be willing to let go of your own desires in exchange for His perfect plan.

THE SEED
Everything you need is already inside you. When you were created God designed you for success. When you are born again your spirit is in union with Christ. You have the spirit of an overcomer, victor, a champion. When you are baptized in the Holy Spirit your life is empowered to grow and execute the purpose of your life. The giftings become supernaturally empowered, the divine goals become clearer, and your tenacity to accomplish things increases. However, there are still some things you need to do to help turn the seed inside you into a mighty oak standing tall before the world.

FROM SEED TO OAK TREE
The seed inside you resides in your perfected spirit which is united with Christ. Everything in your born again spirit is great, victorious, successful, and designed to be used to bring God's plan into the world, but the seed must be channeled through your imperfect mind, emotions, and body (2 Cor.. 4:7). This is where the work comes in to play. This is where growth occurs. If your vessel is not shaped for use you will not be very useful, and the seed will never grow.  This is why Peter doesn't stop at verse 4 but continues on with instructions on how to turn your seed into your harvest.

"Now for this very reason also, applying all diligence, in your faith supply moral excellence, and in your moral excellence, knowledge, and in your knowledge, self-control, and in your self-control, perseverance, and in your perseverance, godliness, and in your godliness, brotherly kindness, and in your brotherly kindness, love. For if these qualities are yours and are increasing, they render you neither useless nor unfruitful in the true knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. For he who lacks these qualities is blind or short-sighted, having forgotten his purification from his former sins. Therefore, brethren, be all the more diligent to make certain about His calling and choosing you; for as long as you practice these things, you will never stumble; for in this way the entrance into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ will be abundantly supplied to you." 2 Peter 1:5-11 

GOD'S PLAN FOR SUCCESS
1. Diligence - Diligence is careful and persistent work or effort. So many people only give an effort when they feel like it, which guarantees failure. They climb up the ladder only to get tired, discouraged, or lazy and slide back down to the first step. God's plan for success requires you to give careful effort. Make sure you are working on the right things. God's plan requires you to give persistent effort. Don't try for a while then quit when you don't see instant results. Great things are built over time. 

2. Moral Excellence - be godly in your dealings and give your best at all times. God and people deserve your best. Don't do things in a half-hearted manner but strive for excellence in your character and your effort. 

3. Knowledge - Make a continuous effort to grown in your knowledge of God, your knowledge of self, and the knowledge of your calling. God is always unveiling new revelations to those who are seeking Him. 

4. Self Control - This is a huge problem today. Everyone seems to be doing what they feel like doing. There is little self-discipline. It's interesting that the Bible refers to us as Disciples and yet many Christians have no self- discipline. They think that doing what you feel like doing is the way to follow the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is not your emotions. If you really want to know the difference between the Holy Spirit and your emotions you need to read and re-read the Bible. The Word of God will help you distinguish between your feelings and the Holy Spirit (Hebrews 4:12). God has given us instructions to control our emotions, our minds, and our bodies, and He has given us the Holy Spirit to empower our decisions to obey Him. 

5. Perseverance - This one is pretty simple. Don't quit, finish. Once you know the direction God is leading you and the purpose of your life becomes clearer, don't stop pressing until your finished. 

6. Godliness - Conduct your self in a manner that Jesus would. Be honest, be real, don't quit, sacrifice, love others, get back up, etc. 

7. Brotherly kindness - Remember that you were saved for the purpose of good works. Those good works always include other people. Everything we do is about helping other people find the life and love that Jesus has for them. Think about it, if God only wanted to give us comfortable lives and take in our praise He would just take us all to heaven, but there are still people down here who don't know Him and our lives are living portals to the kingdom of God. Through us, God is loving and reaching the world. Make sure your success is about helping others.

8. Love - love is the greatest power of all. Love has the power to literally change someone's life and we have the power to love. In all your efforts and striving for success don't lose sight of why succeeding matters. In the end, loving others is the greatest success, and your success can be a tool to show and share the love of God with those who need it. 

It breaks my heart to see seeds of greatness everywhere that are lying dormant in lives that have given no effort to grow them. It bothers me to hear people blame God because they haven't accomplished anything great. It's a shame that so many people never discover how incredible they really are. It's a tragedy when someone knows they have a gift but refuses to do the work to make it grow. You're not just depriving yourself of success but you're depriving the world of a mighty oak.

The seed is in you. Start working it. 

Mylon Avery

Unleash the Beast - giving young people a significant stake in the church

"Where there are no oxen, the manger is empty, but from the strength of an ox come abundant harvests." Proverbs 14:4

Within our communities, our homes and churches lies a powerful beast. This beast has the ability to make a mess, break things, and leave you with numerous problems. However, this beast also has the ability to catapult your church to another level. This beast has passion, energy, ideas, and creativity. The beast I speak of is youth. You know... those kids, teenagers and young adults that are everywhere. You know... those people that we've been talking about for decades. We've been talking about how we need more of them and we need them to be more involved. We keep saying, "Where are they?", "Why isn't it like it used to be?". 

Maybe it's because we've chained up that beast called youth. We've kept them in limited roles with no real ability to shape the culture of our churches. We've been afraid of letting go so that they can take hold. We're afraid they will make a mess and we'll get stuck cleaning up behind them. Or maybe we're afraid that they might take our place and we won't be needed anymore. 

They will definitely cause problems but if you want a growing and healthy church then active, growing, engaged, and involved young people are essential. So it's time to unleash the beast in your church. Here are some ways to unleash the power of youth in your church:

1) Stop protecting the church from your youth.
Yes, they are novices. Yes, they will mess up. They will be silly when they should be serious. They won't always get the doctrine exactly right. They will say things they shouldn't and you will have to go behind them and clean up the mess. That doesn't mean that your job is to protect the church from the young. It's natural that they make mistakes. It's part of how we as humans learn.

2) Give them real responsibility.
They can tell when you've given them real responsibility instead of a token place to serve. They can tell when you're giving them something to do just so they'll feel like they're a part. Let them shape the culture of the church. Let them pick music. Let them pick the paint colors. Let them make a service order. Let them weigh in on the budget. You're the final decider but give them a real stake in how your church functions and they will take ownership of it.  

3) Let them be themselves. 
I know Christian rap music might not be your thing and the idea of a dimly lit sanctuary reminds you of the bar across the street. I know that everyone used to wear a suit or dress and ear rings were for girls only, but times have changed. The word is the same but the world has changed. Don't insist that your youth worship exactly like you did when you were young. Let them be themselves. That's the only way anyone can truly live for and worship God. 

4) Give them room to make mistakes.
I am so thankful for the opportunities given to me by my Pastor when I was young. He allowed me to try. He gave me chances even when others were telling him to stop wasting service time on those kids. He knew that I would make mistakes. He knew that I wasn't the best or most experienced person for the job, but he gave young people a chance to spread their wings and try. He wasn't afraid of our mistakes. He was afraid of our gifts and talent rotting in the pews.  

5) Don't micromanage everything. 
I know it's our job as leaders to oversee and guide our young people, but if you're not careful you will find yourself imposing your own personal ideas on them robbing them of their own God-given creativity and passion. No one gets excited about doing your thing, your way, with their name on it. 

6) Get ready! They may be better than you. 
You've worked hard and honed your abilities. You've reached a level of professionalism and respect. Now here comes someone younger who is making a splash and you don't want to be replaced. Trust me, no one is trying to replace you. There is endless room at the table in the Kingdom of God. One person's success means success for us all. We should be happy when we see young people discovering their calling We should be happy when they start to excel. It means we have done one of our most important jobs. It means we have played a part in their growth and success. Refuse to be jealous. Don't limit them because they are getting too much attention. Unleash them and prepare yourself. They might be better at certain aspects of ministry than you. That's not a knock on you. We all have talents and gifts, and they come from the will of God. Celebrate with them.

7) Be their number one fan
Correct them, guide them but most importantly, cheer for them. Let them know when they do something great. Defend them. Let them see how great they can be by the way you treat them and how you believe in them. Look beyond where they are today and see who they will become. Brag about them publicly. If you get behind them they will get behind you. You won't lose your influence or position to them. In fact, they will elevate you. Their talents and hard work will lift your ministry to new levels. 

Maybe, you've been looking for a man or woman of God; someone to help your church move forward; someone experienced and talented; someone polished; a safe bet. We often want a man or woman but God has sent us kids, teenagers and young adults. It's our job to give them the experience they need. It's our job to help them hone their talents and discover their calling. Within our homes, our communities and our churches are powerful creatures who can help lift our churches to the next level. Don't be afraid to unleash the beast.