Be Strengthened By God’s Grace: Rejoice In The Lord 

Having joy is crucial to effective leadership.  People are attracted to the God of those who have true joy (in Acts 2:46-47, “gladness” means “extreme joy”).  Joy is a responsibility in this sense, because it testifies to God’s goodness and influences others to glorify God.

What is joy?  

It is not a verb, but a noun.  And it refers to the experience of delight over something or someone’s beauty, majesty, love, and other qualities. Conversely, stoicism, chronic negativity, gloominess, and (especially) cynicism are fatal to influencing others for Christ.  

Cynicism about those who are joyous before God is condemned in the story of Michal’s reaction to David’s joy in 2 Samuel 6.  Are you David, or Michal?

Yet we cannot manufacture joy by ourselves; it is the Spirit-given byproduct of choosing to trust in what God has given you through Christ (see Romans 15:13).

It’s important at this point to make a qualification: Biblical joy is not pretending to be happy in times of pain. We should openly lament when needed—but we should also process our pain with God until his joy returns.  If we try to self-sufficiently suppress our pain, rather than admitting our pain and taking it to God, we can block the authentic joy God wants to give us.

Although we cannot manufacture joy, we do have a volitional role to play in our joy. This is why Paul is emphatic about rejoicing in the Lord (Philippians 3:1; 4:4)!  This phrase, rooted in the Old Testament, means choosing to praise and thank God for his deliverances. (See, for example, Psalms 14:7; 21:1; 32:10-11; 35:9-10; 40:14-16; Isaiah 25:9; 49:13; 61:10; 2 Chronicles 6:41; Habakkuk 3:17-18; and Zechariah 10:5-7). 

As Christians, we have a greater reason to praise and thank God—he has purchased a complete salvation for us through Jesus!

Paul sets an example of rejoicing in the Lord in Romans 5:1-5, Romans 11:33-36, 2 Corinthians 1, 2 Corinthians 2, Ephesians 1, 1 Timothy 1:17, and other places.

Jesus teaches the importance of rejoicing in our salvation in Luke 10:17-20, when he warns against rejoicing in ministry results more than rejoicing in our salvation.

How can we practically cultivate rejoicing in the Lord? Here are a few thoughts:

• Read and listen to quality gospel-centered teachers.  I find that I need to keep this in my system.
• Have a repertoire of spiritual songs that you turn to regularly. Ephesians 5:18-19 and Colossians 3:16 connect singing biblically-rooted songs with being filled with the Spirit and the Word of Christ. Paul quotes from songs regularly. Songs can be powerful, both when alone, and when gathering together with other believers. Singing before a prayer meeting, for example, can help soften people’s hearts to hear from the Spirit and pray in the Spirit.
• Reflecting on our salvation should be the center-piece of our biblical meditation.  Look especially for God’s promises and provisions in your passage.  See praying passages like Rom. 5:1-5 as an example of turning to God while meditating on the truths of salvation.
• Be aggressive with your negative thoughts and feelings.  Many of us wake up with negative thoughts and feelings, and have to immediately take control of our thoughts. Do not tolerate them as normal and excusable. Martin Luther is quoted as saying, “You cannot keep birds from flying over your head, but you can keep them from building a nest in your hair.” In other words, we may not be able to control all the thoughts that come into our heads, but we can control what we decide to do with them.
• When you find yourself ruminating in negative or cynical ways, “talk back” to yourself (see Psalm 42) with what God says he has given you, and by practicing thanksgiving for your many other blessings.  This is not fake—this is faith! 

Do you ever challenge your fellow-leaders and your people on their joyless gloominess and cynicism?  Help them connects the dots between this symptom and idolatry and unbelief in the provisions of the gospel.

Be Faithful: Run The Race With Endurance 

Lifelong ministry is not a sprint; it is a marathon.  It is daily labor like pre-mechanized farming.  It is an ongoing war that involves battle after battle, battle injury and battle fatigue. 

Do you truly embrace this reality?  Do you expect this life to be battle after battle with occasional reprieves, or do you expect it to be smooth with occasional bumps?  We are deeply conditioned by our culture to expect the latter, and this is a big reason why we lose heart.   

Therefore, one of the most foundational aspects of leadership faithfulness is endurance! “Endurance” (hupomone), along with its synonym “patience/long-suffering” (makrothumia) are used over 70 times in the New Testament.

See, for example, 2 Timothy 2:3-13; 4:5,7; Hebrews 12:1-13; 1 Corinthians 9:24-27; Philippians 3:10-14; and Galatians 6:9-10.

This recurrent emphasis presumes the temptation to “lose heart.”  If you never feel this temptation, it is either because you are a rookie, or because you’re not truly engaged! 

A big part of our leadership is modeling victorious endurance that inspires others to join us in this marathon/battle.

How do you get this endurance?  It is not machismo or self-will, available only for “tough guys.”  God is willing and able to build it into us, but we must cooperate with the conditions.  This is the main point of Hebrews 12:1-13.  The key thesis is “Run with endurance the race set before you,” and everything else explains how we get this endurance.

Here are some practical thoughts from Hebrews on developing endurance:

• Draw inspiration from others who have already run (Hebrews 11; 12:1a).  Observe faithful examples, and ask them how they grew in endurance.  Reading reliable biographies of men and women of faith who faced numerous obstacles can be motivating.
• Let go of the sinful provisions for your fallen nature (Hebrews 12:1b) that grieve the Spirit and sap your strength and motivation.
• Fix your focus on Jesus and the promises of the gospel—especially the next life (Hebrews 12:2-4; 2 Corinthians 4:16-18).  Consider what he suffered for you, and why he suffered for you – so that you can join him in eternal joy.  Don’t fix your eyes on others!
• Cooperate with God as your Trainer (Hebrews 12:5-11; especially 12:7a: “It is because of discipline that you endure;” see Romans 5:3).  See the sufferings in your life not as obstacles to your endurance, but as essential means to developing it (and many other blessings).  He is training you in endurance through the sufferings he allows into your life!  Do you believe this?  Are you OK with the suffering he allows because it will result in endurance (James 1:2-4)?  Don’t answer too quickly!
• Consent to keep running as a cripple (Hebrews 12:13-14).  You only get healed as you stay in the race—you do not get healed before you run!