Stirring Back The Leader In Me Reflection

Do we really have something to give? 

As forerunners in this season, we are called not just to be apart doing stuff but also is asked to lead at times. Seasoned leaders are full of insights and I'm not saying if I'm a seasoned one but God has blessed me with opportunities growing up as a leader.

    "Our influence differs in every season of our lives as leaders..."

Reflecting on this blog and focusing on my previous experiences made me question even my journey as a leader. I seldom ask if I did really made an impact to the younger generation the Lord placed in my hands. And yet, as many would say, one can never quantify the impact when it comes to ministry.

I'd like to personally share my own insights as a leader and as a believer, for one can never separate the other from my end.

1. The basis of being a leader is always about the heart. I knew I had the skills, the insights but lacked the heart. God placed me in situations wherein I had to talk to young students or people at church that dealt with my own issues of the heart. 

I thank God for experiences to open up with them and them to me. But I also thank Him for he strengthened me to do stuff I could never thought of before.

2. I became a leader out of circumstances. It was a "midnight appointment" after a hard season. There was a big family problem, my studies was on the rocks and I felt alone but full of faith. 

In the summer of 2001, God placed me in a season of learning. I devoured a lot of leadership books from my aunt's bookshelf. I researched on the internet about ministry and leadership. But never did know where and how to start.

3. I was passionate about God, of ministry and the opportunities opening up. I can't simply stop listening to what God was showing me. There were many things I wanted to do and did them too. There were leadership roles from different ministries. 

There were some "miss and hit" opportunities and decisions. But in the end, I still passed through the season still passionate about my Lord and ministry but lacks now the opportunities.

4. Fear creeps in but faith kept us afloat. What does it mean? When my brother and I started praying for young people to come in at church, I was not confident of God's answer. I often think that there's no need for numbers, the 4 or 5 of us are okay. But then the Lord answered us one Sunday with more than 20 young people and until it reached 40 plus. All because we prayed!

Some of the youth leaders of my home church now came from these bunch. One became a pastor and mostly are in the music team. 

5. Our influence differs in every season of our lives as leaders. Whether what season I was into before, I saw learning that only God seems to instill. I often believe that I never left that situation with praises and prayers of a thankful heart to influence others.

God spoke about in every good opportunities and in deep trouble. I think the deeper learning came from deep experiences, mistakes and sad to say times of disobedience.

In all of these and through the years, I saw God as a person who molded me as I am now. I cannot say that the insights I had before and now are the same but my God is the same, therefore every learning in each season marks His thoughts and favor upon me.

Thank you for reading! 

Read More

The Pinoy "33 Under 33" Version?

Just recently Christianity Today posted an article entitled “33 Under 33″ wherein they shared people 33 years old and below whose making impact to Kingdom building. It was an interesting article that spoke about making impact at an early age at the same time, defining what we can be and become in the future, if the Lord wills it.

So, while the US of A has its own version and I think every country should have something like this in their own context as Kuya David Lim has mentioned. But how do we define such? What is our baseline and how do we identify people?

The thought of making one for the Philippines will probably be hard and will entail a lot of time. But with the availability of the internet through the social media can better identify who these people are. These young group will probably have 2 things in common – active Facebook users and a blogger. But seriously, there should be a baseline somewhere we can make. And here’s a couple of suggestions in identifying these people…

1. These should have been born starting in the 1980′s to 90′s. These are people who are currently at around the age of 35 years old and below.
2. They influence and do something passionate, whether in full-time ministry, thecorporate world or what we call the 7 mountains below:
   • Religion
   • Science & Technology
   • Government
   • Education
   • Family
   • Business / Corporate world
   • Media and Communications
3. A radical follower of Jesus Christ with sound biblical doctrine as backbone.

Of course, there are other things I believe should define someone to be one but the diversity shouldn’t hinder us from this baseline. Assuming we identify people from these basic 3, other identifying factors will follow in the line.

The purpose of identifying these people is not to “idolize” them or put them on a pedestal but to quote Christianity Today means -

“For this story, CT set out to find young believers who we think are leading today’s church in key ways—and who embody what it will look like in the years to come…”

I know we can identify a lot of young breeds doing something good everywhere but I hope through this Project comes out the challenge to identify and define where it will lead us as new or emerging generation of leaders from every sector of society, impacting and building the kingdom work of God.

Does this make sense? Then please do help me identify these people.

Read More