Yesterday was the day that
we honor Martin Luther King, Jr. I am
always challenged by the life and legacy of this man. But I read a post from a friend of mine about
the challenges that almost every leader faces.
Dr. King went through many of the things that other leaders have gone
through. He went through storms and
struggles. People came against him,
those close to him and others.
That is why I believe it is
important to have strength during the storm.
I pray we will learn from the things that men like Martin Luther King,
Jr. taught us. Applying truth. Truth built first on God and then applied to
our lives.
I continue looking at
leadership truths from Matthew 7.
Yesterday we talked about the facts that we cannot judge people by a
different standard than we judge ourselves by.
In fact the way we judge others speaks volumes about what we believe
about ourselves. Since we are forgiven
and given hope by God we can help others know the acceptance and love of God.
Strength comes from placing
our faith in truth and in Jesus. Notice
what the verses below say about having strength at the right time.
Matthew
7:24-27 NLT
“Anyone who listens to my teaching and follows it is
wise, like a person who builds a house on solid rock. 25 Though
the rain comes in torrents and the floodwaters rise and the winds beat against
that house, it won’t collapse because it is built on bedrock. 26 But
anyone who hears my teaching and doesn’t obey it is foolish, like a person who
builds a house on sand. 27 When the rains and floods come
and the winds beat against that house, it will collapse with a mighty crash.”
We
already know that faith comes from hearing the word of God (see Romans 10:17),
but it is putting that faith into action that gives a person strength. The verse above said that wise helps you
build on a foundation that is solid like a rock.
It is
not in the times of calm and no trouble that faith is tested. Storms, struggles and stress most definitely
test our faith. When the winds come
against our faith, testing our faith, we will see if it stands up against the
storms. If our faith is placed in the
right person, the storms and winds won’t shake us.
There
are people, we’ve been there, who heard the truth and chose to follow only
pieces of it or even none. When the
storms came, faith like a poorly built house totally collapses and is gone.
Storms,
floods and winds comes in all kinds of shapes and sizes. Yet God allows us to trust Him so the storms
won’t hurt us or even totally remove our faith.
The choice is ours. Trust God. Or trust in yourself.
If we
don’t have strength during the storm, then we won’t have the ability to help
others when their storms arise. Place
your faith in God. Allow Him to be your
foundation and strength.
I
close with a few quotes from Dr. King:
Darkness
cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate;
only love can do that.
The ultimate
measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience,
but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy.
Faith is
taking the first step even when you don't see the whole staircase.
Everybody
can be great...because anybody can serve.
You don't have to have a college degree to serve. You don't have to make your subject and verb
agree to serve. You only need a heart
full of grace. A soul generated by love.
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