Living under open heaven

“Summing it all up, friends, I’d say you’ll do best by filling your minds and meditating on things true, noble, reputable, authentic, compelling, gracious—the best, not the worst; the beautiful, not the ugly; things to praise, not things to curse. Put into practice what you learned from me, what you heard and saw and realized. Do that, and God, who makes everything work together, will work you into his most excellent harmonies.” ‭‭Philippians‬ ‭4:8-9‬ ‭MSG‬‬

““Here’s another old saying that deserves a second look: ‘Eye for eye, tooth for tooth.’ Is that going to get us anywhere? Here’s what I propose: ‘Don’t hit back at all.’ If someone strikes you, stand there and take it. If someone drags you into court and sues for the shirt off your back, giftwrap your best coat and make a present of it. And if someone takes unfair advantage of you, use the occasion to practice the servant life. No more tit-for-tat stuff. Live generously. “You’re familiar with the old written law, ‘Love your friend,’ and its unwritten companion, ‘Hate your enemy.’ I’m challenging that. I’m telling you to love your enemies. Let them bring out the best in you, not the worst. When someone gives you a hard time, respond with the energies of prayer, for then you are working out of your true selves, your God-created selves. This is what God does. He gives his best— the sun to warm and the rain to nourish—to everyone, regardless: the good and bad, the nice and nasty. I...

Recently heard from a friend’s sharing about the thought collective’s take on connection.  A point that was mentioned was, people usually care about the who and the why of the leaders, while leaders often spend time on the how and the what.  “How to achieve greater heights as a group?”  “What should be the next direction?”  “What to do?”  “How to see this vision come to pass?”  As much as the how to achieve something, and what to do is important, the who you are, and why do you care as a leader matters to the people who are following.  Who are you really in reality behind all that you bring forth to your people? Are you sharing your authentic story of being in the gap? The gap between the person we want to be, being more Christ like, and the person we are in reality.  And why? Why do you care about your vision? Why do lives matter to you? Why do you care for your people? These are what matters to people on the ground.....