I've Got Your Back by James C. Galvin - Leadership at its finest!

I have been in leadership roles most of my life.  I also have learned over the years that not one leader is ever perfect or that learning to lead never stops just because you are in a leadership role.  I was given the privilege of reading James C Galvin's "I've Got Your Back."  It takes leadership and the methods of teaching leadership to a whole new level.

In the first half, Galvin uses a parable to show leadership and his methods in action.  If teaching via a parables was good enough for Jesus, I think it is good enough for any teacher to follow.  Jesus knew that most people learn through examples and this method allows the reader to engage with the characters and learn through their experiences how to apply the methods Galvin is teaching.

In the second half, Galvin uses a standard structure of teaching the methods presented in the parable.  By having the parable give real life application, it allows the structured section to be followed with ease.  I think any church would find this book a great teaching tool for a small group study on leadership.  In just a few sessions, a church's leadership could have skills the move their church forward with a strong core of leaders.

I feel blessed to have read this book and look forward to applying its methods.  One of the methods that hit me at the core was following a leader who was failing.  The idea of "helping" that leader succeed was difficult to swallow at first, but I felt God tugging hard at my heart and him leading me to understand that not all leaders are born leaders and that other leaders may have to come behind them to push them forward to be successful.  Rarely are there leaders who don't really care to improve and so leaders don't realize they are not succeeding.  Regardless of where the leader is, to be a real leader yourself, you first need to learn to follow and sometimes that means helping a failing leader be successful.  Ultimately, we should put our selfish nature behind us and help those in leadership around us to success, because its to God be the glory!

 

Max Lucado's "Outlive Your Life"

I had the privilege of reviewing Max Lucado's "Outlive Your Life" Thomas Nelson Publishing.  I have read many of Mr. Lucado's book and when this book came out I was very excited to review it.  As in many things, I received the book to review a while ago and life happened.  I finally had the chance to sit down and read it and I am thankful that I took the time to do so.

I will be honest, while reading the book I struggled to grasp the teaching of the book at first.  It took me until almost the last chapter to understand that he was using stories to teach us just how to outlive our own lives and reach people for God.  God loves everyone and so should we.  If we serve even the least for these, we are serving God.  That is the plan he has for each and everyone of us.  Pour out God's love through us onto everyone and bringing everyone into a relationship with Jesus Christ.  We have to remember that we serve an awesome God and that if he wanted to save everyone in one shout he could, but instead He has declared that those that say they are a follower of Him must go and make disciples.  With salvation comes and expectation of work, so outlive your life by sharing the gospel.  Go to a food kitchen and feed the hungry, stop by the beggar on the side of the street and give them money or better yet, give them a meal and tell them just how much you love them, because Jesus first loved you!

As I said before, I struggled at first to understand the teaching in the book.  His stories of past saints, were amazing and uplifting.  There is no complaint in his writing style.  After reading the whole book, I finally realized that each of those stories were the lessons and they were the mode of teaching because there was no way you could walk away from the stories without being changed.  Once I grasped the teaching method, the messaged hit me like a ton of bricks.  A book does not need to have a step by step this is how you do it method to teach you.  This book is one of those books.  I would highly recommend.

John Hagee's "The Power of Prophetic Blessing"

Each of us wishes for a day when we feel as if we are prospering to the best of our abilities.  We forget that true prosperity only comes from God.  Service to Him and faithfulness to Him gains you true prosperity.

I had the privilege of reading "The Power of the Prophetic Blessing"by Pastor John Hagee.  Pastor Hagee's writing was insightful and well thought out.  I would highly recommend this book to any Christian and non-Christian for that matter.  Its guidance could help us each live up to the life that God has planned for us. 

Pastor Hagee gives us a deeper insight into blessing those around us.  Parents today and for many years have failed to bless their children.  We may pray over them, but we never lay it before God what we would like to see for their futures.  If we pray for His guidance and will for our children, we will know what God's plan is for our children and the proper way to bless them.  The same can be said over the lives of our loved ones and those that are close to us.  Prayer is so powerful and faith can move mountains.  We just have to give our lives to God and He will lead our every step!

I highly recommend that everyone to take the time to read this book and apply its truths to your life.  You may be shocked at the blessings that fall upon you!

A little change to come!

I am thankful that I serve a faithful God.  We have a little life change coming up, but we know that God will be with us all the way through.  Never in my life have I felt closer to God than I do right now.  The road ahead of us will be difficult, but I know that God will be with us all the way through.  Sorry for the vagueness, but sometimes it is just best to say, "Thank you God for the challenges ahead!"  Everyone does not need to know what we have ahead, but they need to know that even with challenges and possibly stumbles ahead, we are in God's hands and we will survive it with a smile on our face and our faith firmly placed in God!  Man can kick us down, but God will always be there to pick us up! 

Philippians 4:19 - “But my God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus.”

Matthew 6:31-32 -“Therefore take no thought, saying, What shall we eat? or, What shall we drink? or, Wherewithal shall we be clothed?“

Lord, thank you for loving us so much that you sent your son to die for us and that even in times of darkness we can see your light at the end of the tunnel!  God is good all the time!

"Faith and Other Flat Tires: Searching for God on the Rough Road of Doubt," by Andrea Palpant Dilley

The human condition is something that we all struggle with day in and day out.  No one likes to see suffering and many ask why?  God is bigger than it all and he can make it all better, but there is still evil, danger, pain and suffering.  So many people do not understand sin and free will to understand how pain and suffering can still reign supreme.

Andrea Palpant Dilley having been a missionary child experienced many levels of exhilaration and despair.  Faith and Other Flat Tires is a memoir of her life and her experiences through faith, the ups and the downs.  Andrea does not hold anything back in her dialogue about her own life.  She lays it all on the line for others to understand that with faith there are questions.  Some of those questions may never be answered and some we may not get the answer we were hoping for, but that is part of faith and growing in faith.  

I enjoyed reading Faith and Other Flat Tires.  It was well written and made me want to read more as I progressed further in the book.  Although I do no exactly agree with her conclusion, I understand how she reached that conclusion.

Faith and Other Flat Tires is worth the read and I would highly recommend others read it.  Although, I may not recommend it to those who are new to faith.  Andrea's questions and conclusions may be slightly confusing to those still seeking to understand God and His place in their own world.

Break Through by Tim Clinton and Pat Springle

Wow, where do I start. Break Through is a look into how people deal within relationships. We all have relationships, whether they are good or bad and Break Through wants to teach you how to move into healthy, happy relationships. We all have our fair share of good relationships, but with the good their always seems to be at least one bad. Tim Clinton wants you to learn that, you do not have to accept the bad relationship and through Break Through, he shows you how to heal your wounded spirit. Personally, I have had my fair share of bad relationships in my life, just like everyone else. For along time I thought it was my fault and that I would just have to deal with the bad in life. Now, to some extent, that is true, but there are people in my life that I have to keep at a safe distance because no matter how careful I am to not push their buttons, I always seem to do just that! Walking on eggshells is no way to live. I am very thankful that I had the privilege to review Break Through and I look forward to putting into practice what Tim and Pat teach through out Break Through!

Derailed by Tim Irwin, PH.D.

Although I am no longer in the corporate world, I thought that this book would have great insight into life in general. We all have character flaws that not only impact how we relate to co-workers, but those same characteristics can also roll over to home, church, any organization that you may participate in. Derailed gives insight into how those character traits can make you or break you. The six executives that were profiled were not monsters of the corporate world, they were simply blinded by ambition and unable to see how their personality and in the long run character affected everyone around them. Everyday people can have the same character flaws, not necessarily ambition, but arrogance or many other flaws that prevent them from seeing how their behavior affects others. Tim Irwin presents the idea that those flaws are not necessarily setting you up for failure or derailment, but you have to be willing to see yourself beyond the end of your nose. Derailed was an excellent book that I would highly recommend to anyone in leadership, but also to anyone who has to deal with others on a regular basis. Employees, church parishioners, moms and dads will benefit from the information found on those pages. It will make a person look in on themselves to see just how they interact with others and realize that the whole idea of being a bull in a china shop gets you nowhere. You get more bees with honey than vinegar, so we all need to soften our tone and think before we react. I personally gained knowledge into myself and will try to apply it to my everyday life. I am thankful that I received this free copy from Thomas Nelson for review. It was well worth the read!