Ten Reasons You Need a Life Mission Statement

by: Will Mancini

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For decades we have heard of the importance of the life mission statement sometimes referred to as a personal mantra or life purpose idea.  But do you really need one? Can a simple little phrase make that much of a difference in your life?

The intentional living genre is literally the size of an ocean. Everyone is showing you a better way to “succeed in life” or a better methodology for planning your life or a new recipe for how to make New Year’s resolutions that  don’t suck.

And just about all of these approaches point to some kind of life mission statement or idea that’s a part of the mix. But most are ineffective. The reasons are pretty straightforward. The examples are often too generic or too lengthy because they are written on a whim without the context of good process and meaningful reflection.

For example, a top ranked Google search reveals a Fast Company article where they share the life mission statements of five famous CEOs. Two examples are:

• “To have fun in my journey through life and learn from my mistakes.”
• “To serve as a leader, live a balanced life, and apply ethical principles to make a significant difference.”

Really? While these sound nice they are a little too impotent and general, lacking a dynamic specificity. When people read examples like these it’s all too easy to write off the idea of having a personal life mission.

But in reality knowing your mission can be one of life’s most powerful tools.

Several years ago, I launched Life Younique, a training company that certifies church leaders to offer gospel-centered life designthrough their church. I have been passionate about helping people get life mission right–what exactly is the best way to know and name what God has created you to do?

So let’s start with the what and the why of life mission.  (We will leave how to write one for a different post.) Years ago I decided to call life mission a “LifeCall” statement. The most important reason is to see your mission in life as something created, designed and given by God. Therefore we are called not just to follow Jesus (common call to all people)  but we are called to accomplish something specific as a one-of-a-kind saint (your special assignment from God).

Your LifeCall is a brief and bold big idea that best captures today what God made you to do. Think of it as a golden compass pointing the way or a silver golden thread that weaves through every activity of your life. It’s the enduring rally cry of team-you; it’s the victory banner waving over everything you do. Ideally, every priority, project and penny is filtered through, guided by and championed for your LifeCall. Imagine every person in your sphere of influence being blessed better, served stronger and loved longer because you form a unique life mission every day.

Let’s unpack the definition a bit further: LifeCall is a brief and bold big idea that best captures today what God made you to do.

• It’s brief: Stay between six and 12 words
• It’s bold: Declare something that fires you up and makes you confident
• It’s big: Account for every relationship, domain or “compartment” of your life
• It’s best for today: Write it down now, even though it may improve over time
• It’s about God: Reflect God’s goodness and testify to his creative genius that is you
• It’s about doing: Capture a “being-doing fusion” that ultimately clarifies active output

Why is the knowing and naming your LifeCall so important?  In a nutshell your LifeCall enables you to do more of what you do best. It enhances every aspect of what it means to be human; to be alive as a follower of Jesus. Ponder these 10 benefits. Your LifeCall:

• Solidifies personal identity in a way that nourishes intimacy with the God who created you
• Generates internal confidence by revealing how God can use you each day
• Unlocks deeper motivation that energizes your tasks and relationships
• Refreshes others-centered thinking to build more love into the core of your being
• Shapes vocational planning that moves toward increased value to the world

• Empowers focused living by fortifying your resolve to say “no”
• Diagnoses frustrating misalignments in the variety of life’s roles at home and work
• Provides long-term orientation in the midst of suffering or difficult circumstances
• Produces increased passion that leads toward greater mastery and autonomy
• Guides lifelong dreaming that fills your days with optimism and hope

As you reflect on the power and beauty of articulating your own LifeCall, which one of the reasons is most significant to you at the beginning of 2018?

What is my LifeCall by the way? It’s to help you make yours more clear of course. But this is how I say it: Will exists to make a life of more meaningful progress more accessible to every believer. 

I have not written many blog posts this last year because I am working on my next book entitled Younique: Designing the Life that God Dreamed for You. I look forward to sharing more with you in 2018.

> Find out more about Younique here.

Tags: Life Call, Life Mission Statement, Will Mancini, younique

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How to Make the Most Out of Easter Attendance

by: Church Community Builder

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Tags: Church Community Builder, Easter Attendance

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Three Lessons for Broken Leaders

by: Brandon Cox

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I am broken. I lead a community of broken people called a church. And we often say, unapologetically, that we are a community of the broken who have good news for the broken.

Don’t misunderstand. I don’t mean that we’re “broken” in the sense that we’re rendered useless by our imperfections. The opposite is actually true. We’re made more useful, and we discover our greatest purpose through our pain and suffering.

A. W. Tozer is often credited with a quote I’ve shared a few times myself,

It is doubtful whether God can bless a man greatly until He has hurt him deeply.

And without fail, every time I share it, I get pushback and it usually revolves around the idea that God would never hurt us, right? Isn’t his plan for our lives more along the lines of health, wealth, and prosperity?

But consider the context in which Tozer wrote his statement…

We tend to think of Christianity as a painless system by which we can escape the penalty of past sins and attain to heaven at last. The flaming desire to be rid of every unholy thing and to put on the likeness of Christ at any cost is not often found among us. We expect to enter the everlasting kingdom of our Father and to sit down around the table with sages, saints and martyrs; and through the grace of God, maybe we shall; yes, maybe we shall. But for the most of us it could prove at first an embarrassing experience. Ours might be the silence of the untried soldier in the presence of the battle-hardened heroes who have fought the fight and won the victory and who have scars to prove that they were present when the battle was joined.

The devil, things and people being what they are, it is necessary for God to use the hammer, the file and the furnace in His holy work of preparing a saint for true sainthood. It is doubtful whether God can bless a man greatly until He has hurt him deeply.

~ A. W. Tozer, The Root of the Righteous (p. 165).

So it isn’t that God causes evil to come into our lives for no purpose. Rather, it is that he uses the suffering we endure for our good, to prepare and shape our character so that we’re up to the task of leadership.

I happen to be a pastor who struggles with depression. And I’m not alone.

I’ve spent nearly a decade networking with pastors and church leaders all over the world and I never cease to be surprised at the number who, in private conversation, will divulge their own battles with depression and loneliness.

We’re supposed to be strong, right? We have to be the bold leader, the model of victory and spiritual triumph!!

But I’ve learned, after two decades in pastoral ministry, that the best leaders are the broken leaders.

They’ve been hurt and will be hurt more, and they experience God’s healing.

They suffer weakness, and they experience God’s strength.

We often have a certain picture of what depression looks like, but many who struggle do so in between all of the working and parenting and the rest of the busyness of life. Charles Spurgeon struggled with periodic depression while growing one of the greatest churches in Europe.

He led a school for aspiring ministry leaders and compiled the manuscripts of talks he had given to those students called Lectures to My Students, which includes a chapter entitled “The Minister’s Fainting Fits.”

He opens the chapter acknowledging that “Fits of depression overcome the most of us.” So again, you’re never alone in your brokenness – it’s more common than you will ever realize.

He continues…

Even under the economy of redemption it is most clear that we are to endure infirmities, otherwise there were no need of the promised Spirit to help us in them. It is of need be that we are sometimes in heaviness…

We have the treasure of the gospel in earthen vessels, and if there be a flaw in the vessel here and there, let none wonder. Our work, when earnestly undertaken, lays us open to attacks in the direction of depression…

All mental work tends to weary and to depress, for much study is a weariness of the flesh; but ours is more than mental work–it is heart work, the labor of our inmost soul.

And in our common naivety, we often assume that depression is merely the result of sin, or of satanic attack. But Spurgeon points out something very important…

When at last a long-cherished desire is fulfilled, when God has been glorified greatly by our means, and a great triumph achieved, then we are apt to faint. It might be imagined that amid special favors our soul would soar to heights of ecstasy, and rejoice with joy unspeakable, but it is generally the reverse. The; Lord seldom exposes his warriors to the perils of exultation over victory; he knows that few of them can endure such a test, and therefore dashes their cup with bitterness.

In other words, depression often catches us off guard because it follows victory as much as it follows defeat.

That tendency to withdraw, to isolate, to allow the negative thoughts to override truth, can be the result of quite natural causes such as a backlash to the adrenaline rush of passionately preaching to a welcoming crowd or a natural imbalance in the chemicals in our brains.

When I hear a fellow Christian speak about depression as an issue of spiritual warfare that merely requires more faith and prayer, I always say Yes!!! AND… you should also talk to your doctor about possible physical causes and a counselor about the role of past traumatic experiences. Let’s approach the issue holistically.

In other words, sometimes depression can be the result of unconfessed sin. It can also be the result of our circumstances. It may sometimes be satanic oppression. It can simply be the natural low we experience after the emotional high of a victorious moment. And it can also be a physical issue on the same level as diabetes or chronic anemia.

Regardless of the cause, here are three huge lessons I’ve had to learn over the last few years.

Lesson #1: Denying our brokenness doesn’t work for long.

I spent at least a dozen years trying to be the best pastor I could be. I wanted to fit the role, lead well, and if I’m being honest, impress the church and keep everybody happy.

So I wore my suit and my smile and tried to do all the pastor things people expect the pastor to do.

And when criticism came or when conflict arose, I bottled it away so that I could later use it as an excuse to check out mentally and emotionally from real engagement with people.

When Angie and I moved to southern California where I joined the staff as a pastor at Saddleback Church, I was badly broken and I didn’t even know it.

Within the first couple of months of life in our new surroundings, various pressures brought my pain to the surface. Our marriage struggled under the weight of it until a couple of breaking points occurred.

We joined a small group that embraced us, helped us to finally open up about our issues, and encouraged us in our walk.

I also saw our staff counselor, who would provide counseling to any staff member in absolute confidence. Pastor Rick Warren encourages his staff members to seek out counseling without fear or shame, and for the first time, I told a fellow pastor about all of my deepest issues.

I’m convinced God moved us to southern California not simply to help Saddleback minister to leaders in the global church, but also because he wanted us to plant a church but knew I wasn’t ready on a spiritual and emotional level.

When we started Grace Hills Church, we weren’t perfect or completely healed from all of our hurts, but we were absolutely committed to not faking it anymore.

We would start a church as broken leaders, for broken people. It would be a safe place for people to come with their brokenness and find healing and restoration in the good news of Jesus’ death, burial, and resurrection!

Denying your brokenness can help you succeed… for a season. But if you want to thrive and become all that God has purposed for you to become, you’ll have to be broken.

Lesson #2: There is healing in the cross of Christ.

Is it possible for God to instantly and miraculously take away all of your brokenness?

Sure. Anything is possible with God. But it isn’t normative. And if you require complete and miraculous healing from God in order to be satisfied with him, you’ll miss out on the joy of coming to know his long, slow process of developing you into Christlike maturity.

Remember that Paul received something greater than a miraculous deliverance from his thorn in the flesh. He was privileged to learn through suffering that God’s grace is enough.

God works patiently with us, like a master artisan, re-shaping us into the masterpiece he knows we can be so that we can show to others the beauty of what his grace can accomplish.

Lesson #3: I lead best when I own my brokenness.

The world’s greatest influencers aren’t merely rich and famous. Those who have the most impact on any generation are leaders acquainted with suffering, who own their brokenness.

Spurgeon continued writing about how God uses our dark nights of the soul to develop us into the effective leaders he desires for us to be…

The scouring of the vessel has fitted it for the Master’s use. Immersion in suffering has preceded the baptism of the Holy Ghost. Fasting gives an appetite for the banquet. The Lord is revealed in the backside of the desert, while his servant keepeth the sheep and waits in solitary awe. The wilderness is the way to Canaan. The low valley leads to the towering mountain. Defeat prepares for victory. The raven is sent forth before the dove. The darkest hour of the night precedes the day-dawn…

Such mature men as some elderly preachers are, could scarcely have been produced if they had not been emptied from vessel to vessel, and made to see their own emptiness and the vanity of all things round about them.

I have a long way to go and a lot to learn. I’m in process, but I’m making progress by the grace of God as I come to understand that it isn’t my strength that brings success or influence. It is actually God’s strength, made perfect in my weaknesses that can profoundly affect the world around me.

To any leader reading this, my greatest encouragement would be to embrace your pain. Own your brokenness. And reach out – to your spouse, a mentor, a counselor, or a close friend.

Victory comes after our momentary defeats, and though grief lasts through the night, joy comes in the morning!

> Read more from Brandon.

Tags: Brandon Cox, Broken Leaders, Leadership

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A Perspective on Generosity that Engages Heart and Mind

by: VRcurator

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How can we ensure our giving helps those in need instead of hurting them? 

Americans continue to give to charitable organizations at a record pace. Charitable giving in 2015 was over $373 billion, according to The Giving Institute, surpassing the previous year’s amount by over four percent.

Religious giving is the top category in that total, with over $119 billion given. While much of that amount goes to internal church operations, a large percentage goes to help individuals and groups “in need.”

It’s that last phrase – “in need” – that has come under scrutiny in recent years, as churches consider how their giving to others is actually impacting their lives.

Is it possible that much of the money we give is either wasted or actually harming the people it is intended to help?

THE QUICK SUMMARY – Charity Detox by Robert D. Lupton

The veteran urban activist and author of the revolutionary Toxic Charity returns with a headline-making book that offers proven, results-oriented ideas for transforming our system of giving.

In Toxic Charity, Robert D. Lupton revealed the truth about modern charity programs meant to help the poor and disenfranchised. While charity makes donors feel better, he argued, it often hurts those it seeks to help. At the forefront of this burgeoning yet ineffective compassion industry are American churches, which spend billions on dependency-producing programs, including food pantries. But what would charity look like if we, instead, measured it by its ability to alleviate poverty and needs?

That is the question at the heart of Charity Detox. Drawing on his many decades of experience, Lupton outlines how to structure programs that actually improve the quality of life of the poor and disenfranchised. He introduces many strategies that are revolutionizing what we do with our charity dollars, and offers numerous examples of organizations that have successfully adopted these groundbreaking new models. Only by redirecting our strategies and becoming committed to results, he argues, can charity enterprises truly become as transformative as our ideals.

A SIMPLE SOLUTION

Robert Lupton again addresses the idea that much of current charity work, while done with the right intention, misses the mark of actually helping the recipients. He sums up Charity Detox with these sentences: “We cannot serve people out of poverty. Yet our massive service industry is based upon this false premise.”

In this book Lupton asks us one of the most important questions concerning our charity efforts: Do we care about results?

In other words: Are we interested in seeing families thrive or are we just interested in distributing resources to them? Are we content measuring volunteer activity or do we actually want to measure outcomes?

Dr. Lupton, speaking from 40 years of experience in neighborhoods experiencing poverty, is compassionate enough to tell us the bad news about traditional models of charity – they are not moving the poverty needle. People, families, and communities are not being moved out of poverty through our service efforts, programs, and mission trips.

Understanding this truth should change the way churches evaluate and respond to the needs in communities they are attempting to minister to. If we are not rooted in people’s lives and in the contexts in which they live, then we are always going to be limited in how we understand the path ahead. The way we label the problems, define solutions, and build strategies will miss the critical elements that only the long, hard, work that neighboring will reveal.

In order to transform the neighborhoods where the poor live, we must reweave the very fabric of the community. There is a powerful impact that becoming neighbors can have on a community.

Three Rs of Community Development

Reneighboring

Without connected, involved, resourced neighbors, no neighborhood can thrive. Without a transfusion of new blood, troubled communities will continue to deteriorate as the capable exit in pursuit of better opportunities. An infusion of new life, rich with creativity, teeming with fresh ideas an energy, abundant with capacity – this is what invigorates a community.

Reconciliation

While the relocation required by reneighboring is the most radical R, reconciliation is the most challenging – though also potentially the most rewarding. Reconciliation involves reaching across the barriers of race, class, and culture, receiving as well as giving, and learning to respect and trust those from whom we have been estranged. When community works, when the neighborhood is blessed with a leaving of reconcilers, that very diversity gives life richness and flavor.

Redistribution

Exchange might be a better word to describe this outcome, because exchange assumes that everyone has something of value to contribute to the life of a community. Redistribution is the natural outcome of being neighbors in a diverse community. Because neighbors live in proximity to one another – and because they choose to depend on one another – the opportunities for exchange (redistribution) become a normal part of community living.

Robert D. Lupton, Charity Detox

A NEXT STEP

Identify those in your congregation that have the greatest opportunity to live out the three R’s. Look for individuals already living in diverse neighborhoods. Once you identify them, bring them together to start robust dialogue around the three “R’s”. Chances are they are either being very intentional about their community, they see it as something they need to escape, or they are unaware. Bringing them together on a regular basis for peer support, dialogue, idea exchange, and simply making the church more aware could reshape your culture.

There are different ways we measure success as church leaders: input, output, and impact measures. Are you looking at charitable giving and service as simply something you are giving to (impact) and measuring by how many people served, how many meals provided, etc. (output)? Or, does your church measure the impact it is having on the community or surrounding city?

Leverage this team to make a list of the sociological, relational, or spiritual needs in your community. Instead of looking at this through the lens of input or output, indicate which needs your church could most easily focus upon and see an impact. Outline key next steps to take and move forward with intentionality.

Excerpt taken from SUMS Remix 59-2, February 2017.

This is part of a weekly series posting content from one of the most innovative content sources in the church world: SUMS Remix Book Summaries for church leaders.

SUMS Remix takes a practical problem in the church and looks at it with three solutions; each solution is taken from a different book. As a church leader you get to scan relevant books based on practical tools and solutions to real ministry problems, not just by the cover of the book. Each post will have the edition number which shows the year and what number it is in the overall sequence. (SUMS provides 26 issues per year, delivered every other week to your inbox). 

>> Subscribe to SUMS Remix <<

Tags: Charitable Giving, Generosity, Robert D. Lupton, Toxic Charity

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