RISE Training Series Call May 18, 2015 - Kingdom Leadership and Prophetic Companies in a Movement of Hope

Kingdom Leadership – Part 2

by Duane Huck

• In this session we will continue to look at some of the key attributes of Kingdom Leadership
• Last time we talked about how, as leaders, we are influencing those around us and that we want to make sure we are having a positive influence on those we are leading
• And we talked about as kingdom leaders, we need to have Godly character…and that our character is further defined each time we make choices in life.
• When we are faced with adversity or tough situations, will we make the right choice and refuse to compromise? Even if it’s not the popular choice or if it’s a choice that will cost us?
• Kingdom leaders refuse to compromise and in particular they refuse to compromise the truth of God’s word and what He has to say about the particular situation you are dealing with.
• I believe another key element to Kingdom Leadership is Servanthood.
• When the world thinks of Servanthood, or the condition of being a servant, they often think of someone in a lower level position serving someone in a higher ranking position. And while this is certainly one aspect of serving, it’s not the only form of it.
• Jesus teaches us about Servanthood in the book of Mark when two of his followers, James and John, came to him with a request to sit in places of honor next to Jesus on his glorious throne…and Jesus basically said, “You’ve got it all wrong”.
• Picking up the story there in the book of Mark,  we read this:

Mark 10:41-45New Living Translation (NLT)
41 When the ten other disciples heard what James and John had asked, they were indignant. 42 So Jesus called them together and said, “You know that the rulers in this world lord it over their people, and officials flaunt their authority over those under them. 43 But among you it will be different. Whoever wants to be a leader among you must be your servant, 44 and whoever wants to be first among you must be the slave of everyone else. 45 For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve others and to give his life as a ransom for many.”

• And so we see Jesus saying, if you want to be a leader, start serving those around you, those you are connecting with.
• Jesus modeled servant leadership during his ministry on earth. He was always looking for opportunities to serve and pour into the lives of those around him.
• Jesus’ words to his first followers, Peter and Andrew, were “Come follow me, and I will SHOW you how to fish for men.”
• Jesus was saying I’m going to share with you what I know; I’m going to teach you, I going to help you understand how to live the abundant life that God desires for you, so you then can pass this on to others.
• Servant leaders stay in tune with those they’re leading, are aware of their needs and desires, and are available to help them or get them help when needed…and they do this without expecting anything in return.
• When serving others, don’t look at it as just an act of helping someone else, but also see it as an opportunity to connect with that individual and further develop your relationship and influence in their lives
• Sometimes leaders, especially those of us who are task oriented like myself, can miss the whole point of servanthood. We can just go through our daily “to do” list and check things off and feel as though we’ve accomplished everything and in the process we’ve served those around us as well.
• We need to broaden our focus to be not only on the tasks but also on the people we are leading…allowing time for those divine appointments.
• Servant leaders are willing to do anything and everything that he/she would ask those they are leading to do…and they’re not only willing to do it, they actually do it.
• They don’t just say things like, “Well I could do that, but that’s why I’ve got you.” – Instead they recognize opportunities to “pitch in” and help others when they need it.
• Status and position are unimportant to a servant leader, and a true leader has a desire to serve others and put their interests ahead of his own…they serve out of love for others…servanthood is not motivated by manipulation or self-promotion.
• A servant leader will not use or abuse power to advance their position in an organization.

Philippians 2:3-4New Living Translation (NLT)
3 Don’t be selfish; don’t try to impress others. Be humble, thinking of others as better than yourselves. 4 Don’t look out only for your own interests, but take an interest in others, too.

• Servant leaders are always finding ways to make sure others know they are valued, appreciated, and important by being willing to serve them and meet their needs.
• Leaders are able to serve others because they are secure with who they are…they are able to love others because they love themselves.
• Insecure leaders are continually looking for validation, acknowledgment, and love...and they become wrapped up in this cycle of trying to find security, rather than instilling it in others.
• Insecure leaders have a hard time celebrating the successes of others and giving power to others.
• On the contrary, leaders who are secure are able to believe in and bring out the best in others because they believe in themselves.
• Servant leaders are good listeners; as John Maxwell states in one of his books on Leadership: “A good leader encourages followers to tell him what he needs to know, not what he wants to hear.”
• A secure leader is not afraid to hear the truth and make adjustments when necessary to better serve those they are leading.
• Servant leaders go out of their way to connect and listen to what their followers have to say and in the process a relationship of mutual respect is developed.
• Secure leaders are not concerned with getting “credit” for successes and are willing to support and encourage the ideas of others…and they give credit where credit is due.
• The great Industrialist Andrew Carnegie said this: “No man will make a great leader who wants to do it all himself or get all the credit for doing it.”
• Kingdom leaders are first and foremost concerned with giving God credit…giving Him the glory that is due, recognizing that He is the one that brought the idea that led to the success in the first place.
• And if an idea that someone else has is put into place and it fails, the Kingdom leader is quick to extend grace…not blame, not pointing a finger…but rather, they’re able to say, “You know what, that didn’t work out so well, but at least we know what not to do next time!”
• Kingdom leaders refuse to “throw others under the bus” for the sake of saving their own reputation…they’re willing to take responsibility, even if they’re not at fault…they’re determined to put things in place so that the same failure doesn’t keep happening again and again.
• Kingdom leaders are able to make others accountable and hold them responsible for their actions without condemning them…they do it in a loving, restoring manner…they don’t discard others when mistakes are made, but rather come alongside them and help them move forward.
• Kingdom leaders serve other well when they don’t make excuses and they never embrace a victim mentality…they recognize that each individual chooses whether to be responsible and accountable for their actions.
• Responsible leaders are willing to “go the extra mile” to get the job done…they are motivated by excellence, which means doing things to the best of their God-given ability…and they finish what they start...they persevere to the end.
• Just as our heavenly Father refuses to leave us in the state that we’re currently in, and is constantly leading us to grow and mature, Kingdom leaders refuse to leave others in their current state…they are always looking for ways to further develop those they are leading.
• Servant leaders must be aware of burn-out…where they are constantly giving, serving, and pouring out into others, but never really taking time for themselves…just as everything else in life there has to be balance.
• If you’re constantly serving others while neglecting to take care of your own needs, then eventually you will burn-out, your passion to serve will dry up, and you’ll have nothing else to offer.
• Jesus understood the danger of burn-out during his ministry on earth…we see in Luke chapter 5, after Jesus had healed the man with leprosy and large crowds were gathering around to hear his teaching and receive healing, that Jesus found time to get away…

Luke 5:16New Living Translation (NLT)
16 But Jesus often withdrew to the wilderness for prayer.

• If Jesus “got away” often, then this means it was important to him and he understood the need for times of refreshing, of renewal, of receiving from the Father.
• And so Jesus once again is our example of how to maintain balance in our lives as servant leaders.
• Servant leaders inspire those they are leading to serve others as well…to see the best in people, to help them reach their God-given potential…to make a difference in their families, their organizations, and their communities.
• Respect is earned when a leader keeps the interest of others in mind…when a leader’s focus is on what can be put into his people, rather than what can be gotten from them, they’ll not only respect you, they will be better positioned to help you and your family, your business, your church, or whatever it is you’re leading reach its full potential.
• Serve… Lead…Influence

"Recovering the Prophetic Company in the Movement of Hope"

by Eric J Lynch

2 Kings 6:1-7 states, "The company of the prophets said to Elisha, 'Look, the place where we meet with you is too small for us. 2 Let us go to the Jordan, where each of us can get a pole; and let us build a place there for us to meet.' And he said, 'Go.'

3 Then one of them said, “Won’t you please come with your servants?” “I will,” Elisha replied. 4 And he went with them. They went to the Jordan and began to cut down trees. 5 As one of them was cutting down a tree, the iron axhead fell into the water. “Oh no, my lord!” he cried out. “It was borrowed!” 6 The man of God asked, “Where did it fall?” When he showed him the place, Elisha cut a stick and threw it there, and made the iron float. 7 “Lift it out,” he said. Then the man reached out his hand and took it.

We discussed in the last RISE conference call the importance and role the prophetic company plays in the movement of hope. However, we must go beyond talking about its importance, and begin restoring it within the body of Christ.

In 2 Kings 6, we see a company of prophets who are in need of a more spacious meeting place, so they set out to begin building. While chopping wood, an axhead flies off the handle and into the water. Similarly, the body of Christ has recognized the need to build up a larger movement of hope, however, in the process it seems the axhead of the prophetic and true prophetic companies has become lost. It has been lost to pride, it has been lost to new age mysticism, it has been lost to pastors who refuse to embrace its full operation within the church. Despite all of those things, in this hour God is desiring to recover the axhead of true prophetic ministries/companies in the body of Christ, and the movement of hope.

A crucial part of seeing anything restored requires something to be built and constructed, so I want to discuss for a moment how to establish and construct prophetic companies.

 The general structure of the prophetic company includes anywhere from 5 to 15 leadership and service positions, and I have selected 6 to highlight in particular:

1. Apostles

2. Senior Pastor

3. Overseer of the Prophetic Company (the prophet who is most matured and experienced)

4. Staff Prophets (the company of prophets)

5. Prophetic Worshippers/Singers (those who are gifted to prepare at atmosphere of worship, where prophecy can flow easily)

6. Intercessors

When structuring a prophetic company, it is important that the number of service positions and prophets is proportionate to the level of ministry work needed. If the ministry assignment/mission is smaller, then having around 9 prophets on staff (for the purpose of being able to rotate from service to service in groups of 3) is sufficient. The main thing is that you don't want the company to be so large that it ends up taking away from the effectiveness ministry that could take place.

Next, I want to discuss preparing an individual to serve (in some capacity) on the prophetic company:

1. Training: Once an individual is selected by the existing senior leadership (i.e. apostolic leadership, senior pastor, or the prophetic company overseer) they need to begin taking whatever prophetic training/teachibg that church or ministry has in place.

2. Teamwork Mindset: Becoming a part of a prophetic company requires that each individual be willing to set aside being a loose canon, and wirk in unity with the rest of the company.

3. Accountability & Screening: The integrity of the prophetic ministry taking place is non-negotiable. 

Therefore, those who are serving as staff prophets, as well as the prophetic worshippers and intercessors, should be willing to share the words God gives them with the senior leadership before releasing them in a corporate setting. This helps protect the integrity of the whole team.

Lastly, when we talk about constructing a prophetic company, I want to briefly outline the general responsibilities the team/company carries out:

1. Prayer: The prophetic company coming together for regular, set times of prayer as a group is very crucial to its ongoing success and effectiveness as a ministry team.

2. Counsel: As a part of the initial training, each person serving on the prophetic company should be equipped to help counsel various members of the congregation they are serving. This prevents all the responsibility for counseling falling onto the senior pastor or apostolic leader's shoulders.

3. Mentoring: Each member of the prophetic company should be equipped to both identify potential individuals who could serve on the company in some way, and help mentor those who come onto the team (i.e. current intercessors helping mentor new intercessors, current prophetic worshippers helping mentor new prophetic worship leaders etc.)

4. Prophetic Ministry: I believe it goes without saying that being that it is a prophetic company, each service position whether an apostle or intercessor, prophet, or prophetic worshipper should be trained and equipped to know how to tap into the prophetic and prophesy whenever and wherever.

God is restoring the axhead of tge prophetic company and it begins with being willing to take the time to establish a well-trained and mature prophetic company. The prophetic company is essential to the movement of hope, and it is time for prophetic companies to take their place again within local church bodies across the nation and the world.

Prophetic Insights to Consider

A few weeks back, I reached out to a few connected with RISEmovement who are prophetically gifted to share what they are hearing from Father.  Here is some encouraging insight for you to pray over and use in your advancement.  



From Elexio Baillou of the Bahamas

Hope is Here

God’s Movement amongst New Covenant Leaders

There is a continual progression and penetration of God's truth throughout the Western church, particularly within the North America Christian community. With teachers echoing the message of God's grace and the New Covenant within every arena opening up to them, we are being made once again to adjust to and accept what the Lord is clearly saying to His churches.

This penetration of our Christian church world with a once lost truth and kingdom reality has been a source of controversy, confusion, and confrontation to say the least. It is not unusual to see the names of men and women who have been mandated by God to carry this banner being persecuted, maligned and unsupported on one hand while being accepted and embraced on the other.

This is because whenever God begins to speak in this manner within His Church, there is a dividing that ultimately occurs. Like the children of Israel who were promised that they would possess the promised land, there are those who are willing to move forward with the Lord no matter what, and there are those who are more committed to their religious ideals and self-righteous disciplines, and would thus reject anything “new” the Lord speaks if it goes against their pre-conceived ideals and Christian paradigms (even if they are in fact based on scriptures taken out of context and doctrines of devils.)

Nevertheless, HOPE is HERE! HOPE being JESUS unveiled and manifested in the midst of this generation in a way that we have not seen before in previous eras. With the continual proliferation of who HE is to US and in US NOW, we can be assured that there will be a progressive and permanent shift in God' Body here in our part of the world as more and more people are liberated by the knowledge of who they are in Him and what He can do through them.

That being said, it is my intention to now provide you with brief insights into what I believe we can expect because of what God is speaking now (on a macro-level/large scale). My statements are both prophetic as well as predictable, as our Father has a way of doing things and His Word contains trends and typical results that can be seen wherever Jesus is unveiled and His people are freed from the demonic ideals enforced upon them by unknowing spiritual leaders and Christian culture that is not rooted in the nature of Christ.

Essentially, whatever we saw in the life and nature of Christ and the ministry of Paul will be seen in us. The world will see Him in us!

That being said, it is my hope that you understand that the following trends are consistent with “Normal Christianity”, because God’s agenda is to realign and restore Kingdom Normality within His Church until it is a beautiful reflection of that which is happening in heaven. Therefore, understand that that which we have attempted to accomplish through our own power will now occur because of the Lord Jesus Christ working in and through us in this hour!

Here is what I see occurring amongst New Covenant Leaders in this Hour

1.       Access into organizations, leaders, and individuals of high influence that were previously unreachable.

The Apostle Paul was able to take the message of God’s Kingdom into some of the most unusual places. Armed with revelatory truth regarding the person of Jesus Christ, he stood before men and women of great influence and power within today’s world and presented the gospel with great persuasion and compassion until even the most ungodly of leaders were forced to listen and consider the words he spoke.

In this hour I perceive that God will grant those who preach this truth access into the hearts and lives of men and women who possess great influence in order that they may understand the power of God to change and work through them, enabling them to lead their organizations, churches and corporations with a level of wisdom, revelation, and power previously unseen through them. Truly the power of Christ to change will be seen.

2.       Special administrations and demonstrations of God’s power in signs, wonders, and miracles.

There must be unique manifestations of God’s power to confirm His Word through New Covenant Leaders. Therefore, we will see the kinds of healings, miracles, and deliverances that set Paul apart from the other apostles. It must occur otherwise many within the Body of Christ will perceive that which we speak to be simply another “good message” or passing truth, which will soon fade away as another fad.

Yet, when the “hand of God” is seen in tangible ways there will be increased influence and notoriety to those graced by God to walk in this way. We will see the Lord confirm and endorse His servants work in such ways.

3.       The declaration of mysteries and revelatory truths that confound the hearts and minds of hearers.

Those leaders who function with a New Covenant mentality will begin to understand the deeper things of God’s Word, and declare the mysteries of the Kingdom as shown through the breadth of the entire Word. We will listen as they show us Jesus again and again throughout the Word of God and unlock before us mysteries that will cause us to be confounded and left amazed at the wisdom of God in His dealings with humanity. Truly we will begin to comprehend the height, width, depth and breadth of the love of God for us.

4.       Affliction and Great Challenges

With great revelation comes great controversy and challenge. We will see how those who speak His Word in this way are once again maligned, disrespected, rejected, and dishonored by many, even within His Church. However, this will be the minority, though I suspect that it will come from those who are in leadership and would rather uphold their Biblically-errant truths rather than humbly admit their own faulty understanding of God’s Word. Instead, we will see how even in the midst of such “warfare” the Lord will cause His servants to shine and rise above the waters sent by the adversary to overwhelm them.  The demonic forces that rule in concert over entire communities, organizations, churches, and corporations will be forcefully overthrown as God’s truth penetrates and transforms His people.

It is for this reason that we must “count the cost”, we must recognize that what we are called to do is unpopular, sobering, necessary, and challenging. We will be made to love those who have made it their agenda to afflict and curse us for preaching that which they consider heresy. Do understand my friends that JESUS revealed in this way will is not simply another truth, it is THE TRUTH. Thus, we must move forward knowing that ours will be a path of great joy even in the midst of great challenge.

5.       The birthing, establishing, and progressing of a new order of churches.

Apostles and 5-fold leaders functioning in the New Covenant will establish a new culture and Christian community. Therefore, we will see a different model of churches established. We will see Antioch type churches that are in fact hubs where people can come to receive from the Lord and experience His changing love and power. We will see churches that function based upon relationship and honor, not authoritarian hierarchies and religious ideals that burden God’s people and keep them forever in need of another message from their pastors, like heroin addicts craving the next “hit”.

6.       The manifestation of creativity and innovation to reach this culture.

Jesus was and is creative in nature; in fact He is the CREATOR. Therefore, it goes without saying that out of our community there will be the manifestation of the spirit of innovation and creativity where our works will be relevant to our world and not simply those who flock to our centers.

We will see men and women who have truly interacted and engaged the angels of heaven and the Spirit of Revelation to such a degree that they will create films, engineer technologies, and invent products that are of great benefit to mankind. For it is the nature of God within us to lead in every field and industry. Therefore, we must not be surprised when it happens.

7.       The fruit of the Spirit.

Sexual misconduct and shameful behavior will decrease. As we discover more of who we are in Christ and who He is in us, we will see holiness demonstrated through the lifestyles of New Covenant believers in a phenomenal. We will be living expressions of the person of Christ, without even attempting to do so. Among us there will be a radically decreased level of scandal, hypocrisy, and evil behavior. Instead, we will  stand as lights in a dark world, beacons of hope, people marked by pure motives, Christ-like character, and humble spirits who function as servant kings.

     

       God will be seen through us and be evidenced through our lives.

8.       A renewed passion for prayer, worship, fasting, and the study of God’s word.

Constantly we are told that as believers we MUST pray, we MUST worship, we MUST fast, we MUST study the Word of God. Yet, such activities have become unattractive, boring, and ritualistic as they have been taught to us.

However, I sincerely see a time in which we will find doing all of the above no longer a burdensome task, but rather actions of our affection for the Savior. They will flow out of lives given to Him and hidden in Him. We will do them all with great fervor, passion, excitement and joy not to attain something or attempt to appease the Lord. Rather it will because of how He works through us and in us as we do so.

Essentially I believe that the Father is pressing on us in this way and will NOT be stopped, all that we must do is allow Him to do what HE must and watch as the tide shifts in the Body of Christ in our era and the next!

From Michelle Harding of Easton, MD

                                               Politics or Governance?

In light of recent events flooding the news, social media, and many conversations with other Believers, I came to a place in prayer that led to a very interesting question being stirred in me by Holy Spirit. "Is the mandate from heaven to the church a political one or is it spiritual?"  "Of course it's spiritual", we say! We know that the mandate is to be His witnesses (Acts 1:8), preach the gospel (Mark 1617) and to make disciples of all nations (Matt. 28:19-20).  But, I wonder, have we exchanged the centrality of the Gospel to a broken world for the idea that we can create a better society through politics and legislating morality? The responsibility of cultural reform lies upon the Church and her ability to transform humanity through the power of the Gospel of the Kingdom of God and our representation of His love through our love for Him, one another and our world. Anything less than that falls short of our call.

 I am not saying that we are not to concern ourselves with government, but our focus is not to be upon the politics of our day, but rather upon the governance of God. We, the Church are the Ecclesia, God's governing agents in the earth. Politics brings division, anger and bitterness. Every election cycle I watch my Facebook wall divide right down the middle as the church divides between Democratic and Republican lines. A chasm of political mayhem divides brothers and sisters, churches, and races. All rising from a political spirit rather than the reality of Kingdom governance. Psalm 89:14 says, " Righteousness and justice are the foundation of your throne; love and faithfulness go before you." Kingdom governance places righteousness and justice at its foundation and from it proceeds love and faithfulness.

The political spirit that has risen out of the church has made us seem mean spirited, judgmental, and critical. We have a responsibility to speak truth into our nation and to represent the authority of our King and His Kingdom. But it is also important that we speak the truth in love with words filled with grace. It is vital we show honor not only to those we agree with but, also to those we disagree with.  Paul tells the Colossians in Col. 4:5-6, " Conduct yourselves with wisdom toward outsiders, making the most of the opportunity. Let your speech always be with grace, as though seasoned with salt, so that you will know how you should respond to each person." The Apostle Peter sums it up well in 1 Peter 2:17, " Honor all people, love the brotherhood, fear God, honor the king".

                

Our hearts are right to desire true reform and cultural transformation, but we must reorient our hearts to the throne of God and the plumb line of the Gospel. True reformation and transformation will only come as we win the hearts and minds of men not the power of protest, petition or pettiness. We may have a few temporal victories, but lasting change comes not through legislation in America but through the bowing of hearts to the Lord and King.

                

The reality is, our nation is in the condition it is in because of a culture filled with broken people lost in sin. We must also understand that sin isn't even the real problem. Sin is the fruit of broken relationship with God and the loss of identity which leads to sin. The process of reconciling  men to God awakens them to a life of freedom outside the bondage of sin. Our own salvation experience points us to this truth. First, we are reconciled to God through the spirit of adoption and our spirit cries out Abba, Father. Through Christ we became sons of God, empowered by the Holy Spirit to live righteous and godly lives. The result being, the greater our relationship with our Father grew, the less we sinned. The Kingdom of God is the only kingdom with authority over the hearts of men, and its power doesn't rest within its rules but within its love. We cannot continue to confront the moral issues of our day with the politics of our times, but rather let us look to the governance of God who is our Judge, Lawgiver and King (Isa. 33:22)! "Do not trust in princes, in mortal man, in whom there is no salvation" (Psalm 146:3); "Thus says the Lord, ‘Cursed is the man who trusts in mankind and makes flesh his strength’" (Jeremiah 17:5).

               

I believe the true hope of America is in a Church walking in the revelation of Kingdom governance rather than politics, and a Church walking in her identity as the God-given governmental authority  in the earth. There is a battle for righteousness in our nation, but it's solution is spiritual not political. This of course in no way diminishes our responsibility as citizens of our nation or those called into government. It brings clarity to the call to be righteous and just, and the need to align ourselves with the King, His Kingdom, and His love. This is righteous governance and God says that is what exalts a nation.

Prophetic Word:

God is dealing with the political spirit in the church and it is coming on the wings of social justice, as we awaken to the fact that it is only the Kingdom of God that has authority over the hearts of men.  As we move from legislating in political spheres, as more and more of the Christian or right wing agenda fueled by Christian zealots, continues to be fruitless; we will move to legislating in the heavenlies through prayer and declaration.

Here is where hearts of sacrificial love, like Christ modeled will be brought forth, voices of awakening will move from sounding the alarm of what the enemy is doing to declaring what God is doing.

The court of heaven will begin to shift the laws of men through hearts awakened by love, and things we worked generations for will come easily as we begin to gain the understanding of how Christ, the Apostles, and the early church walked in the midst of a demonized political and religious system. With this let us approach the throne of grace and authority, seek His counsel, hear His words and release His truth in love.

In this season are coming forth carriers of the Father's heart, those who like Jesus will RE-Present a loving Father, it is this that will turn the hearts of men and a nation.

RISE Training Series - April 20, 2015

Kingdom Leadership – Part 1

by Duane Huck - senior executive, business owner, pastor

·         There are many different ways to define leadership and there are many different styles of leadership.
·         Some leaders are great motivators, others are great teachers or visionaries, most leaders possess all of these abilities to one extent or the other.
·         Great leaders know how to engage people and how to get them to work together for the common good of the whole.
·         Great leaders have the uncanny ability to inspire greatness in people and help them accomplish more than they ever thought possible.
·         Managers focus on the tasks to be accomplished, leaders focus on developing people.
·         God is accomplishing his task of redeeming the earth by focusing on developing His people, by helping them grow and mature to become more like His son.
·         Believers who embrace the call to leadership are critical in God’s plan of transforming culture. As leaders, we reproduce who we are.  
·         Dysfunctional, broken executives, managers, parents, teachers,etc. reproduce dysfunctional, broken environments.
·         There will be poor attitudes, poor decision making, lack of integrity, lack of accountability, lack of trust.
·         But healthy, thriving leaders reproduce healthy, thriving environments. I believe this is true, not only in families and the church, but in businesses as well.
·         Leaders that “have the mind of Christ” exhibit good attitudes, make wise decisions, operate with integrity, accountability, and trust.
·         Kingdom leaders conduct business with the kingdom in mind. They view every day, every meeting, every encounter as an opportunity to advance God’s kingdom. They understand that every day is another opportunity to release hope into the lives of those they lead.
·         In his book, Developing the Leader Within You, John C. Maxwell writes, “Leadership is influence, nothing more, nothing less.”
·         If this statement is true, then then we are all leaders. We all have a measure of influence, whether it is at work, in the home or with our friends.
·         Where we spend our time is where we have influence…it’s why we monitor very closely at a very young age who our children’s friends are.
·         Who are they spending their time with? Who is influencing them?
·         Those of us in business, or in the marketplace, likely spend 25% of our overall time there and roughly 35% of our waking hours there.
·         So if leadership is about influence and connecting with others, then leading in the workplace with a Kingdom perspective is imperative if we are going to influence our culture for God’s Kingdom.
·         When we look at what the key principles for Kingdom leadership are, I think we need to look no further than what Jesus said were the greatest commandments.
·         Matthew 22:36-40New Living Translation (NLT)
·         36 “Teacher, which is the most important commandment in the law of Moses?”
·         37 Jesus replied, “‘You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your mind.’[a] 38 This is the first and greatest commandment. 39 A second is equally important: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’[b] 40 The entire law and all the demands of the prophets are based on these two commandments.”
·         If Jesus was able to summarize all of the law in these two commandments, then how we respond to them will impact every area of our lives, including our ability to be effective leaders.
·         When we love someone, we are concerned about them, we care about them – Kingdom leaders care about those they are leading.
·         Our ability to lead in such a way that we are shaping the culture for the Kingdom of God is solely dependent on our willingness to live out these two commandments.
·         And it’s really not our ability, because you and I are not capable of loving people the way Jesus commanded on our own…but rather our willingness to surrender daily to the leading of His Spirit will enable us to do so.
·         It’s interesting that Jesus clarified that “loving God with all of our heart, soul, and mind” was the first commandment.
·         Jesus’ number one goal while on the earth was to please the Father…to accomplish what the Father had sent him to earth to do.
·         As leaders, our number one goal as we lead others should be to lead in such a way that we please the Father, that we honor Him above all else.
·         This love that Jesus is referring to is a purposeful commitment to sacrificial action for another.
·         It means being fully committed to our relationship with God, to the point that it costs us something – our time, our money, our pride…maybe even our popularity or approval from others.
·         If we are to have any chance at being effective Kingdom leaders, the first thing we need to do is make sure our relationship with the Father is in order.
·         Great leaders are effective at what they do because of who they are on the inside – in their heart, soul, and mind.
·         Great leaders are able to forge healthy relationships in all aspects of their lives – but it starts by having a healthy relationship established with God the Father.
·         When our relationship with our heavenly Father is in a healthy state, the outcome of that is Godly character.
·         Character is defined as one of the attributes or features that make up and distinguish an individual.
·         Most, if not all leaders, will face times of crisis when important decisions have to be made…it’s in these times when a person’s character is revealed.
·         Adversity is an opportunity for leaders to either choose character or compromise…it’s like coming to a crossroads…which path will you take?
·         Will you choose the easy path or the hard one? I believe this is what Jesus was talking about in Matthew 7 -  Matthew 7:13-14New International Version (NIV)
·         The Narrow and Wide Gates
·         13 “Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. 14 But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.
·         Will you make the popular decision…the one that will make you look good or cause you the least amount of grief? Or will you make the RIGHT decision even if it cost you something?
·         Notice in these verses, both paths LEAD to somewhere…one to destruction, the other to life.
·         Our character is further created every time we make choices – choices that don’t compromise our beliefs, our values, or the moral standard that we carry as an image bearer of God
·         Character isn’t just “talking the talk”…action is the real indicator of character.
·         Will you do what you say you’re going to do? Every time? Even when it’s not convenient?
·         I know a high-level executive who will be talking with those he leads on the phone, and just abruptly end the conversation with “I’ve got to go, I’ll call you right back”.  And come to find out in talking with others who know and work for this same executive, he really never does call back. So there’s this general lack of respect by those who work for him.
·         Kingdom leaders are men and women of their word. They do what they say they’re going to do when they say they’re going to do it. Now I realize that from time to time things come up and plans change. But in those times we must communicate ahead of time that we can’t keep our commitment and need to reschedule. And we should make it a priority to reschedule whatever it is we are cancelling as soon as possible, not just when we can get around to it.
·         We choose whether we are going to have godly character or not. A lot of things in life we don’t get to choose. Where we are born, who our parents are, where we live when we are growing up. But we do get to choose our character.
·         In tough situations, will we cop out or dig in and persevere? Will we compromise the truth or stand for it at all costs?
·         Taking responsibility as a leader means you come to terms with the fact that, plain and simple, your life affects others…when I make choices as a leader, it not only affects my life, but it also affects the lives of those I’m leading.
·         Leaders should always make decisions based on what’s fair, what’s right, and what is best for the overall group they are leading. Making decisions based on what’s best for one individual, either yourself or someone you’re leading, can lead to dissension and lack of trust.
·         All leaders make mistakes at some point or other. How you respond to those mistakes is what sets great leaders apart.
·         None of us are perfect, nor is perfection a requirement to lead. But growth is. Effective leaders have a hunger to grow.
·         They want to become more and more whole spiritually, emotionally, and mentally. They understand that the environments they are called to influence need them to be as healthy as possible in these areas.
·         True leadership always involves other people. If there are no followers involved, then you’re not really leading.
·         When followers recognize that a leader has flawed character, they will not continue to follow.
·         So what are some practical things we can do to improve our character as leaders?
·         If character is foundational to our ability to lead others effectively, then we must looks for cracks in this part of the foundation.
·         Looks for places or times where you’ve cut corners, compromised, or let others down.
·         Look for patterns where the same issue keeps surfacing, an area where you may have a particular weakness. Then ask God and the Holy Spirit to help you in this area.
·         If you need to repair some damage done in the past due to flaws in your character, be humble and willing to admit your mistakes. And realize that God’s grace is greater than those mistakes.
·         Face your flaws head on and deal with the consequences. Apologize if necessary to those you’re leading. You will gain a tremendous amount of respect from those you’re leading when they see your sincere willingness to admit that you’ve messed up and want to make things right.
·         Make a plan that will help prevent you from making those same mistakes and move forward in God’s grace.

The Role of the Prophetic Company in the Movement of Hope

by Eric Lynch - prophetic gift and teacher

The world is asking:

Job 17:15 -where then is my hope? Who can see any hope for me?

                Romans 8:19-“For the creation waits in eager expectation for the children of God to be revealed.” In much the same way, the world is awaiting the manifestations of God’s prophets to release a word of hope!

The assurance of our hope:

                Hebrews 11:1-Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.

                Before we can have the assurance of faith, we must first have something we are hoping for. This requires clarifying what our hope is: 1. What is the vision? 2. What is the intended goal?

What is a Prophetic Company:

A prophetic company is a community of prophets who are members of a local church body or other organization for the main purpose of providing service, prophecy, and supervision to those they serve and those under their care.

If you take a moment to reference the picture attached to this article, you will see that I used a unique looking photo. The photo depicts a larger circle of people surrounding a smaller, inner circle of people. A prophetic company can be understood as a shield. It is a divine force that deflects the attacks of the enemy and demonic activity from infiltrating, influencing, and touching the lives of those that company of prophets is assigned to protect.

For example, let’s look at 1 Samuel 19:19-20, which says: "Word came to Saul: 'David is in Naioth at Ramah'; so he (Saul) sent men to capture him. But when they saw a group of prophets prophesying, with Samuel standing there as their leader, the Spirit of God came on Saul's men, and they also prophesied." This passage is a clear picture of how the prophetic company functions as a shield from demonic attack. When Saul's men came to capture David, you had a community of prophets, organized by Samuel, ready to confront and thwart the attack on David’s life.

The Role of a Prophetic Company in a movement of Hope:

Referring back to 1 Samuel for a moment, I want to point out something very interesting that God showed me. The very first time we ever see the prophetic company mentioned in scripture is in 1 Samuel 10. 1 Samuel 10:5 records a conversation between Samuel and Saul, and the Prophet says to Saul: “When you arrive at Gibeah of God, where the garrison of the Philistines is located, you will meet a band of prophets coming down from the place of worship. They will be playing a harp, a tambourine, a flute, and a lyre, and they will be prophesying.” Now, when I researched this passage, I was blown away!

When 1 Samuel 10:5 says that the band of prophets, “will be prophesying”, the word prophesying didn’t mean predicting future events, it actually meant that the prophets were singing praises as a form of prophecy; they were releasing a sound of hope and joy! I don’t believe it is any coincidence that the very first introduction we have to the prophetic company commences with a sound of hope being released! According to 1 Samuel 3:1, “…In those days the word of the LORD was rare; there were not many visions.” However, the prophet Samuel is a “type” symbolizing prophetics in the New Testament, and his ministry marks the beginning of a new era in the prophetic—an era characterized by prophetic companies of hope.

When we look at Isaiah, he was a prophet of hope, and in Isaiah 43:19 Isaiah prophesies, “See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it?” A prophetic company is those who God sends to answer the question Job asked in Job 17:15, ‘where is hope?’ They are the ones God enables to see hope for those who cannot see it themselves, prophesying it into existence!  

Characteristics of the Prophetic Company in a Movement of Hope:

Ezekiel 37:1-4; 7-12: The hand of the Lord was on me, and he brought me out by the Spirit of the Lord and set me in the middle of a valley; it was full of bones. 2 He led me back and forth among them, and I saw a great many bones on the floor of the valley, bones that were very dry. 3 He asked me, “Son of man, can these bones live?” I said, “Sovereign Lord, you alone know.” 4 Then he said to me, “Prophesy to these bones and say to them, ‘Dry bones, hear the word of the Lord! 7 So I prophesied as I was commanded. And as I was prophesying, there was a noise, a rattling sound, and the bones came together, bone to bone. 8 I looked, and tendons and flesh appeared on them and skin covered them, but there was no breath in them. 9 Then he said to me, “Prophesy to the breath; prophesy, son of man, and say to it, ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: Come, breath, from the four winds and breathe into these slain, that they may live.’” 10 So I prophesied as he commanded me, and breath entered them; they came to life and stood up on their feet—a vast army. 11 Then he said to me: “Son of man, these bones are the people of Israel. They say, ‘Our bones are dried up and our hope is gone; we are cut off.’ 12 Therefore prophesy and say to them: ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: My people, I am going to open your graves and bring you up from them; I will bring you back to the land of Israel.

Ezekiel 37 is a picture of the House of Israel that had been scattered and become spiritually dead during the exile that took place. This passage is a picture of a people with no probability of hope. So, God sends Ezekiel to this hopeless, dried up, lifeless people and tells him to prophesy into two main areas: 1. The body, and 2. The breath. Not only did the bodies and lives of this hopeless nation need to rise again and be unified, but a refilling of life needed to take place. For what good is a form that has no life in it?

There are four primary goals and/or elements that characterize the job of the prophetic company in a movement of hope:

1.       Assemble the body into a unified condition (Eze. 37:7-8).

2.       Provide spiritual covering (Eze. 37:8).

3.       Speak life into the Body of Christ, and all those who are in a state of hopelessness (Eze. 37:10).

4.        Prophesy the will of The Lord to bring them into a manifestation of God’s destiny for their life (Eze. 37:12).

                

Seek ye FIRST

by Matt Brown

Director of RISEabove

Matthew 6:33 (KJV)

But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and His righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.

✘ Seek is defined as "to attempt or desire to obtain or achieve; to go after; to search after." First is defined as "the one coming, occurring, or ranking before or above all others; most important." This verse popped up over and over at Christ Temple's Judgement House last night. In this verse, God is telling us to go after, to search after His kingdom and His righteousness. And not only to go after His kingdom, but to go after it FIRST.... not second, not third, not only in tough times, not only in despair, not only in times of need, but FIRST.... first and foremost, not "only when me and mines need help." To me, the word seek implies action. We must make a decision to put Him first in our lives. It's more than just talk. It's action. It's a decision, a daily decision to die to our flesh & to feed our Spirit with living waters. This verse ends by saying "and all of these things shall be added unto you." These things..... Our food, our drink, our clothes, etc.... If we SEEK FIRST HIS KINGDOM & HIS RIGHTEOUSNESS, HE will provide our needs. We are reminded that the birds of the air and the lilies of the field are taken care of by God & that He will supply our needs as well, and after all, he loves us more than them. The more dominion we give God in our lives, the more we put our trust & faith in Him, and when we SEEK FIRST HIS KINGDOM AND HIS RIGHTEOUSNESS, we shall have no anxiety for tomorrow. Anxiety is defined as "a feeling of worry, nervousness, or unease, typically about an imminent event or something with an uncertain outcome." When Jesus is our one and only master, worry and uneasiness can be let go, for we know that "all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose." - Romans 8:28 (KJV)

RISE Training Series - Feb 2015, Mandate of Hope

The Reign of Hope

by Michelle Harding

Church of The King, Easton, MD

RISEmovement

"In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.  The earth was formless and void, and darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was moving over the surface of the waters.  Then God said, “Let there be light”; and there was light.  God saw that the light was good; and God separated the light from the darkness. God called the light day, and the darkness He called night. And there was evening and there was morning, one day." (Genesis 1:1-5 NASB)

Before Christ, in many ways You and I were formless and void-without purpose, empty filled darkness, chaos often the rule of our lives until Holy Spirit came and moved over us, brooded over us, and Light downed in our spirit.

2 Cor. 4:6 clearly points to this:

"For God, who said, "Light shall shine out of darkness," is the One who has shone in our hearts to give the Light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ."

We were flooded with light and we were transferred out of the kingdom of darkness into the Kingdom of light. And yes He called us good and separated us from the darkness.

Father God, Jesus as the Word and Spirit all involved at the moment of creation were each also involved at the moment of our new birth, the new creation!

And just as the Father, Son and Holy Spirit each brought all that was created together, brought form and order to the creation, provided everything the crown of his creation (meaning man)would need, He is doing the same in us as we are being formed into the image of the Son, the first born of the new creation.

 In the story of creation, we see that on the sixth day He brings forth the crown of His creation man, the one who was to bear His image and likeness in the earth. The trinity is also involved and necessary in the forming of the New Creation, The New Race of man. Now we have been born of the Father through Jesus, the New Adam is the first born of many sons.

You see, God did the work, and on the sixth day brought forth humanity that He blessed and instructed to be fruitful, multiply,  fill, subdue and rule. And on the 7th He rested. Man was created and entered the rest of God. God did the work and he made us to be bring forth His rule and reign on the earth. Man was made God's governing agent in the earth as Psalm 115:16 teaches us:

"The heavens are the heavens of the LORD, But the earth He has given to the sons of men."

But the fall brought corruption to the created order, Adam abdicated His authority and commits high treason and turns it over to the enemy.

God promises that one will come to crush his head, the head speaks of rule and headship, there is a promise that the enemies power and headship in the earth will be crushed.

And in the fullness of time, the Son of God, the Messiah comes, born of a woman. He lives as a man, is tempted as a man, The New Adam is walking the earth. Hope is here!

And just as God brought the work of creation and completed the work and rested. Jesus also does the work of salvation. He does what no man could do, and overcomes every battle that the first Adam failed.

In the garden, Eve was tempted by lust of the flesh, lust of the eye and pride of life:

She saw the fruit, desired the fruit and wisdom...

The enemy came to Jesus and when you look at the temptation in the wilderness in Matthew 4:1-11 The enemy comes to tempt Jesus with lust of the eye, lust of the flesh and pride of life. But the New Adam, Jesus passes the test.

It is also important we understand that these were tests of identity, when the serpent said to Eve in Genesis 3:5:

 “For God knows that when you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.”

She was already like God, she was made in His image and in His likeness. In the temptation of Christ in the wilderness, the enemy comes after His identity, " If you are the Son of God"...But Jesus knew His identity and didn't fall for any of it.The failure of mankind came in a garden in Eden but the victory of mankind was secured by Christ as He overcame in the garden of Gethsemane.

Jesus then facing the cross and death, begins His work of establishing the New Covenant and takes, upon Himself everything that we deserve, He takes, our punishment, our scourging, He takes the accusations, the torture, the mocking, He suffers in every way, in mind, in body, in soul and spirit and goes to the cross and dies in our place. For 3 days He lies in a tomb ( no matter where and what we believe about these 3days) we know He emerges victorious over sin, hell, death, carrying the keys stolen by the enemy.

He becomes the first born from the dead, the head of a new creation, a race of men that had never been seen in all creation!

After His resurrection, for forty days He reveals the word of God through the law and the prophets, and then He ascends to the right hand of the Father and takes His seat, seated means He has completed His work, and then 10 days later the King releases His Kingdom anointing, the Holy Spirit and Humanity is never again the same.

And now just as man in the beginning of creation entered the rest of God, entered the fullness of His completed work, we in Christ enter into His finished work, we are the beneficiaries of all His labor and victory and we as joint heirs, enter His rest and move from the place of His enthronement and authority.

This is important for us to understand The Hope of Isaiah 61!

In Luke 4:18-20 Jesus goes to the synagogue and reads from the Prophet Isaiah  corresponding to the first few verses of Isa 61 in our Bibles:

“The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor.

He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to set the oppressed free, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.”

Then he rolled up the scroll, gave it back to the attendant and sat down. The eyes of everyone in the synagogue were fastened on him. He began by saying to them, “Today this scripture is fulfilled in your hearing.”

Our Hope is in Christ and the Hope of the World is Christ in you! (Read that again!)

So often we read Isa 61 and stop after verse three, The Spirit of the Lord is upon me...Much of our Christian life has stopped short at verse three. We have sought the anointing, we have gone after liberation and freedom, we have proclaimed the truths of the gospel, but we have this hope and have received the divine kingdom anointing because we are now bringing forth hope to cities, nations, people groups. We through the hope of the gospel, are rebuilding all the kingdom of darkness has left in desolation and brokenness. And bringing heaven to earth.

It is through Messiah's Kingdom and His chosen Ones, His Royal Nation and Holy Priesthood that we will see the promised hope of Isaiah 61: 4-11 fulfilled:

"They will rebuild the ancient ruins and restore the places long devastated;

they will renew the ruined cities that have been devastated for generations.

Strangers will shepherd your flocks; foreigners will work your fields and vineyards.

And you will be called priests of the Lord, you will be named ministers of our God. You will feed on the wealth of nations, and in their riches you will boast.

Instead of your shame you will receive a double portion, and instead of disgrace you will rejoice in your inheritance.

And so you will inherit a double portion in your land, and everlasting joy will be yours.

“For I, the Lord, love justice; I hate robbery and wrongdoing. In my faithfulness I will reward my people and make an everlasting covenant with them.

Their descendants will be known among the nations and their offspring among the peoples. All who see them will acknowledge that they are a people the Lord has blessed.”

I delight greatly in the Lord; my soul rejoices in my God. For he has clothed me with garments of salvation and arrayed me in a robe of his righteousness, as a bridegroom adorns his head like a priest, and as a bride adorns herself with her jewels.

For as the soil makes the sprout come up and a garden causes seeds to grow, so the Sovereign Lord will make righteousness and praise spring up before all nations."

What we read here is a result of the establishment of His Kingdom and all that He has deposited in us, the vessels of His of His glory!

Through Him has begun the resurrection of the dead, not just dead people, but everything that death has ruled over , everything that through our continued abdication has given death reign in, such as marriages, families, nations, schools, poverty and race relations. We must release the hope that we carry, knowing that Jesus has overcome every failure of man. Even when the law was given, we see 3,000 die because of their failure (Deut. 32:28) But when the New Covenant is released on the Day of Pentecost, 3,000 receive the ministry of life. We are in the business of reversing the curse.

And now we who carry the ministry of life are to release that life, see resurrection come to all that the spirit of death continues to hold under its unauthorized power and restore Hope to humanity.

He is the source of our new life, our new being, as new creations under the New Adam, we are now administrators of His Kingdom, enforcing the sovereign reign of our King. And as we function under the revelation of the New Adam, we partner with the trinity to now see the earth gardenized and the nations of the world become the nations of our God! In this lies the fulfillment of the great commission.

We must set our hearts on the hope of the Gospel, the authentic gospel, the gospel that turned the world upside down, a gospel preached with reckless abandon, with an eye not to escape this world, but to redeem it, to make it fruitful, filling it with the Kingdom of God, to multiply the sons of God, to subdue the works of the enemy , and see the rule and administration of the Kingdom of God reigning in every realm of life.

It is what was always meant to be, but now failure is behind us, Christ has succeeded; His Kingdom is within us, heaven is to come to earth and our King is to have His enemies made His footstool.

The Divided Mind

by Matt Brown

Director of RISEabove

THE DIVIDED MIND

In the New Testament the Greek word for worry/anxiety that was most often used is “mirimnao." It combines two Greek words, "merizo" which means "divide" and "nous" which means "mind."

"Mirimnao" literally means "divided mind."

When we "worry," or have a "divided mind," we lose focus on Him. We split (or divide) our thoughts on yesterday's what-could-have-been's & what-should-have-been's and tomorrow's worst-case-scenarios and I-hope-so's without focusing on the ever precious right-now's of today. Today's peaks and valleys were designed for us to enjoy in the moment with our eyes, hearts, and minds squarely focused on Him. Worrying causes us to unnecessarily re-live the past over and over. It also causes us to pre-live the future sometimes a hundred times over (or more) before it even arrives.

The enemy would love nothing more than for us to be looking so far behind or forward that we lose today. Don't trip over a gravel while staring at the mountain in front of you. One of my favorite songs, "Just Be Held," by Casting Crowns says it best.... "If you're eyes are on the storm you'll wonder if I love ya still, if you're eyes are on the cross you'll know I always have and I always will."

So often we (and by we, I mean ME!) try to turn this stuff into rocket science. I heard a guy (BJ Roberts, while preaching at Christ Temple) say "sometimes we try to get so deep that we get stuck." Time and time again during my study time God keeps directing me back to Matthew 6:33. If we follow this one simple instruction, our oft-divided minds can find peace, rest, and relief in Him ... "but seek ye first the Kingdom of God and all of His righteousness, and all of these things shall be added unto you."

1 Peter 5:7 (New Living Translation)"Give all your worries and cares to God, for he cares about you."

Here's the link to the above referenced song. Give it a listen...

Just Be Held by Casting Crowns w/ Lyrics: http://youtu.be/yutmTFtalKs

Have a great day free of worry, anxiety, & concern because rest assured, God's got our backs (and our fronts).

Matt Brown