Category: Books (Page 5 of 15)

From Luke 21:1-4; Mark 12:41-44, and the story in Seers, Sayers, Schemers & Saints:

Shuffling up to the contribution box attracted no one’s notice. The priests busied themselves with their work and with the better-dressed members of the temple. Lots of older women, many of them widows, moved in and out of the temple during the day. This one in particular fretted about her money but felt compelled to give something back to the Lord. Despite her current status in society, so much good infused her life that she sensed the Lord’s graciousness all around her. Even today, she had heard a new rabbi teaching about the Lord’s concern for widows. His words seemed intended especially for her. The Lord notices widows and orphans, even if the religious leaders busy themselves elsewhere. With a grateful heart, she dropped two small coins—literally all the money she possessed—into the box. No worries, the Lord provides. Moving back through the crowds, she left to discover that provision for the day.

One afternoon Jesus was with his disciples, teaching in the temple in Jerusalem. He had just finished excoriating the religious teachers of day, denouncing them as men who love to both “devour widow’s houses” and show off with long, pretentious prayers. Let all of us who spend time talking about God and how to live a life pleasing to him note that Jesus used his most damning language against religious hypocrites. This teaching emphasis should never be far from our minds and hearts.

Just as Jesus ended his sentence about widow’s houses and those who would devour them, he looked up and what did he see? A widow making a contribution. Jesus could see that she was poor and Jesus could see what she gave. The widow dropped two small copper coins in the offering box. Older English versions of the Bible call a coin like this a “mite.” These were the smallest and least valuable coins in circulation in Judea at that time. It’s hard to know the value of these coins relative to today’s monetary system, but suffice it to say that at the most, it wouldn’t add up to more than a buck. More shocking than the amount is the fact that Jesus knew that these paltry coins are all the money the widow had to live on. Because he’s Jesus, he could both recognize her financial situation and look into her heart. She had just given all she had. The rich people around her, while giving much greater sums of cash, in no way matched her sacrifice.

I recently watched a television program about a group of billionaires who have pledged to give at least one half of their fortunes away to charity before they die. Without question a worthy goal. Many good causes will benefit and untold lives around the world will be influenced in positive ways. In no way would I ever want to communicate that these gifts are not admirable. This is a good example of how we should give and how we usually give—out of our abundance. If you have been given a great deal, then the right thing to do is to share it with others less fortunate. I have plenty—here, have some of mine.

Nonetheless, Jesus did not applaud that sort of giving. Jesus dismissed it, in a sense, and instead pointed to the widow, who gave all she had to live on, her last dollar. The widow gave sacrificially; she gave, knowing it would hurt. The widow gave, understanding that she may not eat; she gave even though she was impoverished. To my mind, the widow gave foolishly. Yet Jesus praised this manner of giving.

Generosity. That’s the lesson for leaders. Where do you and I need to give? Where do we give politely when we need to give sacrificially? Or even foolishly? This involves our money as Jesus so powerfully points out to us. But giving like this can also apply to our time and our energy and our expertise and our influence. Where do we need to go from being an occasional giver to being a lavish giver? By this I mean a person who is unrestrained, practicing a generosity that you will feel in the morning. What would it take for you to become a truly generous person?

Ponder this idea for a minute—if you were a multi-billionaire, where would you spend your money? Would you buy yachts or mansions or islands? Personally, I would buy the St. Louis Cardinals and give everyone in the stands a free slice of pizza every time a Cardinal hit a home run. How about you? Could you give away half of your fortune? Or maybe up to ninety-nine percent? Let’s face it, most of us won’t get the chance to control billions of dollars or own our favorite sports franchise. But all of us will be and have been given something. Most of us will be given money and resources far in excess of what other people around the world possess and far more than people throughout history even dreamed of.

How will you deal with your wealth? Will you take the risk of living generously? Jesus instructed us to look to the widow. The widow gave it all. Deliberate on this aggressive teaching, maybe the most challenging words of Jesus to our affluent ears today. Give sacrificially. Give in a way that costs you something. As a leader, think often of the widow as you think of living generously.

From Seers, Sayers, Schemers & Saints, here’s a little discussed story found in 1 Chronicles 14:

Sometimes you get what you want only to realize that what you wanted was way more than you could handle. Such was the case with the Philistines, who felt like David’s victory over Goliath was a fluke and now that David operated as king, they ached to go teach him a lesson. It’s easy to miss, so pay attention to this line found in 1 Chronicles 14:8: “When the Philistines heard that David had been anointed king over all Israel, they went up in full force to search for him. But David heard about it and went out to meet them” (emphasis mine).

The Philistines in fully engaged mode would have been a sight to see. They raised warriors and fought continually. The Israelites served as their mortal enemies ever since Joshua led the Egyptian exiles into their promised land. This expedition was no lark. The Philistines prepared extensively and put their strongest pieces into play. “Full force” equaled all in. Sensing a weakness in an inexperienced king who had not yet consolidated power, the Philistine rulers sought to strike a blow to Israel that swung the pendulum of dominance back in their direction. Though it’s barely mentioned in Scripture, this campaign seriously tested David’s new administration. A superior army hurtled toward a young king. If David were defeated, the nation faced months or years of fighting. Much worse, if David were killed or captured, Israel would be leaderless and again under the boots of the Philistines.

David responded in his typical fashion. Without hesitation he left to face the invading force. Hunted by an invading army bent on your destruction? Perfect. In David’s mind this means that we have them where we want them and now we can deal with this group of cutthroats once and for all. The same spirit that pushed David to run toward Goliath now drove him toward the Philistine army, hunting the hunters. Much to their dismay, the Philistines found who they came looking for. The ongoing battle developed into such a rout that the Philistines fled in panic, discarding anything weighing them down, including their idols. No match for the living God, David burned these “gods” as the mere pieces of wood and metal they turned out to be.

A leader acts. A leader wades into difficult situations. A leader listens to the Lord and moves decisively. Opportunity lives behind difficulty. Strength and maturity and wisdom grow due to going through the storms, not around them. The Lord can act through a leader who moves. You may not see the horizon, but the Lord does. When problems appear, when challenges arise, when Philistines march into your lands, get up and meet them face-to-face. When you do, the Lord can break out and the rout can take place. Hiding solves nothing. Rather than vacillate, step out and give the Lord the chance to work.

I’m excited to share with you a story from my new book, Seers, Sayers, Schemers & Saints. Here’s chapter one, drawn from the account found in Exodus 1 & 2:

The young mother, frantic to conceal her infant son who was under a death sentence, knew her time was running out. In desperation she attempted a wild scheme. She gently placed her son in a waterproof basket and set it afloat near the royal women bathing in the river, hoping both in God and in the latent maternal instinct of a sheltered princess. The boy drifted in the reeds and was soon discovered safe and sound by the daughter of the king.

We need to take a quick look at the history of Israelites in Egypt in order to really understand what comes next. The descendants of Israel lived, just as they had for the past 400 years, in Egypt—driven there by the great famine during the time of Joseph. It was in Egypt that they multiplied into a large nation. So large, in fact, that Pharaoh, the king of the Egyptians, started to get nervous. “The Swayer of the Universe,” as he was sometimes called, worried that the Hebrews might join his enemies in a future invasion, despite 400 years of good citizenship. So, like any respectable despot, Pharaoh enslaved the Hebrews, forcing them to labor on the great cities he was building to honor himself. The Egyptians ruthlessly exploited the Hebrews. Not confident that he could work the Hebrews to death, Pharaoh embarked on a fresh genocidal policy, decreeing that all the newborn boys of the Hebrews were to be thrown into the Nile and drowned. Naturally, the Hebrews did all they could to protect their babies.

Which brings us to a little boy named Moses. Born during this brutal time, his distraught yet resourceful mother hid him as long as she could before embarking on her plan. The waters of the Nile guided the basket to the hands of Bithiah, Pharaoh’s daughter, showing that God is nothing if not ironic. Bithiah ordered her servants to pull Moses from the river and she immediately recognized him as Hebrew.

The next decision she made was critical. The policy was to kill all the Hebrew baby boys, but Bithiah took pity and rescued Moses. This defied the edict of her own father, and she could have been killed for her disregard of Pharaoh’s orders. Nevertheless, Bithiah took Moses as her son and raised him in the royal house of Egypt. This act of mercy—also an act of civil disobedience—saved the rescuer of Israel.

A leader is nothing without mercy. It’s one thing to stride forward in victory, to make the impossible happen or to finally secure the job that sets you up for life. It’s another issue altogether to advance by stepping on the backs of others. To live your life, to enjoy the fruits of success and the wonders offered to you, but to ignore the baby in the bulrushes misses the point of leadership. The helpless and vulnerable, the person in need of mercy, is the point. Jesus tells us, “blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy” (Matthew 5:7). Truly, aren’t we all babies floating helplessly along, waiting for a savior to pull us from the water and give us life? Blessed was Bithiah, the daughter of a wicked king. Her mercy still instructs today and a leader will do well to emulate her example.