Tag: God

Jesus, an Example of Mentoring Leadership

Mentoring leadership
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How did Jesus mentor His disciples? How did He mentor others? How should we mentor those who look to us for leadership? Discover mentoring leadership.

By Mark D. Harris

Institutions from business to government to the military decry poor leadership throughout the world. Examples of poor leadership are legion, as are examples of poor followership. Library shelves groan under the weight of leadership books, and millions of words about leadership spew from audio files into waiting ears every month. And yet, during my 27 years in uniform, the situation never really seemed to get better. The faces changed from 1989 to 2016, but the message did not. Is leadership a dead art? We will look at the example of Jesus.

Teaching as mentoring

One of the greatest strengths of mentoring leaders is the ability to teach.  To reproduce himself, a man must teach, by words and by actions, those who are learning from him.  Jesus taught large groups and the people marveled at the wisdom and authority of His words.  He was doing His most important work, however, when He was teaching small groups of His disciples and other followers (Luke 24:32).

Mentoring leaders also use gifts of exhortation to mentor those entrusted to them.  Exhortation includes encouragement and instruction to do the right and wise thing.  After Peter’s proclamation of faith in Matthew 16:16, Jesus encouraged him.  After Peter denied Jesus in Matthew 26:69-75, Jesus encouraged him again (John 21:15-17).  Many times in the gospels Jesus exhorted His disciples.  Such gifts as exhortation and teaching are evidence of excellent communication, in this case sharing leadership principles and examples to the next generation of leaders.

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Israel at the Time of Hosea

time of Hosea
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Students of the Bible must understand the background to Bible stories and Bible characters if they wish to grow in their faith. This article looks at Israel during the time of Hosea.

By Mark D. Harris

The Prophet Hosea (ministry 750-715 BC) lived at a time of weakness in the northern kingdom of Israel, home of the ten tribes. Within 30 years, Israel would fall to the Assyrian army, its people would be carried into exile, and Israel would cease to exist. The glory days of Jeroboam II were long over. Weak and foolish kings followed him, and the people drifted further from the Lord.

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Will Jesus Come Again?

Jesus come again
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Jesus has waited 2000 years to return…is He ever going to come again? This article provides assurance that we will see Jesus come again.

By Mark D. Harris

Daniel Whittle and James McGranahan wrote the famous hymn I Know Whom I have Believed. The song concludes with a question and a note of hope:

I know not when my Lord may come, at night or noonday fair, nor if I walk the vale with him, or meet him in the air. But I know whom I have believed, and am persuaded that he is able to keep that which I’ve committed unto him against that day.

The hope of the Second Coming of Jesus Christ has been a source of great comfort to Christians, especially during persecution, for two millennia. However it has also been a source of doubt since Jesus gave no specific time and the event seems delayed. If this troubled the readers of 2 Peter around 65 AD, how much more is it a concern for Christians in 2015. With every passing year, and certainly with the technological and lifestyle changes since first century Israel, it gets harder and harder to believe that Jesus will actually come again. Believers are reminded of this every time someone predicts the return of Christ on a specific day, only to have it not occur.

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US Elections – Transitions of Political Power

Transition of political power
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Complain as you will about the American political system, our elections and transfers of power are the best in the world, and in history. Pray that God protects our transitions of political power.

By Mark D. Harris

Americans have waited long for this day to come; some because they are sick of the seemingly endless cycle of electioneering, and others because they are hopeful that their efforts will pay off, or at least their candidates and initiatives will succeed. Most people probably have a mix of these feelings. While understandable, such discomfiture is far better than the alternative. The purpose of elections in every country is to provide for a fair and stable transition of power from one person or group to another. Few countries in history have been able to pull this off.

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Be Thou My Vision – Fixing Our Sight on God

~ MD Harris Institute ~ 2 Comments

God is not the giver of blessings; He is the blessing. God is not the enabler of accomplishments; knowing Him is the accomplishment. God is the center of our provision and the center of our ambition. And yet why is that so easy to say and so hard to do? We fix our sight on God.

One of my favorite hymns is the Irish “Be thou my vision”, its words are attributed to Dallan Forgaill in the 6th century and its tune an Irish folk song, “Slane”.   The theme is that God alone should be the vision and goal of every Christian, just as He was for Paul in Philippians 3:7-14.

What does it mean to have God for our vision in our purpose for life?

The modern mantra of finding ones’ purpose for life seems to be “follow your inner star”, “find your dream” or “do your own thing.”  The idea is that within each person is something that will guide him or her to meaning and fulfillment in life if only he or she follows it.  Books, music, and movies parrot this idea relentlessly, and many people simply accept it as truth.  Under certain assumptions this could be logical:

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Who is Responsible?

who is responsible
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Are we individually responsible for what we do? When are we responsible for what happens to us? If we take credit for our successes, how can we avoid the blame for our failures? If we insist that we are victims, unable to solve our problems, how can we ever be victors? Ultimately, who is responsible?

by Mark D. Harris

I was at a Preventive Medicine conference in February of 2011 and the speaker was discussing unhealthy lifestyle choices.  Her theme was that people really weren’t responsible for smoking cigarettes, being overweight or sedentary, or any other unhealthy choice.  Instead, they were victims of their genetics and their environment.

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