God never intended his children to walk through life alone. He has called each of us to walk alongside other believers and to encourage each other in the joys, trials and demands of the Christian life and ministry. That is the reason the ministry of Timothy+Barnabas exists.
Hosted by Dr. Johnny Hunt, this conference’s guest speaker this evening was the incomparable Crawford Loritts. Crawford was my pastor for many years. He is a dear friend and one of my favorite leaders.
Make sure you check out these previous posts featuring the wisdom of Crawford Loritts:
- 5 Choices Every Christian Must Make From Crawford Loritts’s Message At Passion City Church
- 3 Decisions Everyone Must Make To Leave A Godly Legacy
- 3 Things A Leader Cannot Be Successful Or Even Survive Without
- 19 Characteristics of Bad Folks Pastors and Church Leaders Need To Be Aware Of
Tonight, Crawford spoke to approximately 185 pastors and wives on the subject of discouragement. His thoughts were so transformational I want to share them with you.
___________________________________________________________________
This post is brought to you by The 2-Minute Leader Coaching Course is a great resource for equipping your team members to fulfill their unique roles and find purpose and meaning in their lives. This is priced at $37 because I want to get it into as many hands as possible. Click HERE or the image below or learn more and purchase.
__________________________________________________________________
Introductory Comments
- “We serve a faithful, faithful, faithful God… If God can raise a dead Jesus He can handle any issue in our lives.”
- “Speaking and preaching are not speech-making.”
- “Disappointment, Discouragement, and Depression
- “Disappointment means an expectation has not been met.”
- “If you’re not disappointed, you’re not doing anything.”
- “Depression – the two broad categories are circumstantial and clinical.”
- “The signature is the same – you’ve been thrust beneath the hope line.”
- “If you are dealing with depression you have to force yourself to get help. The banks of the river have been removed from you.”
- “Discouragement means you’re dragging anchor.”
- “It’s trespassed your domain. What are you going to do about it?”
- “High-control people are more susceptible to discouragement. They make the dastardly decision that they control something.”
- “The key to overcoming discouragement has to do with volition. We were meant to live at the level of the will.”
- “When something trespasses my domain I make the decision how I will respond.”
- “Emotions are great passengers but terrible drivers.”
“You Choose Truth.”
-
- “Truth about the situation. You have to force yourself to face it. Denial complicates things, it doesn’t erase things.”
- “If I respond immediately it’s a reaction, not a response.”
- “You have to choose the Truth of God’s Word.”
- “We can present the Bible as if it’s a point of reference. We have to decide is the Bible going to be a point of reference or the focal point of my life.”
- “There are seasons in your life when you have to stop listening to your life and speak to your life.”
“You Choose Joy.”
-
- “We say stuff that’s theologically not accurate sometimes…. Do you know the Bible commands emotions?”
- “Joy in the Bible is attached to that which can never, ever, ever be affected.”
- “We turn to God when our foundations are shaking only to find out He was the one shaking them.Predictability had become an idol.”
“You Choose Faith.”
-
- “The Bible actually never really defines faith. Hebrews 1 is a description, not a definition. Faith is God’s confidence. Faith in the Bible is never denial however.”
- “Nowhere in the Bible denies hard times in a person’s life. It defies it.”
- “In Hebrews 11 you have portraits of people who defied.”
- “Faith is also determination.”
- “Biblical desperation is driven by hope.”
- “Perhaps God allows the bottom to fall out of our lives because we’re not desperate enough for Jesus. When you have too much, idolatry hovers around you. Some of us have too many resources. We have culturally become comfortable.”
- “Faith – the very word implies desperation. You can’t please Him unless you’re desperate.”
“You Choose Community.”
-
- “One of the problems of Christianity in the western world is it’s too hyper-dependent.”
- “You can’t have God as your father without having the church as your mother. You can’t have healthy sanctification without the church.”
- “Community is companionship as well as identification.”
- “You need other people.”
- “The problem with affluence is there is a whole lot of image management.”
- “Pastors, don’t get sucked into a Messiah complex.”
- “I love people but I don’t get my energy from people.”
- “The problem with those of us who are introverts is we take an extra lap around Mount Sinai. We need other people to give us perspective. Isolation always breeds distortion.”
- “We need to feel the love of Jesus coming from other people… Stop being proud and putting up a wall of pretense.”
- “Let people weep with you.”
- “Pride is insidious and it wears many disguises including false spirituality.”
- “God doesn’t use you because you’re gifted. He uses you because you’re broken.”
“You choose service.
-
- “Who told you to stop?”
- “Your tears become holy fertilizer which will produce a bumper crop. Let God carry you. There are times you don’t have the strength. Your life becomes a portrait of the resurrected Jesus who met you at your point of need.”
What an incredible session. To learn more from Crawford on the subject of biblical leadership, may sure you purchase Leadership as an Identity: The Four Traits of Those Who Wield Lasting Influence. I’m not being overdramatic when I say it is the finest leadership book I have ever read. Make sure you get copies for everyone in your organization.
The Top 75 Leadership Quotes From 2021 Part 2 is my latest ebook. For many entering a post-pandemic environment, leadership looks completely different than the pre-pandemic world. People are more broken now. They are more uncertain. Fear and anxiousness are unwelcome constant companions. Cultures are more unhealthy. Relationships are more dysfunctional. Hope seems to be in short supply. Every day seems to bring a new hacking, natural disaster, or unexpected calamity.
Therefore, the fundamentals of leadership are more important than ever. The quotes in this book deal with the basics of leadership. If you want to be the best leader you can possibly be, click HERE or on the image provided to download this FREE resource. The lessons learned from last year, if applied, will sustain you for years to come.