Even if those in authority are evil or without faith, nevertheless the authority and its power is good and from God…. Therefore, where there is power and where it flourishes, there it is and there it remains because God has ordained it.

Christians, like slaves and soldiers, ask no questions

aim for "low control, high accountability

The greatest threat to kingdom privileges and benefits is an independent spirit.

This makes the rather obvious logical mistake analogous to that of a soldier who, receiving orders through the mail, concludes that the letter carrier is his commanding officer. Those who transmit, collect and distribute the message are not in the same league as those who write it in the first place.

If you want to encourage your spiritual leaders (and their wives!) let them know you are praying for them. Ask them periodically for any specific prayer requests and assure them you will pray accordingly. Use the following prayer guide with accompanying scriptures, to suggest practical ways to pray for those who provide spiritual leadership for the flock.

Lethargy is evident in churches when the people have no sense of ownership.

I always remember the regent's axiom: a leader, he said, is like a shepherd. He stays behind the flock, letting the most nimble go out ahead, whereupon the others follow, not realizing that all along they are being directed from behind. It

We are inclined to look on our Lord as one who assists us in our endeavors for God. Yet our Lord places Himself as the absolute sovereign and supreme Lord over His disciples.

the past few years I have approached music ministry with the mind-set of a pastor first, and a musician second.

Sadly, rather than growing in a sense of need for and submission to the authority that God has placed in their lives, many children become emotional weathermen. They have come to understand that the rules of the house tend to change with the emotion of the parent who is present.

Church leadership is a people-building ministry; to function any other way is both unbiblical and dangerous.