Jeff Fuson

Finding God's Will

2006-11-17T10:50:00.000-05:00

Many of us spend a lot of energy wondering about God's will for our lives. I would be included in that energetic quest especially these days as it seems that God may be moving me into some new arenas of service.

Dallas Willard has been a strong and impacting literary voice for me over the past year because of 'Renovation of the Heart' and his in depth work on discovering God's will called, 'Hearing God'.

Hearing God is not the easiest book that I've ever read--Willard's accurate theology forces us through a writing style grid that doesn't allow this to read like good fiction. But, the effort is worth it. If you're willing to mine his books and approach them with a learner's toolkit complete with Bible, ink pen & notepad (in my case, compuer) to 'respond' then you'll be rewarded with priceless theological gems and golden wisdom. The digging will not always be easy, but it will be productive.

This is MEAT for those who would tune thier lives toward following Christ into full union with God. I'd encourage you to dive into anything by Dallas Willard head first, and I especially encourage you to devour 'Hearing God' if you're striving to seek God's will for your life.

I anticipate that I'll mine 'Renovation of the Heart' and 'Hearing God' over and over for many years and still have plenty to learn after all that.

Have a great day,
Jeff Fuson

p.s. 'It is absolutely essential to the nature of our personal development toward maturity that we venture and be placed at risk, for only risk produces character. This truth is intensified when it comes to our walk with God.' Dallas Willard on page 210 of 'Hearing God'

2006-03-24T09:18:00.001-05:00

Some Email forwards I get are just a waste of time, but every so often I get one that is really cool. This one is of the 'Very Cool' variety. I'm just gonna post a link to this so that you can enjoy it as often as you'd like.

It's called 'The Interview with God' and the images used are spectacular.

Enjoy,
Jeff

p.s. If you are a 'rising leader' who's excited about advancing the Kingdom of God, then you need to RUN to Rising Leader Alliance.com and splash around a lot! Join the community, sign up for FUEL, grab some cool tools, maybe even post your story so that other leaders will be inspired by what God is doing in your life!

p.p.s. If you lead an organization that could use an ENERGY INJECTION then consider bringing me in to do a Custom Crafted Training Experience for you. I'm launching some very cool Adventure Training and Action Learning Experiences that you and your team could benefit from. Drop an email to me and we can talk more.

p.p.p.s. Host a Daddy Power (tm) Event at your church to encourage the Dads in your congregation to excel at their most important task -- being 'DADDY'. Drop me a email to learn more.

p.p.p.p.s. Okay last one! Feel FREE to distribute this content as long as you pass it along in it's entirety with all links in place pointing to original urls. Give credit where credit is due and use this to build other people up. Thanks for playing and thanks for passing this along. Jeff Fuson

2006-03-24T09:18:00.000-05:00

Narnia Reviews by Albert Mohler and PluggedInOnline.com

2005-12-12T17:33:00.000-05:00

Here are a couple of resources to help you think clearly about Narnia -- The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe -- the C.S. Lewis classic from the Chronicles of Narnia series released by Walt Disney and Walden Media on December 9, 2005 in over 3,000 theaters in the U.S.A.

Movie Review: Plugged In Online

Here's a radio program by Albert Mohler where he reviews Narnia --
this gives you a lot to think about + it has some cools audio clips from Narnia to give you even more of a sense of what's going to happen. Hope you get a chance to listen to this.

Albert Mohler Radio Show

Written Comments from Mohler's radio program…

Take your kids.

Simply Spectacular.

The four kids are very good and they are not fake. They carry themselves off very well.

When you hear the words, ‘Aslan is on the move’ your pulse is gonna quicken.

It’s a very significant movie and I was afraid that it wouldn’t be true to the original work.

It’s gonna start a lot of conversations.

It’s alright to be moved by this story and to be moved the right way. To be moved by this allegory is really encouraging.

Anyone who says that this is a secular film either does not know what Christianity is or what ‘secular’ is.

I’m more moved by the allegory of Aslan at the stone table than the crucifiction. (This is a quote from a person other than A. Mohler and was just mentioned in the course of this program)

I found myself very emotionally moved at the Stone Table scene…Albert Moehler

This is not the end of the story…you really see the change in the Universe that takes place.

When you see the effects of sin as never ending winter with no Christmas contrasted against Aslan and the green of spring we get a deeper sense of the Gospel.

What a great thing to do with your family this Christmas season.

Albert Moehler

C.S. Lewis had only one concern about this being made into a movie and said, ‘Remember, Aslan is Jesus and there must be no trick.’

Just thought you'd like to read up and listen up,

Jeff

p.s. If you are a 'rising leader' who's excited about advancing the Kingdom of God, then you need to RUN to Rising Leader Alliance.com and splash around a lot! Join the community, sign up for FUEL, grab some cool tools, maybe even post your story so that other leaders will be inspired by what God is doing in your life!

p.p.s. If you lead an organization that could use an ENERGY INJECTION then consider bringing me in to do a Custom Crafted Training Experience for you. I'm launching some very cool Adventure Training and Action Learning Experiences that you and your team could benefit from. Drop an email to me and we can talk more.

p.p.p.s. Host a Daddy Power (tm) Event at your church to encourage the Dads in your congregation to excel at their most important task -- being 'DADDY'. Drop me a email to learn more.

p.p.p.p.s. Okay last one! Feel FREE to distribute this content as long as you pass it along in it's entirety with all links in place pointing to original urls. Give credit where credit is due and use this to build other people up. Thanks for playing and thanks for passing this along. Jeff Fuson

Tyler Eldred and Life Champion International Live

2005-12-07T12:56:00.000-05:00

Keep an eye out for a live teleseminar all about Conflict with Tyler Eldred who is the Conflict Guru.

p.s. If you are a 'rising leader' who's excited about advancing the Kingdom of God, then you need to RUN to Rising Leader Alliance.com and splash around a lot! Join the community, sign up for FUEL, grab some cool tools, maybe even post your story so that other leaders will be inspired by what God is doing in your life!

p.p.s. If you lead an organization that could use an ENERGY INJECTION then consider bringing me in to do a Custom Crafted Training Experience for you. I'm launching some very cool Adventure Training and Action Learning Experiences that you and your team could benefit from. Drop an email to me and we can talk more.

p.p.p.s. Host a Daddy Power (tm) Event at your church to encourage the Dads in your congregation to excel at their most important task -- being 'DADDY'. Drop me a email to learn more.

p.p.p.p.s. Okay last one! Feel FREE to distribute this content as long as you pass it along in it's entirety with all links in place pointing to original urls. Give credit where credit is due and use this to build other people up. Thanks for playing and thanks for passing this along. Jeff Fuson

Dallas Willard

2005-12-06T00:47:00.000-05:00

I just started reading a great book by Dallas Willard called Renovation of the Heart and I've got to tell you that it's gonna be a huge book for me.

Like many leaders I've spent much of my life relying on natural talents and gifts to lead. As I've matured and as I've seen the team I lead grow significantly I've come to a place where I must continually expand on these gifts in order to lead a larger team to perform the work of Kingdom Advancement at an even higher level.

What I've encountered at times is what John Maxwell calls the Law of the Lid and I've been working and wondering for a couple of years how best to raise the lid so that our team can advance and I can continue to lead. Dallas Willard's 2002 Navpress title is feeding my spirit in a way that so many of the 'paint by numbers' leadership books simply can't and don't.

So, I'll keep you posted. But, so far this looks like it's gonna be a great time of advancement for me as I drill into this insightful narrative on allowing God to bring about a total transformation of me.

If you're reading this book or would like to talk about it further feel free to drop me a note.

Have a great day,
Jeff Fuson

(By the way, I'm under no illusion that God couldn't get this done without me and I count it a great honor to have the chance to lead at all in this great endeavor of advancing the Kingdom of God. So, please know that I understand that this is foremost a Holy Spirit empowered movement that could continue its wildfire like success without me.)

p.s. If you are a 'rising leader' who's excited about advancing the Kingdom of God, then you need to RUN to Rising Leader Alliance.com and splash around a lot! Join the community, sign up for FUEL, grab some cool tools, maybe even post your story so that other leaders will be inspired by what God is doing in your life!

p.p.s. If you lead an organization that could use an ENERGY INJECTION then consider bringing me in to do a Custom Crafted Training Experience for you. I'm launching some very cool Adventure Training and Action Learning Experiences that you and your team could benefit from. Drop an email to me and we can talk more.

p.p.p.s. Host a Daddy Power (tm) Event at your church to encourage the Dads in your congregation to excel at their most important task -- being 'DADDY'. Drop me a email to learn more.

p.p.p.p.s. Okay last one! Feel FREE to distribute this content as long as you pass it along in it's entirety with all links in place pointing to original urls. Give credit where credit is due and use this to build other people up. Thanks for playing and thanks for passing this along. Jeff Fuson

Leadership Defined

2005-10-13T00:54:00.000-05:00

Leader - Definition…

' A Christian leader is one who serves as a Spiritual Artisan among a group of people to move them toward God's chosen agenda for that group at this point in history. The Spiritual Artisan Leader is God's agent-- gifted, called, and wired to co-labor with God in moving this group onto God's agenda.'

Jeff Fuson

October 2005

p.s. If you are a 'rising leader' who's excited about advancing the Kingdom of God, then you need to RUN to Rising Leader Alliance.com and splash around a lot! Join the community, sign up for FUEL, grab some cool tools, maybe even post your story so that other leaders will be inspired by what God is doing in your life!

p.p.s. If you lead an organization that could use an ENERGY INJECTION then consider bringing me in to do a Custom Crafted Training Experience for you. I'm launching some very cool Adventure Training and Action Learning Experiences that you and your team could benefit from. Drop an email to me and we can talk more.

p.p.p.s. Host a Daddy Power (tm) Event at your church to encourage the Dads in your congregation to excel at their most important task -- being 'DADDY'. Drop me a email to learn more.

p.p.p.p.s. Okay last one! Feel FREE to distribute this content as long as you pass it along in it's entirety with all links in place pointing to original urls. Give credit where credit is due and use this to build other people up. Thanks for playing and thanks for passing this along. Jeff Fuson

Bobby Clinton's Leadership Emergence Theory

2005-10-13T00:43:00.000-05:00

Leadership Emergence Theory suggests that God is at work in the life of a leader. The experiences, people, joy, pain, trials, triumphs of the leader are used by God to chisel the emerging leader into the person God desires and can use best. Leadership emergence theory suggests that God is at work sculpting leaders and positioning leaders to accomplish His will.

This definition makes me hopeful that I’m arriving at the Convergence Phase in my life. I no longer wonder why I’ve been hammered on so hard at points along the way and I didn’t even realize that God was using those painful ‘hammerings’ to make me more usable to Him.

I'm grateful to Dr. Bobby Clinton, one of the unique voices on Leaders and leadership emergence, who coined this thought process.

You may want to grab a copy of Dr. Clinton's book on The Making of a Leader here.

Thanks,
Jeff Fuson

p.s. If you are a 'rising leader' who's excited about advancing the Kingdom of God, then you need to RUN to Rising Leader Alliance.com and splash around a lot! Join the community, sign up for FUEL, grab some cool tools, maybe even post your story so that other leaders will be inspired by what God is doing in your life!

p.p.s. If you lead an organization that could use an ENERGY INJECTION then consider bringing me in to do a Custom Crafted Training Experience for you. I'm launching some very cool Adventure Training and Action Learning Experiences that you and your team could benefit from. Drop an email to me and we can talk more.

p.p.p.s. Host a Daddy Power (tm) Event at your church to encourage the Dads in your congregation to excel at their most important task -- being 'DADDY'. Drop me a email to learn more.

p.p.p.p.s. Okay last one! Feel FREE to distribute this content as long as you pass it along in it's entirety with all links in place pointing to original urls. Give credit where credit is due and use this to build other people up. Thanks for playing and thanks for passing this along. Jeff Fuson

Jeff Fuson's Favorite Reads for Rising Leaders

2005-10-07T19:44:00.000-05:00

Fourteen of Jeff Fuson's Favorite Reads for Rising Leaders...
1. Fresh Wind, Fresh Fire by Jim Cymbala
2. Habitudes by Dr. Tim Elmore
3. Spiritual Leadership by Blackaby and Blackaby
4. Spiritual Leadership by Oswald A. Sanders
5. Choosing to Cheat by Andy Stanley
6. The Volunteer Revolution by Bill Hybels
7. EPIC by John Elderidge
8. Secrets of the Vine by Bruce Wilkinson
9. Purpose Driven Life by Rick Warren
10. God is Closer than You Think by John Ortberg
11. The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People by Steven R. Covey
12. Experiencing God by Henry T. Blackaby & Claude V. King
13. The Practice of the Presence of God by Brother Lawrence
14. A Call to Die by David Nasser

p.s. If you are a 'rising leader' who's excited about advancing the Kingdom of God, then you need to RUN to Rising Leader Alliance.com and splash around a lot! Join the community, sign up for FUEL, grab some cool tools, maybe even post your story so that other leaders will be inspired by what God is doing in your life!

p.p.s. If you lead an organization that could use an ENERGY INJECTION then consider bringing me in to do a Custom Crafted Training Experience for you. I'm launching some very cool Adventure Training and Action Learning Experiences that you and your team could benefit from. Drop an email to me and we can talk more.

p.p.p.s. Host a Daddy Power (tm) Event at your church to encourage the Dads in your congregation to excel at their most important task -- being 'DADDY'. Drop me a email to learn more.

p.p.p.p.s. Okay last one! Feel FREE to distribute this content as long as you pass it along in it's entirety with all links in place pointing to original urls. Give credit where credit is due and use this to build other people up. Thanks for playing and thanks for passing this along. Jeff Fuson

Leaders Got to LEAD! Great analysis by Eric Reed

2005-09-27T12:59:00.000-05:00

Eric Reed over at Leadership Journal really nails down a lot of great thinking as he writes about lessons we can all learn from Hurricanes Rita and Katrina about leadership.

It really all boils down to the fact that Leaders Got to LEAD!

I'd encourage you to read Eric's insightful editorial.

If you are a leader or a wannabe then your shoud RUN to Rising Leader Alliance.com and consider joining the team. The core idea driving Rising Leader Alliance.com is this: 'When Big Leaders Show Up Big Problems Get Solved.' So, we're all about helping leaders grow bigger, stronger, faster and more available to what God is up to in the world. Because we believe when that happens the Kingdom of God kicks boo-tay!

Have a great one,
Jeff Fuson

p.s. If you are a 'rising leader' who's excited about advancing the Kingdom of God, then you need to RUN to Rising Leader Alliance.com and splash around a lot! Join the community, sign up for FUEL, grab some cool tools, maybe even post your story so that other leaders will be inspired by what God is doing in your life!

p.p.s. If you lead an organization that could use an ENERGY INJECTION then consider bringing me in to do a Custom Crafted Training Experience for you. I'm launching some very cool Adventure Training and Action Learning Experiences that you and your team could benefit from. Drop an email to me and we can talk more.

p.p.p.s. Host a Daddy Power (tm) Event at your church to encourage the Dads in your congregation to excel at their most important task -- being 'DADDY'. Drop me a email to learn more.

p.p.p.p.s. Okay last one! Feel FREE to distribute this content as long as you pass it along in it's entirety with all links in place pointing to original urls. Give credit where credit is due and use this to build other people up. Thanks for playing and thanks for passing this along. Jeff Fuson

Thousands Face Personal Hurricanes all Over the World

2005-09-25T20:05:00.000-05:00

Over the past weeks in the U.S. it's been 'Hurricane Central' with Katrina and Rita tearing into the Gulf of Mexico with quite a fury. I'll admit that I've been as glued to it all as many, but I can only watch so many reporters being pelted by sideways rain clinging to trees or signposts for stability in 80 mph winds before they all kind of blur together. Same story told over and over and over and over and over and over...

And, as gripping as all that may be I can't help but wonder how many children all over the world have Category Five Hurricanes tearing into their lives every day. Storms called 'AIDS', or 'dysentery' or 'hunger' or the death of a parent. The greatest tragedy of the U.S. Hurricanes will be if we take our eyes off of the 'global picture' where there are thousands of Personal Hurricanes brewing everyday.

I did a quick google search to try to get an answer about the scope of the world hunger problem and here's a few links that I found that are loaded with information that you may find shocking and perhaps inspiring if you're a person who likes to make a difference.

Poverty Fact Sheet from World Vision

Hurricane Brewing Daily for Children all over the world -- startling facts

World Vision Reports: World Summit on the Millenium Goals at the U.N.

So, as you read some of the info from the reports above you'll see that the Global need remains staggering.

Just wanted to post a reminder to us all and to ask that you pray about sponsoring a child somewhere else in the world. Julie and I do that through World Vision and we'd highly recommend it to you as well.

Rising Leaders have the will to make a difference and because of God's great power at work in us we will!

Just thought you'd like to know,
Jeff Fuson

p.s. If you are a 'rising leader' who's excited about advancing the Kingdom of God, then you need to RUN to Rising Leader Alliance.com and splash around a lot! Join the community, sign up for FUEL, grab some cool tools, maybe even post your story so that other leaders will be inspired by what God is doing in your life!

p.p.s. If you lead an organization that could use an ENERGY INJECTION then consider bringing me in to do a Custom Crafted Training Experience for you. I'm launching some very cool Adventure Training and Action Learning Experiences that you and your team could benefit from. Drop an email to me and we can talk more.

p.p.p.s. Host a Daddy Power (tm) Event at your church to encourage the Dads in your congregation to excel at their most important task -- being 'DADDY'. Drop me a email to learn more.

p.p.p.p.s. Okay last one! Feel FREE to distribute this content as long as you pass it along in it's entirety with all links in place pointing to original urls. Give credit where credit is due and use this to build other people up. Thanks for playing and thanks for passing this along. Jeff Fuson

Daddy Power

2005-09-25T16:53:00.000-05:00

It's a rainy Sunday afternoon in Kentucky and I'm hangin' out with our 3 year old. He's absolutely amazing. He's a walking, talking, full of expressive life little human loaded with laughter and song. He's my youngest child and I'm still amazed that I get to be 'dad'.

His favorite word these days seems to be 'dad'. As in, 'Dad, will you open the door for me.' 'Dad, will you help me move my motorcycle?' 'Hey Dad, can I go wis you?' 'Bye, bye Dad'. 'Hey Dad, I heard an airplane.' 'Dad, will you pick me up.' 'Dad, wrestle me.' 'Dad, watch me.' 'Hey Dad, Look _________ ' -- you can fill in the blank with 'watch me pee', 'watch me do a somersault,' 'watch me ride my motorcycle...'

He's a total joy.

Just a few minutes ago I was hangin' out on the downstairs couch for my obligatory Sunday afternoon nap when he came in. He jumped on me over and over and over and we wrestled and cuddled and as I was singing that silly Barney song, 'I love you' he began to sing it back to me in echo and my heart was flooded with joy and reverence and awe. For this was a holy moment. A moment of deep fellowship between me and my son. WOW!

I know from having a 'dad' who just called me that it's a powerful on boths sides of the deal. Being 'dad' is incredible and being 'son' is full of joy as well. I've been blessed because I was loved and am loved by a real 'dad'.

So, everyday, I remind myself that being 'Dad' is among God's greatest gifts to me and to give being 'dad' a high priority as I plan my busy weeks. I often experience the triple whammy of too much to do at work, needing to earn more and climb the career ladder, and wanting to be half the dad my dad was to me. You may get caught in the same triple whammy and wonder what to do.

Andy Stanly wrote an incredible book called, 'Choosing to Cheat' that will you some tremendous insights into how to handle the triple whammy. It's a quick and powerful read for daddys who want to get this dad business right.

Perhaps you and your church would benefit from a Daddy-Power(tm) Workshop to help learn to deal with the Triple Whammy. If you'd like to learn more about that just post a comment in the comment box and let me know how to get in touch with you and I'll get back to you asap so we can explore it a bit more.

So, here's to being a better daddy -- even in the midst of the triple whammy!

Enjoy your children!
Jeff Fuson

p.s. If you are a 'rising leader' who's excited about advancing the Kingdom of God, then you need to RUN to Rising Leader Alliance.com and splash around a lot! Join the community, sign up for FUEL, grab some cool tools, maybe even post your story so that other leaders will be inspired by what God is doing in your life!

p.p.s. If you lead an organization that could use an ENERGY INJECTION then consider bringing me in to do a Custom Crafted Training Experience for you. I'm launching some very cool Adventure Training and Action Learning Experiences that you and your team could benefit from. Drop an email to me and we can talk more.

p.p.p.s. Host a Daddy Power (tm) Event at your church to encourage the Dads in your congregation to excel at their most important task -- being 'DADDY'. Drop me a email to learn more.

p.p.p.p.s. Okay last one! Feel FREE to distribute this content as long as you pass it along in it's entirety with all links in place pointing to original urls. Give credit where credit is due and use this to build other people up. Thanks for playing and thanks for passing this along. Jeff Fuson

It's worth fightin' about

2005-09-02T13:24:00.000-05:00

Hurricane Katrina Blasted the Gulf Coast of North America and has Obliterated Many Lives.

The response from people has been powerful--both positive and negative. It is bringing out the best and the worst in us at the same time. The worst -- violent outbreaks that threaten the rescuers. The best -- an 8-mile-long caravan of rescue vehicles pulled into New Orleans near the Superdome this morning.

Meredith Salyers is a fired up Rising Leader when it comes to helping those who've been blasted by Katrina. She has gone head to head and toe to toe with the 20-somethings at our church to challenge them to give up some of their entertainment choices over the coming weeks in order to redirect those dollars into relief work. She says it's the least we can do in the face of such suffering. Sometimes leaders have got to hold a light even for good people to see by and that's what I believe Meredith did. It wasn't easy to challenge her peers,but sometimes leaders must lead. Maybe God is calling you to hold up a light of hope for those whose lives have been obliterated by Katrina.

Some of us are wondering what we can do and what we should do. I'll leave the 'should' part for you to figure out, but one thing we can do is send cash. My hunch is that what's needed more than anything right this moment is cash to run the relief operations. There are several professional organizations responding strongly right now, but I know they'll burn cash like it's a bonfire to mobilize the people, food, water, and medical supplies necessary to get this going. It's important when you choose to give that you select an organization that will get the job done and that's why I'm recommending World Vision to you as a place where you can confidently send your donation.

I posted a screen capture of their current webpage and encourage you to consider World Vision as a possible way for you to respond immediately. (The links on this 'screen captured' page are not active but just click here to go to the real World Vision site)

Storm the Gates,
Jeff Fuson
p.s. If you are a 'rising leader' who's excited about advancing the Kingdom of God, then you need to RUN to Rising Leader Alliance.com and splash around a lot! Join the community, sign up for FUEL, grab some cool tools, maybe even post your story so that other leaders will be inspired by what God is doing in your life!

p.p.s. If you lead an organization that could use an ENERGY INJECTION then consider bringing me in to do a Custom Crafted Training Experience for you. I'm launching some very cool Adventure Training and Action Learning Experiences that you and your team could benefit from. Drop an email to me and we can talk more.

p.p.p.s. Host a Daddy Power (tm) Event at your church to encourage the Dads in your congregation to excel at their most important task -- being 'DADDY'. Drop me a email to learn more.

p.p.p.p.s. Okay last one! Feel FREE to distribute this content as long as you pass it along in it's entirety with all links in place pointing to original urls. Give credit where credit is due and use this to build other people up. Thanks for playing and thanks for passing this along. Jeff Fuson

'Too Dang Busy' -- A Bible Study on Time Management for Rising Leaders

2005-09-01T04:00:00.000-05:00

'It's 7:30, time to go!'
Our 2 year old son had heard that so many mornings as we were trying to herd our kids out the door to go to school that it became one of his favorite things to say any time he saw a clock. No matter what time it really was, in his brain it was 7:30 and it was time to go!

For a Rising Leader the reality is that it's almost always time to go somewhere to do something for somebody for some really good reason. As a matter of fact one of the greatest challenges to long term results for a leader is the proper use of time. Some call it time management, other event control or personal leadership.

I prefer to think of 'time management' as 'Personal Leadership' because when a leader 'leads' themselves then the events (time) in his / her life works out properly and she/he impacts his target zone properly. When a wannabe leader squanders time or uses it frivilously she may also fritter away the chance to have the impact that God has in mind.

Jesus took time seriously and no question had the most prolific life of real time results AND sustained strategic movement of any person in history, so it makes sense to pay attention to how He led himself.

I was amazed about how much the Bible has to say about the proper use of time and about the more central idea of leading ourselves so that we can maximize our impact. Since I just built a talk for the students at Crestwood Baptist Church called 'Too Dang Busy' I thought I'd pour out some of the concepts I shared with you. Please let me know how this hits you and what else you might want to know about personal leadership to become the leader God is calling you to be.

Too Dang Busy -- A Bible Study on Time Management for Rising Leaders
Key idea: Time is a sacred trust and how we use it determines the quality and impact of our lives. Time well invested brings a great kingdom return while time wasted leads to ruin, poverty, lost opportunity and minimized Kingdom influence flowing through you.

The Time/Life Pressure Teens Face in America:
Demands and expectations of others on their lives:
Parents’ out of control ego needs
Parents’ expectations that you get a full ride scholarship
Teachers’ expectations that the homework that they give is the most
important homework in the universe and should be done first and best.
Coaches’ expectations that you work on the sport that they coach YEAR-
ROUND.
Our Youth Ministries expectation that you give this 110%--let me stop and apologize for this on one hand. I promise you that I work hard to keep my ego in check so that when I’m asking something of you it’s to bring you into a more vital relationship with God and to prepare you for what God wants you to do and be. But, let me be very clear – I do believe that spiritual growth is THE MOST IMPORTANT THING IN YOUR LIFE—THAT YOUR RELATIONSHIP TO GOD IS THE MOST VITAL COMPONENT OF YOUR LIFE. IT’S WHAT YOU WERE MEANT FOR AND DESIGNED FOR. So, my commitment to you is that I will continue to seek God so that we’re not putting our ‘ego needs’ on your shoulders to carry around, however you must know that I do believe that your spiritual life is way more important than anything else you can do with your time and energy.

Being busy does not wear us out – in fact if we’re doing what we’re ‘wired to do’ it charges us up. We almost can’t get enough. Being busy wears us out when we are not taking action on what matters most to us. When what we’re involved in doesn’t line up with what matters most to us or fit God's design in our lives then we get worn out and fatigued easily. We can do superhuman things when our efforts line up with what matters most to us and when what matters most to us fits God’s agenda for our lives.

Hyrum Smith has this to say on page 3 of “The 10 Natural Laws of Successful Time and Life Management” …the focus of this book, then, is not exclusively on time management but on achieving inner peace—the transcendent feeling of fulfillment and well-being we all seek. Time management is only a set of skills and tools to help us more efficiently control the events of our lives. But efficient use of time management alone will never give us inner peace.
The secret to achieving inner peace lies in understanding our inner core values—those things in our lives that are most important to us—and then seeing that they are reflected in the daily events of our lives. In other words, doing a better job of managing our time is meaningless unless we are managing it to accomplish those things that are of greatest importance in our lives. That critical difference between simply managing our time and finding the fulfillment that comes from being in control of our lives is what this book is all about. And this simple concept – of making sure that our daily activities reflect our deepest core values – is the concept that has made all the difference in my own life.

Scriptures to study and apply regarding personal leadership & time management:

Proverbs 3:1-10 NLT (New Living Translation)
What’s the big idea from this passage?

What are the key principles from this passage?

What are the promises from this passage?

What if we approached our time with a sense of stewardship and gave to God the very best of our time as if it were a ‘tithe’ of the best of our crops?

Romans 12:1-2 Don’t be squeezed into the pattern of this world.
Where is the world squeezing in on you?

Who is the most Godly and Influential Leader you know and how do they use
their time?

When you compare how they value, manage, and leverage time to how you do
those things what do you see?

Jesus is our ‘pacesetter’ as a Rising Leader and we’d do well to follow his example as opposed to the world’s or even other great leader’s, so as we move along in this study watch for how Jesus lived these principles out.

I Timothy 4:7-8
Being physically and academically fit are valued by our world as the ultimate in readiness. Parents and teachers and coaches push teens to the breaking point in order to create a scholarship magnet and state champions. The intention is noble until it collides with a bigger reality and an eternal Kingdom where we gain a true sense that God’s ideas are way different than ours about what matters.

Read that passage 3 times and let it really sink in. After you’ve done that write down 3 things that you notice in that passage:
1.
2.
3.

What’s one thing that you may need to adjust in your life to shift toward valuing spiritual training even more than your physical and academic training?

The ‘Jesus Pattern’ of Time Management

Mark 1:35 Jesus goes out before daybreak
Luke 5:12-16
Write out the basic ‘timeline of what happens in this passage’ in a simple chronological order:

How busy was Jesus getting to be?

Have you ever been that busy?

What does Jesus do that allows Him to remain effective in the midst of busy-ness and throngs of people all wanting something from Him?

How can you better follow the “Jesus Pattern”?

Luke 6:12
Read this verse and then back up and read from chapter 6 verse 1 up to 12 and see what’s going on in Jesus life and then see how he responds to what’s going on. What seems to be part of the ‘Jesus Pattern’ of Personal Leadership?

John 14:10
What do you see in that verse about Jesus’ connection to God?

Key principle from Jesus’ life – "I do what I sense God is doing." Jesus took his cues from God directly.

Jesus’ sense of timing was remarkable. A great comedian has a remarkable sense of timing about the precise moment to deliver the punch line and it makes all the difference. A leader’s sense of timing can lead to phenomenal results or run the enterprise into the ground. Jesus moved on God’s cue and because of that He never missed an assignment and he never failed to execute that assignment perfectly.

On Jesus’ sense of timing:
John 2:4 – my time has not yet come (yet he submitted to his mother’s request)
John 7:6 – you go, but I’m staying here b/c my time isn’t come yet.
John 11:1-6 – he gets word on Lazarus illness and then stays put for two days…
John 12:23 my time has come
John 13:1 Jesus knew that his time had come
John 17:1 Father, the time has come…

Here’s the big idea on the ‘Jesus Pattern’: Intimacy with God is THE mainspring of a life lived well with Kingdom Impact for a Rising Leader.

The ‘Jesus Pattern’ of Self Leadership:
1. Take Time to be intimately connected to God.
2. Accept God’s Agenda for your life by adjusting to and acting on His plan.

Other Scriptures for you to consider as you hammer out a pattern for how you’ll lead yourself and therefore make better use of the time that God has given you.

Psalm 90:12 – number our days – make the most of time

Ephesians 5:15-20 Make the most of every opp. Know what time it is.

Closing Ideas:
When you compare the way manage your time how do you stack up to the ‘Jesus Pattern’?
Where are you similar?
Where are you way off the mark?
What is one thing that you can and WILL do beginning right now to better follow the Jesus Pattern?

The Wrap Up: 3 Steps YOU must take when you’re too dang busy.
1. Know your ultimate purpose in life is to Know and Enjoy God forever and move towards that. Begin with that end in mind.
What do you sense is HIS will for your life right now?
What gifts and assets has He given you to do the next thing He’s called you to? Based on how you’re wired what role are you supposed to play?
Accept God’s Agenda for your life.
Cultivate a ‘YES LORD…’ mindset.

2. Take more time to meet with HIM about what’s going on – not less. Embrace the irony that more time spent with Him will make the time you have left more powerful.

3. Put the BIG ROCKS IN FIRST – Select / Reject / Prioritize by scheduling appointments in your coming week for the most important things like quality time alone with God to hear and accept HIS agenda for your life. Effective leaders usually work by appointments and I’ve found that when I put an appointment in my schedule to meet with God for significant time that it rarely gets challenged because when someone else wants that block of time I find no resistance when I tell them that I already have an appointment for that time, because I do. By the way, if I ‘skip’ that appointment with God my effectiveness will grind to a painful stop in a very short time.

After you schedule in the ‘big rocks’ then decide what you won’t do. Maybe even go so far as to build a ‘not to do’ list of things that you’re rejecting. These may even be things that were a priority for you just yesterday. Life changes and if we’re going to accomplish His purpose for our lives we’ll have to say ‘good-bye’ to some things that just aren’t productive.

If you’re life is still too jam packed to be effective you’ll have to prioritize your appointments being sure to give high leverage appointments the #1 slice of your life and make all the other ‘stuff’ fit around that or toss it out of your schedule altogether.

To learn more about living life on purpose and leading yourself more effectively check out these blog posts:
Doing Your Life Mission
Great Quotes on Doing the Life You Love

Wanna learn even more about Time Management? I’d highly recommend that you read and study the following books:
The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People by Steven R. Covey
First Things First by Stephen R. Covey
The Purpose Driven Life by Rick Warren
The 10 Natural Laws of Successful Time and Life Management by Hyrum W. Smith

If you buy these books through Barnes and Noble at following link we'll get a small percentage of the proceeds and that will help us advance the work we're endeavoring to do with Rising Leaders all over the world. So, thanks in advance, for clicking this link to order these books!

p.s. If you are a 'rising leader' who's excited about advancing the Kingdom of God, then you need to RUN to Rising Leader Alliance.com and splash around a lot! Join the community, sign up for FUEL, grab some cool tools, maybe even post your story so that other leaders will be inspired by what God is doing in your life!

p.p.s. If you lead an organization that could use an ENERGY INJECTION then consider bringing me in to do a Custom Crafted Training Experience for you. I'm launching some very cool Adventure Training and Action Learning Experiences that you and your team could benefit from. Drop an email to me and we can talk more.

p.p.p.s. Host a Daddy Power (tm) Event at your church to encourage the Dads in your congregation to excel at their most important task -- being 'DADDY'. Drop me a email to learn more.

p.p.p.p.s. Okay last one! Feel FREE to distribute this content as long as you pass it along in it's entirety with all links in place pointing to original urls. Give credit where credit is due and use this to build other people up. Thanks for playing and thanks for passing this along. Jeff Fuson

Katrina Satellite Images...

2005-08-28T22:03:00.000-05:00

Source of this image: National Oceanic and Atmospheric Assoication (NOAA)

p.s. If you are a 'rising leader' who's excited about advancing the Kingdom of God, then you need to RUN to Rising Leader Alliance.com and splash around a lot! Join the community, sign up for FUEL, grab some cool tools, maybe even post your story so that other leaders will be inspired by what God is doing in your life!

p.p.s. If you lead an organization that could use an ENERGY INJECTION then consider bringing me in to do a Custom Crafted Training Experience for you. I'm launching some very cool Adventure Training and Action Learning Experiences that you and your team could benefit from. Drop an email to me and we can talk more.

p.p.p.s. Host a Daddy Power (tm) Event at your church to encourage the Dads in your congregation to excel at their most important task -- being 'DADDY'. Drop me a email to learn more.

p.p.p.p.s. Okay last one! Feel FREE to distribute this content as long as you pass it along in it's entirety with all links in place pointing to original urls. Give credit where credit is due and use this to build other people up. Thanks for playing and thanks for passing this along. Jeff Fuson

When the storm comes...(and it will)

2005-08-28T21:20:00.000-05:00

It's been called 'The Perfect Storm' and Katrina is bearing down on the Gulf Coast of the United States this evening. If the storm stays true to form and continues it's present track it will score a direct hit on the the city of New Orleans, in Louisiana, United States.

The major news agencies in the U.S., including Geraldo Rivera on Fox News, are covering this history maker with a fury that matches the wind speed of the impending storm. The images that were the most pregnant with meaning for me were the images of little children waiting with the mothers in a 2 Mile Long line outside of the Super Dome. The Super Dome was designed as a giant indoor football arena--not an emergency shelter. Tough to imagine that people will possibly be in that Superdome for days, if not weeks.

It appears that the city of New Orleans and the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) have prepared as well as possible for the unthinkable attack from a storm of this magnitude and that's impressive. But, for all the preparation, will it be enough?

It's a huge problem that New Orleans is situated below sea level and is surrounded on 3 sides with water that could overpower the levy system. If the media is right about what could happen and the water surges above the levies New Orleans could be buried in water for days, maybe weeks.

Two things that this news makes me want to do...
1. Pray like crazy. Especially for all the little children who will spend this nite and maybe many more in the Super Dome. Tough imagine what thier world may be like in the near future and tougher to imagine how they'll recover in any reasonable amount of time. Add to the children the old and frail and the remarkably poor who may be strapped to the low ground by their circumstances as the waters are being swept toward them this evening. Oh God, have mercy.

2. New Orleans has know that this could happen for years and for years she has dodged a direct hit. Many hope that this will be the case in a few hours and Katrina will make a turn and head a different direction at the last moment. When I consider the likely plight of New Orleans it makes me wonder what areas of my life are 'under sea level' that leave me and my family vulnerable to the Perfect Storm. It causes me to be even more aware of where I'm weak and need to be built up, where I may need to move to higher ground or at least build a higher and stronger wall. Considering this likely direct hit on New Orleans motivates me to get deadly serious about building up the places in my life that are 'under sea level. Oh God, grant me the motivation, the tools and the buddies it will take for me to move to higher ground before the Perfect Storm hits.

What aspects of your life are 'below sea level' ? What can you do to prepare before a 'Perfect Storm' takes aim at you.?

Pray for the folks in and around New Orleans,
Jeff Fuson

p.s. If you are a 'rising leader' who's excited about advancing the Kingdom of God, then you need to RUN to Rising Leader Alliance.com and splash around a lot! Join the community, sign up for FUEL, grab some cool tools, maybe even post your story so that other leaders will be inspired by what God is doing in your life!

p.p.s. If you lead an organization that could use an ENERGY INJECTION then consider bringing me in to do a Custom Crafted Training Experience for you. I'm launching some very cool Adventure Training and Action Learning Experiences that you and your team could benefit from. Drop an email to me and we can talk more.

p.p.p.s. Host a Daddy Power (tm) Event at your church to encourage the Dads in your congregation to excel at their most important task -- being 'DADDY'. Drop me a email to learn more.

p.p.p.p.s. Okay last one! Feel FREE to distribute this content as long as you pass it along in it's entirety with all links in place pointing to original urls. Give credit where credit is due and use this to build other people up. Thanks for playing and thanks for passing this along. Jeff Fuson

Beth Moore's Airport Story -- You've got to read this

2005-08-24T02:17:00.000-05:00

As part of a recent talk I gave on what it means to be a 'Gate Stormer' in the Kingdom of God I used a great story that you've just got to read, so I'm posting it here. (By the way, if you'd like to know more about becoming a Gate Stormer watch for more entries coming here soon, or you can check out risingleaderalliance.com where I focus almost exclusively on preparing Rising Leaders to Storm the Gates.)

Beth Moore may be the hottest commodity on the Bible Study Leader roundup. If she were a publicly traded commodity she'd be a HOT PICK.

I've only seen Beth Moore in person one time. She's energetic, witty, has a passion for communincating God's Word and loves to say, 'Bless your heart...' with a Texas drawal. Long story short is that she's a great teacher who's building a massive following of learners and Beth Moore wannabes. I'd encourage you to grab one of her studies and see what you think.

I hardly ever read email forwards, but this one got past my internal common sense filters and I'm glad it did. I received this on email the other day and I definitely felt like it was worth posting for you to consider.

Beth Moore's Story
April 20, 2005
Knoxville Airport

Waiting to board the plane: I had the Bible on my lap and was very
intent upon what I was doing. I'd had a marvelous morning with the
Lord.

I say that because I want to tell you it is a scary thing to have the
Spirit of God really working in you. You could end up doing some
things you never would have done otherwise. Life in the Spirit can
be dangerous for a thousand reasons not the least of which is your ego...

I tried to keep from staring, but he was such a strange sight.
Humped over in a wheelchair, he was skin and bones, dressed in clothes
that obviously fit when he was at least twenty pounds heavier.

His knees protruded from his trousers, and his shoulders looked like the
coat hanger was still in his shirt.

His hands looked like tangled masses of veins and bones. The strangest
part of him was his hair and nails. Stringy grey hair hung well over his
shoulders and down part of his back.

His fingernails were long.

Clean, but strangely out of place on an old man.

I looked down at my Bible as fast as I could, discomfort burning my
face.

There I sat trying to concentrate on the Word to keep from being
concerned about a thin slice of humanity served on a wheelchair only
a few seats from me. All the while my heart was growing more and
more overwhelmed with a feeling for him. Let's admit it. Curiosity
is a heap more comfortable than true concern, and suddenly I was
awash with aching emotion for this bizarre-looking old man.

I had walked with God long enough to see the handwriting on the wall.

I've learned that when I begin to feel what God feels, something so
Contrary to my natural feelings, something dramatic is bound to happen.
And it may be embarrassing. I immediately began to resist because I
could feel God working on my spirit and I started arguing with God in
my mind.

"Oh no, God please no." I looked up at the ceiling as if I could stare
straight through it into heaven and said, "Don't make me witness to
This man. Not right here and now. Please. I'll do anything. Put me on
the same plane, but don't make me get up here and witness to this
man in front of this gawking audience. Please, Lord!"...

There I sat in the blue vinyl chair begging His Highness, "Please
don't make me witness to this man. Not now. I'll do it on the plane."

Then I heard it..."I don't want you to witness to him. I want you to
brush his hair." The words were so clear, my heart leapt into my
throat, and my thoughts spun like a top. Do I witness to the man or
brush his hair?

No brainer. I looked straight back up at the ceiling and said, "God, as
I live and breathe, I want you to know I am ready to witness to this
man.

I'm on this Lord. I'm you're girl! You've never seen a woman witness
to a man faster in your life. What difference does it make if his hair
is a mess if he is not redeemed? I am on him. I am going to witness to
this man."

Again as clearly as I've ever heard an audible word, God seemed to
write this statement across the wall of my mind. "That is not what
I said, Beth.

I don't want you to witness to him. I want you to go brush his hair."

I looked up at God and quipped, "I don't have a hairbrush. It's in my
suitcase on the plane, How am I suppose to brush his hair without a
hairbrush?"...

God was so insistent that I almost involuntarily began to walk toward
him as these thoughts came to me from God's word: "I will thoroughly
Furnish you unto all good works." (2 Tim 3:17) I stumbled over to the
wheelchair thinking I could use one myself. Even as I retell this story
my pulse quickens and I feel those same butterflies.

I knelt down in front of the man, and asked as demurely as possible,
"Sir, may I have the pleasure of brushing your hair?" He looked back
at me and said, "What did you say?" "May I have the pleasure of
brushing your hair?"

He responded in volume ten, "Little lady, if you expect me to
hear you, you're going to have to talk louder than that. At this
point,

I took a deep breath and blurted out, "SIR, MAY I HAVE THE
PLEASURE OF BRUSHING YOUR HAIR?"

At that point, every eye in the place darted right at me. I was the
only thing in the room looking more peculiar than old Mr. Longlocks.
Face crimson and forehead breaking out in a sweat, I watched him l
ook up at me with absolute shock on his face, and say, "If you really
want to."

Are you kidding? Of course I didn't want to. But God didn't seem
interested in my personal preference right about then. He pressed
on my heart until I could utter the words, "Yes, sir, I would be pleased.
But I have one little problem. I don't have a hairbrush."

"I have one in my bag," he responded. I went around to the back of
That wheelchair and I got on my hands and knees and unzipped the
stranger's old carry-on hardly believing what I was doing. I stood up
and started brushing the old man's hair. It was perfectly clean, but it
was tangled and matted.

I don't do many things well, but I must admit I've had notable
experience untangling knotted hair mothering two little girls. Like I'd
done with either Amanda or Melissa in such a condition, I began brushing
at the very bottom of the strands, remembering to take my time not to pull.

A miraculous thing happened to me as I started brushing that old man's
hair. Everybody else in the room disappeared. There was no one alive
for those moments except that old man and me. I brushed and I brushed
and I brushed until every tangle was out of that hair.

I know this sounds so strange, but I've never felt that kind of love
For another soul in my entire life. I believe with all my heart, I - for
that few minutes - felt a portion of the very love of God. He had
Overtaken my heart for a little while like someone renting a room and
making Himself at home for a short while. The emotions were so strong
and so pure that I knew they had to be God's.

His hair was finally as soft and smooth as an infant's. I slipped the
brush back in the bag, went around the chair to face him. I got back
down on my knees, put my hands on his knees, and said, "Sir, do
you know my Jesus?"

He said, "Yes, I do." Well, that figures. He explained, "I've known
Him since I married my bride." She wouldn't marry me until I got to
Know the Savior." He said, "You see, the problem is, I haven't seen
my bride in months. I've had open-heart surgery, and she's been too
ill to come see me. I was sitting here thinking to myself. What a mess
I must be for my bride."

Only God knows how often He allows us to be part of a divine moment
when we are completely unaware of the significance. This, on the
other hand, was one of those rare encounters when I knew God had
intervened in details only He could have known. It was a God moment,
and I'll never forget it.

Our time came to board, and we were not on the same plane. I was
deeply ashamed of how I'd acted earlier and would have been so proud
to have accompanied him on that aircraft.

I still had a few minutes, and as I gathered my things to board, the
airline hostess returned from the corridor, tears streaming down her
cheeks.

She said, "That old man's sitting on the plane, sobbing. Why did you
do that? What made you do that?"

I said, "Do you know Jesus? He can be the bossiest thing!" We got to share.

I learned something about God that day. He knows if you're exhausted
because you're hungry, you're serving in the wrong place or it is time
to move on but you feel too responsible to budge. He knows if you're
hurting or feeling rejected. He knows if you're sick or drowning under
a wave of temptation. He knows if you just need your hair brushed.

He sees you as an individual. Tell Him your need!

I got on my own flight, sobs choking my throat, wondering how many
opportunities just like that one had I missed along the way... all
because I didn't want people to think I was strange.

God didn't send me to that old man. He sent that old man to me.

If you're like me what I want being a 'Gate Stormer' to be about is
some sort of glorious jihad that will fuel my ego's need for action and
applause. But, the Kingdom that Jesus established way back there
at a place known to the locals of Caesara Phillippi as 'The Gates of Hell'
is an 'upside down' Kingdom. A Kingdom where the first go last and
the greatest serve the least. I'm not always sure I want to be a Gate
Stormer in His Kingdom because it's not an 'ego friendly'
undertaking. However, my hope and greatest desire is to be found
faithful in knowing and enjoying Him as I serve in His Great Kingdom.

Wanna Storm the Gates of Hell? Go grab a hair brush.

See ya,
Jeff Fuson

p.s. If you are a 'rising leader' who's excited about advancing the Kingdom of God, then you need to RUN to Rising Leader Alliance.com and splash around a lot! Join the community, sign up for FUEL, grab some cool tools, maybe even post your story so that other leaders will be inspired by what God is doing in your life!

p.p.s. If you lead an organization that could use an ENERGY INJECTION then consider bringing me in to do a Custom Crafted Training Experience for you. I'm launching some very cool Adventure Training and Action Learning Experiences that you and your team could benefit from. Drop an email to me and we can talk more.

p.p.p.s. Host a Daddy Power (tm) Event at your church to encourage the Dads in your congregation to excel at their most important task -- being 'DADDY'. Drop me a email to learn more.

p.p.p.p.s. Okay last one! Feel FREE to distribute this content as long as you pass it along in it's entirety with all links in place pointing to original urls. Give credit where credit is due and use this to build other people up. Thanks for playing and thanks for passing this along. Jeff Fuson

Roaring Lambs?

2005-08-15T21:30:00.000-05:00

Salt, Light, Impact ... that's the Kingdom of God.
Preserve, guide, build ... that's the Kingdom way.
Perservere, love, challenge ... those are Kingdom initiatives.

Roaring Lambs, as Bob Briner coined the unlikely combination of words, are to be about the business of impacting the culture right where they are. I couldn't agree more or feel more strongly about that than I do. That we are to be about the business of making disciples as we go.

When many of us read the 'Great Commission' and Jesus says 'Go and make disciples...' most of us think of going somewhere else to do that. But, I heard one preacher say that a better interpretation of that passage is 'Since you are going anyway, why don't you make disciples along the way?' Now, that makes a lot of sense for Rising Leaders because you're going anyway. You're on the move anyway. So, Jesus says, 'Hey, while you're out there be salt and light and make disciples.'

I ran across Bob Briner's website dedicated to 'Roaring Lambs' earlier today and noticed that they had leadership lessons. I've read through several of them and although I believe that the author 's-t-r-e-t-c-h-e-s' some of the Biblical references to make them support a point he'd like to get across that there's still something to be learned from these lessons. So, I'm passing the Roaring Lions Leadership Lessons link to you for your growth.

Hey, I'm hammering away on some great ideas for Rising Leaders and I'd love to have you join us in building THE ONLINE COMMUNITY for RISING LEADERS. Just drop an email to me and we'll talk about where Rising Leader Alliance is headed and how you can benefit and take part in that.

You can order Bob Briner's Book, Roaring Lambs from nearly any bookstore. Enjoy.
Please let me know what you think of the book, the leadership links from the roaring lamb website, and whatever else is on your mind regarding growing stronger as a Rising Leader.

Roar you little lamb!
Jeff Fuson

p.s. If you are a 'rising leader' who's excited about advancing the Kingdom of God, then you need to RUN to Rising Leader Alliance.com and splash around a lot! Join the community, sign up for FUEL, grab some cool tools, maybe even post your story so that other leaders will be inspired by what God is doing in your life!

p.p.s. If you lead an organization that could use an ENERGY INJECTION then consider bringing me in to do a Custom Crafted Training Experience for you. I'm launching some very cool Adventure Training and Action Learning Experiences that you and your team could benefit from. Drop an email to me and we can talk more.

p.p.p.s. Host a Daddy Power (tm) Event at your church to encourage the Dads in your congregation to excel at their most important task -- being 'DADDY'. Drop me a email to learn more.

p.p.p.p.s. Okay last one! Feel FREE to distribute this content as long as you pass it along in it's entirety with all links in place pointing to original urls. Give credit where credit is due and use this to build other people up. Thanks for playing and thanks for passing this along. Jeff Fuson

A Different Kind of Kingdom Requires a Different Kind of Leader

2005-08-05T08:05:00.000-05:00

Give me a man of God -- one man, One mighty prophet of the Lord, And I will give you peace on earth, Bought with a prayer and not a sword. George Liddell

The Advance of God's Kingdom is marked by a different kind of leader with a different kind of mission. To love, to heal, to pray, to serve, to share -- these are marks of Kingdom Leaders. The Army of this Great Kingdom marches to the beat of a different drummer altogether -- a drummer that many believe doesn't truly exist. Yet, those of us who hear His cadence and His call are more sure of the steady strong beat of His drum than anything you can taste or touch or see.

It's a pulsing rhythym of powerful, overcoming, pre-eminent, all-encompassing passionate love that flows like a symphony from the throne of the Great God of this Kingdom. And, those who get caught up in this melody and this cadence do march to the beat of a different drummer. We do go forward on our knees and we derive our direction and mission from the One who first started the song.

If you're hearing music you may enjoy the stories of others who are marching along to this grand cadence. Head on over to Rising Leader Alliance.com and be enouraged by the journey of other leaders in this Kingdom.

Shalom,
Jeff

p.s. If you are a 'rising leader' who's excited about advancing the Kingdom of God, then you need to RUN to Rising Leader Alliance.com and splash around a lot! Join the community, sign up for FUEL, grab some cool tools, maybe even post your story so that other leaders will be inspired by what God is doing in your life!

p.p.s. If you lead an organization that could use an ENERGY INJECTION then consider bringing me in to do a Custom Crafted Training Experience for you. I'm launching some very cool Adventure Training and Action Learning Experiences that you and your team could benefit from. Drop an email to me and we can talk more.

p.p.p.s. Host a Daddy Power (tm) Event at your church to encourage the Dads in your congregation to excel at their most important task -- being 'DADDY'. Drop me a email to learn more.

p.p.p.p.s. Okay last one! Feel FREE to distribute this content as long as you pass it along in it's entirety with all links in place pointing to original urls. Give credit where credit is due and use this to build other people up. Thanks for playing and thanks for passing this along. Jeff Fuson

It feels lonely and she's still here...

2005-07-26T15:19:00.000-05:00

Just got off the phone with a good friend who's in the fight of his life. Travis has been married to Gayle for long enough to have two great kids -- one in College at Furman and one a Senior in High School. Early in '05 Gayle was diagnosed with cancer and they have been in a hard-fought battle to this point. There may be much ahead. If you want to understand a little more about how precious life is you'd do well to read the blog set up for Gayle over at http://gaylecochran.blogspot.com . It will change how you relate to those you love the most today.

Please pray for strength and courage and insight for the Cochrans as they press on.

Have a great day,
Jeff Fuson

p.s. If you are a 'rising leader' who's excited about advancing the Kingdom of God, then you need to RUN to Rising Leader Alliance.com and splash around a lot! Join the community, sign up for FUEL, grab some cool tools, maybe even post your story so that other leaders will be inspired by what God is doing in your life!

p.p.s. If you lead an organization that could use an ENERGY INJECTION then consider bringing me in to do a Custom Crafted Training Experience for you. I'm launching some very cool Adventure Training and Action Learning Experiences that you and your team could benefit from. Drop an email to me and we can talk more.

p.p.p.s. Host a Daddy Power (tm) Event at your church to encourage the Dads in your congregation to excel at their most important task -- being 'DADDY'. Drop me a email to learn more.

p.p.p.p.s. Okay last one! Feel FREE to distribute this content as long as you pass it along in it's entirety with all links in place pointing to original urls. Give credit where credit is due and use this to build other people up. Thanks for playing and thanks for passing this along. Jeff Fuson

Getcher Clickety-Clack Back!

2005-03-28T08:43:00.000-05:00

Clickety-Clack, Clickety-Clack, Clickety-Clack, Clickety, Clickety, Clickety,…

I don’t like to be anywhere near trains. They’re way too big, they can’t stop fast enough and I always wonder what would happen if it comes off the tracks and I’m too close.

However, I like to ‘hear trains on the tracks’ from a long way off…just the clickety-clack sound. In an odd way the clickety clack sound is peaceful to me. Maybe because I grew up near enough to train tracks to hear that a lot and it reassures me in some way.

Clickety-clack is what you hear when a train is in motion – when it’s got rhythm & momentum. When the train is starting or stopping it makes all kinds of grating and groaning & squealing noises that are almost scary if you happen to be the first car at the Railroad Crossing. Those are the sounds of ‘anti-rhythm & anti-momentum’ atwork.

In my Walk with Christ I like to hear the ‘clickety-clack’ of momentum. I like to feel the consistent pull of God up ahead pulling me along. I like to be settled in and have life be nice and consistent. Rhythm & Momentum are your friends when things are going well. They’re reassuring and they help you gather steam in your journey with Jesus.

Anti-rhythm and anti-momentum happen to me just when it seems like I’m zooming down the tracks of life enjoying the clickety-clack, clickety-clack…

Anti-momentum happens when I’ve got to break my pattern to go on a trip, or attend a conference out of town, or have friends over to watch a ball-game that goes on too late and I get to bed really late, or I’ve got too much to do and I try to cram it all into a late nite assault on a project and I’m all worn out the next day.

Anti-momentum can bring my clickety-clack momentum to a grinding, screeching halt. And, it can be painful to get my spiritual train moving again. I’ve got to endure the screeching and groaning as the Engine begins to pull out again – slowly at first. Almost painfully at first. Getting from zero back to clickety-clack takes energy and focus. It’s takes a recommitment.

In your spiritual journey there will be times & places of ‘anti-momentum’ that mess up the peaceful rhythm of your daily timewith God. Rather than be discouraged and depressed that you’ve gotto start again why not focus on Jesus? Why not refocus your life and reorganize (again) to make space to really have time with Him.

Momentum is fun, anti-momentum is not. Accepting the fact that some days will be ‘anti-momentum’ days will help you get back to clickety-clack a lot faster.

You may be reading this while your train is flying along just fine. That’s great! However, you may want to save this for a day when the train has been delayed by a trip out of town, or a vacation, or an illness, or too much work. When that day comes you’ll long for the ‘clickety-clack’ to come right on back. And, it will if you’ll let Him pull you out of this time of anti-momentum.

Refocus your attention on Jesus. Recommit to the journey with Him and hang on as God begins to move you along again and listen for that familiar sound…
Let’s consider Jesus, the originator and finisher of this set of tracks set up for us. He was the first to successfully complete the journey with God perfectly. He never lost momentum – lived a life of perfect rhythm-- and we still hear His train off in the distance with a perfect ‘clickety-clack’ rhythm. That’s what we long for. So, let us follow His example and stay on track. Let us submit to God’s will moment by moment until He pulls to a place of momentum and rhythm and we get the ‘clickety-clack’ back…

Have a great day,
Jeff Fuson

If you received this as an email forward from a friend you may want to get the entire THIRST Challenge series of emails. It's free and it will help you grow stronger in your relationship with Jesus. Just send a blank email message to thirstchallenge@aweber.com and then follow instructions when you get the confirmation email.

p.s. If you are a 'rising leader' who's excited about advancing the Kingdom of God, then you need to RUN to Rising Leader Alliance.com and splash around a lot! Join the community, sign up for FUEL, grab some cool tools, maybe even post your story so that other leaders will be inspired by what God is doing in your life!

p.p.s. If you lead an organization that could use an ENERGY INJECTION then consider bringing me in to do a Custom Crafted Training Experience for you. I'm launching some very cool Adventure Training and Action Learning Experiences that you and your team could benefit from. Drop an email to me and we can talk more.

p.p.p.s. Host a Daddy Power (tm) Event at your church to encourage the Dads in your congregation to excel at their most important task -- being 'DADDY'. Drop me a email to learn more.

p.p.p.p.s. Okay last one! Feel FREE to distribute this content as long as you pass it along in it's entirety with all links in place pointing to original urls. Give credit where credit is due and use this to build other people up. Thanks for playing and thanks for passing this along. Jeff Fuson

Chew On It -- Meditation 101

2005-03-24T13:14:00.000-05:00

Chewin the Cud -- Meditation 101 Chew On It Like a Big Ol Cow.

As you grow in your relationship with God you'll discover some verses in the Bible that really speak to you. Verses that seem like they were written just for you. Verses that give you a ‘God’s Eye View’ of a challenge you are facing or that uncover His will for you. Treat these great verses like a Look Out post from a high mountain pass. Pull off and take some time to enjoy the moment. Don’t rush past it, because in these moments you may uncover a truth that will change your life.

One of the best ways to take in all that God is trying to say to you is to slow down and turn the verse over and over in your mind. The Bible calls this ‘meditating’. Meditating is taking in the ‘view’ that God has taken us to. Meditating is like pulling off at a high mountain overlook and enjoying a wide angle view for miles. Meditating is taking a verse and letting it ‘roll around in your head’. The challenge for us is slowing down enough and knowing what to do to hold the verse in there long enough to really get the juice out of it.

The word ‘meditate’ comes from the same source word as ‘ruminate’.

Ruminate is what a cow does when it chews it’s cud. Cud is kind of like cow bubblegum. Seein as you aint no farmer you haint never seen a cow up close so I’ll splain to ya what ‘chewin the cud’ means...Cows have multiple stomachs and they eat lots of grass. In order to get the grass to digest a cow will eat the grass, pass it into the first stomach, then bring it back up (yuck!) and chew on it’s ‘cud’ (the partially digested grass brought back up from it’s first stomach). If you’ll watch a cow for a while you’ll notice that they chew all the time. They love chewin the cud!

Here are a few ways you can ‘chew on God’s Word when you find one of those verses you really want to dig into:

1. Write it over it and over and over and over … slowly and deliberately so that you can focus on each word.

2. Write in on 3 x 5 note card and carry it with you everywhere for a week. Every chance you get pull it out and read it slowly and deliberately like you’re enjoying a great view from a high mountain.

3. Read it out loud in several different ways. This feels a little strange at first, but can be powerful because your brain takes the verse in differently than when you read silently.
a. Slowly, deliberately, softly.
b. Fast, like a famous celebrity.
c. Word for word like a preacher.

4. Break the verse down word for word. Read a word and then think about what that word means. Go the next word and think about what it means. Do this until you have finished the verse.

5. Write a response to the verse in your journal. Don’t worry about grammer, punctuation, etc. Just write what God seems to be saying to you in this verse.

6. Write it in lipstick on your bathroom mirror! (This may get you attention you really don’t want, so be wise!)

7. Draw a picture of what the verse means to you.

8. Rewrite the verse in your own words.

9. Write a song that uses the verse as the chorus.

10. Grab a permanent marker and write the verse on your basketball so that every time you play ball for a while you’ll be reminded of that verse again.

11. Head on over to http://www.blueletterbible.org/ and study the original Hebrew or Greek the verse is built from. This isn’t nearly as scary as it may sound. If you enjoy challenging your brain you’ll pick this up pretty quick.

Here are some verses about Meditating that you may want to Chew On…
Joshua 1:8 (NIV) Do not let this Book of the Law depart from your mouth; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous and successful.

Psalm 1:2 (NIV) But his delight is in the law of the LORD,and on his law he meditates day and night.

Psalm 27:4 (NIV) One thing I ask of the LORD,this is what I seek:that I may dwell in the house of the LORDall the days of my life,to gaze upon the beauty of the LORDand to seek him in his temple.

Psalm 48:9 (NIV) Within your temple, O God,we meditate on your unfailing love.

Psalm 77:12 (NIV) I will meditate on all your worksand consider all your mighty deeds.

Psalm 119:15 (NIV) I meditate on your preceptsand consider your ways.

Psalm 119:23 (NIV) Though rulers sit together and slander me,your servant will meditate on your decrees.

Psalm 119:27 (NIV) Let me understand the teaching of your precepts;then I will meditate on your wonders.

Psalm 119:48 (NIV) I lift up my hands to your commands, which I love,and I meditate on your decrees.

Psalm 119:78 (NIV) May the arrogant be put to shame for wronging me without cause;but I will meditate on your precepts.

Psalm 119:97 (NIV) Oh, how I love your law!I meditate on it all day long.

Psalm 119:99 (NIV) I have more insight than all my teachers,for I meditate on your statutes.

Philip. 4:8 (NIV) Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable--if anything is excellent or praiseworthy--think about such things.

Chewin on it,
Jeff Fuson

p.s. Okay last one! Feel FREE to distribute this content as long as you pass it along in it's entirety with all links in place pointing to original urls. Give credit where credit is due and use this to build other people up. Thanks for playing and thanks for passing this along. Jeff Fuson

Wrestle Me! A whole new approach to prayer...

2005-03-23T15:41:00.000-05:00

Wrestle Me!

He's doesn't even weigh in at 40 pounds and he's challenging me to 'wrestle' him. I'm over 200 pounds with a 'Hit-Man' trophy from my high-school glory days as a Middle Linebacker and Tail Back on the football team. I'm a trained assassin on the gridiron and here's this little rug-rat challenging me to wrestle him!

You know what I do? I wrestle him and I let him win most of the time, because I want him to ask me again and again and again...

He's the youngest of my three children and his older brother and sister will tell you right away that he's the most 'spoiled' of the bunch. They'll whine that he gets whatever he wants and that it'sreally not fair at all. And, I'd have to admit that they're mostly right. You see, I'm a better daddy today than I was when I started this daddy business. I know what to worry about and what to let go, what's major and what's minor. And, most of all, I know that the time to 'wrestle' this little guy will quickly zoom past like my glory days of High School Football. So, I wrestle every chance I get and I love it!

God likes to wrestle, too. (check it out in Genesis 32:24-30)

You see, the Bible tells us that we can boldly come to the God at the Throne of Grace because we are His cherished children.

This verse from Hebrews 4:16 is so powerful I thought I'd let you see it from a couple of different views...

From the Message Bible: So let's walk right up to him and get what he is so ready to give. Take the mercy, accept the help.

From the New Living Translataion: So let us come boldly to the throne of our gracious God. There we will receive his mercy, and we will find grace to help us when we need it.

From the New International Version: Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.

Prayer is, at it's most basic level, just coming before Him like a small child and saying 'wrestle me'. Or, 'pick me up and carry me', or 'can I please have a cookie', or sometimes just throwing a temper tantrum because we know He'll still love us.

Prayer is letting it all hang out before our Great Father in Heaven who loves us more than our earthly parents ever could. Sure, there are deeper forms of prayer and more complicated explanations and better theology. But, for many of us it's been so long since we've talked to Him at all; that perhaps, it's okay to come to him like a child coming to his daddy and simply ask for what we want.

You might just be surprised that he's just itching to throw you upon a bunch of pillows and wrestle you and roll around and giggle with you for a little while. I choose to believe that the things I enjoy most are really just shadows of how God designed life to be lived. That they are echoes of creation waiting in the wings to come bursting out like leaves on a maple tree in the springtime.

When He returns and makes all things right I think there's gonna be a whole lot of laughin and giggling goin on.

So, let us take our prayers to our Father - our Abba (daddy) Father who loves us with a perfect love.

I hope this helps you pray more simply and more often.

Just start the conversation with God and let it go on all day.

Here's what Paul has to say in Ephesians 6:18-20 (New LivingTranslation) about praying all the time...Pray at all times and on every occasion in the power of the Holy Spirit. Stay alert and be persistent in your prayers for all Christians everywhere. 19And pray for me, too. Ask God to give me the right words as I boldly explain God's secret plan that the Good News is for the Gentiles, too. 20 I am in chains now for preaching this message as God's ambassador. But pray that I will keep on speaking boldly for him, as I should.

Wanna wrestle? Just ask.

Have a great day,

Jeff Fuson

Would you like to receive more spiritual encouragement like this? You may want to get the whole THIRST Challenge series. Two steps to sign up to receive theseries: 1. Send a blank email to thirstchallenge@aweber.com 2. Watch for the confirmation email comong back from me and then click the link in that message to confirm your subsrcription.

An optional 3rd step may help you...add thirstchallenge@aweber.com to your 'safe senders' list or contact file so that it doesn't get sent to 'email heaven' before you have a chance to read it!

p.s. If you are a 'rising leader' who's excited about advancing the Kingdom of God, then you need to RUN to Rising Leader Alliance.com and splash around a lot! Join the community, sign up for FUEL, grab some cool tools, maybe even post your story so that other leaders will be inspired by what God is doing in your life!

p.p.s. If you lead an organization that could use an ENERGY INJECTION then consider bringing me in to do a Custom Crafted Training Experience for you. I'm launching some very cool Adventure Training and Action Learning Experiences that you and your team could benefit from. Drop an email to me and we can talk more.

p.p.p.s. Host a Daddy Power (tm) Event at your church to encourage the Dads in your congregation to excel at their most important task -- being 'DADDY'. Drop me a email to learn more.

p.p.p.p.s. Okay last one! Feel FREE to distribute this content as long as you pass it along in it's entirety with all links in place pointing to original urls. Give credit where credit is due and use this to build other people up. Thanks for playing and thanks for passing this along. Jeff Fuson

Do-odling your way to God

2005-03-13T01:56:00.000-05:00

I sure Hope that you're successful in carving out a few minutes to be with God today.
I know it can seem a little weird to spend time with someone you cannot even see. I
find it helpful to 'doodle' during my time with God. I like to 'DO' stuff by writing, walking,
listening to great worship music, singing my prayers, imagining, running with a headset,
walking on the treadmill and reading the Bible.

Notice, that these are solo activities that don't require me
to think about doing them and leave my heart and brain freed up to be
in God's presence.

I take information in 'on the move' and, I get bored and distracted
easily. If you are anything at all like me then it's important to
embrace your weirdness and 'bring it under the control of Christ.'
Make your weirdness pay off by 'do-odling'. That is, find ways to
'do' your time with God.

If you're a great artist then draw or paint one of your favorite verses from
the Bible. If you're musical write a song. If you're a poet then do what
poets do. If you're into working out then capture that time and make it
HIS time as well by putting on some great Christian Music. If you're a
scholar then dig into some great free online materials (like the ones I'll
be passing along to you!). If you're a math wiz I have no clue of what
you can do-odle...maybe count up all the words in the Bible and divide
by the number of verses and see what the average length of a verse in
the Bible is. What I'm suggesting is that it's okay to be creative in your
time with God.

What I'm not saying is that you simply 'spread a little God' on some other
activity like you're spreading butter on your toast. He's the MAIN Course--
the MEAL--not the spread. So, to truly spending with God is to fix your
attention on Him. Now, tap into how you're wired and get creative with
adding a little spice to the Main meal. I just don't want you to think that
just having Christian music on while you're blow drying your hair counts
as 'time with God'. What counts as 'Time with God' in the THIRST Chal-
lenge is taking at least 15 minutes each day to focus on HIM. Be creative
YES. Creative 'do-odling' that helps you focus on him can keep things
interesting and exciting as you travel with Him.

Two interesting sites that will increase your 'do-odle factor':

First of all is a site that has a lot to say about Jesus and Biblical times.
It's loaded with cool images and background about Israel, Jewish customs,
the land where Jesus lived and more. Checkout their 'faith lessons' images--
just taking your time with these can make for a very inspiring time with God.
Head on over to http://www.followtherabbi.com/

The second site I want you to check out is a music site. You can check out
upcoming releases by some of the hottest Christian artists. Click the 'Hear
It Now' link on this page: http://www.ccmcom.com/ I believe that great music
can be a vital part of your time with God occasionally.

Take home message today...It's okay to spice up your time with God as long
as you're keeping HIM at the center of your time you're together. If you have to
think about what you're do-odling then you're gonna miss Him. So, choose to
spice up your time with Him with things that you can 'do-odle' without thinking
about doing them. You know, things you can do on 'autopilot'.

My hope is that your time with Him is rich and powerful because as you get to
know Him better you will automatically become more like Him. Here's what the
Bible says in II Corinthians 3:18 about what happens as you know Him better...
as the Spirit of the Lord works within us, we become more
and more like him and reflect his glory even more. (New Living Translation)

If you would like to receive a whole series of automated emails about growing in your relationship with God

you can simply send a blank email to thirstchallenge@aweber.com and you'll be sent a powerful

series of emails designed to inform, inspire, and challenge you in your Godward journey.

Do-odle it,
Jeff Fuson

p.s. If you are a 'rising leader' who's excited about advancing the Kingdom of God, then you need to RUN to Rising Leader Alliance.com and splash around a lot! Join the community, sign up for FUEL, grab some cool tools, maybe even post your story so that other leaders will be inspired by what God is doing in your life!

p.p.s. If you lead an organization that could use an ENERGY INJECTION then consider bringing me in to do a Custom Crafted Training Experience for you. I'm launching some very cool Adventure Training and Action Learning Experiences that you and your team could benefit from. Drop an email to me and we can talk more.

p.p.p.s. Host a Daddy Power (tm) Event at your church to encourage the Dads in your congregation to excel at their most important task -- being 'DADDY'. Drop me a email to learn more.

p.p.p.p.s. Okay last one! Feel FREE to distribute this content as long as you pass it along in it's entirety with all links in place pointing to original urls. Give credit where credit is due and use this to build other people up. Thanks for playing and thanks for passing this along. Jeff Fuson

Barriers to Destiny Fulfillment by Steve Moore

2005-03-05T16:11:00.000-05:00

As the Leader Coach of Rising Leader Alliance.com I'm always looking for great resources to help Rising Leaders grow stronger. So, today, I'm passing notes along to you that I've made from a sermon by Steve Moore called 'Overcoming the Barriers to Destiny Fulfillment'. You'll get a ton out of these notes. Feel free to share them with others that you lead.

Jeff Galley and Steve Moore partnered to produce a great CD resource called 'Overcoming the Barriers to Destiny Fulfillment' aimed at helping you bust through the barriers that hold most Rising Leaders back.

Jeff Galley is the president of Nexlead (formerly Top Flight Leadership) and Steve Moore is a Leadership Coach / Consultant now serving at Growing Leaders with Tim Elmore. I'm grateful to Steve Moore for the great insights you'll discover in this Blog. You can pick up a copy of his book 'Leadership Insights' here.

Here are my notes from this powerful audio CD. (Yes, this is long blog, but you'll be glad you read to the end)

Destiny Defined: Your destiny is the sovereign purpose for which you have been created, that when fulfilled brings God the greatest glory, brings you the greatest joy, and most significantly,advances the Kingdom of God here on earth. Steve Moore

This is the Ultimate win-win. God gets maximum glory, you get maximum joy and the Kingdom of God is advanced!

Ephesians 2:10 God has a purpose for you and a mission for your life.

Destiny Formula = H + I + M = D
H= History -- your personal history / biography that gives you unique insights and connections.
I= Identity --your gifts, your passions
M= Ministry --the good works God designed you for
D= Destiny

Barriers to Destiny Fulfillment

Case Study on Zerubbabel
Based on : Ezra 1-6 and Haggai

Barrier # 1 The Information Barrier
This is the struggle to discover what we're here for.
Key Idea = God is 'for you' in this journey and God knows that you can't do what He wants you to do if you don't know what it is. He is not a street performer playing a shell game with your destiny. He gets no pleasure in hiding His agenda for your life from you.

Two great fears that young adults surveyed have about surrendering to God's will:
1. He'll make me marry someone I don't want to marry.
2. He'll make me choose a career path that I don't want to follow.

These fears come from a sick idea about God that He's into making us miserable. God is for you and if your heart is totally surrendered to God then the things you like to do are, in all probability, clues to what you're suppose to do.

Breaking through the Information Barrier:
Posture of Total Surrender as opposed to Negotiation
You're not trapped in a game show struggling to choose between 'door # 1' , 'door # 2' , etc There's nothing you can conjure up in your wildest imagination that will match the life journey that God already has mapped out for you.

If you're struggling with this, here's a commitment you need to make.
Grab a blank sheet of paper and write 'My Destiny Contract' then go all the way to the bottom and sign it, date it and leave everything else blank. Then present it to God and tell Him, Okay, God'I'm telling you in advance that as you show it to me, I'm gonna do it. The answer is 'Yes', now, 'What's the question.'

The key phrase for a breakthrough: 'God, whatever the question you ask my answer is Yes.

Barrier # 2 The Opposition Barrier
The tendency people have when opposition comes is to back away from the mission.
Ezra 4:1-5
verse 4 - 3 steps that the opposition almost always takes:
1. Discourage you
2. Make you Afraid
3. Frustrate God's plan

verse 4:24 The work came to a standstill for approximately 14 years. This is called the 'holding pattern' and it's a frustrating place to be be.

Don't be surprised by opposition -- Expect it! Otherwise you'll likely hit the holding pattern and waste day after day knowing you're not advancing down the path you're destined for.

Barrier # 3 The Distraction Barrier -- forgetting what we're really called to.
Haggai 1 An older mentor shows up for Zerubbabel
Haggai 1:4 Is it a time for you to be living in your panelled houses while this house remains in ruins? ... You put your money in pants with holes in the pockets. You don't have any satisfaction in life because there is nothing that you can substitute in your life that will replace the joy that comes from doing what God put you on this earth to do. You'll never be satisfied until you go back and embrace what you were put here for.
Zerubbabel embraced the counsel of Haggai and broke through both the Opposition and the Distraction Barrier.

Barrier # 4 The Comparison Barrier
The temple that Zerubbabel was rebuilding was being compared to the Temple of Solomon.
Yet, God speaks through Haggain in 2:6 that says the glory of Zerubbabel's work would exceed that of Solomons because this temple will host the 'hope of all nations' -- Jesus.
God sees things differently than we do. Nothing brings Him more glory than our accomplishment of His purpose for us.

Barrier # 5 The Accusation Barrier
Haggai 2:23 ...I will make you like my signet ring... A signet ring was a symbol of the King's authority. (Genesis 41:42 as example of the power of a signet ring) God is telling Zerubbabel that as he embraces God's design for his life that he would be backed by the power of God.
Why this is even more powerful than it first appears...Jeremiah 22 -- in this chapter Jeremiah is publicly rebuking Zerubbabel's grandfather king for his wickedness. Notice what Jeremiah says to Jehoiachin -- even if you were a signet ring on my right hand I would still pull you off. Imagine the weight on Zerubbabel because of the disgrace inherited from his grandfather. Now, imagine what it means to be reinstated as 'the signet ring on the right hand of God.'
Satan would like to keep us powerless because of 'skeletons' in our closet. But, God would like to treat us like a signet ring on His right hand to accomplish his work backed by His power.

If you'll cooperate with God He will work with you to break through these barriers to Destiny Fulfillment.

Thanks again to Steve Moore and Jeff Galley for putting this great resource together.

Have a great day,
Jeff Fuson

p.s. If you are a 'rising leader' who's excited about advancing the Kingdom of God, then you need to RUN to Rising Leader Alliance.com and splash around a lot! Join the community, sign up for FUEL, grab some cool tools, maybe even post your story so that other leaders will be inspired by what God is doing in your life!

p.p.s. If you lead an organization that could use an ENERGY INJECTION then consider bringing me in to do a Custom Crafted Training Experience for you. I'm launching some very cool Adventure Training and Action Learning Experiences that you and your team could benefit from. Drop an email to me and we can talk more.

p.p.p.s. Host a Daddy Power (tm) Event at your church to encourage the Dads in your congregation to excel at their most important task -- being 'DADDY'. Drop me a email to learn more.

p.p.p.p.s. Okay last one! Feel FREE to distribute this content as long as you pass it along in it's entirety with all links in place pointing to original urls. Give credit where credit is due and use this to build other people up. Thanks for playing and thanks for passing this along. Jeff Fuson

Nothing Is More Important Than Leadership

2005-02-24T22:22:00.000-05:00

George Barna has been an incredible champion for the Church in America as THE Pre-eminent Christian Research expert. He has studied and surveyed and taught us what America really thinks about the 'Church' and what the' Church' must do to respond if we intend to 'carry the ball down the field' and do what Jesus has called us to do.

He wrote a book called Leaders on Leadership that I'm just starting to read. I'd recommend that you grab a copy and read it yourself.

Here's how George Barna opens up his book...

Nothing Is More Important Than Leadership

I have spent the last fifteen years researching all facets of American life. Using nationwide surveys among representative samples of large numbers of Americans, I have studied people’s values, beliefs, lifestyles, attitudes, opinions, relationships, aspirations and demographics. I have examined the expectations, goals, strategies, strengths and weaknesses of businesses, ranging from Fortune 500 corporations to one-man consulting enterprises. I have devoted thousands of hours to getting inside the world of Christian churches and parachurch ministries, exploring the belief systems, training practices, educational procedures, worship experiences, fund-raising adventures, community-building endeavors, organizational structures and staff procedures of those entities.

Now, after fifteen years of diligent digging into the world around me, I have reached a conclusion regarding the future of the Christian Church in America:
Nothing is more important than leadership.

Now, the theologically minded will immediately attack this statement and say that the most important thing is “holiness” or “righteousness” or “commitment to Christ” or “radical obedience to God.” On a theological level, I wholeheartedly agree. Unfortunately, most Americans do not live on a theological level. The reality is that for any of us to become holy, righteous, committed to Christ or radically obedient to God, we need leaders who will do whatever it takes to facilitate such qualities in us sinful, selfish, misguided mortals.

God Provides Leaders
Oh-oh, there it goes, the escalating noise of the wailing and gnashing of teeth on earth. I think, however, that such a squaller is not taking place up in heaven in response to this statement. Why not? Because God has provided us with leaders year after year to attempt to guide His people forward spiritually. If leaders were not required for us to progress in spiritual depth and Christian formation, He would not have sent them. He would not continue to send them. We do not serve a God who tinkers or fools around with our lives out of curiosity or idleness. He could, of course, but He doesn’t. Therefore, leaders must be necessary.
If leaders were not necessary, He would not have included leadership among the spiritual gifts He instills within the chosen few. The Bible would not provide so many incredible principles of leadership, and the Holy Spirit would not have inspired the authors of the Bible to incorporate so many examples of strong leadership. For instance, Jethro would not have rescued Moses from the flood of administration. Jesus would not have trained the apostles. Paul would not have mentored Timothy, and so on.

Churches Must Be Led by Leaders
I have witnessed pastor after pastor, extensively trained to exegete the Scriptures, and gifted to communicate God’s truth, undeniably fail when it comes to guiding the Body of believers. They have failed in mobilizing them for action, holding them accountable for their behavior, motivating them to sustain a spiritual revolution and attracting the resources necessary to do the work modeled by Christ.

I have discovered through our research that even in evangelism, we place our emphasis on preaching, when, in fact, the greatest evangelistic effect comes from relationships between believers and nonbelievers.2 That is a matter of strategy—a leadership issue.

Most recently, I have tracked people’s exodus from the Church—those who have leadership gifts and abilities—because they can no longer stomach being part of an alleged movement that lacks strong, visionary leadership. These are people of capacity; those who can make things happen. I have watched with sorrow as they have tried to penetrate the culture of the Church and offer their efforts. They have been unable to do so because their churches are neither led by leaders nor by those who understand leadership. Yes, thousands of ministries have such leadership, but in the larger scope of American ministry, those churches and parachurch ministries are the exception to the rule.
I have studied modern history to comprehend the dynamics of revolutions, people movements, societal systems and national fortunes. The result is the conviction that there have not been—and are not likely to be—any significant and successful movements, revolutions or other systems in which strong, visionary leaders were not at the front of those groups, leading the way for change in thought, word and deed.

I believe in preaching the Word of God, confessing our sins before one another, celebrating the miraculous works of the Holy Spirit, returning at least a tenth of our stuff to God’s work, the power of prayer and salvation by grace alone through the atoning blood of Christ: I believe all this and much more. I also believe that in America today, fewer and fewer people will embrace these things unless the Church can raise up strong servant-leaders who will commit their lives to using their natural abilities, marketplace experiences, education, training and spiritual gifts to maximize their call to lead God’s people forward.

I am not saying that leadership is more important on a spiritual or eternal level than our theology and spiritual commitments. I am saying that without effective, godly, Christ-honoring leadership, most people in America seem destined to a life in which Jesus Christ is little more than an expression uttered in times of frustration, or an ancient and personally irrelevant teacher of nice principles and antiquated religious practices.

That realization wounds me deep in my spirit. I want my non-Christian neighbors and my Christ-rejecting family members to know Him, love Him and serve Him as I do. I have come to discover, however, that unless we can develop effective leadership within the Church, we are not doing all we have been called by God to do to effectively and obediently serve Him.

That is why I believe nothing is more important for the future of the Christian Church in America than leadership.
-George Barna from Leaders on Leadership

Wow, that fires me up!

As the Leader Coach of Rising Leader Alliance.com and the Student Ministries Coach at Crestwood Baptist Church this is exactly what I believe and it's precisely why I'm so gung-ho about building a strong online Leadership Collaborative at Rising Leader Alliance.com. The only thing I would add to George Barna's comments is that I believe that the Global Church needs Leaders as much, if not more, than the American Church. He captures the heartbeat of Rising Leader Alliance.com with the opening comments of Leaders on Leadership.

Don't know if I can sleep tonite after getting all jazzed up about this!
Jeff Fuson

p.s. If you are a 'rising leader' who's excited about advancing the Kingdom of God, then you need to RUN to Rising Leader Alliance.com and splash around a lot! Join the community, sign up for FUEL, grab some cool tools, maybe even post your story so that other leaders will be inspired by what God is doing in your life!

p.p.s. If you lead an organization that could use an ENERGY INJECTION then consider bringing me in to do a Custom Crafted Training Experience for you. I'm launching some very cool Adventure Training and Action Learning Experiences that you and your team could benefit from. Drop an email to me and we can talk more.

p.p.p.s. Host a Daddy Power (tm) Event at your church to encourage the Dads in your congregation to excel at their most important task -- being 'DADDY'. Drop me a email to learn more.

p.p.p.p.s. Okay last one! Feel FREE to distribute this content as long as you pass it along in it's entirety with all links in place pointing to original urls. Give credit where credit is due and use this to build other people up. Thanks for playing and thanks for passing this along. Jeff Fuson

The greatest challenge to your Spiritual Growth...

2005-02-23T09:35:00.000-05:00

The #1 Challenge to your Spiritual Life is that YOU are probably an Adrenaline Junkie and you enjoy the ‘buzz’ of busyness and a filled social calendar…

For most of US the best thing we can to have a great relationship with God is to trim our entertainment schedule, go to bed at a decent hour – for you with your bodies at the stage you’re at and the school schedule you keep—you need to be in bed b/w 9 and 10 PM at the latest. What it means for most of us is using our powerful thumb muscles to mash that little red power button on the romote control.

God doesn’t ‘cram’ well. He doesn’t fit into neat tidy appointment boxes in our palm pilots and school homework planners. He isn’t like fast food that can be swallowed without chewing as we speed down the interstate to our next ballet lesson or off to the movies with our buddies.

He’s more woven into the fabric of all our moments if we’ll just take the time to experience Him. He’s HERE. NOW. Always. Present. Powerful. Waiting to experience life with us. He’s available. He’s the source. He’s the life. He’s the way. He’s the main course of life. We eat all the scraps and trash that life throws at us and wonder why much of the time we feel like we’ve got spiritual indigestion and something just isn’t quite right. We hurry and rush to get to all of our Christian activities – we have Christian Basketball, Christian Dating services, Christian chat rooms, Christian movies, Christian BUSY-NESS and it makes us absolutely sick. It’s a perpetual appetizer with no meat. It’s an eternal Blooming Onion or everlasting cheese fries with no steak. Life the way we live it is making us sick and tired and leaves us wondering ‘is this all there is’ and struggling to connect to God.

Here’s the great news – God desires to be your source. Here’s the bad news – something has got to GO. You’ve got to eliminate something ‘good’ from your schedule. The challenge for most of you is that you’re doing all kinds of ‘good’ stuff. You’re in Early Bird AP classes, you’re a leader at FCA, you’re working a job, you’re involved in leadership here at CBC, you’re busy for GOD, but you don’t have time to be with GOD.

God is not a genie in a bottle available for you to just grab the bottle (we’d call it the Bible) and just rub it and then poof up comes the genie and you get your three wishes. God is god, not a genie. He loves you, but He will not be rushed or pushed into granting your wishes (in church, we call them prayer requests). He will meet with you if you will carve out the time from all your busyness and all your ‘stuff’ and take the time.

Some of you are frustrated spiritually right now and you are pointing the finger at all kinds of stuff and other people – like the other kids in this group just aren’t spiritual enough –that’s why I’ve got spiritual heartburn and I’m nor really enjoying connection with God the way I want. The problem is not the people sitting around you…the problem is sitting in your chair and looks at you in the mirror every time you pop a zit. It’s that you are just too busy.
Busy doing ‘god stuff’ does not satisfy. Busy doing ‘good stuff’ will not feed your inner person. Connection—strong, vibrant connection to God is all that is gonna quench your thirst. It’s all that will satisfy.

It can’t be rushed – it can only be savored. You cannot dictate to God when and how to meet you intimately, but you can set the table and invite Him in to be with You.

The root leads to the fruit and tending roots takes time and commitment. It takes ‘cutting’ stuff out of your schedule…probably media. Probably, the radio, television, the telephone. It takes giving God space in your life so that you can really experience Him.

If you come to me and tell me that you’re starving spiritually and that this church just doesn’t meet your needs I’m gonna look back at you and ask you ‘when’s the last time you carved two hours of high quality time out and gave that as an offering to God to just be still and slow down and marinate your spirit in his presence. You cannot rush your spiritual life. You cannot fake it. You cannot yield fruit if you’re not connected to the root.

Gardening your soul so that you enjoy an intimate connection with God will force you to use your most important spiritual muscle often. It will force your thumb muscles to get huge from using that remote control to turn off the noise in your life and replace it with time with Him.

To learn more about connecting with God reflect on these great passages from the Bible. John 15 and Micah 6:8.

Go carve some serious time out of your overloaded schedule and invest it in time with God.

Have a great day,
Jeff Fuson

p.s. If you are a 'rising leader' who's excited about advancing the Kingdom of God, then you need to RUN to Rising Leader Alliance.com and splash around a lot! Join the community, sign up for FUEL, grab some cool tools, maybe even post your story so that other leaders will be inspired by what God is doing in your life!

p.p.s. If you lead an organization that could use an ENERGY INJECTION then consider bringing me in to do a Custom Crafted Training Experience for you. I'm launching some very cool Adventure Training and Action Learning Experiences that you and your team could benefit from. Drop an email to me and we can talk more.

p.p.p.s. Host a Daddy Power (tm) Event at your church to encourage the Dads in your congregation to excel at their most important task -- being 'DADDY'. Drop me a email to learn more.

p.p.p.p.s. Okay last one! Feel FREE to distribute this content as long as you pass it along in it's entirety with all links in place pointing to original urls. Give credit where credit is due and use this to build other people up. Thanks for playing and thanks for passing this along. Jeff Fuson

Powerful. Clear. Resolved. Resolute. Lincoln. Bush.

2005-02-21T20:46:00.000-05:00

We could learn a lot about communication and about leading transparently from Abraham Lincoln. It's President's Day here in the United States and we remember and celebrate many great people who have helped lead this country over the past 200+ years.

Perhaps no president has faced a greater challenge to this young country than President Abraham Lincoln. As the country was in tatters from a war pitting son against father and mother against son surely this great gaunt man must have had his heart shredded from the horror of war. Surely the resolve he displayed was forged from the depths of a divine destiny to alter to the course of human history so that all men could be free.

The resolve I admire in Lincoln seems to have been granted to our current President, George W. Bush. I'm encouraged today that the tapes that Doug Wead, former friend/advisor to the Bush and Reagan Administrations, 'leaked' show that President George W Bush is the same in private as he is in public. Perhaps there's no greater assurance to us at this time in American History than that what we see is what we get. That what President Bush says he will do will be done and that what he stands for will not change with the latest Gallup Poll. I admire that in Lincoln and I'm proud of that in President George W. Bush. I believe he is honest and fair and humble and harbours a deep sense of divine desinty. He seems to believe that he was born for a time such as this. And, so do I.

The words that President Lincoln spoke at the Battlefield in Gettysburg in 1863 are a powerful reminder to us all of the price of liberty and the power of resolve and character in a leader. A resounding reminder that freedom is never free. Here is his brief speech from that historic day...

Four score and seven years ago, our fathers brought forth upon this continent a new nation: conceived in liberty, and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal.
Now we are engaged in a great civil war, testing whether that nation, or any nation so conceived and so dedicated, can long endure. We are met on a great battlefield of that war.
We have come to dedicate a portion of that field as a final resting place for those who here gave their lives that this nation might live. It is altogether fitting and proper that we should do this.
But, in a larger sense, we cannot dedicate — we cannot consecrate — we cannot hallow — this ground. The brave men, living and dead, who struggled here have consecrated it, far above our poor power to add or detract. The world will little note, nor long remember, what we say here, but it can never forget what they did here.
It is for us the living, rather, to be dedicated here to the unfinished work which they who fought here have thus far so nobly advanced. It is rather for us to be here dedicated to the great task remaining before us — that from these honored dead we take increased devotion to that cause for which they gave the last full measure of devotion — that we here highly resolve that these dead shall not have died in vain — that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom — and that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from this earth.

Powerful. Clear. Resolved. Resolute. Classic. Lincoln.

We can all learn a lot about leadership from Lincoln and Bush.

Is your communication marked by the clarity that comes from a resolved character?

Have a great day,
Jeff

p.s. If you are a 'rising leader' who's excited about advancing the Kingdom of God, then you need to RUN to Rising Leader Alliance.com and splash around a lot! Join the community, sign up for FUEL, grab some cool tools, maybe even post your story so that other leaders will be inspired by what God is doing in your life!

p.p.s. If you lead an organization that could use an ENERGY INJECTION then consider bringing me in to do a Custom Crafted Training Experience for you. I'm launching some very cool Adventure Training and Action Learning Experiences that you and your team could benefit from. Drop an email to me and we can talk more.

p.p.p.s. Host a Daddy Power (tm) Event at your church to encourage the Dads in your congregation to excel at their most important task -- being 'DADDY'. Drop me a email to learn more.

p.p.p.p.s. Okay last one! Feel FREE to distribute this content as long as you pass it along in it's entirety with all links in place pointing to original urls. Give credit where credit is due and use this to build other people up. Thanks for playing and thanks for passing this along. Jeff Fuson

Robo-Roach? Just because I thought this is wacky and you'd love it...

2005-02-21T09:29:00.000-05:00

Google Image Result for http://www.sachsreport.com/japans%20latest%20invention%20remote%20control%20cockroach%20cyber%20cybor.jpg

What if I told you that God and the Devil made a Wager for the Souls of All Mankind...

2005-02-01T21:42:00.000-05:00

'What if I told you that God and the devil made a wager for the souls of all mankind?

No direct contact -- just influence...see who would win.
Constantine movie trailer. ( Trailers for Constantine (2005) )

If you told me that I would tell you that God broke the rules of the wager when He sent Jesus to earth. He established direct contact with us through Jesus, the Christ and allowed us to experience the relationship we were designed to have with God.

But, I would also tell you that there is indeed a wager for the souls of all mankind. For your soul and mine. And I would tell you that God wagered His only Son for my eternity in heaven with Him. And, I would tell you that God won with me.

And, then, I would have to ask you...'how will God's wager turn out in your case?'

After you watch the Constantine movie trailer you may also want to go to The Kristo site and check it out. It's all about the wager God made for you and me.

I betcha,
Jeff Fuson

p.p.s. If you lead an organization that could use an ENERGY INJECTION then consider bringing me in to do a Custom Crafted Training Experience for you. I'm launching some very cool Adventure Training and Action Learning Experiences that you and your team could benefit from. Drop an email to me and we can talk more.

p.p.p.s. Host a Daddy Power (tm) Event at your church to encourage the Dads in your congregation to excel at their most important task -- being 'DADDY'. Drop me a email to learn more.

p.p.p.p.s. Okay last one! Feel FREE to distribute this content as long as you pass it along in it's entirety with all links in place pointing to original urls. Give credit where credit is due and use this to build other people up. Thanks for playing and thanks for passing this along. Jeff Fuson

The Best Explanation of 'The Church' from Jesus Himself inMatthew 16:13-20

2005-01-28T06:42:00.000-05:00

MP3 Bible - Audio Sermons

I stumbled across this website full of audio sermons in MP3 format and listened to Jon Courson's sermon 'It's All About Jesus' and WOW, it's Good Stuff.

Jon does a tremendous job of explaining what the church of Jesus Christ is really meant to be all about.

As I lead the Student Ministries of Crestwood Baptist Church and serve as the Leader Coach of Rising Leader Alliance.com this explanation of the church serves as the 'definition' of church -- of ecclesia -- the called out ones.

Enjoy,
Jeff Fuson

Peace

2005-01-24T21:47:00.000-05:00

A friend was packing this quote around in his Bible as a bookmark and I thought you would benefit from reading this:

peace.
it does not mean to be in a place where there is no noise, trouble or hard work.
it means to be in the midst of those things and still be calm in your heart.
author-unknown

So, I pray peace for you on your journey!
Jeff Fuson

p.s. If you are a 'rising leader' who's excited about advancing the Kingdom of God, then you need to RUN to Rising Leader Alliance.com and splash around a lot! Join the community, sign up for FUEL, grab some cool tools, maybe even post your story so that other leaders will be inspired by what God is doing in your life!

p.p.s. If you lead an organization that could use an ENERGY INJECTION then consider bringing me in to do a Custom Crafted Training Experience for you. I'm launching some very cool Adventure Training and Action Learning Experiences that you and your team could benefit from. Drop an email to me and we can talk more.

p.p.p.s. Host a Daddy Power (tm) Event at your church to encourage the Dads in your congregation to excel at their most important task -- being 'DADDY'. Drop me a email to learn more.

p.p.p.p.s. Okay last one! Feel FREE to distribute this content as long as you pass it along in it's entirety with all links in place pointing to original urls. Give credit where credit is due and use this to build other people up. Thanks for playing and thanks for passing this along. Jeff Fuson

Tsunami Saga In Pictures and Video at USATODAY.com

2005-01-22T16:00:00.000-05:00

USATODAY.com - U.S. military now will scale back tsunami relief efforts

Asia Tsunami Video Resources: 45 Seconds

2005-01-18T23:16:00.000-05:00

Asia Tsunami Video Resources: 45 Seconds

Rising Leader Alliance.com's Response to the Big Problems in The World

2005-01-14T13:12:00.000-05:00

Rising Leader Alliance.com Front Page Audio

2005-01-14T13:10:00.000-05:00

What's New at Rising Leader Alliance.com?

2005-01-14T11:50:00.000-05:00

ONE THING

2005-01-12T15:03:00.000-05:00

Have you heard the song, ‘One Thing’
by Finger Eleven?
( http://www.FingerEleven.com )

If I traded it all
If I gave it all away for one thing
Just for one thing
If I sorted it out
If I knew all about this one thing
Wouldn’t that be something

Wouldn’t that be somethin’? If we traded it all just for one thing?
It's a rare person who will trade it all for one thing, but those who
do are usually extraordinary.

Here's a cool story about a 'One Thing' person who was a big time
difference maker.

It was a sweltering overcast summer day in downtown Chicago
around 1870. She was just a little girl in a tattered cotton dress
when the man saw her and their eyes locked. She recognized
him and she definitely did not want to talk to him so she started
walking away, he followed. She started running and he started
running. She ran down an alley, and he ran down an alley. She
ran up steps, he ran up steps, she ran through a bar and out the
back door, and he ran through a bar and out the back door. She
scampered up the steps to their one room apartment in the heart
of Chicago and he followed her. She hid under the bed and he
grabbed her by the foot and pulled her out from under the bed
and ….Led her to Jesus.

That was Dwight L. Moody. In a lifetime of just over 60 years
he preached to over 100 million people. During many weeks
he spoke to 40k to 70k and often to crowds of 10,000 to 20,000
at a time. One writer says that at least One Million people were
saved because of his ministry…he spoke to more people about
Jesus in one lifetime than anyone ever had before him.

He had been working in the Ministry for some time with really
good results, yet when he heard the following statement and
begged God to Anoint him with HIS power everything changed
about his ministry and his life. The results were absolutely
explosive…

Here's the statement that rocked D.L. Moody's life...
The world has yet to see what God will do with
and for and through a person who is fully and
wholly committed to HIM and in 1867 DL
Moody committed to be that man. That day he
committed to being a ‘ONE THING’ kind of guy.

He already had the second largest Sunday School Ministry in
the U.S. but his results became staggering as God began to
unleash his power fully through DL Moody’s life…

He became a ONE THING kind of person. A person that
traded everything else in.

That’s what God is looking for – One Thing People. Jesus insisted
that the Rich Young Ruler give all his possessions away not
because he was rich but because Jesus knew that the Young Ruler
was not a 'one-thing' kind of person yet. He was still at least a
'two-thing person' and God insists that we become 'ONE-Thing'
people devoted totally to Him.

Romans 6:13 (NLT) encourages us to be ONE THING kind of
people when it says…’Give your yourselves completely to God
since you have been given new life. And use your whole body
as a tool to do what is right for the glory of God.”

What if we got wildly committed to what God has in mind for
us – that we really let HIM have use our bodies as tools to
honor Him? What if we traded it all for one thing, just for one
thing – to be fully devoted followers of Jesus Christ?

I believe that YOU want to live for GREAT Purpose – to live f
or ONE GRAND THING that really matters– to be taken off
the bench and put into the game of life and to make a difference.

God wired you to be a difference maker.

The more you move toward being a 'One-Thing Person'
the more powerful you can be in advancing His Kingdom.

p.s. If you are a 'rising leader' who's excited about advancing the
Kingdom of God, then you'll want to grab some great FREE
resources over at www.risingleaderalliance.com

Tsunami Response Guide for Christians

2005-01-06T00:03:00.000-05:00

Developed by Jeff Fuson for Rising Leader Alliance.com and Crestwood Baptist Church Student Ministries on January 5, 2005

Tsunami Response Guide

January 5, 2005

Those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength.
They will soar on wings like eagles;
They will run and not grow weary,
They will walk and not be faint.
Isaiah 40:31The Bible

5 Things YOU can do NOW…
1. Pray through this prayer guide – take your time. Work through this solo or gather some friends for a special time of prayer.
2. Prepare to give a special gift of $$ above what you normally give. Make your donation to an established, proven relief agency like World Vision. Check out this blog to help choose one that matches your beliefs and passions.

Ideas on how to get the $$ to give.
a. You can fast from a meal and donate the $$ you would have spent
b. Donate the $$ you would normally spend on your next CD / DVD.
c. Throw a ‘Tsunami Relief Movie Nite’ at your house. It’s simple, fun, and could raise some serious cash…have your friends over to your house and watch a DVD that you already own, pop your own popcorn and take all the $$ that you all would have spent going out to the movies and grabbing dinner and give those $$. With just 5 or 6 friends that could easily be $50!
d. Take on some extra hours at work or baby-sit an extra nite, or clean a house – do something extra and give those $$.

3. Get involved in upcoming Mission Experiences on a local level so you’ll be prepared to ‘GO’ when you are needed in the future.
Join your church in local projects to help those hit by personal ‘tsunamis’ like divorce, cancer, death, missing children, etc.
Make your next vacation a vacation with a purpose. Check out http://www.missioncation.com to learn more

4. Go ahead and get a passport so that as International Missions & Crises come up you’ll be ready to go. In the United States you can get the paperwork for your passport at most U.S. Post Offices.

5. Go ahead and get your basic lineup of immunizations from the health clinic or your doctor so you’ll be prepared to travel into remote areas of the world in the future.

Scriptures for us to commit to memory and ‘brew on’ as we face challenging times:
Psalm 39:5
Proverbs 10:5
Proverbs 27:1
Isaiah 55:8-9
Matthew 6:34
Romans 8:28
Romans 11:33-36
1 Corinthians 13:12
2 Corinthians 4:1
2 Corinthians 4:8-10
2 Corinthians 4:17-18
Hebrews 3:15
James 4:13-16

Prayer Guide

Take your time and pray through these different areas. If one area hits you harder than another then just take as much time on that area as you’d like.

Pray for the small children left with no parents wondering where they will find a place to rest or food to eat.

Pray for parents whose arms ache because they can no longer hold a missing or dead child.

Pray that The Christian ministers and missionaries who are working in that region will be able to ‘leverage’ this opportunity to share the Good News of Jesus to many people who have misplaced their trust in other gods like Allah and Buddha.

Pray for our military personnel who are flying rescue missions and delivering supplies.

Pray that fresh water will be delivered without interference to the people who need it desperately.

Pray that we don’t take our lives and all the good things that God gives to us for granted.

Pray that Relief workers will be able to rest so they can remain healthy and effective for what will be a very long recovery.

Pray that Relief Organizations are good managers of the donations that are given so that every dollar given will do the most good possible.

Pray that in the midst of the horrible smells of decaying bodies that fresh winds of the spirit of God will bring peace to the broken hearted.

Pray for Medical doctors and nurses who are working long hard hours to have stamina to meet the overwhelming needs of so many people.

Pray that the diseases that can come from decaying bodies are held in check so that the disaster doesn’t intensify in the coming weeks.

Pray that the Christian Church all over the world will be effective in leveraging this moment in history to share the good news of a God who cared enough to send His own Son to suffer so that we could have eternal life where there is no more death or disease.

Quotes from the book, “God’s Grace from Ground Zero” by Jim Cymbala
Pastor of the Brooklyn Tabernacle in New York City

“Seemingly negative or frustrating experiences often yield beneficial results we never could have imagined.”

“We do not always understand what is going on, but we can still rest in the assurance that we know who sits on the throne and reigns supreme.”

“The apostle Paul wrote, ‘Now we see but a poor reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part, then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known’ (I Corinthians 13:12) There will be a moment in the future – the ‘then’ to which Paul refers – when we will comprehend all the apparent mysteries of life on earth. Until then, however, we must walk by faith. We must keep trusting God, whose ways are often inscrutable (hard to understand) yet always governed by his love.”

“Let’s not forget that God’s ways of dealing with people on earth are far too complex to fit into our simplistic religious formulas. Contrary to what some Christians teach, a tragedy like this cannot be declared unequivocally as judgment on this nation or chastisement for an individual because of some sin or misbehavior. Yes, the Bible records many examples of sinful sowing followed by a sure and horrible reaping, but not everything in life can be so easily categorized. As was the case with Job in the Old Testament, many tragedies have no discernible, spiritual cause, and we do well to remember this truth. … We will have to content ourselves with the knowledge that our sovereign God is at work and recognize the future hope emphasized in the lyrics of the old gospel song: “We will understand it better by and by.”

I hope this guide helps you deal with the quesstions that we all face and that it draws you closer to our God who loves us and offers us a life beyond this one where there is no more death, disease or disasters. To learn more about Him, click HERE.

Peace,

Jeff Fuson

p.s. If you are a 'rising leader' who's excited about advancing the Kingdom of God, then you'll want to grab some great FREE resources over at www.risingleaderalliance.com

p.p.s. Feel free to distribute this in any fashion you'd like as long as it is printed in it's entirety with all links left intact and directed to the original URLs posted.

Tsunami and Earthquake Relief for Victims in Asia - World Vision - World Vision

2005-01-05T23:55:00.000-05:00

My family has supported a child in Peru for several years for only $26 per month. World Vision has done a fantastic job with the money we've sent their way. I recommend them to you wholeheartedly if you're looking for a worthy place to make a donation to help children on the other side of the world.
Peace,
Jeff

277262

Where to give Tsunami Relief Donations

2005-01-05T23:33:00.000-05:00

I know that many of us will be hoping to make a contribution to the relief work going on in the areas hardest hit by the December 26, 2004 Tsunami in the Indian Ocean so here's just a couple of things to help make sure your money goes where you want it to...
1. Give to proven organizations like my favorite, World Vision because they have a long time proven track record of doing this type of work 'right' and in a fashion that allows people to have self respect and dignity in their times of crisis.
2. You may want to check out some of the watchdog organizations that rate different charitable organizations on how well they leverage the dollars that have already been given.
3. Treat this investment like you're choosing a good mutual fund to invest in -- you want to max the $$ you invest to help people hardest hit by the Tsunami.
4. If World Vision is not your chosen vehicle then certainly hit this link at Fox News to learn about dozens of organizations doing work there that are accepting online contributions.

Hope this helps you invest your donation $$ more wisely so that each dollar does the most possible good.

Shalom,
Jeff Fuson

p.s. If you are a 'rising leader' who's excited about advancing the Kingdom of God, then you'll want to grab some great FREE resources over at www.risingleaderalliance.com

RESOLVE & Resolution -- Great Quotes for the New Year

2004-12-31T08:09:00.000-05:00

It's almost 2005! Wow, can you believe it? Here's a great quote I found when I was in Florida this past summer, and a few more from other places. Thought you'd enjoy it as you think about the year ahead....

"Be like a tree in pursuit of your cause. Stand firm, grip hard, thrust upward, bend with the winds of heaven, and learn tranquility." Dedication to Richard St. Barbe Baker

"I know the price of success: dedication, hard work, and an unremitting devotion to the things you want to see happen." Frank Lloyd Wright

"In order to discover new lands, one must be willing to losë sight of the shore for a very long time." Andre Gide

"Things are only impossible until they're not." unkown

I'm more excited about the years ahead than any I remember. With a few more years under my belt my personal resolve has been strengthened like hardened steel in a fiery furnace and my ambitions have been focused more tightly like a laser AND I've got an action plan that is doable.

If you'd like to grab some really cool stuff on how to create an exctiting life mission statement or develop your 'Ultimate Life Endeavor' then I may be able to help you. Just drop an email to me at jeff@risingleaderalliance.com and I'll send some great stuff back to you. You'll improve your focus and power and resolve in getting what you most want out of life.

Last quote,
"Ultimately, life will give you what you are willing to settle for." Jeff Fuson

Have a great day,
Jeff Fuson

p.s. If you are a 'rising leader' who's excited about advancing the Kingdom of God, then you'll want to grab some great FREE resources over at www.risingleaderalliance.com

p.p.s. You certainly may pass this info along to whomever you choose, I only ask that you include the entire text so that others can enjoy it just as you have. Please include all links and all credits so that proper credit is given where credit is due and so that others can view links as intended. Thanks, Jeff Fuson.

RLA The Home for Rising Leaders

2004-12-31T00:39:00.000-05:00

RLA The Home for Rising Leaders

Are You a Passionate Relator or Professional Religionist?

2004-12-30T09:34:00.000-05:00

Study the Law continually. Meditate on it day and night so you may be sure to obey all that is written in it. Only then will you succeed. *

It seems that God has this ‘if, then’ relationship going with His people in the Old Testament. I wonder if that ‘if, then’ relationship still stands? I wonder, if even though, Jesus paid for me in full, that God doesn’t desire my full devotion? Studying the law is what the Scribes and Pharisees were famous for, yet many of them apparently missed the whole show when Jesus appeared. What could have blinded them? Why did they miss the very thing they most hoped for? It probably wasn’t because they were stupid. Maybe it was because they loved the ‘seat of honor’ and the ‘praise from the people’ more than they loved God. Maybe it was because they were ‘religious professionals’ and not passionate relaters to their One True God. Jesus, too, knew the Old Testament Law and like any respectable Jewish boy was probably drilled in the first five books of the Bible (The Torah) over and over and over again so much so that he likely could quote the entire 5 books without error or omission.

What was different about how Jesus understood the Law and lived it perfectly and those who studied it and missed the mark totally? I wonder, because I don’t want to be on the wrong side of this deal if you know what I mean. I desire to be a ‘passionate relater’ to God like Jesus was so that His Spirit can guide me as I study and meditate on Scripture. Scripture without Spirit enlightenment and empowerment may lead to Swelling of the Religious Ego. And E.G.O. stands for ‘Edging God Out’.

Jesus executed the law perfectly even though he hacked off the religious of His day by ‘breaking their version of it often’ The Religious leaders of Jesus day missed the mark because they were all about ‘The Word of God’ but did not have an intimacy with the author that allowed them the piercing insights of how to live it as the Author intended.

So, as I study and meditate, my prayer is that God’s spirit works in me to bring the Word to Life in my life.

I wonder what you think about this? How do you guard against Religious E.G.O. and how do you let His Spirit guide you to the full truth and application of the Scriptures? Is the promise given to Joshua one that is still in effect for all believers today?

Here's to becoming a Passionate Relator to the Author of the Scriptures,
Jeff Fuson

* = Encouragement and promise from God to Joshua in the Bible book of Joshua, chapter 1, verses 6-8. (New Living Translation)

p.s. If you are a 'rising leader' who's excited about advancing the Kingdom of God, then you'll want to grab some great FREE resources over at www.risingleaderalliance.com

Snow Forts, Full Moons and the love of an Eight Year Old

2004-12-27T07:48:00.000-05:00

Snow Forts, Full Moons and Eight Year Old Boys

Sometimes the greatest gifts come wrapped in white.This Christmas God wrapped up our area with a blanket of white stuff. He used snow, then ice, then more snow and some really cold temps to ‘force’ us to slow down the Christmas insanity and ‘force’ us to do family. What a great gift.

God sent us billions of snowflakes to form this wintry wrapping for free. What a treasure. I couldn’t invest the fortunes of a thousand lifetimes to buy this many snowflakes to blanket hundreds of square miles. To do what God does effortlessly is far out of my grasp and ability. I’m amazed that He loves us this much to provide exactly what we need – even when we don’t know it.

Christmas Eve we traveled back into our snow covered region so that my wife could sing at Crestwood Baptist Church’s Christmas Eve service. The roads in our subdivision were barely passable and our driveway, which goes downhill at a slight grade, was worse. So, I made it almost to the garage and that was where the party got stuck in this wrapping of white stuff.

I went to work with the snow shovels trying to set the van free so that we could get Julie out to the Church on time. But, that was not to be. A friend came and got her but she missed the service and I was left in the driveway with an eight year old, a snow shovel, and a full moon rising – perfect conditions for a snow fort to take shape!

I shoveled for a while until I learned that this particular blanket of snow and ice needed to be broken up more than shoveled up, so I grabbed a garden hoe from the garage and started ‘popping up’ huge chunks of snow and ice. Just the right size for blocks to build the walls of a snow fort. Just the right size for the imagination of an eight year old to take over.

Joshua and I have had a couple of great nites out in the snow working on the driveway and the snow fort and it’s been an incredible Christmas for me. Yeah, my back aches a bit but my heart is full of emotions about the gift of snow, of ‘stuckness’ and of eight year old wonder. I don’t suspect that a man gets too many chances in one lifetime to work on a snow fort with his son, so I’m chalking this up as one of the greatest gifts of my lifetime.

Isn’t it cool how God delivers to us exactly what we need in the most unusual ways. He knew that I needed this time with my son in the snow on this Christmas and He knew that it would take a van stuck in the snow-ice to give me time to really enjoy Christmas with my family.

My son observed that it was a good thing that he was helping me with the driveway and I was helping him with the snow fort. And I replied that he was helping me in another way – having a buddy to share the wonder of it all with. It’s like we had a moment of ‘buddyship’ where my little boy also became my friend. It was magic. It was rich. It was what I desired most with my son. It was Christmas.

So, here’s to God and His magnificent gifts of white stuff, full moons, eight year olds and snow forts. Enjoy life as God gives it to you. Suck the juice from every moment and take nothing for granted. Foster a deep sense of wonder at the odd ways that God gives us what we need.

Merry Christmas,
Jeff

p.s. Wanna host a very cool event for the Dads in your church or group? The 'DaddyPower' (tm) Workshop is all about becoming an even better daddy! Send me an email to learn more: jeff@risingleaderalliance.com

p.p.s. If you are a 'rising leader' who's excited about advancing the Kingdom of God, then you'll want to grab some great FREE resources over at www.risingleaderalliance.com

Aint nothin' better...

2004-12-18T08:36:00.000-05:00

I'm a hillbilly from the hills of Southeastern Kentucky -- a land where the ol' family tree 'never forks' if yaknowwhatimean! And, I'm proud of my heritage as an Appalachian Hillbilly Rednecky kind of guy at the core...

Hillbillies have a way of caputuring the essence of what's going on with classic phrases like, 'Aint nothin' better.' Now, if you're truly a Hillbilly then you'd pronounce 'aint' like 'Haint' with emphasis on the 'h'.

I just wanted to report that there 'aint nothin better' than being a daddy of 3 great kids. They are all at different places because we have a 15 year old, a 7 year old and a 2 year old! But, it is rich with wonder and joy and amusements and filled with 'God-moments' where He dances among us in this land called family.

No question that at times I blow it badly with my kids and yet they offer me grace to rise from the ashes of my impatience and try again. I'm a much better daddy today than I was when I started the 'Daddy Journey' and my oldest sees the difference between her journey with me as a child and her younger brothers' time with me and it's a bit flustering to her. I just remind her that I don't have be as stupid as I used to be forever and that I'm changing as we move down the road together.

Many of you reading this are parents and you know that it is amazingly magnificent and awe-inspiring to hold a newborn and to live with children. Simply put, 'aint nothin' better.'

My hope for you as a Rising Leader and a parent (or maybe a 'would like to be parent') is that you will bridle your ambitions for gold and silver and status and position and focus your greatest energies and time and talent and treasure on these children of God who live with you for just a little while. You'll have time to pursue all that other stuff someday, but for now why don't you go grab one of em and hold em close and remind them that you're glad that God sent them to be your child.

Aint nothin better,
Jeff Fuson

p.s. If you are a 'rising leader' who's excited about advancing the Kingdom of God, then you'll want to grab some great FREE resources over at www.risingleaderalliance.com

Open er up, baby! On being a 'Full-Throttle' Person

2004-11-29T20:32:00.001-05:00

I love to hang out with 'full throttle' people! You
know who I'm talking about...the crazies. The ones
who are maniacal and zesty and full of good ol
fashioned guts. Full -throttle people take a stand
and tellit like they see it. Full-throttle people live
'on purpose' and they're determined to carve their
'initials' into the biggest tree they can find for future
generations to see! They're likely to be problem
solvers and solution bringers with the spirit that
I've seen in Rising Leaders from Poland to Brazil to
the U.S.

John Powell in his best seller 'Fully Human
Fully Alive, says:
"Fully alive people are those who are using
all of their human faculties, powers, and
talents. They are using them to the full.
These individuals are fully functioning
in their external and internal sources.
They are comfortable with/and open to
the full experience and expression of all
human emotions. Such people are vibrantly
alive in mind, heart, and will. There is an
instinctive fear in most of us, I think, to travel
with our engines at full throttle. We prefer, for
the sake of safety, to take life in small and
dainty doses."

I don't want to take little 'dainty doses' of life
do you? I like the 'full-throttle' way better,
don't you?

Have a great day!
Jeff Fuson

p.s. If you are a 'rising leader' who's excited about
advancing the Kingdom of God, then you'll want to
grab some great FREE resources over at
www.risingleaderalliance.com

God on the move...Paul and Silas Flipping the World Over On its Back-Side

2004-11-29T20:18:00.000-05:00

The Bible is a really cool book and I’ve been
taking a look at the journey of Paul and Silas
as they talked about a guy named Jesus and
the advance of His Kingdom nearly 2,000
years ago. They were wave-makers and
world-troublers and peace makers and God
bringers all at the same time. The good news
of Jesus and the advance of the Kingdom of
God was good news to many and ‘less than
good news’ to others.

The advance of the Kingdom of God conflicted
with those who had already established their
own little kingdoms with a strong set of privileges
and accolades and honors. The advance of this
King and His emerging Kingdom ‘turned the
world upside down’ in more than one place.

Here’s how Paul and Silas’ were described by
those who wanted them to leave the city of
Thessalonica in Greece…’Paul and Silas have
turned the rest of the world upside down and
now they here disturbing our city.’ (Acts 17:6
New Living Translation) That’s what happens
when God’s Kingdom shows up where we don’t
want it to – it disturbs us. It messes with our
kingdoms and it forces our true allegiance out
of the closet and into the game. It is unsettling
to deal with a King who would die for the subjects
of His Kingdom and call others to follow Him
with abandon.

Rising Leader Alliance is an emerging online
‘gathering’ of rising leaders like Paul and Silas
who are okay with turning the world upside
down when necessary. It is not a gathering
for the timid or the weak of will or faint of heart.
It is a gathering of those who will to make a
difference by seeing the God’s great Kingdom
be brought to life here and now.

So, if this strikes a cord with you, then Rising Leader
Alliance may be for you. Drop me an email if you
wanna learn more, or head over to Rising Leader Alliance
and see if it's right for you.

Dying playing little games...

2004-11-28T21:20:00.000-05:00

If you're a Rising Leader then you have a raging fire inside
to make a difference and to be used by God to advance HIS
Kingdom here and now.

Because you want to make a difference your heart will likely
beat faster when you read these words of a missionary who
was part of the China Inland Mission upon his forced departure
when Communism came to power in China.

Tonight Shanghai is burning
And I am dying, too.
But there's no death more certain
than death inside of you.
Some men die of shrapnel
While others go down in flames.
But most men die inch by inch
While playing little games.

The last thing a leader wants is to caught 'playing little games'.

I'm developing a great resource about 'Great Questions that help
us build more meaningful lives'. I'd love to hear and make available
the questions that you ask yourself to be sure that you're not just
'playing little games.'

If you have cool questions or ideas that may help other leaders please
post them in the comments block below or drop an email to me.
I'll take your submission to be permission to use what you've given.
If you'll also send a 'by' line and any contact info you desire then
I'll include that as well.

Have a great day,
Jeff Fuson

p.s. If you are a 'rising leader' who's excited about advancing the Kingdom of God, then you'll want to grab some great FREE resources over at www.risingleaderalliance.com

Leader-Kinetics -- First Installment

2004-11-20T21:54:00.000-05:00

Leader-Kinetics
(Copyright 2004 Jeff Fuson -- Feel Free to use this brief article as long as you include all links and include this information: Written by Jeff Fuson of the Rising Leader Alliance. Conact Jeff at jeff@risingleaderalliance.com or at 502-419-7568 Jeff's Weblog: http://jfuson.blogspot.com)

3 Things that YOU can DO right Now to unlock your leadership potential.
1. Ask Questions of the leaders all around you.
Listen more than you talk
Look people in the eyes
Shake their hands with confidence
Repeat and remember their names
2. Keep Your Word.
Do what you say you will do.
Let your 'yes' be yes and your 'no' be no.
3. Treat Others like you want to be treated.
Remember, everyone is my 'better' in that I may learn from him/her.
Never, ever,ever, never, ever make fun of others or speak negatively about them. Speak the truth gently if you must, but never behind their back.

These principles were modeled and taught beautifully by the greatest leader of all time-- Jesus, the Christ.

Have a great day,
Jeff Fuson

p.s. I had the privilege of sharing these basic leadership ideas with the Gifted and Talented program at Oldham County Middle School yesterday and rolled out a new program for them called 'Leader-Kinetics'. I custom designed the program with the high-energy, on your feet needs of Middle Schoolers in mind. (What I know is that nearly everyone prefers to be fully engaged in learning experiences rather than to be 'talked to' so this has a lot of potential for adult groups as well). If I can be of any help to you, your organization, or someone you know in the areas of personal development, leadership development, or Crafting the Future of Your Dreams then just let me know and I'll serve them well. Just drop an email to me at jeff@risingleaderalliance.com.

p.s. If you are a 'rising leader' who's excited about advancing the Kingdom of God, then you'll want to grab some great FREE resources over at www.risingleaderalliance.com

Martin Luther King, Jr. says...

2004-11-17T10:11:00.000-05:00

In the Bible in the Book of Daniel chapter 3 there is a fascinating account about Civil Disobedience. It's worth reading...

Here's what Martin Luther King, Jr. had to say about Civil Disobedience...
'We should never forget that everything Hitler did in Germany was "legal" and everything the Hungarian freedom fighters did in Hungary was "illegal".

Just something to ponder. Hope we never have to live out the ideas of Civil Disobedience.

Jeff

p.s. If you are a 'rising leader' who's excited about advancing the Kingdom of God, then you'll want to grab some great FREE resources over at www.risingleaderalliance.com

Clean Sweep America!

2004-11-16T11:12:00.000-05:00

I’m grateful to live in a country that is ‘of the people, by the people, and for the people’ rather than in a totalitarian or socialistic environment that is above the people.

I’m watching with a bit of concern as we wrestle with the idea of terrorism on our home-turf. So, now my hope is that we can strike an intelligent balance between granting the government powers that they must have without giving away freedoms and rights that will be virtually impossible to ever regain. If you’ll recall our country was established by people moving here from the ‘all powerful’ England and it took a bloody, hard fought revolution to break that government’s grip.

Big Brother may be getting a lot bigger and I don’t like that at all. In the long run I’d rather take my chances with some terrorists wielding knives on an airplane (I know the threat is much different now and more daunting than ever, but I’ll get to that in a minute, so just keep reading!) than try to fight an out of control virtually ‘all-powerful’ government 20 or 30 years from now. The evolution toward an all powerful, all knowing, all in control government is not a good thing for any of us. A government with unlimited power to presume guilt until proven innocent and to search and seize and tap and listen and monitor from satellites and on phone lines and in chat-rooms is a government that is too powerful for the good of the people.

There’s word now that terrorists are perhaps hoping to, or may have already, smuggle biological and nuclear weapons across our southern border with Mexico. That’s a far cry from hijackers on an airplane and requires a coordinated, muscular effort by our government and our people. It will require us all to give a little for some time to get this all cleaned up. Perhaps we have to put up with more government intrusion into the normally private realm for a limited time in order to deal with this pending threat. I still don’t like it and I’m very concerned that freedoms once given away may be nearly impossible to regain without a violent struggle of some sort. So, I have a middle ground proposal in mind.

I’d propose a 36 month ‘clean sweep’ of America where we grant the powers that our government needs to monitor what’s happening – more control and more power than we’re used to – in order to seek out terrorists and threats and eliminate them. Deport them, put them on trial, put them in prison, and even put capital punishment in place if that is how justice is best served. Let’s shut down the borders of the U.S. and let’s strengthen our immigration policies. Let’s provide clear strong guidelines for immigrants that give our government the power it needs to be sure that people are here for peaceful, legitimate purposes. For those who are, Welcome to America! For those who have evil intent or malicious activities brewing let’s be as aggressive in dealing with them as is allowed by law and common sense and let’s make America as safe as she can be.

Yes to strong borders and muscular immigration policies, laws and deportation from here to forever.

No to unlimited ‘peeping tom’ practices by a virtually all powerful government – only for 36 months to accomplish the ‘clean sweep’ and after that only when absolutely necessary as outlined below.

After 36 months let’s reel the government back in and allow her to exercise those sorts of ‘peeping tom’ practices only when called for by the President and voted on by the Congress. And, then only for a limited time. And, only for ‘just cause’ to be defined by the present Administration and Congress given what we do know about Terrorist tactics and operations globally in 2004. This ‘just cause’ idea must be built so that it can endure the tests of rapidly evolving technologies and strategies. What I mean, is that it must be written so that it serves much like our Constitution has as an enduring document that can stand the changes that time brings.

So, here's my proposal for America.

A 36-month ‘Clean Sweep’ of America where those of us of Good Will agree to work hard at eliminating illegal immigration by requiring proper documentation from people whom we hire.
Where we agree to more intrusion from our Government than we would like for 36 months in order to seek out and eliminate Terrorists and their activities from this soil.
Where we all recognize that while this is a free country it is not ‘fair game’ for those who would disrupt the freedoms of life and liberty, so we will be tough on those who are here with malice toward our people and our hard-won freedom. More specifically, we will understand that just because a person manages to sneak across our borders that does not grant them all the rights and privileges that we enjoy as legimate United States Citizens. They don't get to hold jobs and vote and take advantage of our government funded support services or plot evil and hide behind freedoms designated for legimate citizens. They must be deported NOW. We must shut this down or we must endure an all powerful government that may eventually erase freedom as we know it from this land.

After the ‘clean sweep’ let’s put a big fence AND a strong leash on the Big Brother Government Dog. And, let’s only let her out of that cage and off that leash when we absolutely have to.

That' the way I see it.

Jeff

p.s. If you are a 'rising leader' who's excited about advancing the Kingdom of God, then you'll want to grab some great FREE resources over at www.risingleaderalliance.com

DOING Your Life Mission

2004-11-15T06:17:00.000-05:00

Life Mission?
What is it that I am uniquely designed to do? Why has God given me this eclectic set of experiences, contacts, passions, energies, family matrix, motivations and vision? What is His highest purpose for this life of mine. What great adventure is He inviting me to? Where are we heading? Who are my traveling buddies? What’s our ultimate objective?

I love the metaphor of ‘journey’ as a metaphor for life and I think a for a lot of us that’s a resonant metaphor—one that rings true. The wildly popular movie trilogy, Lord of the Rings, based on J.R.R. Tolkien’s books seems to certify this notion. It’s not hard for us to identify with the band of travelers and unlikely heroes and the challenges they face.

Life sometimes brings us to a place where there is a mission thrust upon us that we would not choose and there are circumstances and people that we would not normally associate with and we are on a journey to places that we would rather not go. I know that sounds very un-pma-ish (pma is ‘postitive mental attitude’) yet I believe there are times in many people’s lives when they are given a ‘ring’ to carry into dark country that they would rather relinquish to someone else, yet it is their unique journey and is unavoidable.

What we are not fully in charge of is what ring will be given to us and what journey we must take to deal with it. What we are fully in charge of is our response to what we’ve been given. We can choose to pout and shout and do without or we can embrace the journey and take joy in our traveling companions and invest ourselves fully in accomplishing the task at hand. We can choose to travel with faith and joy and certainty that God will make a way when there doesn’t seem to be one and that He will bring us to a place one day that makes sense of the journey we are on. We can choose traveling companions who encourage us and build us up to carry the ring we must. And, we can join others in their journeys as encouragers and protectors and fellow travelers.

So, I’m always hammering on my life mission statement and I bet you are, too.

What I’m wondering about today is not what’s written on paper or saved in a computer file, rather I’m wondering about ‘reading my life’ to this point and seeing what God is trying to say. I’m wondering about paying attention to the unique constellations of gifts, passions, relationships, and energy that God has assembled in my life. And, then, as I ‘read my life’ I believe I’ll come to a much deeper understanding of what my journey is really all about – I’ll uncover my mission as I read my life.

I’d love to talk with you about ‘reading your life’ and ask the questions of you that will help you uncover your mission statement. If you want to explore this idea some more, just post a comment with your email address and I'll get in touch with you to begin the discussion.

Maybe, just maybe, you’re already living your mission statement and you don’t even know it…

Enjoy the journey,
Jeff

p.s. If you are a 'rising leader' who's excited about advancing the Kingdom of God, then you'll want to grab some great FREE resources over at www.risingleaderalliance.com

Bush v Kerry

2004-11-03T16:33:00.000-05:00

Well, it's official. John Kerry conceded defeat-- with a lot of class, I might add. And, President George W. Bush accepted the Presidency of the United States for a second term around 3 PM this afternoon.

We can all take a deep breath and our televisions won't be hijacked by Presidential debates, spin, Swift Boat Ads, Michael Moore and other such propaganda for a while. I guess.

This was, by far, the most fiercely fought election in my history and maybe one of the fiercest in American history.

I'm captivated by President George W Bush and the 'would-like-to-be-President' challenger, John Kerry. It's been a lesson in leadership to watch these two guys run for office. Some lessons are things I want to remember to DO and some lessons are things I want to DO NOT.

I do want to be clear about who I am and where I'm headed as a leader.
I do not want to use public opinion polls for every decsion I make, for some decisons -- popular or not -- are still the right decisions. (check out Jesus, John the Baptist, Paul, Daniel, Moses, Abraham, Joseph, et al)
I do want to work harder on 'who I am REALLY'.
I do not want to spend time, energy, money and relational currency trying to appear as other than I am.
I do want to be consistent in all that I do.
I do not want to have to keep a notebook to remember which story I made up for which audience.
I do want to be a fully deovoted follower of Jesus Christ with no pretense.
I do not want to hide behind 'media spin' to appear better, bigger, or stronger than I am.
I do want to be more like Jesus.
I do not want to more like people who are not like Jesus.
I do want to advance a Kingdom that is even more vital than the United States of America.
I do not want to live a small life in the shadows with those who are content to watch others work to make a difference.

So, I'm thinking about things I do want to do and about things I do not want to do.

I bet that the Presidential campaign has brought leadership thougts to your mind as well. I'd love to hear about them. Just hit the 'comments' box below and fire away.

Thanks Senator John Kerry and President Bush for great lessons in leadership.

Jeff

p.s. If you are a 'rising leader' who's excited about advancing the Kingdom of God, then you'll want to grab some great FREE resources over at www.risingleaderalliance.com

"There are bigger things happening than you and me." Spider Man

2004-10-30T06:44:00.000-05:00

Neo, Frodo, Dorothy...
Do you know the names?
Neo from 'The Matrix' (very cool metaphorical movie)
Frodo from 'The Lord of the Rings'
Dorothy from Kansas in 'The Wizard of Oz'

All of them had fallen into mythical tales -- joined the advance of causes of which they were unaware, and became vital to the success of those causes. They woke up in a battleground of a world at war and became runners behind enemy lines directly in harm's way.

John Eldridge believes 3 truths about life that will help us all see things more clearly as they really are.
1. Things are not what they seem. There is more going on than we normally pay attention to. There is a war in the next-door dimension that we would like to remain unaware of.
2. "This is a world at war. We live in a far more dramatic, far more dangerous story than we ever imagined. The reason we love The Chronicles of Narnia or Star Wars or The Matrix or The Lord of the Rings is that they are telling us something about our lives that we never, ever get on the evening news. Or from the pulpit. This is our most desperate hour." page 32 in Waking the Dead by John Eldridge
3. We are not what we seem. We have a crucial role to play.
Eldridge says it this way, "You are not what you think you are. There is a glory to your life that your Enemy fears, and he is hell-bent on destroying that glory before you act on it. This part of the answer will sound unbelievable at first; perhaps it will sound too good to be true; certainly, you will wonder if it is true for you. But once you begin to see with those eyes, once you have begun to know it is true from the bottom of your heart, it will change everything. The story of your life is the story of the long and brutal assault on your heart by the one who knows what you could be and fears it.

You will not think clearly about your life until you think mythically. Until you see with the eyes of your heart.

What sort of tale have I fallen into? is a question that would help us all a great deal if we wondered it for ourselves."

John Eldridge stirs up the embers in my heart as he reminds me to know that there is more going on than meets the eye and he reminds me that I'm not just here to haggle with the Utility Company over bills that aren't mine and eat my next meal. I'm here as God's agent behind enemy lines on a very special mission.

"You will not think clearly until you think mythically."

Run NOW and go get this book, Waking the Dead, by John Eldridge.

I'm off to wonder about the angellic battle in Daniel 10. What does it mean to pray a prayer and then have a 21 day gap to getting an answer because of an 'angellic conflict'? What's that mean for you and me when we wonder why God isn't moving faster to take care of us?

If you are ready to jump into the mythic tale of your life then you're ready to join us at Rising Leader Alliance. You'll find a community of fellow travellers with tales to tell and wisdom to share. You'll find the fellowship for your trek. Drop an email to me at jeff@risingleaderalliance.com if you wanna know more or would like to join the fellowship.

Enjoy the journey,
Jeff

p.s. Rick Warren has a great little chapter on 'Life Metaphors' in his powerful best seller, Purpose Driven Life. I'd highly encourage you to grab that book and read and work out that chapter. It will help you a great deal. Promise.

p.s. If you are a 'rising leader' who's excited about advancing the Kingdom of God, then you'll want to grab some great FREE resources over at www.risingleaderalliance.com

All you can do...

2004-10-28T00:23:00.000-05:00

In real life I invest a ton of time, energy, money, passion and life-force into the teens that I serve at a church just outside of Louisville, Kentucky in the good ol U.S. of A. In an online forum with other Youth Ministers I encountered a post from an overworked Youth Minister who had just been asked to put one more thing on her alreay overloaded plate. To take on one more 'Lock-In' to fill up the calendar.

All of us will face people at times who want and may even demand more than we can give. They will assume it's thier right to ask for that one last drop of blood you've been hangin onto for a rainy day. They'll have the audacity to ask you to meet them for an emergency appointment about some frivilosity in their life...they'll be 'unreasonable. What I've learned over time in dealing with people is that we can all be over demanding and very 'mecentric'. So, love em and do the best you can.

Here's my reply to this young minister. Maybe it will be helpful to you as well.

The harsh truth is that you aren't doing enough and you'll never be able to do enough.
But, enough is enough and all you can do is all you can do.
In dealing with people their appetites and needs will always outdistance your ability to satisfy. That's the toughest thing about this job for me. That the reward for a job well done is 'more to do' because of more people coming. And, that every single new person that comes through our door carries a boatload of ideas about how it ought to be done and what they need.
I've learned the 'hard way' that sometimes you just have to be okay being human.
And, I notice in Jesus' life that He did not meet every need of everyone along His path. Surely there were people in the crowd on that Friday who had travelled for days with sick children in their arms hoping for just a word from HIM. And, after all that trouble He had the audacity to hang up there and say 'It is Finished'
I've got to imagine that if I were one of those people I'd want to scream out from the depths of my breaking heart, Hey Dude, It Aint Done -- look at this. Do you see my child? How can you say it's finished?
I don't know for sure but I do know that Jesus finished the work that God gave Him and that's what we must be about -- doing the work that God gives us.
Doing life in Youth Ministry like a 24/7/365 Customer Service Rep for God, Inc is a tough life indeed.
Doing life like Jesus calls us to by walking with Him and taking His 'yoke' is a whole lot better.
Walk with Him, do all you can and call it a day.
Peace,Jeff
p.s. If you are a 'rising leader' who's excited about advancing the Kingdom of God, then you'll want to grab some great FREE resources over at www.risingleaderalliance.com

Alert and Oriented Times Zero

2004-10-26T13:25:00.000-05:00

Alert and Oriented Times Zero
According the John Eldridge in the opening chapter of 'Waking the Dead' when a rescuer treats injured patients one of the first assessments done regards the present mental functioning of the victim....read on to see how Eldridge sets this up and I'll be back to ask you a few questions at the end of this.

"When Spillane (The Perfect Storm) treats injured seamen offshore, one of the first things he evaluates is their degree of consciousness. The higher the level, known as 'alert and oriented times four,' describes almost everyone in an everyday situation. They know who they are, where they are, what time it is, and what's just happened. If someone suffers a blow to the head, the first thing they lose is recent events--'alert times three'--and the last thing they lose is their identity. A person who has lost all levels of consciousness, right down to their identity, is said to be 'alert and oriented times zero.' When John Spillane wakes up in the water, he is alert and oriented times zero. His understanding of the world is reduced to the fact that he exists, nothing more. Almost simultaneously, he understands that he is in excruciating pain. For a long time, that is all he knows.

John Spillane is a para-rescue jumper sent into the North Atlantic, into the worst storm of the twentieth century, the perfect storm, as the book and film called it, to rescue a fisherman lost at sea. When his helicopter goes down, he is forced to jump into pitch blackness from an unknown height, and when he hits the water, he's going so dfast it's like hitting the pavement from eighty feet above. He is dazed and confused--just as we are when it comes to the story of our lies. It's the perfect analogy. We have no idea who we really are, why we're here, what's supposed to happen to us, or why. Honestly, most days we are alert and oriented times zero."

So, what do you think? Does that ever describe how you feel about your life? What's your level of consciousness right now.

I'm at 'Alert and Oriented times four' right now, but not all days are like that.

Sometimes life smacks us around pretty good. I get to spend time with a lot of people and hear their stories and frankly for some of them I wonder how they can be oriented at all. Life has hit them pretty hard and it leaves me wondering 'why...?' Sitting with a divorced single mother last week I had no answers as to why life is going down the way it is. Talking with a friend today about a long job hunt and again, no answers. At least no answers that fit in the context of 'right here, right now.'

The only way that some things make sense is when we imagine the answer from a future post. Some things will make sense when we look back.

Problems are to our spirits what weight lifting is to our muscles. Sometimes problems make us sore, but never doubt that God is at work to build new 'muscle' in our spirits. Never doubt that He is inviting us to a deeper relationship with Him. Never doubt that in the 'big picture' it will all make sense, although along the way there will be times when we may be 'alert and oriented times zero.'

Let me know how you feel about what I've just written.

Alert and oriented times four,
Jeff

p.s. If you are a 'rising leader' who's excited about adva
ncing the Kingdom of God, then you'll want to grab some great FREE resources over at www.risingleaderalliance.com

I lost my voice!

2004-09-29T01:47:00.000-05:00

While I was out of town for the weekend I couldn't access my Blog and I felt like I had lost my voice! It was crazy how much I 'NEEDED' to have a voice. Anyway, I got my voice back and I'm glad! I bet a lot of you feel the same way about your blog. Have you ever 'lost your voice'? What was it like for you?

p.s. If you are a 'rising leader' who's excited about advancing the Kingdom of God, then you'll want to grab some great FREE resources over at www.risingleaderalliance.com

Community, Rabbi, Movement, Journey

2004-09-29T01:24:00.000-05:00

I was at an awesome conference with Youth Specialties in Anaheim (L.A.)California the past few days. What a great time I had.

A few words are buzzing in my head from the weekend that I'll be thinking about and blogging about over the next few weeks.

Here are the words I'm thinking about...
Community -- what's it really about to be a part of The Family of God. To love and be loved. To encourage and share?
Rabbi -- what's it mean to lead a community of seekers?
Movement -- what's it mean to be a part of advancing the movement that HE started?
Journey -- What's it like to be on a journey with other travellers?

I'm looking forward to how God will unravel the depths of these words for me.

Got any ideas about these words for me? I'd love to hear from you about these ideas.

Have a great day,
Jeff

p.s. If you are a 'rising leader' who's excited about advancing the Kingdom of God, then you'll want to grab some great FREE resources over at www.risingleaderalliance.com

God took me to the zoo

2004-09-18T21:30:00.000-05:00

Alex was just 3 years old when his sister was born. The pastor of their church knew that this would be a big change for Alex so decided to take him on a trip to the zoo just after his new little sister was born. Not long after that special trip Alex was having a 'swinging' contest with his next door neigbor, Mitchell. As they competed to go higher and higher they rattled off how high they were going...I'm going as high as the tree. Well, I'm going as high as a kite. Well, I'm going as high as a plane. Well, I'm going as high as the sky. So, I'm going up to space. Well then, I'm going to the moon. So what, I'm going so high I can touch God.

To that Alex simply replied, 'Well, God already took me to the zoo.'

Amazing how kids see things isn't it? I love to hear cool things my kids say and I bet you do, too.

I'm gathering great 'kid stories' for a new website for dads and would love to use great stories about your kids. So, feel free to email me with any of those great stories. Send em over to jeff@risingleaderalliance.com

p.s. If you are a 'rising leader' who's excited about advancing the Kingdom of God, then you'll want to grab some great FREE resources over at www.risingleaderalliance.com

Bill Perkins is coming to Kentucky!

2004-09-09T13:27:00.000-05:00

Bill Perkins Live
Crestwood Baptist Church in Crestwood, Kentucky
Thursday, October 7, 2004

502-241-8534 http://www.crestwoodbaptist.org

CBC Student Ministries is proud to bring Bill Perkins all the way from Oregon to share with you about ‘The Blessing’

Thursday, October 7, 2004
Registration and Finger Foods with Resource Table 6:30 PM
Bill Perkins Live 7 – 9 PM

Here’s why I think you’ll want to come out on Thursday, October 7 to hear Bill Perkins talk about ‘The Blessing’
1. He’s a proven daddy.
2. He’s a proven leader.
3. He’s got something powerful to share.
4. He’s got the ‘road miles’ from being on the firing line as a parent.
5. He’s written and spoken to men and women about these issues all over America in venues large and small.
6. He’s leading a Kingdom building venture called ‘The Million Mighty Men’. Go here to learn more… http://www.millionmightymen.com/
7. He’s honest about his own struggles as a man and as a parent so you will learn from his authenticity.
8. He’s ‘putting his money where his mouth is’ as he lives out ‘the blessing with his own sons.

If you register before September 30 your name will be entered in a drawing for some of the books and resources that Bill Perkins has developed. So, register by calling Meredith today at 241-8534 ext 123 or email to Meredith@crestwoodbaptist.org . Must be present at the event to win.

Hope to see you there.

Jeff Fuson
p.s. If you are a 'rising leader' who's excited about advancing the Kingdom of God, then you'll want to grab some great FREE resources over at www.risingleaderalliance.com

Power of Encouragement

2004-09-09T07:58:00.000-05:00

I've got an insatiable appetite for encouragement and I bet you do to.

I believe that 'what goes around comes around', so send some encouragement around and see what happens. See if the world is a more encouraging place and if you don't have cheerleaders all over the place. But, it's got to start somewhere. Why not with you?

"The finest gift you can give anyone is encouragement. Yet, almost no one gets the encouragement they need to grow to their full potential. If everyone received the encouragement they need to grow, the genius in most everyone would blossom and the world would produce abundance beyond the wildest dreams. We would have more than one Einstein, Edison, Schweitzer, Mother Theresa, Dr. Salk and other great minds in a century."
Author: Sidney Madwed

I found this great quote at thinkexist.com . It's a pretty cool site if your a quote for those of us who design training experiences and need great content. It's also a fun site if you just enjoy quotes.

p.s. If you are a 'rising leader' who's excited about advancing the Kingdom of God, then you'll want to grab some great FREE resources over at www.risingleaderalliance.com

2004-09-08T22:12:00.000-05:00

Me and my lady. What a blessed man I am.

2004-09-08T22:11:00.000-05:00

On the Pier in Naples, Florida

2004-09-08T22:10:00.000-05:00

Brothers. It doesn't get much better than this.

2004-09-08T22:09:00.000-05:00

Kaleb on Vacation

The EAGLES on Theology, Hotels, and Forgiveness

2004-09-05T15:17:00.000-05:00

On a dark desert highway
Cool wind in my hair
Warm smell of colitas
Rising up through the air
Up ahead in the distance
I saw a shimmering light
My head grew heavy, and my sight grew dim
I had to stop for the night
There she stood in the doorway
I heard the mission bell
And I was thinking to myself
This could be Heaven or this could be Hell
Then she lit up a candle And she showed me the way
There were voices down the corridor
I thought I heard them say
Welcome to the Hotel California...

If you're anywhere close to my age you'll remember all the controversy surrounding 'Hotel California' by the EAGLES and you'll remember the legend that the song was about a satanist high priest, ya-de-ya-de-ya. Maybe the legend was right, maybe it wasn't. I don't know and the EAGLES don't seem to be saying.

One thing I am sure of is that there are some great truths woven into the lyrics of a lot of their songs. Songs like Don Henley's classic 'The Heart of the Matter'.

Read these lyrics and somewhere back in your mental archives you'll hear the music kick in.

"I've been tryin' to get down to the Heart of the Matter
But everything changes And my friends seem to scatter
But I think it's about forgiveness
Forgiveness"

Or how 'bout this line from 'Already Gone': "So often times it happens that we live our lives in chains And we never even know we have the key "

For a really powerful punch to the bread basket try mixing those last two bits of lyrics up.

I'm learning that one of the powerful medicines in the world is forgiveness and that one of the most toxic poisons in the world is 'anti-forgiveness'. I'm also coming to learn that I do hold the key to the chains of anti-forgiveness that sometimes hold me and my life back and poison my present and my future.

Anti-forgiveness is more powerful than fallout from a long past nuclear blast. It will scramble the DNA of a once bright future and it will pollute once great friendships. It will leave it's victims sitting alone on front porches wondering why the rest of the world is on a parade far far away while they sit there all alone.

You'll find yourself playing all by yourself in a bitter little game to keep the piled up hurts burning so you can justify your aloneness in the heat from the fire.

I'm learning that anti-forgiveness leads to bitterness -- literally, bitter tasting lives. It leads to being on the edge of blowing out long time relationships and cashing in the chips that you may have taken years to accumulate.

The solution for anti-forgiveness is, of course, forgiveness. Sounds pretty easy doesn't it?

And, on paper, it is easy to forgive. But, in real life to dig up the roots of bitterness and throw them in the trash pile is no easy task. It's tougher than keeping 'Kudzoo Vine' from covering every telephone pole in Tennessee. It takes a miracle.

It takes a power from God alone to irradicate the stubborn roots of long term anti-forgiveness, aka 'bitterness'. It takes a revolution of the soul, a softening of a hardened heart that only God can bring.

It's possible, but it's supernatural--way past being the natural thing to want to do.

Jesus was asked by one of his closest followers how many times we should forgive someone who offends us and Jesus reply was overwhelming. Not just once or twice or three times, but '70 x 7'. That's 490? More than that, it's the Hebrew equivalent of saying 'infinity' -- we are to forgive everything all the time up to an infinite number of offenses.

Now I don't know about you but after a couple of offenses from the same joker and I'm ready to fight. Ready to take it to the ring and rumble. So, this notion of '70 x 7' is way challenging. But, here's the really good news. Wherever Jesus indicated a principle we are to live by He promised power to carry it out. He went so far as to say that to follow His teachings was a lighter load than what was being taught by other teachers. And, He promised that His Spirit would give us power to live the life He asks us to.

Here are some verses directly from the Bible about bitterness:
Ephesians 4:31 (God's Word)
Get rid of your bitterness, hot tempers, anger, loud quarreling, cursing, and hatred.

Hebrews 12:15 (God's Word)
Make sure that everyone has kindness from God so that bitterness doesn't take root and grow up to cause trouble that corrupts many of you.

When I read verses like those it seems like forgiveness is like taking a garden hoe to the roots of bitterness. It's chopping out the roots that would poison our lives and choke out our relationships.

It's an act of the will empowered by God's Spirit at work in us. It's a matter of asking for the supernatural to be done in our lives as only God can do it. It's about letting Him do His thing.

We DO hold the key to unlock the chains of anti-forgiveness before they grow into bars of unbreakable bitterness. It's an act of courage infused with Power from the Creator of all.

Because of His power at work in us it is possible to swallow the antidote for anti-forgiveness and irradicate the stubborn roots of bitterness.

I think it's about forgiveness. Don Henley and the Eagles do, too.

p.s. If you are a 'rising leader' who's excited about advancing the Kingdom of God, then you'll want to grab some great FREE resources over at www.risingleaderalliance.com

Holiday World vs the Reactor Zone

2004-08-23T15:03:00.000-05:00

Holiday World vs. the Reactor Zone
If you like Amusement Parks and you have a fam I’m told that you’d like a Southern Indiana Amusement Park called Holiday World. It’s supposed to be great for kids – lots of rides, free soft drinks all day and not too far away. So, there you’ve got it – a quick commercial for Holiday World – the Amusement Park.

Now, for the ‘Holiday World’ I want you to consider….

I serve on the staff of a rapidly growing church near Louisville, Kentucky. Those of us on ‘core staff’ are finding that we’ve got more to do than could be done by 5 people working on overload. In a meeting with our core staffers today we talked about how we deal with the unrelenting pressure of all that’s coming at us. Julia Yuen, our Children’s Minister says she goes to ‘Holiday World’ – a special place in her house where she reads and recharges her batteries.

All strong leaders either have learned or will learn that if we’re gonna be proactive and provide vision and direction for growing organizations that we’ve got to spend a whole lot more time at ‘Holiday World’. We’ve got to find places to recharge and refresh and get out ahead of the day to day ‘reactor zone’. If we spend all of our energy just addressing pressing needs and taking surveys of what people ‘really want/need’ then we become more like Reactor Zone Pizza Delivery guys dressed in red hats than leaders of Kingdom Advancing causes.

Jesus found ways to go to ‘Holiday World’ as did Enoch, Abraham, Moses, David...all the big guys named in Hebrews 11. It’s a choice we’ve all got to make. Take more time at ‘Holiday World’ to walk with Him or wait for people to call in and order more pizza.

I’ll take Holiday World any day and walk with God. Yes, I do listen to people and yes I register their desires and needs, and even do surveys. And, yes, I work on solutions. But, I don’t live like a Pizza Delivery guy in the Reactor Zone. I’m not hanging out waiting for my next move to be dictated by someone calling in for a ‘thin crust, oven baked pizza pie’. I’m imagineering how we can put a Pizza Place in strategic locations all over the world and suit up hundreds of red-hatted drivers to meet the needs of a hungry world.

When I head off to ‘Holiday World’ I’m working with the Kingdom Maker on a long term strategic initiative to deliver the Kingdom Hot and Fresh to doorsteps and grass huts and igloos anywhere on the planet at a moment’s notice. It’s gonna take a global team of Rising Leaders to get this done and I’m excited about being a part of it!

So, here’s to ‘Holiday World’ and to the Rising Leaders who are investing a whole lot more time there and doing a lot less wheel spinning in the Reactor Zone.

(If that gets your juices flowing at all I’d love to hear from you. Just fire an email to jeff@risingleaderalliance.com or head over to the ‘not quite what it’s gonna be when it grows up’ web site for Rising Leaders at http://www.risingleaderalliance.com )

p.s. If you are a 'rising leader' who's excited about advancing the Kingdom of God, then you'll want to grab some great FREE resources over at www.risingleaderalliance.com

Creative Discontent -- A Sign of the Gift of Leadership

2004-08-17T18:19:00.000-05:00

All leaders live with this thing. This desire to make whatever they're working on better, to tweak things that most would say that we 'should tweak not'. They walk into places that look great and wonder 'what if...we changed the color? made it brighter? made it darker? knocked down that wall? built a wall right here? If there's 1,000 people in attendance they wonder what it would take to bring 2,000. If it's going great they wonder what it would take to make it even greater. If it's really fast, well, you know what a leader wants to do...make it go really, REALLY FAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAST.

That's just how a leader is wired. They are wired to bring change. When a leader comes into a room they pack a load of 'creative discontent'. It's not that they don't like what's going on, it's just that they are wired to tweak and fiddle to make things better.

Young leaders are loaded with bags full of Creative Discontent. Sometimes they don't know where to dump these bags out or when and with whom and it creates chaos for the team and for the young leader. Sometimes it gets the young leader plowed under and 'traded' away to a new team. Or, worse yet, left for dead and wondering what truck ran over him.

So, if you're a rising leader anywhere you'll need these basic ideas about dealing with your bags of C.D. (Creative Discontent)...
1. Stay Solution Focused
2. Work on Team Based Decisions
3. Show strong commitment to the core direction of the team you're a part of.
4. Be willing to take the long view and be willing to work HARD with the team to bring about the new vision.
5. Refuse to operate like a terrorist. Terrorists usually take hostages of some sort and use threats and intimidation to try to get their way. Many young leaders assume that the way to lead is to bully. This may or may not go well for you as you may find yourself knocked from your pedestal by a much stronger leader.
6. Commit to the vector of the team you're a part of.
p.s. If you are a 'rising leader' who's excited about advancing the Kingdom of God, then you'll want to grab some great FREE resources over at www.risingleaderalliance.com

Leaders Are PROVEN to have less Ear Wax Build Up

2004-08-17T10:41:00.000-05:00

Leaders are proven to have less ‘earwax build-up’

It’s not so much that God doesn’t speak anymore as that we are usually just too busy to hear. A leader’s key responsibility is to combat earwax build-up on a daily basis. To grab the ol Q-Tip swab and get that nasty stuff out of the way so he/she can hear clearly what God might want to say.

A few very practical ways I’ve found to hear better is to…
1. Keep an up to date ‘organizer’ with meetings and task list. ‘On the paper, off the mind’ so that my brain is not having to ‘work’ at remembering all that stuff. When we leave all that stuff in our head it’s like having too many programs open on your computer at the same time. All those ‘open Windows’ cause our brains to keep a lot of ‘stuff’ in the system tray and diminishes our ability to really hear from God.

2. Actually USE your task list and check em off when you get em done. Just keeping things flowing – even little ones…keeps our brain ‘happy’ so it won’t be pestering us all the time about its ‘internal task list’. (This ‘reminder’ system in your brain is extremely powerful. Some have called in the ‘RAS’ – Reticular Activating System. It serves as a homing device so that once your brain has a target it keeps on working on it till the mission is accomplished. That’s where ‘flashes’ of genius standing in the shower come from. The R.A.S. is always ‘on’ and always serving us. Keeping little tasks cleared out allows the R.A.S. to serve us at the highest level for the greatest good.)

3. Give yourself space and time to BE fully present with God. I have the attention span of a gnat. Or as a great author once put it, “when I kneel down to pray it’s like my brain becomes a banana tree with 100 monkeys jumping up and down on the branches.” The first time I read that quote I laughed a long time, because I ‘feel’ his problem. Here’s how I quiet the monkeys:
I take time to journal and jot notes in my organizer (see 1 and 2) so that my brain will ‘leave me alone’ for a little while.
When it comes time to pray in earnest I actually like to write or type my prayers because it helps to keep me on track. And, if I do wander off down mental side trail I can recover easily and come back to the task at hand.
If my brain ‘bugs’ me about something I like to just jot a quick note so that I can take of it later. That allows my brain to quit ‘bugging’ me so that I can focus better.

I worship best outdoors on a long walk, or beside a lake, or near a stream, or just watching the clouds. That’s prime time for me to hear from God. That’s when it seems like I’m most clear about what He’s up to and what He wants me to do next. I can’t always get outside or take a long walk every day, but I schedule weekly ‘dates with God’ to allow me the time and energy to get alone with Him.
I’ve found that ‘praying without ceasing’ is not really a big deal when I just talk to Him and listen for Him all day everyday. In the smallest things and in the ‘biggest stuff’ God is active and moving and speaking. When I raise the antenna and dial up His frequency there’s a lot to be heard. I’ve learned that all of life is spiritual and that the frequency of heaven can always be picked up by a heart tuned to God. So, I’m learning to pray ‘as I go’ prayers – just simple chats with God about whatever is on the ‘tip of my brain’.

I’ve learned to let all of life be worship – to know that God doesn’t waste anything. That when I’m changing a diaper I can be glad that I will be changed, too. That when I’m taking out the trash that Jesus is willing to clean the trash out of my life. It’s just that the reality of my life is that I have 3 great kids, a wonderful wife, a huge ministry that gets bigger daily and nearly 3 acres of grass to beat back quite often. So, I don’t always have the luxury of weeks spent in monastic quiet places to commune with God. Often my time with god comes in the ‘to go’ variety. And, what I’m learning is that ‘to go’ with god is still worship when I let it be. In short, I’m not trying to separate life into tidy components anymore. I’m willing to carve out significant blocks of time everywhere I can and yet, embrace the ‘daily-ness’ of life. Just to prove my point, my 7-year-old son just came in with a ‘hunger alert’ and in a few minutes I’ll be upstairs trying to figure out what to do with poptarts and peanut butter and you’ve got to know that both me and the boys will be praying for a miracle that something good will come from my efforts.

4. Nomads should go wireless. I’ve learned and embraced the fact that I’m a ‘nomadic’ worker. That if I’m confined to one environment for very long I get a little crazy and crusty. Because of the wireless revolution and the advent of great machines called ‘laptops’ I can be as nomadic as my heart desires and even more productive than ever. Just give me my laptop, a shot of XS Energy Drink, and my PCS Phone with headset and I’m a ‘very productive, highly happy nomad’. I know most of you don’t have the privilege of working in a flexible manner. I’m sorry for you and I don’t know how you do it! I’d encourage you nomad types to find a less restrictive work situation so you can be who you really are.

5. Go to bed at a reasonable time! Sounds simple, but when you are an ‘inspired worker’ type like me sometimes it’s hard to shut it down. I’m working on this one, but I’m learning that I really do operate much more effectively when I’m not fighting sleep depravation. I enjoy the quiet of the mornings before the rest of my thundering herd is romping across the plains of the living room, so just knowing that I may have a few moments with HIM inspires me to hit the pillow earlier in the evening. The rewards of the ‘discipline’ of going to bed early and rising early are very worth it. But, don’t be surprised if you still get an occasional email from me at some ridiculous time of the wee hours! I’m also learning to be okay with an occasional ‘power nap’ to recharge the mental batteries. Worked for a lot of our U.S. Presidents so, I guess it can work for me too. (Maybe one day I’ll lead a national campaign to institute a daily siesta here in the good ol U.S.A. – what d’ya think about that?)

So, aspiring leader, your greatest joy will come from walking with God and hearing from Him clearly. You will be most useful to Him when you are hearing most clearly from Him.

Take out the ol q-tip and clean out that ear-wax and hear what you’ve been missing.

In my informal poll of one guy whose studied a lot of leaders and wannabe leaders in the Bible and beyond he’s 100% sure that the greatest leaders are proven to have far less ear wax build up.

So, I’m off to roast some pop tarts, why don’t you go grab the Q-tips?

See ya later,
Jeff
p.s. If you are a 'rising leader' who's excited about advancing the Kingdom of God, then you'll want to grab some great FREE resources over at www.risingleaderalliance.com

My Fam

2004-08-07T07:25:00.000-05:00

Joshua, Kaleb and Julie. Easy to see why I'm a happy camper!

2004-08-07T07:00:00.000-05:00

Evelyn and one of her buds out shopping.

2004-08-07T06:03:00.000-05:00

Joshua on My head!

Wind Dancers

2004-08-02T06:06:00.000-05:00

Kite Boarding -- grab the wind and surf away. Wonder if this is as easy as the Kite Boarders I saw made it look?

Wind Dancers

2004-08-01T07:18:00.000-05:00

Kite Boarding looks easy.
Wonder if it really is? Yesterday I got to watch a few really skilled Kite Boarders dance with the wind while a herd of 'wannabes' wondered and watched and tried to untangle enough lines to get one of the giant kites up off the sand.

It strikes me as a great picture of what it's like to dance with God. To dance with an invisible partner.

Some of the things that Kite Boarders do that make sense for those of us who would like to be 'wind dancers' as well -- people who dance on the winds of His spirit and make it look effortless and very, very cool.

Here's a few of the things that they do that makes sense to me.
1. They go where the wind is! -- watch for where God is moving and join Him there
2. They watch masters and take tips from them -- there was one dude who obviously 'got it' and the 'wind got him' too. He was an 'annointed' wind dancer. Several wannabes watched from the sand and took mental notes. It would do us well to choose a 'wind dancer' or two to learn from.
3. They untangle their lines before they get started. They've got to be able to 'feel' the movement of the wind through these strands that connect their harness to the kite. We'd do well to stop and untangle our lines so we can really 'feel' what God is up to.
4. They strap on a harness and clip in -- they get 'fully into the game' . There's no way that this 'wind dance' works unless you 'suit up and hook up and get fully in the harness'. God's wind blows, but we'll never catch it unless we are fully 'hooked up'. There comes a moment when we've got to 'commit all that we are to all that HE IS' if we're really gonna dance on the winds.
5. They wear a wet suit because the water is colder than all gee whiz. We need to understand the reality of where we're called to dance on the winds. God provides, but He gives us a brain, too. You may need to do some very common sense, practical things in order to prepare yourself for the dance. Things like getting enough rest, eating right, taking time to recharge your batteries, 'suiting up' in the full armour of God. You know, real practical stuff that will keep you dancing on the winds of His love.

Here's to being a better 'wind dancer'

Have a great one!
Jeff
p.s. If you are a 'rising leader' who's excited about advancing the Kingdom of God, then you'll want to grab some great FREE resources over at www.risingleaderalliance.com

The Sock Knocker

2004-06-04T04:36:00.000-05:00

Ever met the Sock Knocker?

He's like Super Man on Steroids
Santa Claus Super Sized
He's the first and last word on everything
He's the Sock Knocker

Yeah, the one ready to knock the socks right off your hide every chance He gets

Some call Him Alpha, some call Him Omega
Some call Him Abba, some call Him Adonai
Some call Him Father, some call Him Our Gracious Heavenly Father

He's the pre-eminent one -- the one who was and is and is to come

He is the Great I AM

He is the deliverer of the oppressed Jewish slaves

He is the provider of the breath of life
He is the gatekeeper to the deepest mysteries of the universe
He alone is the one who knows where the wind is stored and how to turn on the wave machine

He's the one who tells the sun when to rise and when to fall
He's the one who orchestrates the tiniest movement in all the universe
He's bigger than the universe and yet interested in you and me

He loved me so much that he gave...
He loved you so much that he gave...

And, He loves us so much that He still gives...

That,s who He is -- The Giver of all that is good

He's the Sock Knocker -- ready to knock the socks right off those who will follow Him

He does it in different ways for different people at different times

For us right now, the Sock Knocker is clearing the path and providing far more lavishly for us than we could have ever dreamed -- not because we're good, but because he is in the dictionary as the #1 definition with a picture under 'good'

He is knockin the socks right off the Fuson family. We don't take it for granted and we just wanted to post a Huge Public Thank-You note to the Sock Knocker.

You may call Him God -- But, to me, He's the Sock Knocker

Wanna know more about the Sock Knocker? Check out this website.

p.s. If you are a 'rising leader' who's excited about advancing the Kingdom of God, then you'll want to grab some great FREE resources over at www.risingleaderalliance.com

2004-06-03T23:11:00.000-05:00

This is my favorite thing to do in the world...time with my family outdoors!

The Leader's Echo

2004-06-03T12:24:00.000-05:00

When you listen close you can hear the echo.

I’m hearing it a lot more often these days and in a lot more places. Sometimes it’s an inspiring echo that reminds me of ‘why’ I serve among Teenagers. Other times I hear it from my beautiful wife as she reminds me why we’ve made certain family and business decisions. And sometimes it’s in beautiful words of love and laughter shared between my kids.

I hear it sometimes at the dinner table and sometimes at the conference table. Sometimes on the ball field or on the drive to school in the morning. I even hear it through email from distant places like Brazil and Poland where I’ve traveled.

And, then, there are the haunting echoes of angry conversations and hard words spoken in mean ways that bounce around the canyon walls of my life for a long, long time.

It’s the ‘Leader’s Echo’ and all of us lead something. We are leaders of families, little league teams, work teams, businesses, people, churches, governments...chances are that you wear several leadership hats. The more hats, the more echoes. The more people you lead the more exciting the echo can be.

My words and your words have a life of their own and they echo and bounce and when they come back to us we realize this at a very deep level. I’m learning more than ever that as a leader that I’ve got to ‘watch my mouth’ because as the writer of the book of James in the Bible says…’behold what a great fire the tongue starts’. The fires that leaders start ought to bring heat and light and inspiration for the team they lead.

Sadly, sometimes the fires my tongue starts are damaging – the equivalent of ‘verbal arson’. When the echo comes back I can always tell if the words were good or bad.

Here’s a few realities about the ‘Leader’s Echo’ …
1. Your words get multiplied by the team you lead
2. Your words get bounced around in the heads of those you lead
3. Your words come back to you for better or for worse
4. Your words can reverberate through the canyons of time for a very long time
5. You will one day hear your words come back to you – choose them wisely
6. Your words will feed your team or your words will tear your team apart

So, leader, choose your words wisely. Choose to use them to build your team and to feed your team. Choose them to convey love and compassion and concern and mercy. Choose them to help people grow. Choose them so that one day when they come back it will be a sweet sound in your ears, because they will come back.

Listen close. Can you hear it? It’s the ‘leader’s echo.’

p.s. You may want to grab some cool resources here:
www.risingleaderalliance.com

The Passion of The Christ directed by Mel Gibson -- Controversial, YES. Impactful, certainly.

2004-02-23T21:41:00.000-05:00

I was recently interviewed by Peter Smith, Courier Journal reporter, about Mel Gibson's new movie being unleashed this Wednesday, February 25th. I appreciate his final article. We're taking over 730 people from our community to see this movie on opening nite. I'm passionate about what Jesus has done for me and how my life is different and I can't wait to allow other people to begin that journey with me. I believe that this movie has the potential to allow us to have conversations that really matter about things that matter most.
My hat's off to Mel Gibson for having the courage to put this together. There are those in the media now scoffing at him because it appears that the movie could be a blockbuster and he stands to make some serious money. Funny that when he needed financial backers in Hollywood none of them would step up to help back the movie because they saw it as a big time loser. The Jesus story has always been controversial and this just forces the discussion. A discussion that most of us try to steer clear of. It's been said that all it takes for evil to triumph is for good men to do nothing.

I'm hopeful that this movie will galvanize good people to become more active and more bold and at the same time more compassionate and Christlike in the marketplace, in politics, at work -- in our world.
Here's Peter's article from the Friday, February 20th Courier Journal

'Passion' evokes both religious fervor, concern of Jews
Movie about Jesus Christ's final hours has Christians seizing rare evangelical opportunity in realm of pop culture

By PETER SMITH
psmith@courier-journal.com
The Courier-Journal
Some see an unprecedented evangelistic opportunity. Others see a dangerous flirtation with anti-Semitic stereotypes.
Opinions vary so widely, it seems that not one but two movies will premiere on Ash Wednesday when Mel Gibson's "The Passion of the Christ" begins its run.
Some ministers, such as the Rev. Jeff Fuson of Louisville, see an opportunity to spread the Christian message with the film, which shows Jesus Christ being sent to a torturous crucifixion that believers say took away the sins of humanity.
Crestwood Baptist Church, where Fuson is youth minister, has rented two theaters at Tinseltown USA cinema for nearly 500 members and their guests to see the film. "It may be the best one outreach opportunity that I've had in 18 years of working with kids," Fuson said. For children raised on "a steady diet of movies, it's a language they're used to."
The movie has become a popular-culture phenomenon for many evangelical Christian churches:
· Many pastors from Louisville and elsewhere have attended pre-release screenings and see the film as a way to urge non-Christians to believe.
· Two dozen Kentuckiana churches and hundreds nationwide have rented theaters for screenings and are distributing movie-related brochures and materials.
· Southeast Christian Church, Kentucky's largest congregation, has organized an entire sermon series on questions raised by the movie.
· Springdale Community Church has planned a discussion series along with a theater rental.
· Clifton Baptist Church will reimburse costs for any member who sees the movie with a non-Christian friend and discusses it over coffee afterward.
The arrival of the movie also marks the arrival of religious controversy, however. Jewish and some Christian leaders are worried that the film could stoke anti-Semitism, even unintentionally. Although they have some concerns about the American response, they are more worried about reaction in foreign countries where hostility to Jews is rising.
Such groups fear that the movie, rooted in the medieval tradition of passion plays, might revive centuries-old stereotypes of Jews as conspiratorial "Christ killers," manipulating the ruling Romans into killing the Christian savior.
Such groups will be having their own discussions, such as a Jewish-Christian dialogue tentatively scheduled for March 9 by the interfaith Cathedral Heritage Foundation.
"I know, having taught Christian history, that most Christians don't know parts of their history, and they don't know why Jews and Christians will see two different films," said Roy Fuller, an interfaith activist who teaches religion at Indiana University Southeast. "They do not understand why Jews will react so strongly to this film."
The movie's messages
Local Jewish leaders are reserving comment on the film until they see its final version next week, though they hope the fallout will not affect the improving relations between American Christians and Jews.
"Historically, as far as passion plays go, it's a mixed record for us ... especially in Europe," said Peter Anik, community relations director for the Jewish Community Federation of Louisville. "Oftentimes they would lead to violent actions from those who had seen them."
Many Protestant evangelical churches say they're sensitive to those concerns but see a very different message in the film. Pastors, many of whom have viewed screenings, are embracing an opportunity to urge viewers to believe in Jesus Christ, even though that message comes via a source they usually deplore: pop culture.
"I've been awfully critical of things that have come out of the entertainment industry, so when something comes along that's positive, I think we should support it," said the Rev. Dave Eichenberger, minister of discipleship at Hikes Point Christian Church, which has paid for an unusual pre-release showing at the Showcase Cinemas Stonybrook on Tuesday with Fern Creek Christian Church. Many adults and teens will be attending and are being urged to bring friends.
To publicize the movie, Gibson has teamed with evangelicals who support a $4 billion Christian retail industry through their churches and alternative media and marketing networks.
National evangelistic organizations are supplying churches with brochures, posters, postcards, door hangers and other materials promoting the film, with room for churches to stamp their names and addresses. One brochure distributed by the Hikes Point church asks, in large type on a blood-red background, "The Passion of the Christ: True or False?" Gibson has shown screenings to clergy, including one in Illinois attended by 5,000 ministers, several from Louisville.
Moviegoers lined up
About 12 local churches have booked showings at the Great Escape cinemas in New Albany, Ind., with more "calling us every day," said Steve Menschell, vice president of operations for the New Albany-based chain."I don't think anybody in the industry has seen anything like this before," he said.
Churches and individuals have booked eight showings at Tinseltown's cinema in Louisville, which plans public showings on three screens, said Terrell Falk, vice president of marketing and communications for Cinemark USA, which owns the Tinseltown theater chain.Two groups have booked private showings at Showcase Cinemas in Louisville, said spokeswoman Jennifer Hanson of the parent company National Amusements.
All three theater chains also report bookings elsewhere in Kentucky.
Catholic groups also are taking an interest, though they are less aggressive about evangelizing via the movie or booking private showings.
WLCR, a local Catholic radio station, will be promoting the film, said general manager Vince Heuser.
"There's a tendency these days to turn worship into entertainment, that if we're not laughing and having a good time, that we're not getting anything out of it," said Heuser. "I think we forget that suffering is an integral part of Christianity."
Adult groups with the Cathedral of the Assumption and Holy Spirit Church plan group outings to the movie.
Anti-Semitic questions
Although Catholic leaders say the film has devotional potential, they also have taken pains in recent decades to renounce the anti-Semitic history of passion plays. The Vatican and American bishops have repeatedly stressed that Jews should not be depicted as collectively killing Christ.
"I don't think anyone can read the Gospel accounts and deny that some Jewish people had a role (in the crucifixion), but certainly not the Jewish people as a nation or as a race," said the Rev. Bill Hammer, director of the Archdiocese of Louisville's Office of Ecumenism and Interreligious Relations. "It's false to lay any blame on them."
Some individual Jewish commentators have written in support of Gibson's project, but many Jewish organizations have voiced concerns. For instance, Abraham Foxman of the New York-based Anti-Defamation League said Jews could suffer "unintended consequences" from the film.
Gibson insists that the movie shows that Jesus willingly accepted his death on behalf of all of sinful humanity.
Protestant ministers such as the Rev. Fred Johnson, associate minister at St. Paul's Missionary Baptist Church, tend to agree.
"Certainly Jesus was a Jew, his disciples were Jews, so it's definitely not an attack on Jews," said Johnson, whose church is encouraging members to see the movie. "We all, in some regards, are guilty if we've sinned."
Southeast Christian, which has more than 20,000 members, has arranged a sermon series leading up to Easter, addressing questions that viewers of the movie likely will be discussing, said the Rev. Dave Stone, the church's preaching associate. "We want to answer the questions that they have," he said.
On the Web
Go to www.courier-journal.com to express your opinions on "The Passion of the Christ" and find links to the movie's Web site and other related sites.

p.s. You may want to grab some cool resources here:
www.risingleaderalliance.com

Great Quotes on Doing the Life You Love

2003-12-03T13:10:00.000-05:00

Okay, so I admit it... "I'm a readaholic". I read like a rabid dog and I've uncovered some great thoughts that I wanted to pass along to you so you could get fired up, too.

Dwight L. Moody's son said this about him,

"It may be safely said that in the beginning of all his greatest and most successful efforts he stood alone, acting against the advice of those best able, apparently, to judge of the matter -- with the one exception of his most valued human advisor, his wife" From page 111 of The Dream Giver by Bruce Wilkinson

On Leader Development
From page 117 of The Dream Giver by Bruce Wilkinson

I was eating lunch with a friend who has a PhD in leadership development. I asked him, "Based on all your research and experience, what would you say is the most important secret to developing world-class leaders?

He put his fork down. "Well, it's not a course, a lecture, or a book," he said. He then picked up his fork and started eating again.

His answer intriqued me. I asked him to explain.

"The single best way to develop leaders, he said, "is to take people out of the their safe environment and away from the people they know, and throw them into a new arena they know little about. Way over their head, preferably. In fact, the more demanding their challenges, the more pressure and risk they face, the more likely a dynamic leader will emerge."

I KNOW this is true for me in my life and in the lives of the leaders I'm developing. I specialize in crafting experiences that develop leaders. If I can ever help you craft a leadership development experience I'd love to do it. Just give me a call at 866-459-7815 or email to: jeff@risingleaderalliance.com

Using EXPERIENCES, MISSIONS, AND ADVENTURES as Leadership Development Greenhouses is a core value for us at Rising Leader Alliance.com. So, if that sounds like YOU or something your team needs please let me know and let's figure out how to develop more leaders faster for your endeavor.

Have a great one,
Jeff Fuson

p.s. If you are a 'rising leader' who's excited about advancing the Kingdom of God, then you need to RUN to Rising Leader Alliance.com and splash around a lot! Join the community, sign up for FUEL, grab some cool tools, maybe even post your story so that other leaders will be inspired by what God is doing in your life!

p.p.s. If you lead an organization that could use an ENERGY INJECTION then consider bringing me in to do a Custom Crafted Training Experience for you. I'm launching some very cool Adventure Training and Action Learning Experiences that you and your team could benefit from. Drop an email to me and we can talk more.

p.p.p.s. Host a Daddy Power (tm) Event at your church to encourage the Dads in your congregation to excel at their most important task -- being 'DADDY'. Drop me a email to learn more.

p.p.p.p.s. Okay last one! Feel FREE to distribute this content as long as you pass it along in it's entirety with all links in place pointing to original urls. Give credit where credit is due and use this to build other people up. Thanks for playing and thanks for passing this along. Jeff Fuson

As good as it gets!

2003-07-30T21:35:00.000-05:00

Ever been on a water slide with a six year old? That's as good as it gets this side of the 'great divide' To hear him whoop and holler and have a great time is an absolute blast. Hope you all can have that much fun sometime.
p.s. You may want to grab some cool resources here:
www.risingleaderalliance.com

Freedom Is Never Free -- Thought for Memorial Day 2003

2003-05-26T07:48:00.000-05:00

Freedom is Never Free
Never was and never is.
The freedoms I enjoy here in the U.S.A. are unequaled on this ball of mud.
Yet, those freedoms were bought with the priceless blood of thousands of men and women throughout our history.
The freedom I have as a Christ follower were bought at a tremendous price as Jesus died on a cross for me.
The freedoms I enjoy as an entrepreneur are bought at a price of time, energy, money, and sometimes sacrifice.
Although freedom is never free, freedom is always worth the price.

p.s. You may want to grab some cool resources here:
www.risingleaderalliance.com

Exploration is in your genes!

2003-05-23T08:57:00.000-05:00

He's the cutest thing ever--my little boy Kaleb. He's got this fuzzy pumpkin colored hair and big blue eyes and a strong spirit of adventure boiling over within. He's only 9 months old and is enjoying the freedom of crawling and 'pulling up' because his knees carry him to exotic places like the fireplace or the tangle of wires under my computer or to my keyboard where he bangs happily like daddy! He was just pulling up on my leg--so cool to watch him do his thing.

God wired him for exploration and adventure--for conquest of the cabinets!

What did He wire you for?

It seems that He wired all of us with curious minds that naturally explore and learn when we feel safe enough to take the journey.

How's your 'sense of adventure'? How strong is your urge to 'explore'. Follow that urge and see where God takes you. It just may be a very cool place--like the fireplace or a tangle of wires under your computer--or someplace even better.

p.s. You may want to grab some cool resources here:
www.risingleaderalliance.com

What do YOU Have to do?!

2003-05-14T21:57:00.000-05:00

It's so cool to get to work with passionate people. On all sides of my life I have the chance to work with very cool, very fired-up people who have huge gifts. It's so amazing to me that there is absolutely no way to keep these people from expressing their gifts!

Drummers have got to drum--all the time! Strummers have to strum, crooners have got to croon, preacher's have got to preach, and leaders MUST lead. It's unstoppable. As sure as water runs down hill and the North Star is truly in the North, so must a gifted person express her/his gifts.

My assistant loves to cook. So, when I reminded her that we are having our planning session at our house tomorrow she asked immediately, 'Can I bring something?' Because I've been watching this 'gift thing' in people lately I was very aware that she was really asking because of that gift that has to be shared. She HAS to bring something (taco dip thingamajig) because her gift MUST be shared. She would feel very unfulfilled if she did not share her culinary gifts with us--and our meal wouldn't be nearly as good as it's gonna be if she didn't.

So, it's got me wondering, what gifts do I have that MUST be shared. What is scratching to get out of me...just has to be expressed?

This blog is part of it! I've got to share my journey with you, because God has put me in a position to be prolific and share in hopes that you are inspired to 'get in the game' and share your gifts with the world.

So, what is it in that HAS TO BE SHARED. What is bubbling up in you making you feel like you are about to boil over if it doesn't get released soon?
If you'd like to explore this with some cool questions to help you get a grip on what YOU ARE REALLY ALL ABOUT, you can grab 7 Great Questions that will help you learn more about you by sending an email to: 7PQ@jeff.par32.com with 'send info' in the subject line. You'll get 7 powerful questions that will help you learn more about what really makes you tick!
SO, What do you HAVE to do?

If you want to sound off about this you could send it in to me over here via the 'Sound Off' link at www.risingleaderalliance.com

If you want your life to have impact, focus it!

2003-05-08T13:00:00.000-05:00

There is nothing quite as potent as a focused life, one lived on purpose. The men and women who have made the greatest difference in history were the most focused. For instance, the apostle Paul almost single-handedly spread Christianity throughout the Roman Empire. His secret was a focused life. He said, "I am focusing all my energies on this one thing: Forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead."

If you want your life to have impact, focus it! Stop dabbling.

Stop trying to do it all. Do less. Prune away even good activities and do only that which matters most. Never confuse activity with productivity. You can be busy without a purpose, but what's the point? Paul said, "Let's keep focused on that goal, those of us who want everything God has for us."

Rick Warren 'nails it down' for those of us committed to becoming all the God has gifted and called us to be. Warren's book, The Purpose Driven Life (Zondervan, 2002), is loaded with vital, strong content. I highly recommend you take this 40 day journey through A Purpose Driven Life. You can grab a deeply discounted copy of this book at the 'Leader Store' (tm).

How focused are you?

If you'd like to grab 21 questions that will really help you zero in on your leadership potential you can zoom HERE. Click the 'Free Stuff' button on the left and hit the 'L.Q' (tm) section to grab this great resource. The questions are free and will be sent directly to your inbox. Working through these questions will definitely help you become more focused on living a life of powerful focus.

2003-05-07T14:35:00.000-05:00

Thanks for taking time to hang out here with me. You might also like to grab a boatload of free stuff for leaders over at www.risingleaderalliance.com or if you are ready to build your dreams by leveraging the power of the internet, then check this out...http://www.icomrocket.com The password is 'Rocket'

2003-03-25T23:35:00.000-05:00

Pretty amazing that you can take your ideas and post them directly to the internet! Very cool and very inspiring that I can begin to share musings and rants and raves directly to the internet from anywhere on the planet. This will definitely be the way for me to update the Student Ministry Site and RLA and I-commerce Sites from the road and from the home on the fly while I'm in motion. This will allow me to do the collaborative component of RLA very effectively. It will allow me to the posts that I need to do quickly with no middle man and so, I'm off to the races with this. Can't wait to incorporate this into the www.risingleaderalliance.com equation.

So cool, so quick, so easy. That's bloggin for the common man!