Living Creatively

by Adam Kolosik

As leaders in ministry we must create. We create systems, services, programs, curriculum, moments and many other things. We are all creative in our own unique ways and we have access to the ultimate Creator of the universe. But what is the most important thing we will create? Will it be a large youth ministry? An amazing outreach? The perfect small group curriculum? I challenge that none of these things are anywhere near the importance of the creative act of living the life God is calling us to live. The most important creative act we will ever do is living a life on mission for the cause of Christ. The creative act of it is how we live our life and the story it tells those around us.

Our life and how we live will tell so much more to the students we lead than any sermon or illustration ever will. We can tell a story of authentic and genuine Love for Christ and His mission or we can tell one that says we care enough about it to make a few Facebook posts and tell a good sermon each week. Living a life after Christ is what got us all into this thing called leadership, so let us continue to create a life for ourselves that is falling more and more in love with Christ and inspiring others to do so from our position of leadership.

Seeing What Can Be

by Jonathan Barthalow

Some time ago Tom and Heath captured a vision for the college campuses and university students across our state.  And now, God is sweeping across eight campus mission fields through the ministry of Chi Alpha, and we know that He has even greater things in store.  Because of their leadership and vision Chi Alpha is in place at UNI and seven students were able to encounter God and give their hearts to Him last during the first meeting of the school year!

A crucial aspect of leadership is vision.  Without a vision of what could be, we are wandering in the dark only seeing what is, with no direction and little hope for what lies ahead.  We need to get a hold of God and ask him for the vision to see things the way He sees them.  Perhaps right now, in your home, church or city all you see are things that are not as they should be.  Pray for God’s eyes to show you how He sees things.  On the college campus, there are many opportunities to look around and be disheartened by all that is broken and distorted, but we choose to celebrate what God is doing in the lives of those who are boldly and confidently at work restoring what has been damaged.  We see him at work in the darkest of places, and we’re encouraged by his plans and his work.

The mayor of Newark, New Jersey, Cory Booker, visited the projects and met up with a woman who had lived there all her life.  She asked him to look around and tell her what he saw.  He said, “I see a drug deal over there, broken down buildings,” and proceeded to tell her everything he could see that was wrong.  She turned to him and said, “You can’t help us.”  She knew that until he saw the project for what it could be, instead of what it was he would be of no use to them.  Let’s be that woman in the lives of the people in our sphere of influence and in our communities.

Leading with Excellence

by Heath Adamson

A Rolls Royce is an extremely expensive automobile. What makes it so expensive? Why would a person pay hundreds of thousands of dollars for a car? It takes 6 months to make and is handmade by 4,500 people. Only 63,000 people in the U.S. can afford one. It receives 10 coats of hand sprayed paint. It has a one million mile odometer. It only takes 13 hours to build a Toyota.  Toyotas are great cars but they don’t drive for a million miles.  In the automobile industry, the key to going the long haul is paying attention to detail, putting in the time and doing things with excellence. I believe that excellence is a determining factor to our leadership making it to the “millionth mile.” Often, royalty travels from afar to witness excellence. This is evidenced in the story of Solomon and the Queen of Sheba.

“But I did not believe these things until I came and saw with my own eyes. Indeed, not even half was told me; in wisdom and wealth you have far exceeded the report I heard. “
1 Kings 10:7 (NIV)

The excellence of Solomon’s kingdom took the Queen of Sheba’s breath away. The way he developed his team, his facility, how he handled his money and how knowledgeable he was. all contributed to her astonishment. It affected the queen in such a way that she came to the church for answers.  At the end of the day, we want to honor our God and King with our best.  He deserves it.  Excellence isn’t always being the best; it is doing your best with what you have in your hand. A heart committed to God is the key to excellence.

Historically, excellence has been used as a title of honor. It is derived from the word excel and means to be better or surpass. Excellence is a message that speaks into the lives of students, parents, communities and churches that what we are doing is important enough to take the time to do it well.

Excellence is doing your job better than expected. The quality of your product will be remembered long after the price of it has been forgotten.

Excellence is giving attention to the smallest detail. “Race horses that can run one second faster than the other is worth many times more than the others.”  John Hess said “It is the small things that causes us to do well.”

Leading with excellence is a key in standing out for His glory in today’s chameleon culture.