The Value Of Prayer And Communing With God

My personal view of mission revolves around Servant Leadership or what can be better called “Incarnational leadership”. This is rooted in the life of our Lord Jesus Christ, as “He took a towel” (John 13:2-5) and washed Peter’s feet. He was efficient with people, had goals in sight, but was also relational over being task-driven. This kind of leadership produces new churches filled with real purpose and motivation as people are called, appreciated, loved, encouraged, discipled, involved by mentoring and discipleship before they are deployed in ministry (Prov. 27:23; Mark 10:35-45; Luke 22:26; John 13:2-17; 1 Cor. 3- 4; Eph. 4:1-16; Col. 3:13; 1 Thess. 5:13-14; 1 Peter 3:8;

Ministry is more than just choosing a vocation for life; ministry calls the individual and beckons them to follow. At 53 years of age, I have taken a long journey to get to where I am today in ministry, yet I can say with all honesty, "I have not yet arrived." In describing the ingredients to a lasting ministry, Kevin Miller states, “A ‘call’ to ministry is not easily defined, but nothing could be more solid to most pastors. The call of God is

The pastor role is to teach/preach the word of God with understanding and along with the Spirit guide and direct the people in the ways of God.

My purpose in life is to be a living sacrifice to my Lord, who gave His life for me so that I might live on purpose for His purpose and others. My personal mission in life is to continue to learn to walk with Christ so that I can walk like Christ. And, to know Him in a more personal way as Apostle Paul stated in Phil. 3:10 (KJV), “That I may know him, and the power of his resurrection, and the fellowship of his sufferings, being made conformable unto his death;”

Pastor Renfro, as he is known by those who have had the pleasure to meet him, defines servant leadership as “one of the many models of ministry, each of which describes how a particular minister understands his/her role and approach to ministry as a vocation, and a way of life.” Dr. John Renfro is currently senior chaplain at Conway Medical Center in Conway, South Carolina. He grew up in simple, rural South Carolina in Spartanburg County, and he benefitted from a family who had a personal deep connection with God. His simplistic beginning provides the anchor of stability in a turbulent world for his family and those whom he offers ministry. Pastor Renfro has felt that “ministry grows out of life, the life of an

God’s primary way of developing leaders was through mentoring. The most positive and effective technique to prepare people for life and leadership is through mentoring. As Christians, we are charged to “help the weak and encourage the timid” and to “serve and care for the flock.” A task impossible for church leaders to personally mentor so they assist prospective mentees in finding qualified godly mentors, as

Drucker’s admonishment assists me as a pastor to remain faithful to what God has called me to do. My ambition should not be reflective of a business matrix. Rather, my purpose is to serve others as they progress on their journey in Christ. Furthermore, I am reminded that I am not a CEO, but an under-shepherd to the Good Shepherd. With that in mind, I must lead as Christ, through serving the needs of the mission. Jesus’ mission was to “seek and to save the lost” (Luke 19:10, ESV). As a pastor, my mission is found in Ephesians 4:11-16 and Matthew 28:19-20. I must strive to be faithful to the mission He has given me to point people to Jesus and develop disciples.

From the group Biblical Integration Paper, it was understood that servant-leadership is not only a gift of purpose that God places in the hearts of His people, but it is also a calling in one’s life to truly touch the lives of others in need. Living a successful life, as a servant-leader is not one that focuses on self-fulfillment, rather it is in seeking a fulfillment that comes from Christ when one pours him/herself out for the sake of others. It is through servant-leadership that one is able to bring hope into hopeless situations (Group Integration Paper,

Prayer connects us to the heart of God and allows God to transform us. This book was not like another praying book I read that left me feeling guilty about my prayer life but it instead improved my prayer life. Major Themes: Learning to Pray like a Child

Christ is the leader of the Church, Paul in Ephesians 1:22 said “God placed everything under his feet and appointed him to be head over everything for the Church” however, God entrusted the authority to lead to his servant whom he set them aside to lead the community. Pastor as a public Leadership is to lead community. A person who is called by God to lead public has a responsibility to be in the community, with the community and for the community. One of best questions raised in the class during public leadership discussion was “How we can be a community pastor rather than just a church pastor?” This really a kind of question we are to consider as pastor especially as rural congregation pastor. In most cases when pastor are called to

Effective leadership approaches from a biblical perspective consist of God’s nature in his manifested character. Christian leaders are willing to pay the price to lead in Christ’s affliction. Paul said there is a price to pay in order to lead and Jesus reminded us, “Remember what I told you: 'A servant is not greater than his master. ' If they persecuted me, they will persecute you also. If they obeyed my teaching, they will obey yours also” (John 15:20, New International Version). Christian leaders need core attributes of God’s styles and approaches, support and linkage from scriptures, and knowledge of his leadership models of truth for effective leadership. However, these perspectives will gave me a better appreciation and insight of who God is and who I can be with his guidance.

It began at an early age. I was a sophomore in college interning in the youth department at my home church, Grace United Methodist, in Hastings, Nebraska. My senior pastor, Jim Miller, was an incredible man of God who really showed me what it looked like to live Jesus out in the flesh. He saw something in me, which at the time I blew off completely. Jim saw my gifting’s, and strengths for ministry. I remember one specific afternoon when I was preparing for a youth Bible study that he came in and started talking to me about Seminary and the process of becoming a United Methodist Pastor. At this time in my life I had a plan for my future, a plan that included the medical field, not a full time ministry job. Although, now after much time in prayer and pursuing the heart of God like Barton discusses in her book “Sacred Rhythms” I look back and see that this was the beginning of Jesus’ pursuit for me to serve within the local church under the United Methodist umbrella. Barton writes, that it is in this place of intimacy with God where we are lead to a place where we are not in control, but are fully rendered to Him (Barton, 67). It was from this deep intimacy with the Father in prayer that helped me navigate this call that God had put on my life.

In brief order, the role of a pastor or leader is to be a servant leader. The Bible provides pastors and leaders in a Christian church with the best model of a servant leader in Jesus Christ. According to Thorsten Grahn (2011), “Jesus submitted his own life to sacrificial service under the will of (Luke 22:42), and he sacrificed his life freely out of service for others (John 10:30). He came to serve (Matthew 20:28) although he was God’s son and was thus more powerful than any other leader in the world. He healed the sick (Mark 7:31-37), drove out demons (Mark 5:1-20), was recognized as Teacher and Lord (John 13:13), and had power over the wind and the sea and even over death (Mark 4:35-41; Matthew 9:18-26. In John 13:1-17 Jesus gives … responsibility of the house-servant” (Grahn, 2011, p. 2).

Having been a Christian for many years I thought that I had a fair knowledge of what it meant to pray. I was amazed and humbled by the idea that through Jesus’ restorative act on the cross I am able to come into God’s presence - and not only come but be welcomed and even longed for. I believed that prayer is a powerful tool to petition God , a vehicle to praise Him , and an instrument to increase our intimacy with Him . I understood that people pray in a variety of ways, based on the teaching they have received, their experience, and even their personality. Most commonly, I engaged in prayer as a conversation with God.

In Colossians 1:9-14, Paul was writing a letter to the church in Colossae to inform them that he was praying for them and they were God’s chosen people. Paul also informed the people that they would grow in knowledge if they continued to follow God’s word. Paul encouraged the people to be faithful even when they were going through trials and tribulations. This paper will discuss the author of Colossians, purpose of Colossians, the importance of prayer, the church in Colossae, and how the scripture will relate to the church today.