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It’s a good question: Why would I put all of this effort into writing yet another book? The simple answer: This book basically wrote itself!
In their book Spiritual Leadership, Henry and Richard Blackaby wrote, “Biblical praying can be the most challenging, exhausting, laborious, and yet rewarding thing leaders do. … More than any other single thing leaders do, their prayer life determines their effectiveness.”
This is exactly why I wrote Amen Indeed—I wanted to help shepherd leaders with this laborious yet rewarding discipline. You can pick up a copy by clicking here.
Here’s a quote from John Piper that got me thinking: “God loves His people. He loves for them to get good food, rich food. He knows how to put His shepherds in the vice of affliction and squeeze out of us authentic, prayer-soaked, desperation-flavored insight—the unsearchable riches of Christ for the joy of His people.” Pastor, God wants to use you to shepherd the flock He’s placed under your care. So trust Him to give you what you need. And check out my book When Sheep Bite to help you along through this journey.
“Do more than go to church; be the church. Find a place to serve in the promises of your pastor and fight for that vision like it was your own. Do more than give what’s left; give what’s right. Do more than show up as a consumer; show up as a partner, knowing the day will come when you will need partnership to see your dream come to pass. If your promise is concerning business, then be the best employee of the people for whom you work. If your promise will need generous people involved to make it happen, then be generous in the promises of others. If your promise is about your family, be a blessing to the families of those who are around you. Make their dreams come to pass and you will plant the seeds that will, in time, become the fruit of your God-given why.” —Jim Wiegand, in Why is Greater Than What
“You have noticed, I expect, that Christ Himself sometimes describes the Christian way as very hard, sometimes as very easy. He says, ‘Take up your Cross’—in other words, it is like going to be beaten to death in a concentration camp. Next minute he says, ‘My yoke is easy and my burden light.’ He means both.” —C.S. Lewis, in Mere Christianity
T.M. Moore is beginning a new series of posts on the importance of the spiritual life for the Christian. He writes, “We may thus define the spiritual life in terms of Christ exalted as our focus, Christ indwelling as our sustaining power, Christ at work in and through us as the outcome of our discipleship, and Christ returning as the hope which sustains us through the tests we encounter every day. True spiritual life, in other words, is all about Jesus Christ.”
“The truths of eternity have an infinite power. They are often powerless because we do not give them time to reveal themselves. Taking time to be alone with God is the only remedy. … The Word that we get from the mouth of God brings the power to know it and to do it. Let us learn this lesson: personal fellowship with God alone in secret can make the Word alive and powerful.” —Andrew Murray
Dr. Thaddeus Williams unpacks what Charles Darwin meant when he wrote to a friend, “The horrid doubt always arises whether the convictions of man’s mind, which has been developed from the mind of the lower animals, are of any value or at all trustworthy.” Check out Dr. Williams’ post, which he opens with, “If our minds came from a capital “M” Mind—God—gifted to us as truth-knowing mechanisms, we have a reason to reason. But if our minds came from a non-mind, a literally dumb process of random mutations and natural selection, then our minds are not fundamentally truth-knowing mechanisms, but mere survival mechanisms.”
“Our first birth brought us into sin and sorrow, but our second birth brings us into purity and joy. We were born to die; now are we born never to die, ‘begotten again’ unto a life that shall remain in us for evermore, a life which shall even penetrate these mortal bodies, and make them immortal, ‘by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.’” —Charles Spurgeon, commenting on 1 Peter 1:3-4
Listen to the podcast of this post by clicking on the player below, and you can also subscribe on Apple, Spotify, or Audible. Check out the video content in this post by clicking here.
Gentleness is both a safe word and an unsafe word, which makes gentleness such an indispensable trait for shepherd leaders. Check out this clip from my time on the Leading from Alignment podcast.
Here is an excerpt from the chapter that Jim Wiegand was referencing—
I mention this fruit of gentleness specifically because I think it is one of the least understood and one of the most powerful virtues in a shepherd’s life. If you go to a modern dictionary for a definition of gentleness, you might read words like kind, moderate, calm, and tame. If you dig a little deeper into the synonyms, you will discover words like meek and mild.
The Greek philosophers thought and taught extensively about the virtues. For them a virtue was a healthy tension or a balanced response between two opposite extremes. Many philosophers referred to a virtue as a “golden mean” between those extremes. For instance, the virtue of generosity might be described as the golden mean between thriftiness and lavishness; courage could be the golden mean between rashness and timidity; and purity the golden mean between prudishness and immorality.
The gentleman or gentlewoman is not a pushover. They are strong. They know what they believe in and are passionate for the truth. They know when to fight and how to fight. So gentleness becomes the golden mean between a pacifist and a fighter. Gentleness is a lion with powerful muscles, razor-sharp claws, and a jaw strong enough to snap a bone who knows how to velvet its paws and use its nearly invincible strength as a means for good. —from Chapter 3: “A Shepherd’s Gentleness”
I thoroughly enjoyed Jim Wiegand’s book Why is Greater than What as a guide to helping folks discover God’s purpose for their lives. Check out my full book review here.
These are a few of the quotes I found highlighter worthy. My Patreon supporters have access to all of the quotes I highlighted.
“Those who wait for a plan before they pursue their dreams will become little more than the sum of their average deeds. Those who live from their why change the world and those who are in it.”
“God has hidden many things from us. Some things are for another time. Some things we just could not understand. But God has not hidden your purpose from you. That’s not to say it’s an easy thing to discern at times. Although parts of you are yet unclear, God hasn’t hidden things from you; He’s hidden things for you.”
“When a person is in pain, he sees life through his pain. He fills in the blanks with his own insecurities and sees things that aren’t really there.”
“What bothers you? What is it you see in the world that you would change? What breaks your heart? What do you find yourself praying about more than any other thing? What subjects do people no longer want to talk to you about because you’re always talking about those things? Most often (maybe always) this is the first clue to your God-given why.”
“Sometimes pain is a good thing. Sometimes pain is even a God thing. The ones I truly pity, the ones I call the ‘living dead,’ are the ones who roam the land and live a life that ignores their pain, who never went, never risked, never obeyed what they knew was the right thing for them.”
“One of the biggest reasons dreams don’t come to pass is that we dream selfish dreams for things that have no eternal value. God is not obligated to move heaven and earth to make you happy. If you believe He is, perhaps you have created a god in your image to serve you. The One True God made you in His image to serve Him.”
Listen to the podcast of this post by clicking on the player below, and you can also subscribe on Apple, Spotify, or Audible.
Many people struggle with the thought of, “What am I supposed to be doing with my life?” Jim Wiegand says there is a more fundamental question to be asked—a question that will help clarify direction for all of us. In his book Why Is Greater Than What, Jim outlines how God uses our pain, passion, and proficiency to show us the life He planned for us. This “Why,” he says, is so much greater than our “What.”
Using character studies from the Bible, his own life, and other historical examples, Jim shows how there are three distinct things that reveal to us why God placed us on earth with the strengths and abilities that we have.
The first of the three Ps is pain. Noticing what breaks your heart is a key factor to discovering your “Why.” The second P is passion: paying attention to the things that energize you. And the third P is proficiency. This is seeing your unique skill set that allows you to easily do things that others struggle to do. The intersection of these three Ps is the bullseye of why God knit you together the way He did.
Once you have your “Why,” you will be better able to discover the “Way” which God has prepared for you to walk.
Not that this is an easy task. In fact, Jim shares quite candidly the challenges that we will all face in attempting to live out our “Why” and “Way.” Jim writes, “This is not a just cheer up book. This is not a get the life of your dreams in three easy steps book. This is a get off your butt and live before God without excuses book!”
And I would add: This is a vital book to help you live in a way that brings God glory and fills you with a sense of purpose and satisfaction.
If you are a leader, you may also want to check out another Jim Wiegand book called Recruiting To Releasing, which will help you lead people to discovering their three Ps.
Listen to the podcast of this post by clicking on the player below, and you can also subscribe on Apple, Spotify, or Audible.
On the Leading From Alignment podcast, I was discussing my book When Sheep Bite which is about leadership pain. John Opalewski asked me to share some things leaders should consider when they get bit.
On a different podcast, I discussed in more detail the idea in Luke 2:52 about Jesus growing in favor with men. Check out The Pinnacle of a Leader’s Health.
You can get more information on When Sheep Bitehere. And also check out my book of prayer for pastors called Amen Indeed.
Listen to the podcast of this post by clicking on the player below, and you can also subscribe on Apple, Spotify, or Audible.
When people lash out at us—when they bite us—they could be giving us invaluable insight into what is truly in our heart. Before we respond too quickly, we need to take some time for introspection.
Check out this part of my conversation with John Opalewski and Jim Wiegand on the Leading From Alignment podcast.
Chapter 2 of When Sheep Bite is entitled ‘Is God Trying to Get My Attention?’ I tell a story about two similar bites I received from two totally different people who didn’t even know each other. I wrote—
As I drove back across the state, I kept the radio off and my ears open. I could feel the Holy Spirit asking me, “Why do you think two different people have called you the same nasty word?” The only honest answer I could give was, “Because it’s true.”
I wasn’t wrong in the way I held to the rules, but my overly-confident attitude had definitely crossed the line to become an in-your-face arrogance. I learned two lessons from this experience. First, if I do the right thing the wrong way, I’ve really done the wrong thing. Second, when similar attacks come, I need to pay attention.
Now, when a painful attack suddenly confronts me, I go to the mirror. Instead of asking, “What’s wrong with them that they would bite me like this?” I go to prayer to ask, “Did I do something that provoked this?” Sometimes I have literally gone into my bathroom, closed the door, and gotten nose-to-nose with myself to ask this question, and then listened for the Holy Spirit to speak to my heart.
My cousin Dick Brogden wrote, “Critics and skeptics are gifts to us, for in their aspersions they often bring to light a brokenness or a liability early on in its development in us. If we are secure enough to ferret out the truth through the condemnation of others, we remain healthy in the long term as our malady is exposed and dealt with before it becomes too serious.”
Remember that we are naturally self-protective, so this time of introspection will need to be supernaturally empowered by the Holy Spirit if we are going to see the true prompter of the attack.
Please check out my book When Sheep Bite to both heal from past bites and prepare yourself for the bites which are inevitably coming in the future.
The closing chapter of my book When Sheep Bite is entitled ‘Faithfulness > Fight or Flight.’ In that chapter I wrote—
Remember that we are all striving to not succumb to the natural fight-or-flight response, but to attain the supernatural response of faithfulness. In this, we have a perfect example in our Good Shepherd.
In the Book of Revelation, Jesus is called the One who is “Faithful” (Revelation 19:11), and Paul says that the Faithful One who has called us will empower us to remain steadfast: “He who calls you is faithful, who also will do it” (1 Thessalonians 5:24 NKJV).…
Yes, fight-or-flight is our natural response, but with the empowerment of the Holy Spirit, we can respond in supernatural faithfulness. We don’t have to sit unmoving and unfeeling, but we can continue to serve even biting sheep until God removes us or them.
We glorify God by faithfully serving the sheep He has placed under our care, giving our very best, even if our words and actions are unappreciated or ignored by those we are serving.
If you are in a difficult place in your leadership assignment, I encourage you to check out When Sheep Bite.
Listen to the podcast of this post by clicking on the player below, and you can also subscribe on Apple, Spotify, or Audible.
If leaders say or do the right thing in the wrong way, it really becomes the wrong thing. This is why leaders—especially those who have been sheep-bitten and want to bring corrections—need to take a pause.
In that short moment of reflection, the Holy Spirit can help pastoral leaders respond in a way that will bring restoration, not more pain and possibly division.
I talked about this idea from chapter 2 of my book When Sheep Bite on the Leading From Alignment podcast with John Opalewski and Jim Wiegand.
Listen to the podcast of this post by clicking on the player below, and you can also subscribe on Apple, Spotify, or Audible.
In someways, my new book When Sheep Bite came out of my first book Shepherd Leadership. And yet, in many ways I consider When Sheep Bite to be the prequel of Shepherd Leadership.
Check out this short clip from my interview on the Leading From Alignment podcast with John Opalewski and Jim Wiegand where I try to explain what I mean.
In whatever order you choose to read these books, I have been thrilled to hear back from pastors and other church leaders who have found encouragement from both of them.
You can watch the full Leading Form Alignment interview here.
Craig T. Owens 