leadership | Craig T. Owens

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Giant Killers

March 2, 2009 — Craig T. Owens

Multiple choice quiz: with which of the following biblical characters are you familiar?

(a) David son of Jesse.
(b) Abishai son of Zeruiah.
(c) Sibecai the Hushathite.
(d) Elhanan son of Jaare-Oregim.
(e) Jonathan son of Shimeah.

Honestly, now, how did you do? I’m guessing you at least got (a) since David is probably the best known king of Israel. But what about the other guys? Have you ever heard of them before?

Do you know what they all have in common? They are all a part of King David’s inner circle, and they are all giant killers.

Isn’t it interesting how like attracts like? David became the original giant killer when he killed Goliath. Abishai, Sibecai, Elhanan, and Jonathan were probably attracted to David because of his bravery, because of the stories they had heard of his victory over Goliath. But then something starts to stir inside of these men—they want to emulate David, they want to be giant killers too.

So here are the questions I’m asking myself today:
(a) Have I won any victories that would attract other “warriors” to me?
(b) Is what I’m doing today something I would want those closest to me to emulate?
(c) Are there some giants still hanging around that I need to defeat?

You can find out a lot about the significance of the victories you have won by who’s attracted to you, and by who’s imitating your lifestyle.

Posted in Uncategorized. Tags: David, encouragement, example, friends, Goliath, inner circle, leadership, relationships. Leave a Comment »

Piling On!

January 26, 2009 — Craig T. Owens

It just wasn’t going very well for David!

His boss, Saul, was jealous of him and was trying to kill him.
He had to leave his best friend behind when he ran for his life.
And his wife.
And his Mom & Dad.
And his brothers.
And his pastor.
Then his best friend is almost killed for standing up for David.

So David runs to enemy territory. After all “the enemy of my enemy is my friend,” right?

Um, not so much! The king of Gath was Saul’s enemy, but he wasn’t too fond of David either. How does David get out of this one? He starts drooling like an idiot, clawing weird symbols on the wooden doors and acting like a madman!

David runs away from Gath to Adullam Cave, which then quickly becomes the gathering spot for every distressed, bankrupt malcontent in the country. Some following David had!

Have you ever had one of those days? You know, where nothing is going right, and everywhere you turn is simply more trouble—out of the frying pan and into the fire! The problems just seem to keep piling on!

Yet there in Adullam Cave, David pens some of the most profound words. Read them carefully, and note the progression:

I will extol the LORD at all times; His praise will always be on my lips.
My soul will boast in the LORD; let the afflicted hear and rejoice.
Glorify the LORD with me; let us exalt His name together. (Psalm 34:1-3)

Notice how David chooses to praise God as an act of his will—I will extol the Lord… I will praise Him with my lips.

And then this act of his will gets into his soul (his emotions), and as a result, the other distressed, bankrupt malcontents begin to see something different in David. He doesn’t break down when the problems pile on; he praises God!

And then these malcontents begin to glorify the Lord with David; they begin to exalt His name together.

Friends, how you choose to respond when the problems pile on is vital. Yes, misery loves company. If you are feeling miserable, other miserable people will flock to you. Don’t use this group to have a pity party, but see it as an incredible opportunity to use your will to praise God.

Remember, feelings follow actions. You may not feel like praising God because the problems are piled on so high, but when you act the feelings will follow. David went from “I will” to “my soul” in just one verse! And the same thing will happen for you too!

A distressed, malcontented world is watching you—what will you do when your problems pile on?

Posted in Uncategorized. Tags: 1 Samuel, David, discouragement, encouragement, faith, faith in action, leadership, Psalm, testimony, willpower, witness, worship. 2 Comments »

What A Woman!

December 10, 2008 — Craig T. Owens

Gustave Dore’s painting of Deborah’s song of triumph

Do you remember the old Enjoli perfume commercial? It was a classic! What a woman—she could make breakfast, pass out the kisses, and still get to work before nine in the morning. She could work 9-5, bring home the bacon, fry it up in a pan, and never let her man forget he was a man.

Wow! What a woman!

I was reading Judges 4-5 in the Bible this morning and was reminded of this commercial when I read about Deborah—the Bible’s version of the Enjoli woman.

Deborah was a devoted wife, a first-class mother, and a full-time prophetess. People from all over Israel came to her for godly advice for their domestic problems. There were national problems too—King Jabin and his general Sisera, with his 900 iron chariots, held an iron grip over all of Israel. Things were so bad that the Israelites stayed off the main roads, and life in their villages as they knew it ceased. Until Israel’s Enjoli woman came along.

Village life in Israel ceased,
ceased until I, Deborah, arose,
arose a mother in Israel. (Judges 5:7)

Wow! What a woman!

Deborah sent a message to a warlord named Barak, “God commands you to gather an army and head into the hills of Mount Tabor. God will lure Sisera into the Kishon River valley and He Himself will fight Sisera’s armies ahead of you.”

Barak is a man who has enough clout with just two tribes of Israel, that at one call 10,000 warriors join him. Barak is a man who has just been told that God Himself is going to fight Sisera alongside Barak’s forces.

But Barak is a coward!

A man with everything going for him says to Deborah, “Only if you go with me, I will go; but if you don’t go with me, I won’t go.”

All of Israel is forever grateful for that Enjoli woman who went with the army, and led them in an incredible victory.

Wow! What a woman!

I am praying that God will raise up more godly women who will boldly speak God’s word to fearful people today.

Posted in Uncategorized. Tags: Barak, coward, Deborah, Enjoli, Israel, Judges, leadership, prophetess. 3 Comments »

Rethinking The Master’s Master Plan

December 1, 2008 — Craig T. Owens

Betsy and my kids had a snow day today, so I took the opportunity to work from home too. I spent some time this afternoon reading some more of Robert Coleman’s excellent book The Master Plan Of Evangelism. Here’s a quote from this book which has stuck with me all day:

“If Sunday services and membership training classes are all that a church has to develop young converts into mature disciples, then they are defeating their own purpose by contributing to a false security, and if the new convert follows the same lazy example, it may ultimately do more harm than good. There is simply no substitute for getting with people, and it is ridiculous to imagine that anything less, short of a miracle, can develop strong Christian leadership.” [emphasis mine]

I need to prioritize my schedule so that my time is focused around people. I’m looking forward to Coffee With The Pastor tomorrow, where I’ll be able to spend some quality time with Barney, Dave, Elias, Jerry, and some of my other Starbucks friends who will be there. What about you? What are you doing to make sure you are “getting with people”?