Jesus Christ the way, truth and life out of the Father’s love
October 4, 2016
Baptism in the Holy Spirit
October 4, 2016
Jesus Christ the way, truth and life out of the Father’s love
October 4, 2016
Baptism in the Holy Spirit
October 4, 2016
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Call to leadership in the 21st century/ Life of a leader

By Bro. Anthony Assibey

1.0 INTRODUCTION

KEY TEXT & PRAYER

Bro. Anthony Osei Assibey
National Director, CCR Ghana

“You are salt for the earth. But if salt loses its taste, what can make it salty again? It is good for nothing, and can only be thrown out to be trampled under people’s feet.” (Mathew 5:13) PRESENTATION OUTLINE
  • Personalities involved in the call
  • Leadership
  • The Life of a Leader
  • Challenges to leadership
  • Practical Steps

2.0 PERSONALITIES INVOLVED IN THE CALL

Definition: Call: “To order somebody to come” (Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary)
  • INVITATION: Three possible personalities involved in the
    • The Caller
    • Called
    • Targeted People

2.1 THE CALLER:

  • The need to know & understand the one who calls: Who He is, His Nature
  • It is the Lord who calls: chooses & appoints (John 15:16)
  • Like Moses, desire to know & see the face of God, the Caller is key to the Caller & Called (Ex 33: 12 - 34:5ff)
  • His nature as revealed by Jesus to us: God made man
  • The need to understand the purpose of the call and where He is calling you to.
    • His ultimate purpose has always been to share His nature & mission with us, who are His images & agents on earth.
2.1.1 UNIVERSAL CALLING
All Christians are first and foremost called to share in the universal calling:
  • To Worship:; prayer; praise; have a relationship
  • To Holiness: To reflect God’s nature is a call made on all Christians. He who calls is Holy and so all who follow Him must be holy.
  • To Love: I give you a new commandment; love one another just as I have loved you.
  • To Witness; Every Christian shares in the mission of Christ.
    • “every Christian is a missionary” by Pope Francis
    • Need to have a sense of mission even when we hold no leadership position.
    • “My followers will do my work, and even greater works.

2.2 THE CALLED

  • He is the human instrument through which the Caller links with His people.
  • He is called, chosen and appointed (sent) to serve (John15:16)
  • ‘The Called’ becomes a Co-partner / Co-worker, with the Caller. (1Cor 3:9)
  • We do not impose ourselves as being called or as self-appointed leaders.
  • We must hear and be connected to the Caller.
  • We need to see what the Caller sees and hear what He says

2.3 THE PEOPLE OF GOD — HUMANKIND

  • The called is sent to the people of God—Humankind.
  • God, the Caller, will not abandon humanity, His people.
  • For God so loved the world— referring to the people He created
    • God cannot remain silent but be committed to His people, the people He created in love and in His likeness
  • The People we are sent to live in a particular & peculiar setting: Time; location; culture & mindset that should not be overlooked.
2.3.1 Signs of the Times & Age:
The 21st Century has been described in various ways including the following:
  • The world - as a Global Village
  • An age of increase in knowledge: Information, Communication and Technology (ICT)
  • An age of ideologies: presenting to be like gods
  • Intellectual pride: Relativism: no absolute truth
This is also an age with the following realities:
  • Legalisations of evil or wrongdoing tie to Development Fund (gay marriage, abortion, etc.)
  • Religious Fundamentalism & Radicalism:
  • Islamic Agenda & threat
  • Unrest in Moslem Regions:
  • Weakening of faith among believers especially Christian western world (in the end times, many will lose their faith)
  • Compromise of the Gospel
  • “Gospel Business Enterprise”/ Prosperity Gospel
  • Stomach & False Prophets
  • A culture of death
  • Over a million babies are killed yearly through abortion and other clinical means.
  • Over 500,000 people killed in wars, conflicts, Terrorist attacks in last few years
  • Classification of nations (First, second and third worlds); racism
  • Hopelessness in Sub- Sahara Africa & Middle East
  • Highest rate of migrates & refugees
  • Widening gap of the Rich & the Poor.
  • High level of Corruption
  • Break down of marriage & family life, the basic unit of society; High rates & level of divorce and single parenthood
2.3.2   Ghanaian Catholics in the Diaspora (American, Europe, etc)
  • Stranger; Alien mentality; in search of better life & development.
  • Immigration challenges: effects of illegal status of many members
  • Temptation & compromise of Faith
  • Liturgical challenges; celebrations too short & dull; weak faith, racism, scandal & closing of churches.
  • Pressures from home, extended family & mother land
  • Marriage & family life issues; issues about children & next generational
  • Accommodation & Health issues
  • Aging, Retirement & death issues
  • Ghana: High rate of unemployment, Poor Governance & Infrastructure in motherland
  • Investment & wealth creation; issue of good stewardship
  • Emotions: Anxieties, Fears, Hopelessness, Loneliness, Depression, etc

3.0 LEADERSHIP (from the word lead)

  • Definition: To lead means: “To show the way or go in front of people to make them go in the right direction” (Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary)
  • World of Causes & Effects
  • Leadership is the Cause, all other things are effects

3.1 LEDARESHIP IN THE CCR

3.1.1 Vision & Mission
  • It is not a ‘pray for me assembly.’
  • By virtue of its name, it is the Holy Spirit’s move in the Catholic Church to revive the Charisms received in Baptism.
  • Pope Francis defines the CCR as a ‘Current of Grace.’; born out of the will of the Holy Spirit in and to the Church.
  • Leadership in the CCR must lead people to the Upper Room: place of prayer & waiting.
  • Vision & Mission Statement of GCCR – NA (Ref. to Guidelines)
3.1.2 The five Pillars of the CCR
  • The deeper awareness and relationship with the Holy Spirit, the principal agent of the CCR.
    • Personal Manifestation of the Holy Spirit in Gifts & Fruit
  • The ministry of Prayer; prayer groups as schools of prayer
  • The ministry of the Word (2Tim 3:16-17—All scripture is inspired by God)
  • Fellowship/Community (Acts 2:42ff; 4:32ff))
  • Witnessing / Mission (Acts 1:8)
3.1.3 People: Membership
  • Know & love your members, the flock the Holy Spirit has entrusted to your care
    • Confirm & assures them of God’s love: (‘Psalm 146: 6-10)
    • Unless their faith is firm, they will not be firm
    • Inspiration: Joseph the Dreamer in Egypt & Jewish maid in Syria

4.0 THE LIFE OF A LEADER / THE QUALITIES OF THE LEADER

4.1 LEADERSHIP TEXTS:

1Timothy 3:1-13; 2 Timothy 2:15-17; Titus 1:6-9, GNT
  • Be without fault; Do your best to win full approval in God's sight; He must not be arrogant or quick-tempered, Self-controlled, and orderly; he must not be a drunkard or a violent man, but gentle and peaceful;
  • Good Marriage & Family life: One wife, Their wives also must be of good character and must not gossip; they must be sober and honest in everything;. he must be able to manage his own family well and make his children obey him with all respect.
  • Hospitality: Welcome strangers; He must be hospitable and love what is good.
  • Able to teach; He must be mature in the faith; they should hold to the revealed truth of the faith with a clear conscience;’ He must hold firmly to the message which can be trusted and which agrees with the doctrine. In this way he will be able to encourage others with the true teaching and also to show the error of those who are opposed to it.” As a worker who is not ashamed of his work. One who correctly teaches the message of God's truth. Keep away from profane and foolish discussions, which only drive people farther away from God. Such teaching is like an open sore that eats away the flesh.
  • Money: He must not love money; good character and be sincere; must be reliable, accountable and dependable (1Cor7:24)
    • He should be a man, who is respected by the people outside the church,

4.2 Other SPECIFICS

  • A person of prayer
  • A person filled and led by the Spirit
  • A person of confidence (Joshua 1:6)
  • A person of vision
  • A person of commitment; not under & over committed
  • A person with a servant - heart (Mathew 23:4 & 12)
  • A person with a shepherd’s heart who knows his sheep (Ezekiel 34:22-23/2Peter 5:2-3)
  • Must be a Mentor & Multiplier,
  • Team Builder, with a succession plan
  • Must be blameless before God & people

5.0 CHALLENGES TO LEADERSHIP IN THE CCR

  • Lack of knowledge about ‘The Caller’ among leaders
  • Complacency: Ignorant about the signs of the times
    • The kingdom of God is not about food and drink (Rom 14:17); I have come to set fire on earth, and how I wish that it was already ablaze.
    • There is need for positive radicalism in leadership — Prophetic urge.
  • The 21st century and its related challenges
    • The world seems to be tearing on us and putting so much pressure on us so that the temptation to neglect God is so high.
  • The danger of neglecting the Holy Spirit who is the agent and principal agent of evangelisation
    • He has the master plan and the power to break and touch hearts.
    • There is no strategy that can replace the action and power of the Holy Spirit (Acts 1:8)
    • This calls for waiting and praying until we are clothed with power from on high.
    • LSS programme should not be compromised —it is a way of helping the baptised re-live their baptism, the Pope urges the Renewal to ensure that it shares the baptism of the Holy Spirit with all Catholics, and this can be achieved through LSS.
  • Difficulty in ensuring a peaceful integration of the institutional and the charismatic dimensions of the Church
    • Pope & Vatican very open positive on the exercise of Charismatic Gifts in the Catholic Church
    • This demands patience and wisdom.
  • Lack of strategy in reaching out to the lost in this 21st century dying world
    • The old master plan of Jesus is still valid, transforming the world from within by reaching out one on one, family by family, institution by institution, community by community
    • We are in an age of ICT and we need to compete and speak the language of our age
    • Devising new ways to capture the youth
  • Division in Christendom
    • Unity is strength. We need to strongly preserve the unity of the Spirit.
    • Need for a unified leadership front.
    • No single group or institution has what it takes to confront the world.
    • Need to mobilise resources so as to be equipped to launch out into the deep
    • No individual can be wiser than the whole

6.0 CONCLUSION

“But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light. Once you were not a people, but now you are the people of God; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.”(1 Peter 2:9-10)