State Missionary Rick Lance is executive director of the Alabama Baptist State Board of Missions.

Other Recent Blog Entries:

Lessons I Learned from Landrum Leavell
Monday, October 2, 2008
Landrum Leavell devoted some of his valuable time to encourage me and to offer support to me as a young man seeking to develop my gifts in ministry.

A Memorable Milestone
Tuesday, September 9, 2008
September 8th was a memorable milestone for Alabama Baptists: ... the day on which we crossed the $1 billion mark in Cooperative Program giving.

Fired Up about 'Fireproof'
Tuesday, September 2, 2008
Can a motion picture be used to reach people for Christ? In the case of "Fireproof," the answer is definitely yes.

Tell Them Thanks for Me
Monday, August 18, 2008
My gas gauge was low, leaning toward empty. So, it was now time to stop and pay a fortune at the pump.

Thanks for Ten Years Together
Wednesday, July 23, 2008
One priority was on my mind, when I was called to this opportunity of ministry. It was the Great Commission.

Good News for Bad Times
Wednesday, July 16, 2008
During bad times, people look for some good news. For Christians, this is an opportunity for us to offer the very best of good news.

Your God and Your Tears
Friday, July 11, 2008
Your God has a tear bottle cellar. He has a bottle or bottles containing your tears. . . .

The Biggest Giver Ever
Monday, July 7, 2008
John 3:16 is perhaps the best text in the Bible for preaching on stewardship and the ministry of giving..

July 2006

Lifelong Leadership Lessons

Recently, I experienced some personally significant anniversaries in my life and ministry. I realize that sharing these milestones in ministry may be perceived as being self-absorbed, but my prayer is that these simple observations may be encouraging and helpful to someone. If that is the case, then I am grateful to the Lord for the privilege of being a bit transparent.

Forty years ago I preached my first sermon. I remember it well. For weeks prior to Youth Sunday, I had studied four different topics for the message. When the Sunday morning arrived, I preached all four sermons in a little more than nine minutes. I was petrified with fear, and therefore I spoke as fast as a machine gun blasting away bullets at an undetermined target. Needless to say, my second opportunity to preach came much later.

My pastoral ministry began a little more than two years later. I was at the ripe age of 18. For 29 years I served the local church in various size congregations in the inner city, the open country and in regional First Baptist churches. Eight years ago the Lord called me to state missions. All of the ministry experiences have been rewarding for me personally, and I hope they have made a Kingdom difference.

As a result of these 40 years of service, I reflected upon what I will describe as lifelong lessons on leadership. These are simple observations which anyone who as been at the task as long as I have could share. I do not consider myself an authority on leadership. Many others of notable contribution would represent that distinction. So bear with me as I reflect with you about these lessons.

Lesson number one: Be sure of your call from God. I do not mean that times of doubt do not arise in the wake of dealing with circumstances of life. But without an overriding sense of calling, the ministry becomes mere drudgery -- not a journey of joy and celebration.

Lesson number two: Give careful consideration to the development of your character as you seek to be a minister and do ministry. Our culture values the charisma-driven leader, sometimes at the expense of the character-developed life. Early in ministry people prize the platform presence and powerful personality but -- after years of service -- only those who have walked with the Lord and allowed Him to be formed in theirs lives will thrive, much less survive.

Lesson number three: Exemplify commitment in your life. By this I mean have a strong work ethic. Now this may sound somewhat puritanical and even mechanical, but I am concerned those who are in the secular world see us as persons who know how to set the example with good work habits. By no means do I advocate sacrificing personal and family health in being faithful to the task, but we need to be certain that our priorities reflect a real world faith.

Lesson number four: Remember to incarnate the principle of cooperation into the DNA of your leadership philosophy. In a world that worships individual success and entrepreneurial expertise, embodying the spirit of collaboration with others is certainly needed. If we are honest with ourselves, we must confess that we can not be effective without the influence and input of Christian brothers and sisters. Making a kingdom difference doesn't mean you as an individual, or as one local congregation, can reach the world by yourself. Cooperation must be a core value for effective leadership.

Lesson number five: Demonstrate compassion as a leader. One of the most beloved affirmations of Jesus and His ministry, detailed in the Bible is summed up succinctly, "He was moved with compassion." The trite, but true, old saying, "The people do not care how much you know until they know how much you care" is a good quote worth a note for leaders who want to emulate the example of Christ.

Well, I told you that my thoughts would be simple and they have not disappointed you in that way I am sure. Yet as I write the words I have shared with you, I have a copy of a book on my desk near me entitled The Simple Church, written by Alabama native Thom Rainer. Maybe simplicity in leaders in times of complexity has lasting value after all.

Thanks for the Sacrifices

The week before the fourth of July I was in Philadelphia for a meeting with David Waltz, executive director of our partner state convention, Pennsylvania/South Jersey. Our time together was a productive experience. David is giving superb leadership to this relatively new convention. He has a servant's heart, and I value our friendship.

Following the meeting time, Bobby DuBois and I took a quick tour of the historic downtown area where the founding of our nation took place. The grand experiment of democracy in this country came to the forefront in these hallowed halls of history. As we walked, we could hear the voices of reenactors of such famous people as Benjamin Franklin tell the story of how freedom was birthed in America.

On our way home, we crowded into a plane filled to capacity with holiday travelers trying to get to their destinations in time to celebrate the fourth. The flight to Atlanta was delayed for a relatively brief period of time due to the challenges of servicing so many people.

Before we boarded I had noticed a Marine in full dress uniform, standing erect and poised for a ceremonial duty. When we landed, a flight attendant politely asked us to remain seated for a few minutes to allow this Marine sergeant to deplane and to escort the flag-draped coffin of a fallen comrade. With the exception of one man, everyone remain seated. I could not determine whether the man stood in defiance or for some other reason. However, for a few minutes an airplane loaded to capacity with travelers expressed their gratitude for the sacrifice made by this Marine heading home to his earthly resting place.

As I sat in my seat watching the smartly dressed young Marine deplane to attend to his duties formally escorting one of his own, my mind went back to the streets of Philadelphia. I could hear the voices of the Founding Fathers declare their allegiance to the cause of freedom, and I uttered a brief prayer of thanksgiving for the sacrifices made so we could live freely and worry about being on time for the commitments for the fourth of July. The fourth of July took on new meaning for me in those moments of reflection.

All of a sudden my concern about time simply evaporated. I thought about the grief-stricken family awaiting the remains of their loved one. I pictured thousands of young military personnel far away from home in harm's way, and I felt an overwhelming sense of gratitude for those who have served in the military, past and present, from Valley Forge to Baghdad. To these heroes I say thanks for giving us a free country. As Benjamin Franklin famously said, "We have given you a republic, if you can keep it."