Part 3: GIVE LIFE
“You’ve got to use the life you’ve been given to give others life.”
- Ann Voskamp
“A barren Christian is a contradiction. A tree is known by its fruit.”
- Robert Coleman
PART 3 OF OUR DISCIPLESHIP
CULTURE BEGINS WITH THE VERB
“GIVE.”
First we receive, second we grow, third
we give. Grace is received, then grace grows, then grace gives. God planted new life in our hearts so that we would grow deep & wide—to mature us into disciples with branches that stretch wide, bear fruit, and give Life to others. As we receive Life from God, we overflow with Life to give away. Our diverse family of uniquely gifted image-bearers of God form the fruitful branches of Garden City. In a city of taking, we’re here to give. We’re leaders who initiate and innovate to give our talents, time, and treasure to make our church and city better. Jesus leads us on a countercultural path where giving away our lives is how we come to truly find and enjoy our lives.
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H a b i t 9 : Lead WORK & REST
We define leadership as “taking initiative for the benefit of others.” God cre-
ated us to lead. Central to our discipleship is getting clarity about the talents God’s entrusted to us, thinking through how to wisely steward and be fruitful with what God has given us. The primary way we express this is through our work and our rest. Jesus cares very much about the work we do, how we do it, and why we do it; and he wants us to also care very much about our work and our rest and how it influences the common good. One of the very first things we learn about God on the very first pages of the Bible is that he is a worker, he values rest, and he created us male and female in his image to work and rest.
MEMORIZE
Calling ten of his servants, he gave them ten minas, and said to them, ‘Engage in business until I come.’ - Luke 19:13
STUDY LUKE 19:11-27 AND GENESIS 1:16-2:25.
What is Jesus teaching in this parable? What is God teaching us in the
creation narrative and what connections can you see with the parable of the ten minas? What do we learn from these texts about the purpose of our existence, stewardship, leadership, work, and rest? How would you articulate the difference between a biblical vision for work and rest, and the way popular culture talks about work and rest? Describe what was modeled and taught to you growing up about work and rest and how this does or doesn’t align with what you’re learning from Scripture, our church, and the core book you’re reading.
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“The ten minas represented the measure of ‘capital’ that Christ invests in each believer’s life. In addition to one’s natural talents, abilities, interests, and temperament, Christ endows believers with his Spirit, spiritual gifts (1 Cor. 12), and ‘every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places’ (Eph 1:3). These are not gifts to be squandered, hoarded, or used to boost our own egos. They are given as resources to be invested and used in the expansion of his kingdom. After he gave the ‘capital,’ Christ issued a command: in Greek the command is pragmateuomai. It means “trade,” “do business,” or “occupy.” The word is used only here in the New Testament. The English word pragmatic is related to this Greek word…The task given by Christ to his disciples is very basic: it is to pragmatically use the natural and spiritual capital he has given us to engage our cultures and world for Christ and his kingdom. He has capitalized each of us to make a unique contribution to the present advancement of his kingdom. Our call is to be creative, practical, industrious, energetic, active, and diligent with the ‘captial’ he has given us.”
Darrow Miller
GET CLEAR ON THE “MINAS” (TALENTS, CAPITAL, GIFTS) GOD HAS ENTRUSTED TO YOU.
Discuss as a group the core gifting and opportunity God has given to and
what you think he’s uniquely put you on this earth to do. Draw from the discoveries you’ve made about one another throughout this guidebook. Encourage and affirm the gifting of God and the good stewardship of that gifting that you see in each other. Lovingly challenge one another if you see a squandering, burying, or abusing of the “capital” our King has given. See if you could summarize in a sentence or two the
MEMORIZE
capital and the calling God has given you.
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For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them. - Ephesians 2:8-10
“You were made for God, not vice versa, and life is about letting God use you for his purpose, not your using him for your own purpose.”
- Rick Warren
“God does not need your good works, but your neighbor does.”
- Martin Luther
ENJOY THE MASTER/SERVANT RELATIONSHIP.
Our texts above, Genesis 2 and Luke 19, articulate the Master/Servant Rela-
tionship, where God is the Master and we are the servant. God’s job is to be God, our job is to simply be human. Much of where we go wrong in our leadership and our work is through a confusion of this relationship. We are not expected to be God, to be king of things and responsible for everything. Our job is to simply be a faithful and obedient servant. Our King is in charge and gives us our resources and calling, our job is to simply be faithful and obedient—to steward well what’s been entrusted to us. Repent together of how we get this relationship sideways.
“I want to live in such a way that, if it is only twenty-nine more days or twenty-nine more weeks, or if it is twentynine more years or more, I want to faithful with each one of those—that I could go and meet the Lord without regrets, without unfinished business.” Nancy Leigh DeMoss
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DISCERN THE 3 ASPECTS OF A CALLING.
Getting greater clarity about calling typically involves 3 aspects:
1)
Affinity:
Do you desire to do this?
2)
Ability:
Are you skilled to do this?
3)
Opportunity:
Do you have an opportunity to do this?
All 3 of these aspects need to line up to solidify one’s calling. For example, if you’re feeling called to be a chef because you have the affinity for it (#1) and an opportunity to do it (#3), but all of your friends can’t stand your cooking (lack of Ability, #2), then working as a chef is probably not a great fit for you. Discuss as a group how these 3 aspects of calling do or don’t line up with your current work life, and next steps God might be calling you to take. Recall that being the church involves both gathering and scattering, and that we spend most of our week “being the church” on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, and Satruday in our workplaces and neighborhoods. Do you have a big-umbrella sense of calling that encapsulates what you do all week long in your workplace and in your neighborhood?
“Use me, God. Show me how to take who I am, who I want to be, and what I can do, and use it for a purpose greater than myself.”
- Martin Luther King Jr.
Charles Drew
“The question I must ask as I consider a career in banking is the same question I must ask as I consider a career as a missionary: Where, Lord, can I best discover you and serve people? And the question I must ask as I volunteer at church is the same one I must ask as I change a diaper or prepare a report at work: Is God my joy as I work?”
DISCERN YOUR TENDENCY TO UNDERWORK OR OVERWORK.
People have a tendency either towards underwork (laziness, making an idol
of comfort) or overwork (making an idol of work). Share your work tendencies as a group, repent of any sin, and share how you can spur each other on to greater maturity and fruitfulness in your work.
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“The place where God calls you is the place where your deep gladness and the world’s deep hunger meet.” Frederick Buechner
LEAD!
We see “disciple” as nearly synonymous with “leader.” Our leader, Jesus, “takes
initiative for the benefit of others” and we do the same. We don’t sit around as passive spectators of life, we’re leaders who can initiate and innovate to make things better. Where in your work life or civic life is God showing you a new opportunity to step forward and lead? Discuss as a group. And discuss your leadership styles, and what you’re learning from one another about how you want to grow as a leader.
“The world is desperately seeking someone to follow. That they follow someone is certain, but will that person be one who knows the way of Christ?”
- Robert Coleman
“There are many things in life you ‘can do’ for God. And the more success you have, the more opportunities will come. (You will know more people, you will have more resources, etc.) But most opportunities are distractions in disguise. Therefore, find the one thing you ‘must do’ for God.”
- HOWARD HENDRICKS
DO 4 THINGS WITH MONEY.
One of the reasons we work is to earn money. There are 4 things we can do with
money, all of which are important. Discuss as a group what your current habits are with money, which of these 4 habits you are determined to develop this year, and how these 4 habits are interconnected: 1)
Save money
2)
Spend money
3)
Give money
4)
Invest money
“Jesus talked much about money. Sixteen of the thirty-eight parables were concerned with how to handle money and possessions. In the Gospels, an amazing one out of ten verses (288 in all) deal directly with the subject of money.”
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REST (SABBATH) DAILY, WEEKLY, AND ANNUALLY.
God commands us to rest. If we’re not resting well, we’re disobeying God
and missing out on one of his greatest gifts to us. On the first pages of our Bible we encounter God himself living a rhythm of work and rest, and then soon calling us to live this same rhythm. One of the most compelling ways we can demonstrate the gospel to our overworked/work-worshipping city and one of the most tangible ways we can prove to ourselves that we actually believe the gospel is through rest. When we believe we are unconditionally loved and that God is sovereign and has things under control, we enter into rest. When we don’t believe this, we keep working…often as a way to justify ourselves, earn our identity, or try to be God of our lives. We must continually repent of this restlessness, and discipline ourselves to enjoy God’s call to rest. It takes a lot of faith to rest. Discuss as a group why you sometimes lack the faith to rest. • Rest daily. Set aside part of each day to rest, “turn off”, be still and know that God is God. • Keep a weekly Sabbath. “Sabbath” means to “stop.” God gave us the life-giving rhythm of setting aside 1 day of the week to stop, not work, rest, play and pray, and get in deeper touch with God’s grace and providence. Keeping a weekly sabbath is an act of obedience, and it’s probably one of the most life-giving habits you can practice in our overworked world. Share your sabbath-keeping habits as a group and hold each other accountable to enjoying this rest. • Rest annually. Plan strategic time annually to rest, reset, and vacation. God called the nation of Israel to observe various annual feasts and times of rest, and Jesus himself often retreated for rest. If the Son of God needed rest, surely we do to. • Recognize seasons. Sometimes we enter into seasons of very demanding work, very high stress, and very long hours. That’s okay, that can be the nature of work for farmers, tech workers, and stay-at-home moms. The key is the word “season.” One can work an exceptionally demanding schedule for a season, but not forever. Recognize the season you’re
MEMORIZE
in and what a healthy work & rest rhythm ought to look like for your particular season.
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Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days you shall labor, and do all your work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the LORD your God. On it you shall not do any work, you, or your son, or your daughter, your male servant, or your female servant, or your livestock, or the sojourner who is within your gates. For in six days the LORD made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested the seventh day. Therefore the LORD blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy. - Exodus 20:8-11
“To practice Sabbath is a disciplined and faithful way to remember that you are not the one who keeps the world running.” Tim Keller
LISTEN TO YOUR BODY—RECOGNIZE THAT YOUR BODY NEEDS SPACE AND PACE FOR TRANSFORMING LEADERSHIP.
Everything’s connected—our mind, heart, and body. Your body is constantly
talking to you—that tight jaw, knot in your stomach, or achy exhaustion is sending you a message that you need to learn to listen to. Christianity places incredible emphasis on the human body (at the center of our faith is the Incarnate Son of God, and the resurrection of the body). Develop a habit of listening to what your body is saying to you. Discuss as a group how you’re learning to do this. And, recognize that to truly process all we’re experiencing and learning in life, to have our hearts and minds and ways of leadership truly transformed, we need space and a slowed down pace. We must find ways to get space away from our normal stimuluses, slow things down, listen to our bodies, and deeply process all the Lord is forming in us. Talk about and practice these things as a Discipleship Group.
“We cannot separate what it means to be human from our bodies. If we separate Jesus from a human body our faith falls apart. If we separate ourselves from our body we fall apart. Our bodies are integral to who we are…When we are alienated from our bodies we are alienated from ourselves. Use your body in connecting with God. Your body lives in the present, where parts of your brain can live in the future.”
MEMORIZE
Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light. - Matthew 11:28-30
Rich Plass
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MAIN TAKEAWAY: We’re a church of disciples who practice the habit of leading well through our work and our rest.
What is God saying to you?
What’s your next step?
RECOMMENDED RESOURCES FOR HABIT 9: Life Work, Darrow Miller The Heart of a Servant Leader, Jack Miller and Barbara Miller Chapter 8 of The Big Story, Justin Buzzard God At Work, Gene Veith Strong and Weak, Andy Crouch The Life of Manny, Ray East A Journey Worth Taking, Charles Drew Finding a Job You Can Love, Mattson & Miller The Sabbath, Abraham Heschel The Rest of God, Mark Buchanan Deep Work, Cal Newport The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, Stephen Covey Leading Change, John P. Kotter
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