LISTEN TO THE STORY BEHIND THIS AWESOME SONG!!!!!

Yes Massa...

Don't read the Gospels if you love money!!!! Seriously, because you will Americanize those passages that command you to give it all away in order to truly follow Jesus. I would rather you not read them at all, than hear you give your version of being a good steward of God's money and all that stupid donkey crap!!!! One of America's leading Christian financial Advisers instructs us to put 15% in to retirement, and 10% in to God's kingdom. Listen to me, there is a problem if we're putting more money in to our retirement than we are giving to God's kingdom. But Jesus, " We're just trying to be good stewards." There is a problem if we are storing up more money in savings, than we are giving to those who need. Oh yeah, Jesus actually says, "Store" up your treasures on heaven and earth. There is a problem if we spend more time pondering our next financial move, than we do falling in love with Jesus.

Don't read Francis Chan's book, " Crazy Love" unless you want to make a change in your life.

Y ME?

When I started the journey with Jesus over 7 years ago it was all about me! I really had no vision for what God would do through me to reach other people. I simply wanted to latch on to his word and hungrily pursue his will. The idea of Jesus using me to inspire, or encourage any creature on this planet, entered me not.

The more I struggle with the faith, the more it seems that Jesus enables me. It's the craziest thing.. I am simply a man who is subject to sin destroying his life, as much as anyone else. Yet in the hardest times of temptation and sin, Jesus rescues me and empowers me to impact someone else.

I constantly marvel at Y Jesus chooses to reach people through my insignificance. I am just a struggling man from a Podunk town in Kentucky.. Yet, Jesus CHANGES lives through words I use and things I do.... IT JUST BLOWS ME A WAY DUDE!!!!

30 HOURS - NO FOOD

How many of you have ever gone 1 day without food? Let me tell you, it is not an easy endeavor. How many of you did something that radical when you were a teenager? Probably not many of you. Starting about 1 1/2 hours ago several of the teens at Harmony committed to Jesus 30 hours without food. Let's not forget that there are some adults involved in this as well.. ( including the Teen Minister) This sacrifice seems quite contrary to the weekend most of us are having in the Horse capital of the world. Tomorrow is the Kentucky Derby, and the party has already begun for most of this state. Companies across the state dismissed employees early from work for the sole purpose of celebrating the " fastest 2 minutes in sports." So while so many Kentuckians, and all those who have traveled across the world are getting sloshed and wasted, there is a little known group of teens 1 hour down I-64 starving for Jesus! Now, this 30 hour famine has nothing to do with the Kentucky Derby, I just see the irony in the timing. The purpose of the famine is to raise at least 7,000 dollars in order to purchase some Bicycles for some Pastors in Uganda.... Praise God for our Teens at Harmony and the Leader they have pushing them to a greater intimacy with our Lord!!!!

4th Obsession: REINFORCE CLARITY

In his 4th Obsession Lencioni is particularly referring to human systems. It's not efficient enough to simply state the vision and over-communicate it, if it's not carried out through the people. The way he breaks this reinforcement down is: HIRING,PERFORMANCE MANAGEMENT,REWARDS,DISMISSAL... Every person that inquires of joining your team should be filtered through this process. The vision should be clarified immediately, and if the other teammates don't believe the person being interviewed is capable of buying in to the vision, then that candidate is thrown out. After the person is chosen to be a part of the team, that person must be evaluated regularly to determine if the work is motivated by the vision and produces the results of the vision. The team must constantly be rewarded! I believe as leaders we fail terribly in this area!!! We tend to run our teams on empty without every filling them up, and ultimately the tank burns out. If there is 1 thing I have learned early in my life as a leader, it is to REWARD the team for their hard work and passion!!!!! If you don't THANK, they will TANK!! Sometimes people will have to be dismissed because they are preventing the vision from succeeding fully. These people aren't always horrible employees, they just never fully buy into the vision. This change doesn't always have to be negative. Most of these people need a change, they just don't know it yet. Still for the sake of the BIG VISION, certain teammates have to be benched!!!!

3rd Obsession: OVER - COMMUNICATE

How do you build a successful organization or leadership team? OVER COMMUNICATE THE VISION! If there is any truth to the research that claims it takes at least 7 times of hearing the same thing, before it really settles in your brain. Then the third OBSESSION, could be the most important. Once a leader develops a Vision he/she is elated and overly anxious to communicate it to the team. Then what happens? The leader only states the vision 1 or 2 times and then the vision is put away. 6 months later the leader can't understand why the people aren't buying into the Vision.

If you are truly passionate about your vision or the vision for the team, then as the leader you will unconsciously implore your people until they are consumed with what you believe to be the driving force behind the team! OVER-COMMUNICATE, OVER-COMMUNICATE, OVER-COMMUNICATE!!! If you don't, then accept the failure that will come your way!

2nd Obsession: BE CLEAR

According to Lencioni, the greatest leaders understand the importance of clearly communicating the Vision. The Vision must drive the leader and his team. The reason that leaders fail to communicate a Vision, is that they are not passionate about it. Vision can't be forced upon a leader, but he must consume himself with what he believes to be vital to the success of the organization. Once a leader is convinced that the Vision will succeed, then and only then, can he passionately communicate the Vision to his team. A leader who isn't consumed with the Vision, is a leader who will never inspire his team to obtain the Vision!