Young pastors and leaders will surely find these ten simple tips helpful.  Read on as Steve Murrell enumerates practical steps on living out a life of leadership effectively.

Read more . . .

This blog post by Marie Bonifacio encourages us to trust God’s ways even when we do not understand our circumstances.  In the end, a crown awaits us as a reward for our faith.

Read more . . .

When change comes into your life, do you readily embrace it or do you dread it?  Read on as Pastor Robert Hern Jr. discusses in his blog post written in Tagalog the topic on change or ‘pagbabago’.

Read more . . .

This blog post by Pastor Michael Paderes shares not just about his experience with the recent World Partners campaign but also about how every follower of Christ can be part of sharing the gospel to the nations.

Read more . . .

In this blog post, Jenn Punzalan takes on the topic of the difference between men and women on a more personal level.  By sharing her experiences, find out what led her to say that these differences actually work for the good and should be celebrated.

Read more . . .

Posted last April 28, 2007, World Missions Director, Michael Paderes, shares in this blog entry some rather radical ways to share the Good News. Read on how sharing your faith with others is doable and does not have to be overwhelming.

Read more…

Kids church pastor, Paolo Punzalan, shares his thoughts on comparing what we have with what others have, and even ourselves with others. Sounds familiar? It’s what he calls “The Comparison Trap.” Read this fascinating insight he provides with specific examples from Robert Morris’ book.

Read more . . .

“Four things on earth are small, yet they are extremely wise: Proverbs 30:24

coneys are creatures of little power, yet they make their home in the crags; Proverbs 30:26

This is the second in series of small things that are extremely wise. Of the 4 creatures listed in Proverbs 30 explaining the Coney seems to be the most challenging.

What could really be learned from them? Coney is an old English word for wild rabbits. And that makes it even harder to explain why they are extremely wise. Rabbits are not exactly known for their smarts rather for their cuteness.

But Solomon the author of the Proverb has observed something about this creature that made him conclude that they are deserving full status in this list of small yet extremely wise creatures.

He explains first of all that they have little power. Rabbits are often the prey of eagles, wolves and even snakes. What qualifies them in this list is the way they build their homes. They build them in the crags.

A crag is a steep or rugged cliff or rock face. Building in this kind of terrain requires wisdom. You may ask if they were so wise why won’t they build their homes in less challenging terrain. The answer is because they have little power.

Settling in open terrain makes them easier prey for their predators. Building in crags allows them to have safe dwellings that are hard to access. Needless to say that building on crags is not quite as easy or convenient. It is laborious and time consuming. But once built it becomes a safe refuge.

Here’s where discipleship relationship interfaces. Making disciples is much like building in the crags. They may be inaccessible, time consuming and labor intensive. But through little encounters with one moment at a time we can build men and women into disciples.

The kind that will not easily fall prey to the devil:
Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. 1Peter 5:8b

Like the Coney we need to build wisely. In this way what we build are lives that will not be easily prone to the devil’s attacks.

Welcome to the newly revamped victory.org.ph, VICTORY Philippines’ main site. Let me walk you through some of the new features available on the site, and I hope you find it useful as you live your life in victory, honoring God and making disciples.

1. Blogs

• Once a week, we’re going to feature posts from Victory’s blog-savvy leaders. Think of it like a buffet of encouragement, insight, and personal stories all in one.

2. The Local Church Directory

• We found out that the most popular page on our old website was the directory page so we decided to give it a more prominent place and made it a lot easier on the eyes.
• I actually spent my first few minutes on the site just having fun, clicking on the map and rediscovering my Philippine geography. “So that’s where Cebu is…”

3. Small Group Materials for FREE!

• Yup, you read it right. We’re posting small group materials weekly for you to use as you help others follow Jesus. I’ve heard that many people also use the materials for personal devotions, which is great. Please just don’t sell them to other people, ok? Hehehe.
• Every Tuesday afternoon starting the first week of August, you can expect a brand new small group material that will be in synch with the preaching series in Metro Manila. Between now and then, we’re making materials based on the older series available. We hope it helps you as you lead your groups.

We’ve gotten questions about whether we’ll be having podcasts on the site and the answer is “YES!” That’s one of the big features that we’re very excited to unveil in the coming months. In the meantime, here’s a link to the different Victory podcasts already available. Please do keep tuned in here for more updates as these and other features are developed and become available.

If you have comments and suggestions on how we can improve the site, do drop us an email. And on behalf of the team that works to make the site what it is, thank you for the opportunity to serve you as you continue to grow in your love for God and for the church, and in your passion to follow Jesus and help others follow Jesus.

Til the next blog,

Carlos

I recently asked a group of pastors to serve on a regional apostolic leadership team that would help oversee and expand our churches in the USA. Before accepting my invitation, some wanted to know exactly what I was asking them to do.

Since there are about a million things spiritual leaders must do, I worked hard to simplify and summarize what I was asking these leaders to do. I eventually came up with a 4 point job description for our USA regional apostolic team:

Focus
Unity
Equip
Lead

Although I never do acronym sermon outlines, I realized my four points spelled F.U.E.L.

We can build a great motor, but without FUEL, it is going nowhere.

So here’s the FUEL that spiritual leaders must provide their churches and ministries in order to move forward.

1. Focus. Seems like a no-brainer, but more often than not, leaders end up doing everything that can be done in the name of God - except their specific mission. Smart leaders keep a narrow focus on mission, vision and values - and say no to the everything else.

2. Unity. Maintaining unity is hard work, because people are basically selfish, opinionated and easily offended. But, one of the main jobs of the leader is to bring people together and to fight for relational, doctrinal and organizational unity.

3. Equip. Spiritual leadership is not about doing all the ministry all the time. Leaders are called to equip God’s people, then get out of the way. Unfortunately, most pastors spend more time ministering to people than equipping people to minister. That’s probably why many are so tired and cranky.

4. Lead. Spiritual leadership is about creating and maintaining a healthy atmosphere and culture, not about not micro-managing staff and problems. Leadership is all about example and influence, not command and control.

Narrowing the focus, maintaining unity, equipping people, creating culture - that’s the FUEL that drives high-powered churches and ministries. That’s the main job of church leaders.