If you moved to a new area, the way you saw the map would tell a lot about what motivates you … and what the future holds.
- Would you look for “good hospitals” and a “good place to retire”?
- Would you locate all the “good schools” and “good neighborhoods”?
- Or would you seek the unexplored, unknown and unexplored land?
Are you a risk taker, caregiver or undertaker? The Bible says that “we must believe that God it is (not ‘was’ or ‘will be’). “(Hebrews 11: 6) God revealed His Name to Moses as”I AM“- Not” I WAS “or” I WILL BE “- He said,” I AM “.
In each generation, God moves. In each generation, you can see three responses to His move among His people:
RISK TAKERS Every great move of God began with RISK TAKERS. Someone was willing to “pay the price” and sacrifice to achieve a worthwhile goal.
Many have gotten ahead of us by sacrificing their reputation, position, finances, and their personal peace and security. They were “spirit players” – they knew they could sacrifice a little to get a lot! They were “spiritual entrepreneurs.” They put “NOW” aside for the sake of “LATER.” They risked the wrath of the established system and followed God’s current move among men.
The nation of Israel gathered manna daily in the desert. New mana every day! The only day they “doubled” was Saturday (to “sanctify” it).
RISK TAKERS are never satisfied with yesterday’s Manna, yesterday’s Word. What is God saying today? “Today, if you listen to his voice, do not harden your heart.” (both the Old and New Testaments testify)
The day we eat “yesterday’s manna” is the day we stop moving spiritually! It has happened in EVERY Great Awakening and Revival of the past. The “spiritual descent” replaces the RISK TAKERS (ie the leadership of the Movement). But there is a problem. They do not have the heart of a RISK TAKER. They don’t have the spiritual drive that drove their RISK-TAKING Parents.
Instead of anointed RISK TAKERS, they become anemic CAREGIVERS of another’s vision!
CAREGIVERS Unfortunately, CARETAKERS get bogged down in the details of keeping a “well-oiled machine” running. They polish the machinery of revival and blessing to keep it going “just like the good old days.” They forget that those “good old days” were not so good for your ancestors. (It wasn’t easy being a RISK TAKER!)
CAREGIVERS prefer luxury, comfort, and tranquility. It’s “business as usual” – “Maintain the status quo” – It was “good enough” for RISK TAKERS and it’s “good enough” for me.
In Luke 5:39, Jesus warned of those who said that old wine was “good enough.” THOSE WHO TAKE RISKS take the grapes of justice and crush the new wine for new wineskins. THE CAREGIVERS drink the wine that the RISK TAKERS crushed.
CAREGIVERS worry about the external: legalism, buildings, etc. When Jesus walked this earth, people marveled at the Temple. “Look at these wonderful buildings!” But, they lost the TRUE TEMPLE: Jesus.
At Bible College and Seminary I was trained to be a CAREGIVER. “This is how it stays business as usual.” That didn’t follow me then, and it doesn’t follow me now.
Some lament “the good times” when their church, movement, denomination, etc., was in the flow of God’s blessing. But are we willing to pay the price? News Flash – It will NEVER be this way again … but it CAN be BETTER!
Haggai (chapter 2) told the Jews and tells us today: “The glory of the last house will be greater than the glory of the first.” It cannot be repeated, but it CAN BE surpassed!
It gets worse … CAREGIVERS routinely kill newly risen RISK TAKERS! They feel it is their duty to protect the status quo so much, that they refuse to allow God to move again.
“Matthew 23: 29-34” His parents (caretakers) killed the (risky) prophets. “They even built” monuments “to those they killed!
ENTREPRENEURS Ever wonder how the term “ENTREPRENEUR” came to be? Because they would “undertake” anything, including embalming and burying the dead, something no one else wanted to do!
Becoming an undertaker is an honorable profession and service to the community. But it is not for me. I feel uncomfortable at funerals. I am not fearful of death, I just hate it. It is the last “enemy” that the Bible says, and Jesus came not only to free us from death (eternal life), but also to free us from the FEAR of death!
In the spiritual world, ENTREPRENEURS feel “called” to bury anything new. New Idea? New plan? New program? Kill him and bury him!
The “cause of death” differs:
- We have never tasted it that way!
- We tried it that way before, and it didn’t work!
This is true for all of us: As we get closer to an ENTREPRENEUR, our vision dims, our hearing dwindles, and our mobility stiffens. It is also true spiritually: the closer we get to a MENTALITY OF ENGAGEMENT, our spiritual vision will dim, our spiritual hearing will decrease, our spiritual mobility will harden. ENTREPRENEUR-Pastors talk about what was once alive, but is now a memory! Revelation 3: 1-2 speaks of a church that has the name that it is “alive, but dead.” Tragic.
I love Caleb in the Book of Joshua. At 40 he said: “The giants can’t stop us, let’s take the ‘Promised Land.’ But the Nation believed the bad report more than Caleb’s. So they wandered for forty years in the desert. At 85, Caleb said, “I want to fight the giants in the mountainous region.” The “mountainous region”, no less. At 85, you’d think I’d at least ask for flat land!
Unfortunately, the average church is evenly split between RISK TAKERS, CAREGIVERS, and ENTREPRENEURS. That is why so little is done!
Think about it, what if a Pastor-RISK-TAKER goes to a Congregation-CAREGIVER? He has no interest in caring for his “monuments”, he wants to move on to conquer new territories!
Do you remember the map of the city? How will you respond?
- EMPLOYEES – Look for “good hospitals” and a “good place to retire”
- CAREGIVERS – Look for areas with “good schools” and “good neighborhoods”
- RISK INCREASERS – Seek the unexplored, unknown and unexplored land!
Which one are you? What do you want to be? Your 2007 and beyond await your decision.
