Quotes of Note: My First Priority in Ministry
The following “Quotes of Note” are from Chapter Five of Equipping Counselors for Your Church. This chapter focuses on relational change management and biblical conflict resolution. For quotes from Chapter One, read God’s Grand Vision for His Church. For quotes from Chapter Two, read Knowing and Loving Those We Serve and Equip. For quotes from Chapters Three and Four read Christ’s Compelling Calling.
• Biblical counselors don’t say, “Physician, heal thyself.” Instead, we say, “Soul physician, go to the Soul Physician for healing before counseling others.”
• Before you prepare a change management plan, prepare people. Before you prepare people, prepare your own heart.
• Transformation starts with hearts: changed leaders leading changed people who change churches who change communities.
• Launching a biblical counseling ministry isn’t a task to accomplish. It is a relationship—with God and others—to nourish and enjoy.
• The end goal of biblical counseling is worship—entrusting ourselves to, exalting, and enjoying God (Matthew 22:34-40).
• The end goal of the process of launching a biblical counseling ministry should be to shepherd Christians to a deeper worship of Christ.
• The book of Nehemiah is not about organizational leadership; it is about shepherding people whose transformed lives lead to a transformed community.
• Change is like a ship that we simultaneously sail and refit.
• Relational change management is a continuing conversation, not a lecture. Commit to dialogue rather than monologue.
• Relational change management asks, “How much change can our people appropriately digest? How much change can our people realistically implement?”
• We should not expect people to change because we said so, but because God says so.
• In the Redwood National Park there is a hollowed out tree that you can drive through. Since you don’t do that every day, there’s a sign before the entrance to the tree that says, “Others Have. So Can You.”
• Rather than going toe-to-toe with ungodly critics, Nehemiah encouraged God’s people to minister shoulder-to-shoulder (Nehemiah 2:11-20).
• Nehemiah had sufficient inner resources to stand alone if need be. In the tenacious discharge of his responsibilities, he was prepared to have no one but God. His energy was not dictated by other’s apathy.
• When someone pushes us, our inclination is to push back. When someone gets in our face, we’re tempted to get in their face. Nehemiah chose to get face-to-face with God (Nehemiah 4:4).
• When life stinks, our perspective shrinks. When our perspective shrinks, we need a full dose of eternal perspective, of God perspective. We need to remember Who God is, who we are in Christ, Who it is that is calling us, and what He is calling us to do.
• Great leaders respond to the potential death and destruction of a dream with life and creativity.
• You can define the greatness of leaders by what it takes to discourage them and by how they encourage everyone around them.
• Paul demonstrates that when conflict occurs, my first ministry, even before I launch any other ministry, is to love others with Christ-like love.
Join the Conversation
Which quote about relational change management and biblical conflict resolution resonate with you the most? Why?
