The Inspired Leader: 101 Biblical Reflections for Becoming a Person of Influence Read Online Free PDF Page A

involvement on a scale of 1-10, with 10 being the most involved.
Why do you think God led you to the church He did? How is He leveraging your skills and resources to bless your church?
What adjustments might you make so you do more to bless your church in the future? What is preventing you from making those adjustments now?
Opportunities

    WINSTON CHURCHILL SPENT most of his life in politics. His career encompassed numerous failures and disappointments. His father, Sir Randolph Churchill, never believed his son would make much of himself, despite his continual effort to do so. Winston later confessed that his father had told him he should join the army. This was not, as Winston first supposed, because he showed an aptitude for the service, but because he demonstrated no promise for law. Winston lost office and switched political parties more than once. He repeatedly teetered on the brink of bankruptcy. Yet on May 10, 1940, he finally became Prime Minister of Britain. He was 66 years old. It would not be until he was a senior citizen that Winston Churchill achieved the position he had coveted his entire life.
    Harry Truman’s early life was, like Churchill’s, filled with disappointment. He suffered bankruptcy. Being a plainspoken, ordinary man, he was often overlooked. He was usually the underdog in elections in which he ran. He was the third vice president to serve under Franklin Roosevelt. His presidency, beginning when he was 61, was much like Churchill’s role as prime minister, largely unexpected. In each case, the men served with distinction and changed the course of history.
    Moses was 80 years old when God gave him the assignment of his life. Everything he had done previously was preparatory to the task the octogenarian would undertake for the enslaved Israelites. When God first told Moses of His plans, the shepherd was filled with excuses why he could not do what God was asking. Yet God was far from finished with Moses. In fact, his best days were still ahead of him.
    In youth we are generally blessed with vigor and vision. We feel as if anything is possible. As we get older, we tend to become more conservative and careful. Rather than a vision for the future, we begin to play it safe and count the years until retirement. Yet with God, we can’t rest on our laurels. We never reach an expiry date on our usefulness to Him. With God there can always be a new opportunity for us to serve Him, regardless of our age or previous success. That is what makes walking with God so exciting. There is always a fresh opportunity looming, if we are faithful.
    Some people become the victims of their previous success. They have achieved much in the past so they begin to think their best days are behind them. They glory in their fruitful past rather than anticipating what God will do through their lives next. Others are victims of their past. They may have failed in previous efforts. Perhaps people have dismissed them as being of no further usefulness. As a result, they are not even looking for what God might have for them next.
    This is not to say that we will achieve our greatest roles later in life, as Churchill and Truman did. But it does mean there can always be a new undertaking that challenges us afresh and calls upon everything we previously learned in life. With God, there are limitless possibilities!
    How are you living? Are you winding down, coasting, living in the past, or expectantly embracing life, knowing that God is never finished with you and that He always has one more thing for you to do and to become?
    REFLECT FOR A MOMENT
Are you living your life with a continual sense of expectation? Or, have you become pessimistic about your future? Why?
Is your life characterized by exciting new adventures or by focusing on what happened in the past? Has your past history encouraged you or discouraged you? How is your past affecting your present outlook on life?
Do you truly believe that with God ALL things are possible? If