faith

Kenotic Leadership: Leading with the Humility of Christ

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The following is an excerpt from work I had to complete for a course on Kenotic Leadership as part of my work towards a Doctor of Ministry I am taking at Asbury Theological Seminary.

Kenotic Leadership includes both an emptying and a filling in order for it to be truly kenotic leadership. There must be an emptying (https://biblehub.com/greek/2758.htm) of oneself of privilege and power and authority; anything that will reflect leadership by force or coercion, and then a filling of the Holy Spirit, Christ in us.

In Philippians 2:7 the Apostle Paul describes the experience of Jesus Christ when he left heaven and became a human. In this description of humility, which Paul says we should all emulate, he describes the process Jesus went through as “emptying” (ἐκένωσεν), a letting go of his divine privileges and power in order to become one with the people he came to serve. This is about  “emptying of privilege not of essence.” (Gyertson) Jesus was still divine, but did not hold to that divine power and position in order to serve humanity.

In a Christian leader, the emptying must be accompanied with a filling. A person can have a brilliant mind and possess expansive leadership gifts and skills, but without commitment and Christian spirituality he or she will not be the leader Christ is calling for and the Christian movement needs.” (Dunnam, p. 15) The Christian leader must be filled with Christ, by His Spirit, otherwise you just have servant leadership (Bolman/Deal, p. 4) which focuses on the needs of those being served. Kenotic leadership is not first concerned about the needs of those being led, but about the priorities of Christ.

Nouwen describes Christian leadership in the future like this: “It is not a leadership of power and control, but a leadership of powerlessness and humility in which the suffering servant of God, Jesus Christ, is made manifest.” (Nouwen, p.82) He continues, “the Christian leader thinks, speaks, and acts in the name of Jesus.” (Nouwen, p..186) Dunham points out that Paul liked the phrase “in Christ,” using it or something similar “at least 172 times” (Dunnam, p. 19) in his letters. He emphasizes that this is about more than following Christ but about “being in Christ.” (Dunnam, p. 36) The emptying of ourselves of all our own power and privilege and personal goals but being replaced with a filling of Christ that draws us to a place of abiding in Christ.

Bolman, Lee G., and Terrence E. Deal. Reframing Organizations: Artistry, Choice, and

Leadership. Jossey-Bass, 2021.

Dunnam, Maxie. Christian Leadership: Speaking to God for the People, Speaking to the People

for God. Abingdon Press, 2019.

Gyertson, David. Foundations of Kenotic Leadership for Times Like These, 2019.

Nouwen, Henri J. M. In the Name of Jesus: Reflections on Christian Leadership. Crossroad,

1989.

Creative Service Ideas

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Most Sunday Services in most North American churches look pretty much the same. There is usually an opening, announcements, singing, and a sermon. Sometimes there are a few extras like a special song sung for the congregation or something like that. As pastors, we tend to do things the way we have always done them because we have found a pattern that works, but for those who are interested in changing things up, I would like to share some creative service ideas you could try occasionally. I don’t believe there is a reason that every Sunday Worship Service has to look exactly the same or even include all the elements we regularly have.

The following ideas for Sunday Services can be done in place of a sermon. Some of these ideas may be quite different from what the congregation expects each Sunday, but, in my experience, with careful introduction and scriptural support, they can be well received. Before any service that I am drastically changing, I make sure I know what I am hoping for. This way I can clearly communicate these expectations to staff and volunteers. During the service, I also make sure to walk the congregation through the activities I’ve planned and how they can participate. Sometimes I make a special effort to explain how the creative idea is scripturally sound and appropriate for Sunday morning.

Here are the ideas:

Worship/Music Sunday

Most services place the sermon as the main event in a service. It would be appropriate to occasionally have a whole service of song, scripture, music, and praise. The singing and praise of the Lamb in Revelation 5 would be a good background for this service.

Prayer Sunday

While we often pray at different points in the service, or have designated prayer meetings, it is quite appropriate, in place of a sermon, to lead the congregation in a guided prayer time during the Sunday Service. Prayers of the Bible can be used as a guide for a Prayer Sunday, or use a guide like the “Five Finger Prayer.”

Scripture Sunday

We often read a scripture or two and preach from scripture, but it can be encouraging to have a complete service focused on the reading and quoting of scripture. Children can share verses they have memorized in Sunday School or at camp. We can imitate Timothy who was charged with the “public reading of scripture” (1 Timothy 4:13).

Sharing Sunday

Some churches have a brief Prayer and Share time as part of their service. This could be expanded to fill the whole morning as long as a leader is prepared to give some direction and guidelines. The leader can offer suggestions of sharing answered prayers and God’s work in their lives, as well as giving parameters of what is appropriate to share in a public setting.

Communion Sunday

Many of our communion celebrations are tacked onto the end of a service, sometimes following a sermon that had nothing to do with communion.  A complete Sunday devoted to communion might have a great impact on the people as you take time to explain and understand communion with more detail.

Communion Sunday – with Interactive Stations

Often, the communion celebration is only focused on the bread and juice. I have used interactive stations inviting people to enter into the story with more of their senses. Each station invites worshippers to read scripture and participate in a physical activity surrounding communion. An example would be to read scripture about forgiveness and having them write out confessions and nail them to the cross, or to read about the temple curtain being torn in two while tearing a rag in half. The hope is to engage more of the senses as people enter physically into the communion celebration.

Baptism Sunday – all focused on Baptism

Find ways to make the whole service a celebration of baptism. Explain the meaning and importance of baptism. Invite candidates to share their testimonies. Invite others to pray for each one being baptized. Encourage people to remember their baptism and to recommit to serving God as they did at that time. No matter what service you plan, include scriptures that speak to the theme of the service.

I hope you can try a few creative services. Let me know how they turn out. And let me know if you have other creative suggestions.

Keep looking up,

Andy Wiebe

Celebrations and Recognitions

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We recently celebrated my mother-in-law’s 80th birthday with a surprise party. She was excited to see everyone and impressed that people made an effort to come celebrate with her. Celebrations are always exciting, and recognizing someone for who they are and what they have contributed is a good thing to do.

God gave his people annual festivals to celebrate at certain times during the year. He instituted thank offerings as part of the worship at the tabernacle and temple. And Moses and Miriam’s song of celebration after the crossing of the Red Sea in Exodus 15 is an example of his people celebrating God at work.

We need to celebrate God and his work in and through our church. I recently walked our church through a look at their history. There was one period of the church’s history that was so bad some didn’t even want to talk about it. I encouraged them to instead celebrate God’s goodness in helping the church find their way through that tough time. We need to celebrate God’s goodness when he helps us through tough times, his goodness in answering prayer, his goodness in providing the right pastor, and on and on. We always have things to celebrate and thank God for.

We should also recognize and celebrate people in the church. I know some churches are hesitant for various reasons, including not wanting to make others feel bad. We should not stop celebrating the contributions of people out of fear of offending those who aren’t contributing. Yes, we need to be respectful of others, but there is nothing wrong in giving someone a small gift to thank them for serving faithfully. There is nothing wrong with clapping in recognition of someone’s faithful service to a church. And it can be quite appropriate to thank someone who has had a long and faithful ministry in the church with some words of recognition and thankfulness.

In Philippians 2: 29 – 30, the Apostle Paul writes to the church in Philippi asking them to honour his friend Epaphroditus for how he helped care for Paul. Paul writes, “So then, welcome him in the Lord with great joy, and honor people like him, because he almost died for the work of Christ. He risked his life to make up for the help you could not give me.” He wants the people in Philippi to extend special honour to Epaphroditus because he went above and beyond what was expected, even risking his life to help Paul. It is quite appropriate to honour those who have given of themselves to serve others.

In 1 Timothy 5:17, Paul even says it’s a good thing to honour the elders who lead the church: “The elders who direct the affairs of the church well are worthy of double honour, especially those whose work is preaching and teaching.” We should not be afraid to honour those who deserve honour and recognition. In Romans 12:10 we are even told to “be devoted to one another in love. Honour one another above yourselves.” It is good to honour others.

Make time to celebrate God’s goodness in your church. And take time to recognise those who have given of themselves in service to God through their work in the church.

Keep looking up,

Andy Wiebe

You Don’t Need to be the Answer Man

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Pastors often feel they have to be the ones with all the answers. They feel threatened or unprepared if they can’t answer every question they are asked. The problem is that some people ask intelligent questions and desire well-thought-out answers. One of our church members recently asked me a question, quickly following up that she didn’t want me to answer her right then but hoped to discuss the question with her and her family over a meal the next Sunday. She didn’t want an off-the-cuff remark but one that was biblical and theologically sound.

Some people ask good questions because they have a desire to learn and grow in their understanding of their faith and theology. Their questions arise out of personal study and deep conversations with others. They ask intelligent questions because they are knowledgeable and aware of the theological debates surrounding their questions. Honour these questions by taking time to think and pray and study before answering. Recognize when people are looking for an immediate, brief answer and when they are looking for an in-depth response.

Pastors don’t have to know everything about every question that will be asked. It is quite okay to tell someone you will get back to them, or, when possible, to study and research with them to find the answer. If you can show them your research process, you are discipling them to find more of their own answers. Don’t feel that you have to guard the treasure of truth but show them how to find the answers themselves. Letting the questioner know that you don’t immediately know the answer is not a sign of weakness. Be okay with taking time to respond intelligently.

Some answers are very clear, you just need to point people to the right verse or the right story in the Bible. If they are looking to clarify what Jesus said in a certain parable or a detail about Old Testament history, it may suffice to point them to the right chapter and verse. Some questions are more about interpretation. These questions may need more than a chapter and verse, but also a theological statement that helps clarify what is being said. There are some questions that may require pointing to the various common theological understandings.

A question on communion would be a good example of needing more than a chapter and verse. This discussion may benefit from an answer that explains the various theological understandings of the blood and body of Jesus. After explaining the various views, it would be appropriate to explain what your church believes and why.

People will ask you questions. Do your best to give them good answers. Take the time needed to research and discuss their questions with them.

Keep looking up,

Andy Wiebe

Preparing For Change #3: Begin Your Change by Easing Into It

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We experience some changes gradually; others come as an abrupt shock. When prices at the gas pumps go up by a cent or two at a time, we don’t notice as much as when it is a five-cent increase or more at once. Easing into a change can help a church be more accepting of the change as it develops. This gives people time to adjust to smaller changes instead of the whole change at once.

Break the Change into Smaller Parts

For many churches, Sunday Worship services have a familiar flow. The order of service is the same each Sunday. If you want to lead your church in changing its service, you may want to begin with small changes. Instead of changing everything, change one or two things at a time.

For example, if you want to add some variety to the service, you could begin by breaking the usual group of worship songs into two smaller groups, inserting a scripture reading or prayer time in between. Then, after a while, you could move the second group of songs to the end of the service for a time when you want to follow a sermon on praise with singing praise songs as a sermon response. After people get used to some changes in the singing, you can change how the welcome and announcements are done. If you always start with a song and then the welcome and announcements, try starting with a video clip highlighting a ministry in the church before doing the welcome and announcements. Instead of depending on the song to gather the church to worship, gather them with a video followed by a scriptural “call to worship” from one of the psalms.

Whatever your change, see if there are ways of breaking it into smaller changes to allow people to adapt slowly. As people see you make small changes that work, they may be willing to try a bigger change next time.

Do a Trial Run

It may be appropriate to introduce a change by announcing it as a “trial run.” You can set a date for the trial period. The caveat that this is a temporary change that will be evaluated later may give your church the willingness to try it for a while. You could even introduce the change by explaining that you are looking for a way to do things better, but you aren’t sure if this is the best way to do so. You can encourage your congregation to give you feedback as you try the change.

If you introduce a “trial run” change, make sure it is a long enough period to give it a good test run, but a short enough time to still be a trial period. If you introduce a change that you will try for a year or two, that is obviously no longer a trial run. And make sure to stick with your timeline. Do not extend it. Respect people by keeping your promises.

Promise an Evaluation

Whether it is presented as a trial run or not, you can promise all those involved in implementing the changes that you will be doing a thorough evaluation, which they can take part in, on a certain date. Evaluate it against the intended purpose. Be honest with the results. 

Three options arise out of an evaluation. First, if it didn’t do what you hoped, you can always revert to the old way. Second, if the change didn’t work, you can adjust aspects of it and try again. Or, third, you can introduce a completely reworked change to try again. You may have to wait a while before people are ready to try again, but that will give you time to figure out how best to move ahead, if that seems the best option.

May God guide you as you introduce change to your church.

Keep looking up,

Andy Wiebe

PREPARING FOR CHANGE #1: Presenting the Case.

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Change is a scary word for many people. Yet change is necessary if we want to continue to grow and respond to the world around us. Change gives the opportunity to improve with the hope of better results. Recognizing the value of change and helping others to do the same is an essential part of being an effective leader, as such, the next three blogs will be about leading change.

When we are leaders of change, we often assume people are following right behind us. We forget that, because of our role to lead initiatives and implement adjustments in order to see improvements, we often spend a lot of time thinking through changes before we introduce them to others, so what is familiar to us is brand new information to those we lead. We are prepared for it, but they are not. We need to be intentional and clear about what changes we are introducing, the reason for it, how it will look, and how we will evaluate it.

We want to invite people to change, not force them. It helps to give a clear idea of why each change is appropriate. Among the reasons for change may be a desire for creativity, a response to Biblical direction, or a reaction to statistical information.

Change and Creativity

I like trying new things, so I sometimes introduce change simply for creativity’s sake. I think there is a place for that.

Some churches have exactly the same order of service every Sunday. Everyone knows the order of announcements, prayers, singing, preaching, and so on. I like to rearrange the order of service because I think people respond to creativity. The same thing every time puts people to sleep. One member, who appreciated the creativity and variety told me, “I like coming to this church because I never know what to expect from Sunday to Sunday.”

I also like to arrange the service in different ways in order to highlight the theme of the morning in a unique and creative way. Celebrating communion is often done at the end of the worship service in the churches I serve. Sometimes, I move it to the beginning of the worship service so the rest of the service is a celebration of Jesus’ death and resurrection as we were just reminded of in taking communion.

Change and Biblical Reasons

Sometimes churches need to make changes because they recognize they are not fulfilling a Biblical direction as best they could.

A church may respond to a sermon series on prayer with a renewed emphasis on prayer. They may ask Bible Study groups to pray. A church may make a prayer room available for after-service prayer. They may cancel all programs for a week to invite everyone to come to special prayer events.

A church may ask all their small groups to put a greater emphasis on outreach and inviting unbelievers because they recognized they weren’t doing well in reaching unbelievers. This is one way they are hoping to fulfill the Biblical mandate to share the good news with those who have never heard. Sometimes churches need to make changes that they believe God is inviting them into because of Biblical reasons.

Change and Statistics

Some reasons for change include statistics. We measure many aspects of life, including how we do ministry, by certain numbers.

A Sunday School class that has only two attendees may need to be canceled to give that teacher the option of serving in an area with greater need.. Giving to ministries or missions outside of the church may need to be stopped or postponed when the church is in financial difficulty. If the income does not match the budget, the necessary reductions need to be made. A church that does a demographic study of their community may recognize that there is a large number of people of a certain ethnic group in their community that has no church or church reaching out to them, so they develop a specific ministry effort to share Jesus with that group of people.

Whatever your reason for the change, whether one of the above or something else, be clear about it so that those who are affected may understand why this change is good and needed. May God guide you as you lead change.

Keep looking up,

Andy Wiebe

Leading a Small Group with Discipleship in Mind

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Much has been written about small groups as a valuable way to help believers grow. Churches often have unique names for their small groups depending on the priority of the group. Regardless of what these groups are called, churches that have small groups have an opportunity to disciple those in each group. As a leader, you can use your regular meetings to point everyone to Jesus again and again. This applies whether it is a task small group, friendship small group, or a Bible study small group. Here are a few suggestions for leading your small group with discipleship in mind.

  1. Pray together. Always take time to pray, even if it is just a brief time. Some members of your group may not typically pray in their day-to-day lives or may feel awkward or unfamiliar with praying. By leading in prayer, they see prayer modeled and may then learn how to pray themselves. So prayer will be an opportunity to bring requests to God as well as disciple people in how to pray.
  • Teach your small group to pray. Beyond modeling, you can show your group how to use prayers in the Bible as examples of how they can pray. You could start with the Lord’s Prayer, but there are many other prayers, especially in Paul’s letter and in the Psalms, which could be great examples for the amateur pray-er.
  • Read Scripture. Even if your group is not a Bible study group, you can still take time to read a few verses of scripture. This may be all the scripture some members read or hear that day. Remind them that God speaks to everyday situations. Even if your group is a task group that gathers to accomplish a certain purpose, such as a worship team that meets to practice for Sunday’s service, take time to read from God’s Word. If you are putting discipleship as a priority, then it is always appropriate to read scripture and pray.
  • Get personal. Sometimes we are so focused on the goal of the group, that we forget that we are all people who long for connection. We want to be noticed. We want people to express interest in our lives and concern for our well-being. Sometimes, in a Bible study, we jump so quickly to the Scriptures that we don’t notice that some members of the group are hurting, and others are excited about life and both want and need to share with someone. Take time to share something personal every time so you get to know each other and find ways of encouraging those who need it.
  • Teach something new. I used to think that discipleship only included teaching and equipping believers in “spiritual” things, yet discipleship can be very practical. A music small group may appreciate learning a new song, or a new creative way to engage their audience. A Bible study group may enjoy learning a new Bible Study method that helps them engage with scripture in a new way. Get creative, but look for ways to teach something new.
  •  Equip your small group. While this is connected to teaching something new, this specifically focuses on helping your group members improve a skill or grow in faith disciplines. The goal might be developing new Bible study methods that enable your members to move beyond just reading scripture to interacting and studying it. Maybe you can equip them in something practical such as how to buy a new Bible, how to make friends with their neighbour, or how to lead a small group so new leaders are raised up regularly.
  • Encourage your small group to consider God’s purpose for them. No matter what kind of group you lead, the believers in that group need to recognize that God has a purpose for them. Point them to scriptures that talk about loving God and loving others. Encourage them to try new things and see how God uses them. Encourage them to ask God about their purpose and then to live into it boldly.

No matter what kind of small group you lead in your church, each member needs to grow in their faith. Lead in such a way that they are discipled in the process.

Keep looking up,

Andy Wiebe

Make Prayer a Priority

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We have the incredible opportunity to talk with our Heavenly Father regularly. 1 John 5:14 tells us: “This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us.” We can come to God in prayer, not afraid of him, not afraid we are intruding on his time, or worried that what we are asking is too trivial for him to care about. As pastors, we need to help the members of our church know they can talk to God in prayer too, and often.

Personal Prayer
It begins with the pastor’s prayer life. If you are not praying, it will be difficult to lead your congregation in prayer, You need to lead by going ahead. You need to talk with God often – not just because you are a pastor, but because you are a follower of Jesus. Have a conversation with him. Expect him to answer your prayers. Talk to him about your own spiritual life. Talk to him about your family. Pray for your church members by name. Use a prayer list to help you pray for everyone. Pray for specific aspects of their lives.

Implement practices that will help you improve your praying. Schedule a regular time daily for prayer. Read books on prayer. Read the prayers of the Bible. Equip yourself so that you can equip others.

Hands of a man praying in solitude with his Bible.

Corporate Prayer

Make sure that your church is a “house of prayer.” Include prayer in any meetings you have. Make sure you pray in your services. I attended a church once where the sermon was on prayer and the only prayer in the service was a quick wrap-up after the sermon. That is not good. Yes, we need to read scripture, and we need to worship in song, but we also need to pray.

Schedule prayer events for the church throughout the week. Plan regular prayer meetings. If you have small groups, ensure that the groups are taking time for prayer. You could even give them a guide or a list of things to pray for each week or each month. The “prayer chain” has been replaced in many churches with more updated options, but find an app that works for your church where you can share prayer requests with the whole church quickly, calling on everyone to pray for certain needs.

Special Prayer Opportunities

It is good to plan special prayer events or focuses throughout the year. I have often invited the church to a “3-week prayer” focus on a certain theme or topic, providing a guide which includes a few verses of scripture and prayer requests to pray.

Setting aside a “day of prayer” can be a good way to focus the church on prayer all day for one day. Invite people to come pray together at the church early in the morning before they go to work. Invite people to connect to an online prayer event over the lunch hour. Have a special prayer service in the evening. Send out hourly prayer reminders and encouragements to keep people praying.

In one church, we did an all-night “prayer vigil” open to all teens and adults. We began with a Saturday evening prayer service. People signed up to pray for an hour. Some people came on their own, some came as a group. One group in the middle of the night was three teen girls. One group early in the morning was dads and their sons. People could choose to follow guides prepared for them to read and pray through. Then, Sunday morning, we had a Celebration Service where we worshipped God, and people shared some of what they had experienced and heard from God!!

Let’s remember that we have a God who loves us and wants to have a regular conversation with us. We can go to him with anything and anytime. And, Pastors, let’s make sure we help our church to pray too.

Keep looking up,

Andy Wiebe

When Pastoral Care is Unnatural for You

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I get excited about many parts of church leadership. I love to work on vision and strategy and even bylaws, and the constitution. I enjoy preparing and preaching sermons or teaching lessons, but I am not naturally aware of people’s needs. I don’t mind spending time with people, in fact, I enjoy it when I do, but caring for people is not readily on my mind. My mind is quick to look at how to plan, lead, and direct, but I need help and reminders to slow down and be with people. Maybe some of you can relate? If so, some of the following ideas might help both you and me.

Listen for the needs people express.

This is so straightforward that it hardly seems worth mentioning, yet I don’t always do this well. When people have conversations with me, I may stop and pray for them right there if they mention a need, but I often forget to check in later to see how things went.

Sometimes you hear people raising a prayer request in a group. The other day I heard someone ask for prayer for a test she had to undergo. That was a great opportunity for me to make a note somewhere to check in on her later. If someone makes a worry known, they likely want people to be aware and take notice. This might be a great time to arrange a coffee or make an appointment to meet with them and care for them.

Follow up on cues others notice.

Recently, I was meeting with a Transition Team at a church, going through the church’s Health and Vision Assessment we had just completed together. There were many encouraging and helpful responses from the congregation, but there was one person who consistently answered negatively. I didn’t pay too much attention. I thought he may just be a more thorough person and generally critical, yet a few on the team suggested he may need a visit from me. I hadn’t even considered that but agreed to their suggestion. I met with him and he seemed glad and was very willing to talk. He even indicated that he signed his name to the assessment in hopes someone would meet with him. We had a great conversation. I’m not sure we resolved anything, but he did appreciate the opportunity to be heard. Be alert to other cues that a person needs some attention.

Pause and evaluate the day in light of people.

It might be helpful to stop at one point in your day to think and pray through your interactions of the day, asking God to point out anyone who needs a call, a text, or a visit. You could do this at the beginning of your day, asking God to point out who from yesterday needs your care today. Or you might choose to do this at the end of your day, reflecting on the day that was, and planning how you might connect with people who come to mind.

If this is difficult, it can be helpful to keep a checklist on your desk with questions to prompt you to reflect on your daily interactions. Some questions could include:

  • Who has medical needs that are weighing on them?
  • Who expressed a specific need today?
  • Who is dealing with concerns in their marriage or family?
  • Who is leading or serving in a ministry and needs encouragement?
  • Who is dealing with depression and could use a personal connection?
  • Who has someone else suggested needs care?
  • Who has been absent from church for a while?
  • Who has the potential for greater leadership responsibilities and could use a conversation to discuss the possibilities of this?
  • Who has exciting news personally or in their family that you could celebrate with them?
PASTORAL CARE CHECKLISTDownload

Pastoral care is an important aspect of effective leadership, but it doesn’t always come naturaly. If you are like me in this way, I hope this post encourages you to adopt some of my suggestions or find methods of your own to help you notice ways you can better care for those you lead.

May your ability to notice people who need care expand as you are intentional about it.

Keep looking up,

Andy Wiebe

Don’t Just Examine the Bread!

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So the Israelites examined their food, but they did not consult the Lord.

Joshua 9:14 (New Living Translation)

Christian leaders need to recognize the importance of not accepting everything at face value. It is important that we do the work of evaluating the latest teaching. Even if the speaker or author or podcast host has a good reputation, we must do the work of determining if what they are saying and presenting and teaching is the truth.

Joshua 9 gives us a glimpse into an event in the life of the Israelites as they begin to conquer the Promised Land. They conquered Jericho by walking around it for a whole week and then shouting, bringing the walls down. They conquered Ai next.

After defeating these groups a delegation of strangers showed up on their doorstep. These Gibeonites didn’t live too far away, and heard how God gave them victory against all other people. They were afraid for their lives, so out of self-preservation, they put on a little drama. They wore patched sandals, brought dry and moldy bread, and carried cracking wineskins. They arrive at the Israelite camp looking every bit the faraway people they pretend to be.

The Gibeonites asked for a peace treaty, but the Israelites were clear: if you live nearby “we cannot make a treaty with you” (Joshua 9:7). God told them to conquer all the people. He did not want them to make a treaty with any of the people in the land He is giving them.

In an effort to convince the Israelites that they were from far away, the delegation pointed out the terrible shape of their supplies. And as verse 14 says, “the Israelites examined their food, but they did not consult the Lord.”

Other versions say “they sampled their provisions” or “took some of their provisions.” This can be both a symbol of friendship, as well as a “testing” of the supplies. The Israelites examined the supplies and discovered that they aligned with the story the delegation told. The Israelites felt they had done their “due diligence” and agreed to make a treaty. It is very clear the Israelites did this without consulting the Lord. They believed something and acted on it. They believed a lie and acted by making a treaty.

Only three days later they discover the Gibeonites were neighbours. The Israelites were not impressed, but their leaders convince them they couldn’t destroy the Gibeonites but must honour the treaty. Instead, the Israelites make the Gibeonites do forced labour.

How often do we as leaders think we have done our due diligence because we have in some way vetted what we have been told? Maybe we listen to a speaker and listen to a few other voices and accept what we are hearing at face value. We may do this work, and yet we forget to “consult the Lord” as we accept new ideas or try new ways of doing things.

It may be that the Israelites did not consult the Lord because they were encountering something new. They had seen God do incredible things for them over their history, including conquering Jericho and Ai just recently, but they had not met Gibeonites before, they had never encountered a peace delegation before, and they were still new at this concept of conquering the land God was giving them. Like them, when we encounter something new, we can get caught up in the new experience and forget to consult the Lord.

Instead of following the ways of the Israelites and simply “examining the bread,” we must inquire of the Lord. This should be one of our go-to moves. Ask God, “What do you think about what we have just heard? What do you think of this new idea?” Due diligence for a Christian leader should always include consulting the Lord. Accept new ideas carefully after consulting the Lord. Make new decisions after you have talked to God about them.

Yes, examine the bread, but also consult the Lord.

Keep looking up,

Andy Wiebe