To See Lives Transformed, Always Start with the Truth of God’s Word

By Rick Warren

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See lives transformed by God’s truth when you lead your church through our newest church-wide campaign, Transformed: How God Changes Us.

Nothing thrills a Pastor more than seeing real transformation happen in the lives of people. We want to see people grow up and become completely mature – completely like Jesus Christ. Another word for this is sanctification, and sanctification always begins as God’s Spirit uses God’s truth to change the mind, heart, and will of His follower.

Jesus prayed to the father in John 17:17, “Use the truth to make them complete. Your Word is truth.” Transformation is change, and change happens as we apply God’s truth to every area of our lives. The first responsibility of Pastors and shepherds is to preach God’s truth, which transforms the lives of our hearers into the image of Jesus Christ.

One of the primary marks of spiritual immaturity is when other people can easily sway us away from the truth. Not knowing the truth of God’s Word causes us to change our beliefs back and forth, repeatedly, which creates an unstable life. Paul said in Ephesians 4:14-15 that when we are mature and know God’s truth, “Then we will no longer be like children, forever changing our minds about what we believe because someone has told us something different or made a lie sound like the truth…”

As Pastors, teachers, and church leaders, it is our responsibility to instruct people in God’s truth and to set the example for what it looks like to apply God’s truth to every area of our lives. Solomon set the bar high in this area in Ecclesiastes 12:9-11, “In addition to being a wise man, the Preacher also taught the people knowledge; and he pondered, searched out and arranged many proverbs. The Preacher sought to find delightful words and to write words of truth correctly. The words of wise men are like goads, and masters of these collections are like well-driven nails; they are given by one Shepherd.” (NASB)

When you present God’s truth to God’s people for the purpose of life transformation, two things will happen. First, they will be moved to act on what they’ve heard, to become doers and not just hearers. Solomon said the words of wise men are “like goads” that move the will of people to align with truth. And secondly, they are like “well-driven nails.” In other words, when God’s truth is presented well, it finds a permanent place in the minds of its hearers.

As we lead our congregations forward spiritually, I believe there are several imperatives that will result in truly transformed lives.

1. Present the good news of Jesus clearly and repeatedly. Jesus is the point, and the good news of His saving grace never gets old. We never go deeper than the gospel. We never move on past the truth of what it means to be saved.
2. Elevate God’s Word in the eyes of the congregation. One of the reasons I use so much Scripture in what I call verse-with-verse exposition is that it sends a message that Rick Warren isn’t the authority, the Bible, God’s Word is the authority.
3. Center every message on God, His character, and His truth. The points of your messages will always have more impact when they are about God and not about you or the hearer apart from God.
4. Call people to act on what they hear. Once truth saturates the mind and moves the emotions, it should result in actions of the will. This is why I use so many verbs in the points of my message. 

I don’t believe that behavior modification should ever replace the role of God’s grace in transforming us, but the evidence of real transformation will be behaviors that are modified by God’s truth.

People are living today under the tyranny of self-defeating behaviors, and those self-defeating behaviors are always based on lies, which must be confronted and challenged by God’s truth.

God’s truth is far more powerful than my opinion or yours. God’s Word teaches us the truth. It shows us the path to walk on. It shows us where we get off the path. It shows us how to get back on the path. And it shows us how to stay on the path. Always start with the truth of God’s Word if you want to see real transformation happen.

Lead Better by Improving the Way You Communicate

By Rick Warren

You can’t lead a church, evangelize a community, or do business without communicating. And the better you become as a communicator, the better you become as a leader, and the better the team you lead becomes as a result. That means to get ahead you’ve got to continually work on your communication skills. Probably 75% of the problems we face, at home, at work, and at church are related to poor communication with family members, church members, your clients, or your coworkers. Poor communication is also the most frequently mentioned problem in marriage counseling.

Here are three things you must give up in order to grow as a communicator. As you lead…

Give Up Your Assumptions

We get into trouble when we start assuming we understand the meaning of what people say to us. The truth is – everything you hear goes through a filter. Your filter is determined by your past experiences and your unique personality. You may not be hearing what they are really saying. Therefore, it’s smart (and safe) to ask for clarification. There are 6 possible messages every time you speak:

•    What you mean to say and what you actually said.

•    What they heard and what they think they heard.

•    What they say about it and what you think they said about it.

Proverbs 18:13 says “It’s foolish to answer before listening.”

There is a second kind of assumption you need to give up on. Stop assuming people understand everything you’re thinking and feeling as you communicate. It’s only fair to clearly and completely share your expectations with people when you assign them a task or a project. You must find a way to be both concise and complete, and always clear when you communicate.

Give Up Your Accusations

You’re never persuasive when you’re abrasive. And you never get your point across by being cross. Anger and sarcasm only make people defensive… and defensiveness kills communication. Here are four common forms of accusation:

•    Exaggerating – making sweeping generalities like ”You never ” or “You always.”

•    Labeling – derogatory name calling. Labeling never changes anyone. It only reinforces the negative behavior.

•    Playing Historian – bringing up past failures, mistakes, and broken promises.

•    Asking Loaded Questions – which really can’t be answered, like “Can’t you do anything right?”

Ephesians 4:29 says “Use only helpful words, the kind that build others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen.”

Give Up Your Apprehensions

Fear prevents honest communication. It causes us to conceal our true feelings, and fail to confront the real issues. The two most common apprehensions are: the fear of failure and the fear of rejection. But when you face your fear and risk being honest – real communication can happen. Freedom is the result of openness. Jesus said, “The truth will set you free!” (John 8:32)

Good teams communicate, or they disintegrate. It’s worth giving up our assumptions, our accusations, and our apprehensions to build unity and lead everyone forward.

Thlaraumi Timi cu?

1 Cor 13:13, 10:31

Thlarau lam ah ziangtin ka tthangso le tthangso lo kan tah aw ding?

Korea ah rawl suan an zuam aw. A netabik ih an tahfung cu duhdawtnak ih tuahmi a si maw timi a si.

Bible in teh ziangti in thlaraumi a si le si lo hi in tah?

1.     Lei tlumi pawl ih tah daan ahcun, thlaraumi pawl cu a khawm ringring, hlu pe thei ringring, hriat lo tong ih tong thei, thlarau sia tla dawi thei, mino khal dam ter thei maw ti pawl hi a si. 

2.     Bible cun, duhdawtnak a nei maw timi hi a tahfung a si. X le Y timi in kan simfiang ding ih. X cu kan nei/si nan Y kan neih lo ahcun zianghman ka si lo ti in simsehla. X ah na duhmimi re aw. Cule Y ah duhdawtnak kha re aw. X  ka nei/si nan duhdawtnak ka neih lo ahcun, zianghman thathnemnak a um lo tinak a si.

Duhdawtnak timi nei thei dingah minung lam in kan nei thei theu lo. Duhdawtnak neih thei daan phun thum:

1.     Zumnak: Pathian in I duhdawt ih, ka sualnak tampi tla I ngaithiam timi a zumtu pawl, ka sinak vek in I duhdawt ti a zumtu pawl an si.

2.     Ruahsannak: Cupawl lawng in lei tlunah zovek ih in duhdawt lo khal le duhdawttu Pathian ka nei lai ti an ruahsan ngam. Pathian ka lam ah a ttang ringring ti an thei.

3.     Duhdawtnak: cu pawl cun Pathian in anmah a duhdawt daan in midang an va duhdawt thei ve.

Duhdawtnak timi cu:

1.     A thin a sau ih zaangfahnak thawn a khat (v. 4)

2.     Thudik hman in thil a feh tikah a lungawi (v. 6)

3.     A humnak a hlo dah lo.

4.     Ruahsannak thawn a khat

5.     Tuar theinak thawn a khat.

Duhdawtnak a si lomi pawl cu: (v. 4-

1.     Mi a iksik lo.

2.     Tluang akhawng lo (porh aw)

3.     A puarthau fawn lo.

4.     Nun hel-hlong in a nung lo (rude)

5.     Amai zawn lawng a ruat lo

6.     A thin a tawi lo.

7.     Thincin a nei lo.

8.     Thiltha lo (injustices) parah a lungawi lo.

9.     A beidong dah lo (v. 7f)

Thunetnak

Thlaraulam ah kan tthangso maw timi tahnak cu thil dang in a si lo, duhdawtnak thawn kan tuahmi a si maw timi lawng hi a si. Duhdawtnak timi cu Pathian hmin in, tongdang cun, Pathian mithmai zoh in midang parih thiltha va tuah khi a si.  

How to Determine If Your Religious Liberty Is Being Threatened in Just 10 Quick Questions

Posted: 09/05/2012 11:33 am

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It seems like this election season "religious liberty" is a hot topic. Rumors of its demise are all around, as are politicians who want to make sure that you know they will never do anything to intrude upon it.

I'm a religious person with a lifelong passion for civil rights, so this is of great interest to me. So much so, that I believe we all need to determine whether our religious liberties are indeed at risk. So, as a public service, I've come up with this little quiz. I call it "How to Determine if Your Religious Liberty Is Being Threatened in Just 10 Quick Questions." Just pick "A" or "B" for each question.

1. My religious liberty is at risk because:

A) I am not allowed to go to a religious service of my own choosing.
B) Others are allowed to go to religious services of their own choosing.

2. My religious liberty is at risk because:

A) I am not allowed to marry the person I love legally, even though my religious community blesses my marriage.
B) Some states refuse to enforce my own particular religious beliefs on marriage on those two guys in line down at the courthouse.

3. My religious liberty is at risk because:

A) I am being forced to use birth control.
B) I am unable to force others to not use birth control.

4. My religious liberty is at risk because:

A) I am not allowed to pray privately.
B) I am not allowed to force others to pray the prayers of my faith publicly.

5. My religious liberty is at risk because:

A) Being a member of my faith means that I can be bullied without legal recourse.
B) I am no longer allowed to use my faith to bully gay kids with impunity.

6. My religious liberty is at risk because:

A) I am not allowed to purchase, read or possess religious books or material.
B) Others are allowed to have access books, movies and websites that I do not like.

7. My religious liberty is at risk because:

A) My religious group is not allowed equal protection under the establishment clause.
B) My religious group is not allowed to use public funds, buildings and resources as we would like, for whatever purposes we might like.

8. My religious liberty is at risk because:

A) Another religious group has been declared the official faith of my country.
B) My own religious group is not given status as the official faith of my country.

9. My religious liberty is at risk because:

A) My religious community is not allowed to build a house of worship in my community.
B) A religious community I do not like wants to build a house of worship in my community.

10. My religious liberty is at risk because:

A) I am not allowed to teach my children the creation stories of our faith at home.
B) Public school science classes are teaching science.

Scoring key:

If you answered "A" to any question, then perhaps your religious liberty is indeed at stake. You and your faith group have every right to now advocate for equal protection under the law. But just remember this one little, constitutional, concept: this means you can fight for your equality -- not your superiority.

If you answered "B" to any question, then not only is your religious liberty not at stake, but there is a strong chance that you are oppressing the religious liberties of others. This is the point where I would invite you to refer back to the tenets of your faith, especially the ones about your neighbors.

In closing, no matter what soundbites you hear this election year, remember this: Religious liberty is never secured by a campaign of religious superiority. The only way to ensure your own religious liberty remains strong is by advocating for the religious liberty of all, including those with whom you may passionately disagree. Because they deserve the same rights as you. Nothing more. Nothing less.