Dr. Bill Donahue

Developing Life-Changing Leaders

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“They” Are to Blame

Jan 28

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Personal pronoun. Third person plural. They. THEY are the problem. It’s about them. Let’s blame them. They did it…they said it…they promised…they want us to believe…they are the culprits…they are the ones to be feared, hated, attacked, confronted, voted out, labeled and demonized.

It’s so much easier when it’s about them. When THEY are to blame, I have no responsibility, no accountability, no culpability. I can relinquish my personal authority and avoid my civic responsibility. Why work so hard to be part of the process when all I have to do is expose “THEM” to the world? That way I can “tell it like it is” and not worry about working to make it “like it should be.”

Then we can all get angry at THEM, lament the affect “THEY” have on us, and go about doing our lives without changing. BUT WHAT IF…

What if I replaced THEM (they) with that awesome small group — me, myself and I? What could the 3 of  ”us” do if “we” put our head, hands and heart into it? Oh my…we may never know. It’s so much easier to crack open a coke or a brew, hit the remote and shout, “Tell me like it is!”

Sure. Just let the media distill the truth down to a soundbite that fits the agenda of Rush, Keith, Glenn, Sean, Rachel, Ed, and the whole conglomerate ABC-CBS-NBC-FOX-MSNBC-CNN info-machine. After all, they are watching out for me, covering my back, setting me straight, representing my point of view (which, under no circumstances should ever be challenged!).

OR…I could actually DO SOMETHING.

Like read real news, search real websites and data, talk to real people, really look at my own heart and soul and actions. Or I could serve on a school board or volunteer at the shelter or call my Congress person or attend some meetings or write an op-ed or take my local rep to lunch or actually read the report for myself.

OR…OR…OR…oh my… I am getting tired….all that effort…

That sounds like so much work. I’m so busy….Where’s my remote? Oh, good. There it is.

Click…AHHH…Now, that feels better. Where’s my mug? Slurp. Ahh…Yes…phew!

Go ahead…I’m all ears. Tell me like it is.

FRIDAY MUSINGS

Just (Don’t) Do It!

Dec 23

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Don’t Do It! – Never. Just Don’t. It’s not worth it.

When you do you will be crushed, wounded, saddened, disappointed, frustrated, filled with regret and gripped with remorse. Fear Not!

That’s the message of Christmas…DO NOT BE AFRAID!

And if you FEAR NOT you WILL…..

Not be Afraid

Not Let Your Heart be Troubled

Not Worry

Not Wear Yourself out to Get Rich

Not Return Evil for Evil

Not Withhold Discipline from Your Children

Not Let Your Heart Envy the Wicked

Not Speak to a Fool

Not Boast About Tomorrow

Not Exalt Yourself

When I am captivated by fear, I will do all of this. But..WHEN I FEAR NOT, I WILL NOT. So I rest, trust and I will make every effort to put away fear.

Have a Wonderf-filled, Fear-free Christmas!

Black Friday vs. Good Friday

Nov 26

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Was thinking today about the mad rush for stuff, for sales for early shopping. No doubt there are some great deals out there and if you have a specific purchase in mind and you can save a few hundred, go for it. I am already writing this way past the store openings. But I did have some thoughts.

On Good Friday darkness covered the land.

On Black Friday excess covers the land.

On Good Friday He paid our debts.

On Black Friday We make our debts.

On Black Friday the prices are very low.

On Good Friday the price was very high.

On Black Friday the stores move into the black.

On Good Friday He stepped into the black.

Before Black Friday shoppers stay up all night to make a deal.

Before Good Friday He was up all night to settle a score.

What happens on Black Friday is barely remembered.

What happened on Good Friday is never forgotten.

Only some get a bargain today, Black Friday.

But we all got a deal on Good Friday. Hard to pass that one up.

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TEXTUAL ABUSE

Oct 4

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Televangelists, Political Candidates, Talk Show Hosts, Pastors — gives us a break! Manipulating the Bible to fit your agenda is Biblical Malpractice…and using it to shame, guilt, demean, judge, condemn, and bludgeon people is offensive, immoral, destructive and hypocritical — You are committing TEXTUAL ABUSE!

I got an earful of Scripture-twisting over the past week and had to blurt this out. I watched 2 preachers twist the text to justify their blatant pursuit of wealth for personal gain; I listened to a talk show host tell us that the Bible does not promote social justice (which I understand to mean bringing God’s justice into the social order).

Then I watched a Politician describe his Christian beliefs as good system to manage his life as he yanked a few texts at random from the Word; I heard an evangelist respond to his public statements about the evil religion of Islam and yet how he loved Muslims; I listed to a Pastor use the Bible to threaten people with God’s judgement and heard 2 other “Family”  Christian radio programs manipulate the text to “make sure women understand their roles.”

Enough! The Bible is not a coaching “playbook”, a troubleshooting guide, a “road to prosperity” handbook, a proof text for a political ideology, a weapon to bash people of other faiths, a toolbox of handy gadgets to fix every little leaky faucet and squeaking door hinge in our spiritual house, nor a master plan for fulfilling all my dreams.

No. It is the pure, simple, powerful, unparalleled, unadulterated, raw, unvarnished, loving, earth-shattering, heaven-jolting, Kingdom-advancing, Christ-revealing, living, active, transforming Word of the living God!

It requires my obedience, demands my perfection, recovers my true identity, glorifies our Father, reveals His truth, exalts His Son, releases His Spirit, and guides our sanctification. It is our bread, our sword, our mirror, our light, our path, and our way. It reminds us we are free, gives us hope, renews our soul and eradicates our sins. It builds, creates, empowers, sustains, emboldens, stretches, exhorts…it turns our hearts, shapes our minds, equips our hands and refreshes our souls.

So read it, chew on it, revel in it, share it, study it, debate it, preach it, teach it, reflect on it, obey it, weep over it, rush into danger with it, guard your heart with it, resist evil with it, promote justice with it, examine yourself with it, pray through it, be mastered by it, align your mission with it and place your confidence in it.

BUT NEVER — NEVER…EVER — ABUSE IT — OR USE IT TO ABUSE OTHERS!

NO WAY — NO HOW — UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES!

And if you ever stand in the presence of someone who intentionally does…Let ‘em have an earful of the life-changing gospel of Jesus!  Defend the Word and the reputation of the One who died to bring it to us — free of charge.

There — I said it. Glad I got that off my chest! Now, where was I? Oh yeah, back to work.

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Starbucks Christianity

Sep 27

Posted by Bill Donahue in Uncategorized | 4 Comments

Good morning staff. This week we are promoting our new Venti Lite-Roast Double-Whip Sanctifier. People have loved it so far. It’s fast becoming one of our most popular drinks. For you newer staff, let me explain how we make it.

By the way, we recommend pushing the Venti size because it has the greatest effect with the least amount of cost. The impact only lasts a day, of course. But what a day!

We brew it with our special bean – the Zallaboutme bean — it lies in shallow soil, just below the surface. People are very attracted to it, because the aroma interacts with each person’s unique body chemistry, making them feel like it was made just for their particular taste. Soon they will recognize the aroma of the bean every time they drink one; they’ll take a whiff and find themselves saying, “It’s Zallaboutme!”

To put a little edge to it — just a little edge, not too much — we add a rare spice, Rigor. But be careful. Too much Rigor can ruin the effect of Zallaboutme. People soon find the drink too strong and even tiring. So we go light on the Rigor. We want them to have the impression that it is robust and bold, but never too demanding.

That’s where the Double-Whip topping comes in. If there’s any chance that the drink is too strong, the topping will act as a buffer. Unlike most drinks out there, the topping on the Lite-Sanctifier takes up about 80% of the drink’s volume. After all, it’s what on the surface that matters to the customer.

So always use the Double-Whip. Makes it feel like you are getting so much more for your money. It’s lite, tasty, and won’t fill them up for more than an hour or so. So they’ll keep coming back multiple times a day. And that’s cash to the bottom line.

So remember,with just a little bit of Rigor, and a lot of Double-Whip, the Lite-Roast Sanctifier will give the customer what they long for…

energy without effort…

fumes without fuel…

stimulation without sanctification.

Any questions?

Yeah..that other spice there…Obey…do we ever add that to the Sanctifier.

We used to put Obey in the drink when we first created it — instead of the Double-Whip. But the combination of Rigor and Obey was just too much for some folks. People stopped coming back. Seemed like they could go weeks without another shot. And we were losing money.

Though we’ve lost some of those former customers the change has been worth it. Since removing the Obey we have more than doubled our new customer base– they love the Lite-Roast Double-Whip Sanctifier!

So are we all OK? Great!

This promotion is good through the end of next month. Then, for the holidays, we’ll be doing something for the snack section — Candy-Coated Faithdrops. Small, hollow little goodies with lots of flavor but almost no filling. More on that later.

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Celtic Community

Jul 15

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Americans are not very familiar with Scotch and Irish traditions beyond the whimsical humor, lively limericks and raucous bar songs the Celts have provided over the years. Some of my college friends would only be acquainted with corny Irish jokes or a glass of their favorite Scotch whiskey. Along those lines, here’s some humorous wisdom from across the pond.

May those who love us, love us.

And those who don’t love us,

May God turn their hearts;

And if He doesn’t turn their hearts,

May He turn their ankles,

So we will know them by their limping.

Now there’s a practical prayer that may come in handy some day!

Apart from hearing bagpipes at funerals or drinking green beer on Saint Patty’s Day, our culture has little experience with Celtic life, especially the spiritual and communal traditions. Some of our Catholic friends might have greater experience, but we all could benefit from greater exposure to the Celtic legacy.

Celtic traditions have long produced prayers and blessings for the people of God. And many in the tradition understand the communal impact of a heart seized by the captivating love and righteousness of God. Here is a Scottish blessing connecting the individual with the communal.

If there is righteousness in the heart

If there is righteousness in the heart,

there will be beauty in the character.

If there is beauty in the character,

there will be harmony in the home.

If there is harmony in the home,

there will be order in the nation.

If there is order in the nation,

there will be peace in the world.

So let it be

Redemptive community begins in the heart of God and erupts into the hearts of those who follow His way.  Healing, grace, blessing and righteousness flow from the heart. Proverbs 15 says a happy heart makes the face cheerful, a discerning heart seeks knowledge, a cheerful heart has a continual feast, the righteous heart weighs its answers before speaking and a cheerful look brings joy to the heart.

It starts with a heart—and it can change a world. Not with grandiose, unattainable visions, epic fundraising efforts, piles of brick and mortar, threats of impending cataclysmic judgment or political upheaval. It starts very small.

Deep within the human heart lies the potential to change the world.

Dear God, captivate, control and change my heart today.

Beannachd Dia dhuit (blessings of God be with you – ScotsGaelic)

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Sun Damage and Sin Damage

Jun 18

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Today is my second day of recovery from a Photodynamic Therapy procedure (sounds cool, right? Read on.) It is a blue light treatment for dangerous Actinic Keratoses (AK’s that are pre-cancerous sun spots), and it is rather painful for me. First you get scrubbed with Acetone to remove oils. This part of the process feels like a bad sunburn to me. Next, your face is covered with Levulan (Aminolevulinic Acid) to help absorb the light.

After 1 hour of letting it soak in, you expose the face to 8 minutes of blue light. The Levulan is absorbed by the damaged skin and the blue light creates a photo-dynamic reaction, killing the pre-cancerous cells before they become dangerous, and long before they are visible at the surface level.

Because of the level of sun damage I have (newsflash–do not pass out on a beach for 4 hours without sunscreen before the age of 20), the 8-minute treatment is facial hell. This time I had to pause after 4 minutes before resuming the procedure. It feels like putting my face in a 400-degree oven, then sticking about 50 pins in it. And in 4 weeks I do Part 2, repeating the same procedure.

But those painful “pin-points” are the unseen spots, beneath my surface skin, that are being zapped by the light. Light — the very thing that caused the damage  – is now destroying those little incubators for carcinoma. The result, at least for a couple years, is a face without AK’s rising to the surface. And a huge reduction in my potential for skin cancer.

The procedure, in effect, is probably life-saving.

During these 2 days of discomfort I am reminded that Jesus saves my soul from “sin damage.” He does not simply perform cosmetic surgery on the destructive surface tissue. His “light,” though potentially quite painful at times, penetrates to the deepest levels — past, present, and future — and destroys the deadly, incubating eternal effects of sin damage.

Only God can do that. And the result, unlike my facial dilemma, is full restoration. Nothing is partial, nothing need be repeated. It is done and I am healed.

I confess I sometimes wish I had a kind of “spiritual blue light” that could could penetrate deep into my soul, revealing and destroying potential sin before I commit the act or think the thought. In some ways the Spirit does this, but not without our cooperation. Someday, at full regeneration, no such compliance will be needed. It will all be healed. Thank goodness the deadly long-term effects of sin damage have been eliminated.

– By his wounds, we are healed.

Confessions of a Small Group Deviant

Jun 9

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“Small Groups can lead to spiritual stagnation,” remarks Kim Engelmann, author of Soul-Shaping Small Groups by IVP. But, she adds, “Are small groups the problem, or is it the way we do small groups that is the problem?” Kim then spends most of her book arguing the latter, presenting a refreshing approach to group life and spiritual formation.

We have lost the mystery of the spiritual life in many groups, and Engelmann, Senior Pastor of West Valley Presbyterian Church in Cupertino, CA, wants us to rediscover it. “How do we create small groups that experience the life-transforming presence of Jesus with us now?” Small groups — places of being Christ and receiving Christ together — must be praying communities, not simply groups that have a prayer time for a few minutes in a meeting.

Communal praying “offers the checks and balances” and corrects mistakes in prayer made by individuals. Reading prayers together, and pausing for silence and reflection, allows a community to meet Christ personally and corporately. In these moments, groups can invite Jesus to be present. Of course, He is already there, but this invocation creates a conscious awareness He is with us and an invitation to do His work now among us.

And how can we re-purpose the often dreaded sharing time in groups? “In small groups we usually spend gobs of time sharing what is happening in our lives, but little time sharing it, as a community, with Jesus,” says Engelmann. Humble surrender and authentic sharing act as magnets toward God and toward one another. This creates an environment where Scripture can be “befriended” rather than dissected, and where real listening at the heart level becomes the norm.

Kim spends the last third of the book providing practical ways to create these kinds of groups, and it is a real goldmine. So if your group(s) need stirring and re-energizing, and if leaders are tired and worn out guiding formulaic groups, get a hold of this well-written book. Or shoot Kim at note at kim@wvpc.org and she can probably give you more information about how these groups are led and structured.

Would you characterize groups in your community as “soul-shaping” or as something less desirable? What is causing this? Is there hope for change?

A Cause Worth Dying For

May 29

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This weekend we remember. We remember sacrifice and terror, loss and grief, victory and defeat, purpose and meaninglessness, war and peace. And we ask, can we make a difference? We feel anger and wonder, sorrow and awe, fear and courage, regret and gratitude. And we ask, what would I have done…what would I do?

Would I make the sacrifice, put it all on the table, place my life in the hands of another whose commands I must obey unconditionally? Would I argue and complain, weigh the cost and say it’s too high, settle for the consequences of disobedience, just let the chips fall, take responsibility for my actions…and say no?

Or would I really lay it down, face the terror and the pain, the heartache and the ambiguity? Would I be able to live with unanswered questions, unsaid words, unmet expectations, unrealized dreams? Would I put everything — the unknown, the unresolved, the unrealistic, the unimaginable, the unnecessary — would I put everything on the table?

This weekend we remember those who, and have through our history, laid it down. Some willingly, some regretfully. But they did. They gave life and limb in some kind of war for some idea or a cause. The numbers speak of the horror. And we remember.

We too are called to die and place our life in the hands of one whose commands we pledge to obey unconditionally–whatever the cost. Am I willing to do the same my Christ who commands me not only live abundantly but to die willingly–die to self, to dreams, to reality, hopes, longings, and the fully outlined, perfectly-planned future of ME?

Henri Nouwen said the minister is a “reminder” to people — a memorial of sorts. To help others remember Christ’s love, his sacrifice, his work to redeem us all. All Christ followers, as ministers, celebrate “memorial day” every day — we remind people of Jesus, the strength of his community, the hope provides, the opportunity we have to really live, and our mission to die that others might live. This is a cause worth dying for. Can I lay it down? Will I do it daily?

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