#JUSTSAYIN

I’ve been seeing some people on Facebook saying that abiding by state law and doing online church is a lack of faith.

I’m going to try to articulate what many pastors may have difficulty articulating with an example.....

If you are single and you want to risk your life and travel into a region where there are travel advisories because of anti-Christian sentiment, etc., and you feel like God has called you, then hey, be obedient, and risk it. You may even be a modern-day martyr (which is actually totally cool). I can respect that.
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But, if you have a family, and you ignore the travel advisories, and you drag your family into a war zone because you think it’s “faith” and your whole family dies, I don’t think that’s cool. I think that’s stupid and selfish.
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Pastors will give an account to the Lord for how they cared for Jesus’s flock. Jesus said to Peter, “Do you love me? Then take care of my sheep. Especially the old sheep.”
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It’s not a question of faith. It’s a question of authority, commitment, and responsibility, and no offense but if you don’t understand these principles then you don’t understand true faith.

If you aren’t a senior citizen, then don’t pretend like you understand what it’s like to have a virus preying on the elderly.

If you aren’t healing the sick already, don’t pretend that you are John G. Lake.

If you aren’t pastoring a church, don’t pretend that you understand the responsibility.

It’s easy to talk big on Facebook, but sometimes we need to remember the golden rule and put ourselves in other peoples shoes before attacking them.

What to do when people let you down

FINALLY, A PERFECT MATCH

Perhaps you met the perfect woman, the perfect man (he’s got a two-pack), you found the perfect job, you finally found the perfect church, and then over time, life happens, things happen, and you realize that the whole thing was a façade. You say to yourself, "The system is rigged. All __________ (fill in the blanks) are stupid, and I’ll never give my heart to _____________ again.

The problem isn't women, men, the marketplace, or churches, the problem is diversity. Humans are diverse. Andrea and I are radically different. Our differences, our edges, our passions, and our experiences shape us in such a specific way. We all have difficulties connecting, partnering, and communicating. For this reason, we must never assume that honest communication is easy or natural. The more meaningful the relationship, the harder, the more vulnerable, and the rawer communication becomes. Communication is the easiest when we have nothing in the game, and there's nothing to lose. Incredible opportunities for intimacy are thwarted when we get scared away by the kind of conversations they require. If it's hard, stressful, and scary, then most likely, it's worth it.

PROTECT YOUR PERSPECTIVE OF OTHERS

We change our perception when we don't cultivate a discipline of communication. For example, that perfect woman could take on the image of a crafty manipulator because of a situation where you felt taken advantage of, but, perhaps if you had the awkward conversation to share what happened, how it made you feel, and why the relationship was important to you, she could have explained herself, and you could have protected the honor that you had for her identity.

It's easier to make a judgment against someone and cut someone off than it is to fight for the Father's perspective of who they are.

Usually, the best way to deal with an incorrect judgment is to bring it into the light and appropriately process the issue with the person you are wrestling with. This is where we get the famous "Matthew 18 Principle," that's found in Matthew 18:15. I have my own translation of this text, "When a brother or sister sins against you…" 

When not if.

This really isn't about if someone is going to sin against you, but rather, what are you going to do when they do? Jesus would say, "Go to them, directly to them, and attempt to work it out in private." Of course, if it all hits the fan, then go on to step #2.

NOBODY’S PERFECT, RIGHT?

We might say, "Nobody's perfect," but if we are "knowing each other" according to the spirit rather than the flesh, shouldn't we be able to see each other according to their perfection in Christ rather than their shortcomings?

Guess what, this isn't easy, but it really matters because we are talking about preserving and protecting a person's Christ identity within our heart's. How we see each other matters.

You might think, "No way, that raises the bar too high!"

Exactly. 

You might say, "But what if they can't measure up to this incredibly high standard?"

There's grace.

I didn't say tolerance.

I said empowerment.

Showing grace is the act of partnering with one, to assist in their empowerment, to overcome a weakness while not dishing out a fresh judgment against them because of a weakness. I am thankful that when I fail, my Heavenly Father doesn't see me as a failure, He comes near to me, He loves me, He gives me insight and revelation, and then He authorizes me to try again, and to get back on the bike. I want to be more like my Father, and that means that I have to learn to keep my heart open, even when I feel betrayed because I don't know about you, but when I feel like trust has been violated, the line of communication is the first thing I shut down.

So, you found the perfect woman, the perfect man (and he's riding a unicorn), the perfect job, or the perfect church, and then something happens, and your perspective is challenged, I would encourage you to fight for a perspective of honor, and ask yourself the question, "What will it take to preserve it?" Most likely, you will find that honor can be restored through honest, heart-felt, non-religious, communication.

Restoration occurs when people are bold enough to be real, truthful, humble, and connect from the heart.

Do we really need MORE rules?

Little Bobby is angry because his mommy has just informed him that it’s time to turn off Octonauts. Bobby identifies the closest weapons cache he can find, a bucket of blocks. In his indignation he begins World War III, hurling the wooden projectiles at his mommy while repeatedly yelling, “TV ON!”

Mommy lunges for the cupboard and pulls out a lid that belongs to one of her largest pots, flexing it as if she were Wonder Woman and this was her shield. Diverting the flying blocks she slowly makes yardage towards her son while screaming unloaded threats, and after calculating the distance and risks, she throws away her shield and pounces on her son like a cheetah, pinning his throwing arm under her mommy belly. He begins to cry (an adorable little boyish cry) in defeat. He’s so cute when he’s humble.

Meanwhile, daddy selfishly works in his quiet cubicle, sipping on a green tea latte, listening to his favorite Deftones album that is discreetly playing in the background. It’s too much for mommy to think about that right now. Bobby’s behavior is undoubtedly an indicator that daddy works too much.

Mommy slowly unpeels herself off of little Bobby who is still sobbing.

“Honey,” she calmly speaks. “We don’t throw things.”

One last bolt of anger rages shoots through Bobby, and he lunges back for the blocks. Mommy once again pounces like a ninja.

The blocks aren’t the problem.

They are just toys that have become weaponized. If Mommy throws away the blocks in hopes of having a safer home, Bobby will only find something else that can be thrown.

Throwing the blocks isn’t the issue either.

If mommy punishes Bobby for throwing things, next time, his method may adapt, and mommy may have to face an evolved form of retaliation, like a homemade catapult.

Well then, should mommy put on her psychologist hat and go five kinds of Doctor Phil (or Danny Silk if that’s more your thing) on her son; diving into the layers of generational issues that may be accounting for little Bobby’s behavior? Probably not.

What then is a better solution?

Determining and creating the kind of culture that you want in your home – preferably using Heaven as your blueprint.

Life can become a series of compounding widgets and apps; little hacks in behavioral modification and cultural manipulation that make life tolerable and yet desperately unfruitful.

Surface level tweaking demands no accountability, and yet significant micromanagement. At a certain point, a parent won’t even be able to keep track of all the rules they have to create to maintain order.

Consider the marketplace. Many times job descriptions are used to control people’s production versus empowering it; barking orders and delegating tasks lists in the same way that one may command Siri (the robot lady who talks to you on your iPhone) to send a text message.

Treating people like artificial intelligence only prepares them to be replaced by AI in the coming years. Healthy cultures and corporations celebrate one's freedom to make choices, be creative and break through barriers thereby making history.

We’ve got to get out of the weeds and start seeing things from Heaven.

What is the culture of our home, work, church, neighborhood, city, and nation going to look like on our watch?

Don’t begin at home, start in Heaven.

What does the culture of Heaven look like? Now reverse engineer it, frame it and state it.

Leaders don’t need to wear themselves out trying change the culture when they can create new contrasting cultures.

I often tell my children, “In our family, we don’t throw fits. If you were in a different family, then you might get away with it. We are Stotts, and God has big things in store for us.”

My destiny is not personal at all. It’s corporate and generational. The call of God on my life isn’t individualistic; it’s apart of a legacy linage. I have to create a culture in my homes because the culture we create is what will hold me accountable.

When our leadership consists of mostly behavior tweaking, we are passively teaching people how to hack standards and perform at the minimum level required, but when we communicate our desired culture, and then uphold the measures necessary to achieve that result, we are actively displaying the dynamics of the Kingdom that can transform nations.

We don’t need more laws or more swimming pool rules. We need culture creating leaders. It's time to engage heaven for the transformation of the Earth.

Culture > Behavioral Tweaking.

Culture > Behavioral Tweaking.

When our leadership consists of mostly behavior tweaking, we are passively teaching people how to hack standards and perform at the minimum level required