Chris McAlister
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Who Cares What You Do
…if your motives are off
Underneath every action is a motive.
Understanding your motives is critical.
Even more foundational than understanding your motives is the transformation of your motives. Experiencing the transformation of your motives is becoming fully alive.
Experiencing the right actions flowing from right motives allows you to live, love, and lead from an overflow.
Jesus said first clean the inside of the cup and dish. Then the outside will be clean.
God loves a cheerful giver. Motives and action.
I’ve designed an experience that will give clarity into your motives. And this experience will help you cooperate with the transformation God has for your motives. Join me: click here.
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There’s No Identity Fairy
For most of us nobody will take control of some aspect of our lives so we can get exactly what we need.
They won’t schedule the time away for us. They won’t pay for the ticket.
And we’re afraid to commit. We say no to so many other options by our solitary yes.
I’m leading a retreat today. And you could be at the next one.
And you will learn how to continually experience a secure identity in Jesus. And you will learn how to live from an overflow. It will bring clarity to your mission. It will equip you to build healthy teams.
See you in May.
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Are You A Church Staff Slave?
That kind of arrangement takes two willing parties.
1. The oppressor. The one who enslaves.
2. And the one who puts on the shackles every morning.
Some people want me to focus on no. 1 with them.
Transformation is about looking in the mirror and asking why you team up with brokenness and dysfunctional leadership.
How do you know if you are making bricks for Pharaoh rather than serving Christ? If your leader pressures or positions you to build your identity around anything or anyone other than Jesus. Some leaders are all too willing for co-dependency or performance addiction to develop under them.
Your slavery isn’t your leader’s fault. They can’t give what they don’t have.
I’m not saying quit tomorrow. Though that can be the right action. Be wise. Most people need to build what’s next before launching out.
But the question when you are in an unhealthy environment isn’t, “God do you want me to leave?” Instead it is, “God, if you want me to stay then speak. I’m outta here.”
Bonus: It’s not deception if you’re not an open book about this with broken leadership that is over you. It’s actually foolish to share vulnerabilities with unsafe people.
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Cut The Crap
Are you being transformed?
I teach and speak often about transformation.
Nothing will change your life like learning to continually experience a secure identity in Jesus.
I was recently reflecting on some transitions I am going through. I haven’t arrived in these areas but I can describe them with clarity because I am learning to consistently experience a new reality.
I’ve noticed in different areas of my life over the last few years that I am moving from ____________ to ____________.
family
from uptight…to joy and hilaritypastoring
from pressure to perform…to grace to relaxleading
from pressure to be all knowing…to a dependent confidence in this next stepprovision
from scared…to assuredlearning
from mastering knowledge…to trusting in mysteryYou can experience radical transformation. God has resourced us in Jesus to move from one level of glory to another. I can teach you how to receive that same level of transformation in Christ.
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I’d Rather Argue With You
God will often do the opposite of what we expect.
Paul would have been a perfect missionary to the Jews. Because he was hardcore. But a missionary to the Gentiles? Only God. His wisdom is often the opposite of what we expect.
My default is to go into logic/analysis. I can retreat into my left brain and the world of arguments.
Yet God has me helping people learn to continually experience a secure identity in Jesus. I can argue for it from the left brain perspective all day. But you need some right brain transformation. Join me: click here.
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Church Numbers And Identity
Numbers are important.
But they aren’t everything. And they don’t tell the whole story.
Your identity isn’t wrapped up in your net worth, hopefully.
Nor should a church build their identity around numbers. Whether big or small a church’s unique identity will overflow to a clear mission. That mission may or may not include numbers.
On one extreme: A lack of attention on the numbers might be lazy leadership.
On the other extreme: An emphasis on numbers can be used to cover up insecure leadership.
I’m not so concerned about the church and underemphasizing the numbers. What’s more concerning is our current over-emphasis on numbers. Pastors become better at managing numbers than positioning people to experience Jesus. They become “suits” not shepherds.
And the result of this leaves a wake of hurting Christians, hurting leaders, and hurting families. Lonely spouses are left with the pieces. And the problem is that Jesus won’t make up for the absence of the church leader from their home.
I can describe insecure leadership because I have been the insecure leader asking other leaders to sign what amounts to a “gag” order when they departed. (I’ve had to make a number of humbling apologies.)
In the different arenas that I lead in the numbers are going up. It feels good. I enjoy it. And I know it won’t last forever. And I share the wins with the leaders of those spaces that I lead. I even share numbers.
But I’ve known what it means to experience years of the numbers going down. And I can tell you this: my identity is in Christ and not the numbers. One day the numbers will be gone but Jesus won’t be.
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Deeper Joy Than You Could Imagine
…is on the other side of your pain.
Where do you hurt?
Where are you afraid?
Where are you angry?
What wrongs that have been done to you keep flashing back into your mind?
There’s a deep and abiding joy but it is on the other side of the pain.
The only way through is deeper in.
Tell Jesus about it. Tell Him how scared it makes you feel.
Wait like an expectant child for what He wants you to see/feel/hear.
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Your Life Strategy Works…
so you don’t need a paradigm shift.
You power up to push people away so they can’t hurt you. You ignore your problems pursuing artificial peace. You chase success to get worth. You let the voice that you’re never good enough push you into obsessive perfectionism. You create a crisis and conflicts so you can muster the energy to live. You’re driven to find a way to escape as you seek artificial happiness. You give into every temptation justified that it’s just who you are. You take responsibility for others because you need to be needed.
And your life strategy can work…for a while. Or decades.
Then it won’t. And you’ll wonder who you really are.
Or you could come to a retreat with me. I’ll make a link live in the next couple of days for your next opportunity.
You can learn who you are and what broken life strategy you’re using. The gospel of Christ applied to your heart will set you free.
And every other important part of your life will flow from who you are. No more broken life strategies.
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Being Offended Isn’t Sin
Sometimes we super-spiritualize the example of Jesus in our lives.
Here’s how it usually goes:
- Jesus lived, died, and lives again. He forgave. We forgive.
- Because of Jesus and the price He paid we have no right to feel: ___________ (offended, angry, hurt, etc)
- Then the person stuffs down where God is working in their emotions because they were invalidated.
- Then the emotions that were stuffed emerge through the cracks in their soul…sometimes decades later.
- Hopefully they leave this unhealthy way of living with a deconstructed and reconstructed view of God (Elijah in the cave) OR jaded cynicism robs their soul.
There’s a healthier way.
Save yourself from unnecessary pain.
Your emotions are your emotions. Invite Jesus into them. Not ready to forgive? That’s OK. Invite Jesus into that space. Offended? That’s OK. Invite Jesus into that space.
We are to love and pray for our enemies. But that takes time.
AND…Just because you reach the point of maturity that you can love and pray for your enemies doesn’t mean you have to be friends with them. A fool goes back to their folly but you don’t have to go back with them.
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More Knowledge Won’t Make You Whole
I used to get a “high” off of a new book, conference, or ministry idea.
Then those stopped working. I couldn’t get enough knowledge to make me whole.
There is hope. You can love Jesus and not just love information about Him.