OPEN HANDS

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OPEN HANDS: Improving Your Leadership

In Luke 9:10-16, there is a powerful story that many people speed through, but ignore some major teachable moments.

The story is seen in multiple gospels, and is often referred to as The Feeding of the 5,000.

There are 3 major points that I want to challenge you to think about…

#1. If you desire to GROW as a leader, God will require you to GROW as a person.

Did you notice what Jesus’ response was to the disciples when they started freaking out? What was the first thing Jesus said in response to the problem?

He told the disciples…”YOU FEED THEM”

Jesus knew what He was doing…He was challenging the disciples to grow in their faith. You cannot desire to be close to God and stay the same with your faith. As a matter of fact, without faith, it is IMPOSSIBLE to please God (Hebrews 11:6).

Remember this: Obstacles don’t stop God from working, they often require us to start believing

Marcus Aurelius, the great stoic, once said, "The impediment to action advances action. What stands in the way becomes the way"

As an Athlete, you need to learn that obstacles are opportunities in disguise.

#2. Use What You Have!

Jesus had compassion on the crowd, and after the people were able to scrounge up 5 loaves and 2 fish, not only did they eat and were filled…there were leftovers!!!

One of the enemy’s oldest tricks is to get you to focus on lack (what you don’t have).

• Adam & Eve: they had abundance, but were beguiled by the serpent

• The Widow of Zarephath: she was so focused on the famine in the land that she told Elijah she was about to bake her last meal and prepare to die…talk about focusing on lack!!! (I Kings 17: 8-16)

• Moses: tried to make all kinds of excuses when God called him to do great things (Exodus 4:1-17)

Are you grateful for what God gave you or are you constantly comparing yourself to others, and concerned with what you don’t have?

#3. When You Invite God Into Your Leadership, Everyone Is Blessed

You mean to tell me that of 5,000 people (by the way, they typically did not include women and children in those numbers), they only found that 5 loaves and 2 fish?!?! How many of you right now have snacks, protein bars, etc. in your backpacks/duffle bags…?

I think there is a good chance that some people may have been holding out (just my opinion).

It’s wild to think that amongst thousands of people, they only came up with such a small amount of food…but it DID NOT stop God from working!

Jesus publicly demonstrated that when we have OPEN HANDS, and allow God to touch what he have, it never stays the same…it gets BETTER!!!

We need to go from this:

To this:

Before You Go

“If I knew then what I know now, I’d be Light Years ahead…”