| January 2004 |
|
Cadre Connection:
The E-Newsletter from Bill Allison and Cadre International Designed
to Encourage, Equip, and Energize Volunteer Leaders and Teachers
in the Church. |
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December 2003 Edition ]
A Prayer
for January 2nd
For the overwhelming majority of you who will make yet one more
New Year’s resolution on January 1st—we offer you the
following prayer for January 2nd:
Dear God,
I want to thank you, Lord, for being close to me so far this year.
With your help I haven’t been impatient, lost my temper, been
grumpy, judgmental, or envious of anyone. But I will really need
your help soon because… I’m about to get out of bed.
Amen
Resolutions
Without Resolve
We make resolutions on New Year's Day to become better people. Yet,
research indicates that 25 percent of us will break our promises
within the first two months of the new year. By six months, nearly
40 percent will have failed. And by one year, approximately 82 percent
will be unsuccessful.
Resolve Not
to Make Any New Year’s Resolutions! (Get it?)
While there is something in the human psyche that gravitates to
new beginnings, if you really want to start 2004 right, forget about
making New Years resolutions. Don’t waste your breath huffing
and puffing about how YOU are going to change yourself this year!
Instead, do something absolutely life-changing…
Dare to write a personal
growth plan for 2004!
New Year’s
Resolutions and Personal Growth Plans Are NOT the Same Thing
A personal growth plan is not a New Year’s resolution in sheep’s
clothing! They are dramatically different. Consider this contrast:
| New
Year’s Resolutions |
Written
Personal Growth Plans |
| Verbal proclamations on January 1 |
Written plan as a guide all year long |
| Fighting bad habits |
Surrendering to Jesus Christ first |
| I will change myself |
Only God can bring lasting change in me |
| Concerned primarily with outward change (quit
smoking, losing weight, eat healthy…) |
Concerned with both the inner and outer person
for the glory of God (spiritual growth and taking care of
the body) |
| Me and my desires for my life |
God and what HE wants for my life |
| Self help books only |
The Bible first and foremost |
| My success |
Advancement of God’s work through me |
| End of the Year: 82
percent unsuccessful |
End of the Year: 80
percent successful |
God Is the Source for Lasting Life Change…
and We Must Work With Him
Instead of New Year’s resolutions in 2004, I invite you to
write a God-directed personal growth plan for your life. Writing
a personal growth plan starts with the biblical premise that God
is the one who causes authentic change and lasting personal growth
in our lives. Yet, while our personal growth is at its core a God-thing,
God still expects us to put forth effort in cooperation with his
working in our lives! Paul accentuates this balance of the human
cooperating with the Divine for the purpose of growth clearly in
I Corinthians 3:6-9:
I planted, Apollos watered,
but God [all the while] was making it grow and
[He] gave the increase. So neither he who plants
is anything nor he who waters, but [only]
God who makes it grow and become greater. He who plants
and he who waters are equal (one in aim, of the
same importance and esteem), yet each shall receive his own reward
(wages), according to his own labor. For we are
fellow workmen (joint promoters, laborers together) with
and for God; you are God's garden and vineyard and field
under cultivation, [you are] God's building. (AMP, bold mine)
At least three facts
are clear about growth from this passage:
- God is the source of growth—not any
person.
- We are to cooperate with God in the growth process.
As Paul said, we are “workmen (joint promoters, laborers
together) with God…”
- Growth is hard work! Note how often Paul
uses words that describe the hard work he and Apollos engaged
in to cooperate with God for growth. The idea of “planting”
and “watering” is mentioned three times—in
addition to his use of the words “labor,” “workmen,”
and “laborers.”
Personal Growth Plans: A Great Way to Cooperate with God’s
Work in Us
It is true that growth is a God-thing—but that does not exclude
God’s desire for our participation in the arduous process!
God does it but we still have to plant, water, and work! Once I
was speaking at a student conference where Joel Hanson, formerly
of the great Christian music group PFR, was the worship leader.
During a prayer time before our sessions, I was really blessed as
Joel prayed, “God, we know you are going to do your life—changing
work in this session, but help us to cooperate with you by pouring
ourselves out for you and these students 100 percent.” I believe
that is exactly the spirit of I Corinthians 3:6-9! And that is exactly
how we need to approach our personal growth plans this year. God
will faithfully facilitate growth in our lives, but we still have
to make the effort to pick up our Bibles, read, and apply!
Keep an eye on your inbox
for "No More New Year's Resolutions--Part 2" coming soon!
A
Personal Challenge for YOU to Start 2004 Right!
If the idea of writing a personal growth plan for
the year 2004 resonates with your spirit, I would like to propose
that we take it to the next level. If you will send me a copy of
your personal growth plan for this year, I will send you a copy
of mine. (Send your personal growth plan to info@cadreministries.com)
We can pray for each other. I would be more than willing to do this—especially
if it would be an encouragement for you to put a personal growth
plan on paper and into action. A year from now we can take some
time to reflect, learn, and make a new personal growth plan for
2005—Lord willing.
If you would like to send the "No More New Year's
Resolutions--Part 1" to a friend so you can take the challenge
together, click below to send your friends this edition of Cadre
Connection:
Send
to a Friend >>
(The above link will pop up a window for you to fil out to send
a link to your friend.)
Tools
for Your Toolbox to Help You Start 2004 Right
If you need or would like more information
about how to develop and follow through on a personal growth plan,
you can find that in chapter one of:
Grow, Minister, and Lead! Ten Training
Sessions to Help You Grow, Minister, and Lead
These ten training sessions come with Bible study questions that
are ideal for self study or small group training sessions. Topics
covered: how to develop a personal growth plan,
Joseph's secret for sexual purity, how to find an accountability
partner, time management for busy people, how to deal with difficult
people, how to conduct a meeting so people actually show up, and
much more!
For more info, click:
http://www.cadreministries.com/store/books.html#grow
| Printable
Mail Order Form
If you need or want more information about writing
a personal growth plan that is SMART (specific, motivating, attainable,
relevant, and trackable), then you need chapters one and two of:
 Grow,
Minister, and Lead #2--THE NEXT LEVEL! Ten MORE Training Sessions
to Help You Grow, Minister, and Lead
These ten training sessions come with Bible study questions that
are ideal for self study or small group training sessions. Topics
covered: moving from ordinary to extraordinary,
how to develop a SMART personal growth plan, time management, the
importance of volunteer ministry, how to gain credibility, what
does it mean to be successful in ministry, why non-Christians won't
come to outreaches, self leadership, how to lead those who lead
you, and motivating volunteers.
For more info, click:
http://www.cadreministries.com/store/books.html#next
| Printable
Mail Order Form
If you are too busy to read a book but you still
want to find out how you can put a personal growth plan to work
in your life, you need:
Grow, Minister, and Lead--AUDIO (tapes
or CDs): The Best of GML 1 and GML 2 on Audio
These nine audio training sessions on six tapes or six CDs include:
moving from ordinary to extraordinary, personal growth plans and
how to create SMART goals, sexual purity, accountability, time management,
becoming a credible communicator, self leadership, leading those
who lead you, and becoming a high impact teacher.
For CDs, click: http://www.cadreministries.com/store/audio.html
| Printable
Mail Order Form
For tapes, click:
http://www.cadreministries.com/store/tapes.html#pack
Interesting New Year’s Resolution
Info & Quotes:
American’s Top Ten New Year’s Resolutions:
1. Lose Weight
2. Get in Better Shape
3. Quit Smoking
4. Become More Financially Secure
5. Do Something To Improve Some Else’s Life
6. Simplify My Own Life
7. Do Something To Take Better Care of My Community, the Environment,
and/or Human Rights Issues
8. Improve Intimate and/or Other Close Relationship(s)
9. Volunteer
10. Travel
( Source: 4therapy.com )
"Setting goals is a great thing, but New Year’s
resolutions do more harm than good."
Alan Cohen, author of 16 self-help books including Why Your Life
Sucks and What You Can Do About It
"People are always going to fail but failure shapes
success."
Bruce Underwood
“Always bear in mind that your own resolution to
succeed is more important than any other one thing.”
Abraham Lincoln
“If at first you don't succeed, you are running about
average.”
M. H. Alderson
Getting
a Grip on Your Time in 2004 Charles
Schwab, then president of Bethlehem Steel, brought in management
consultant Ivy Lee for one primary need: to help him discover how
to get more done in the same amount of time. Lee took a 3x5 card
out of his pocket and gave it to Schwab.
"I want you to write down the things that need to be done
tomorrow, in the order of their real importance," Lee instructed
Schwab. "When you come to work tomorrow, I want you to work
on number one until it is completed. At the end of the day, write
a new list. Try this system as long as you like, and then have your
staff try it. Evaluate this activity, and send me a check for what
you think it’s worth."
In a few weeks Mr. Schwab sent Mr. Lee a check for $25,000! Such
may be the value of establishing your priorities.
 If
you are interested in intentionally learning to live your priorities
in 2004—without paying $25,000 for a consultant—check
out Time Management for Painfully Pooped-Out People:
Ten Biblical Principles for Taking Control of Your Life and Time.
This Bible study workbook is ideal for self-study, small groups,
and Sunday School!
January Special:
For every order of five—you will get a sixth free.
Order online: http://www.cadreministries.com/store/books.html#time
For orders via regular mail, check the price on the website at:
http://www.cadreministries.com/store/books.html#time
and then download the mail order form: http://www.cadreministries.com/store/mail.html
* Charles Schwab story source: ChurchCentral.com
Strange
But True Cadre Family Stories
by Bill Allison
In 1999, our family and a few close friends
stayed up to midnight to what the turn of a new year… and
to see if the world would end (anyone remember Y2K? No—we
did not have our generator warmed up!). It was Billy’s very
first attempt at staying up until midnight. I don’t want to
say that we live boring lives (we have six kids—we truly are
living the wild life!), but we nixed the celebration in Times Square
to watch the local news coverage of a ball dropping in Chillicothe,
IL (I kid you not). As my then six-year- old son, Billy, with heavy
eyes and great anticipation of the new year, watched the ball drop
in Chillicothe, we all shouted, “HAPPY NEW YEAR!” We
sat down and began to eat some more. Billy incredulously responded,
“That’s it? That’s all there is to New Years?
What a rip off! I’m going to bed! “ And he marched right
up to his bedroom and went to sleep… and he has not stayed
up for a New Year’s celebration since.
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