steve penny » Challenges

WHO YOU FOLLOW

Steve Penny — Wed, 20 Jan 2010 23:17:22 +0000

WHO YOU FOLLOW – DETERMINES WHO YOU CAN LEAD.

The art of leadership is determined by who you follow – which then affects who you can get to follow you.

The level of our leadership is markedly changed by our associations with those ahead of us.

The people following you – often demand your attention toward them – when what they really need – is to release you to learn from those ahead of you on the journey.

By associating with bigger, larger, bolder, more visionary, and more generous people, you will be inspired to return to your community and emulate the attitudes and examples seen in those at the next level.

The next level is not found by climbing a set of stairs. The next level is attained by copying and acting like those who already have attained it.

If you give all your attention to maintaing what you now, have you will never have enough faith and stamina to launch out and have a go at something you learned from those ahead of you.

The more time you spend with next level people – the more their behaviour will become normal for you.

It is normal for us to gravitate to people with whom we are comfortable. However such people will never inspire you to do the unthinkable and the impossible.

Mixing with people at the next level will demand actions and investments of you, that at first you think are impossible.

However if you persist in such actions you will eventually find yourself at home in such company.

The kind of people I like to follow – are those who have been in their roles long enough to overcome some challenges and stay on course.

They are people who have more than a head full of books – but also have a heart full of passion.

They are people who are inclusive and not exclusive of people at all levels.

They are people who give you their time – their insights and their support when needed.

I love following big thinking people. It frightens me sometimes – but it always keeps me reaching higher.

Thank God for Godly people who like to be followed.

REAPING OR RECYCLING

Steve Penny — Fri, 16 Oct 2009 21:18:53 +0000

I have noticed a strange pattern in many peoples lives.

Instead of committing to being reapers of new things in life, they often continually recycle the same old things.

Sometimes they will paint it a new colour and make it appear to be new, or they will change the menu a little and kid themselves that all is new.

Sometimes they change church, or work, so they don’t have to face the challenge of growing in a larger world.

The great thrill of life and growth and increase, is the thrill of harvesting new crops.

Life is full of seasons, and they do change, but that is all part of God’s plan, to get us to the next harvest season.

It is through harvests that we increase and expand.

It is through harvests that we have enough to be a blessing to others.

The other seasons are very important in our lives, but they should always bring us to the harvesting of new crops of blessing and increase.

I have noticed that people who refuse to reach out to others and to new challenges, often do so to simply maintain their status quo.

The worst way to live life is from the lounge chair of comfort and convenience. Your body was never meant to sit is a lounge position for long periods of time.

Neither is your spiritual man.

We are created for action, advancement and growth, and our strength always increases best under the tension of stress and stretching.

A life of comfort and convenience always leads to disillusionment, and then begins the cycle of looking for people and places and churches where our status quo will not be challenged.

I am amazed at how many people get off the bus because it has a destination to take you somewhere, and the road is a bit bumpy.

My advice is to stay on the bus as long as it is going somewhere, and make up your mind to enjoy the ride.

Help others to get on the bus and sacrifice together to see new harvests of increase and blessing, from which many others can be blessed.

Stop recycling old worn out things and get on the frontline again. You know that is where you enjoyed life the most.

Tired, weary from the battle, challenged and stretched, yet supercharged and focused from the intensity of reaping new things.

Come on, get back to what you do best – living by faith – and believing God for greater things yet to come. SJP

THE VIEW OF LIFE

Steve Penny — Mon, 07 Sep 2009 20:53:58 +0000

Marion and I are spending a few days on the Gold Coast in Queensland, Australia. We are staying in a unit on the 51st floor of an apartment building and the view is amazing. We have a 180 view from the sea to the mountains looking south from Surfers Paradise and it is absolutely incredible.

The view certainly gives you a different perspective on the place when you see it from above.

A few things I notice about looking at things from above.

1. You can see so much more of life from a higher place.

2. Everything looks smaller and easier to get to.

3. You feel like you could conquer anything from a higher perspective.

The way we look at life determines everything we do in life.

Where you look from changes everything you see. If you look from a lowly and downcast position everything looks huge and hard to overcome. Even avergae challenges appear like giants when you look from a grasshopper perspective.

How you see yourself determines how you will look at other people. If you see yourself as a grasshopper or perhaps a better word is – as a victim in life, you will always see other people in three ways.

a. As the opposition – therefore everyone is out to get you and must be overcome. You end up being a fighter taking everyone on.

b. As bigger than you – therefore you are always having to find ways to outsmart, outperform or outwit the others. You end up being sneaky and cunning trying to outdo everyone else.

c. As having what you want – therefore your happiness in life is in someone else’s hands rather than coming from within you. You end up being an opportunistic grabber – wanting whatever someone else has.

You must practise seeing yourself in the right way if ever you are to live the overcoming – high places – life.

a. See yourself as complete in Christ. Everything you need for a successful & Godly life is found in Jesus Christ. He must be in you as Saviour and then you must be in Him as Lord. Get satisfied serving Jesus and life will start to make a whole lot more sense. Everything you will ever need is in Him – in you.

b. See yourself in heavenly places with Christ. Get a new perspective of life. Jesus came to earth to lift us up into heavenly places with Him. Practise lifting your values and sights in life and reach for the next level and you will soon be looking down at your former level.

c. See yourself helping others to lift their game. When you commit to helping others rise up in life, you will be surprised how motivated you become to keep reaching higher so others can follow you to new heights.

The way you look at life determines how life looks at you. Do others see you as a fighter, or a sneaky operator or maybe as a grabber, if so you will find life a tough gig.

Get onto the Jesus life journey and you will be amazed at how fulfilling life becomes.

Steve Penny.

Balancing Life

Steve Penny — Wed, 05 Aug 2009 01:52:05 +0000

Life is an amazing journey of discovery.
To fully enjoy the journey of life one must continually set out to discover, experience and master new things.
To settle down and allow life to become routine and boring is to miss the primary purpose of God’s creation. He said His mercy is new and fresh every morning. God intended us to live with a new day attitude. We are meant to begin afresh with every new day. Nothing should just be more of the same. Every part of life can be viewed as a new adventure with fresh challenges, opportunities and friendships. To lose your vitality and freshness is to become old before your time.
A simple way to keep yourself young and alive is to put everything into three categories.
Desire – Discipline – Delight
Make sure you still have plenty of dreams and desires. Without them you are dead already.
Then identify what disciplines you need to apply to turn your desires into reality.
Then finally put a time on your actions and set goals for you to delight in achieving them.
Then learn to celebrate your achievements as delights etc.
Life without these three things in balance won’t be successful. You must have strong desires – you must apply some disciplines – and you must celebrate your victories.
Too much of any one and your life will be out of balance. Get it right and you will enjoy an ongoing journey full of challenges to overcome and victories to celebrate.

WHY CHANGE IS SO CHALLENGING

Steve Penny — Tue, 21 Jul 2009 11:21:46 +0000

I FIND CHANGE A CHALLENGE

Having led churches now for over thirty five years one would think that the process of change would become easier with the passing of time.

If anything the change process becomes harder as our years increase. Whether years in life or in a location or job, the challenge of change can often be much harder as time rolls on. Let me tell you why!

FIRSTLY – Change challenges relationships.

Probably the hardest thing to do in life is to move forward when so many around you do not want to arise to go forward.

The choice of a greater tomorrow or more of the same is sometimes as simple as the choice to say farewell to friendships that have become counter productive to you growing up and pressing on in life.

I find that a leader must reinvent themselves at least every seven years and do the same with their team to continue going forward and expanding.

Having applied this principle for years it has helped me see people who have hit a lid in their roles and don’t know why or how to fix it.

Many people can be very effective for a season and then when the organization grows beyond them, they go into a protectionist mode and try to cover the fact that they are now not coping as well as they used to, or being as effective or fruitful.

SECONDLY – The security of familiar surroundings can often be a huge barrier to arising and journeying into unfamiliar territory.

I sometimes think that a good crisis or two can be the catalyst that propels us forward out of our familiar surroundings toward the unfamiliar horizon of our future..

Never despise the tough times in your life as they often force us to become very creative in how we go forward in life.

THIRDLY – The power of positions can become a huge stranglehold on us if we are prone to see achievement as the filling of some position or achieving of some title.

Positions can be very fleeting and should never be seen as a safe place in life. A position should only ever reflect the productivity of a role, and never the attainment of an office or title.

Never allow positional authority to operate in your organization as it will destroy initiative and drive out the young entrepreneurs who are the secret to your future success.

FOURTHLY – The loss of a dream will cause your life and/or organization to grind to a halt.

Focussing on debt reduction and not on future vision will sap people of faith and enthusiasm.

Dreams drag us through the dust of the mundane.

Great achievements are always the result of great dreams.

Dreams demand change as they challenge the status quo of our everyday lives.

However only change the things you need to change on the journey – dont change the journey itself.

Stay true to what you really believe on the inside.

SET YOUR VISION IN CONCRETE – AND YOUR GOALS IN SAND.

Steve Penny

THE HILLSONG "IT"

Steve Penny — Tue, 07 Jul 2009 21:31:18 +0000

Last night we experienced with awe the opening night of Hillsong Conference 2009. The amazing light and sound show that started the night was indescribable. It was sheerly amazing. However the best was yet to come. The worship was electric and the sense of God’s presence in the place was tangible. Then Craig Groeschel preached a message on the “IT” factor in our lives. That intangible blessing of God that makes the difference between winning and losing. The messsage brought an amazing response from everyone present and was a life changing moment for us all.

I cant help but be challenged by the Hillsong miracle, which keeps happening year after year, and I have many times tried to see what makes this great church continue to go forward in the grace of God.

Let me suggest a few things that I think are in the mix of the Hillsong “IT”.

1. A WILLINGNESS TO LEAD WITH HUMILITY

Starting with Brian & Bobbie Houston and flowing through all the key leaders of the church is an obvious spirit of humility in the way they lead.

2. A WILLINGNESS TO SERVE

Somehow the people of Hillsong have heard the call to build God’s kingdom and are willing to give of their all to make this happen.

3. A WILLINGNESS TO RISK

Brian & Bobbie’s willingness to follow God and not settle down is frightening. They continue to press forward despite the challenges and the costs.

4. A WILLINGNESS TO SHARE WITH OTHERS

The generosity of the Hillsong church is now legendary and continues to impact lives and nations. Their hands are always full to bless others.

5. THE WILLINGNESS TO USE WHAT THEY HAVE

Hillsong church is renowned for taking the ordinary and making it outstanding. They know how to turn a worthless stick into a miracle rod.

I continue to be blessed every time I attend the Hillsong conference, and this year has the feel about it of being something very special.

Looking forward to day two.

Steve Penny

HOW SUCCESSFUL PEOPLE VIEW LIFE

Steve Penny — Thu, 28 May 2009 09:06:55 +0000

HOW SUCCESSFUL PEOPLE VIEW LIFE

SUCCESSFUL PEOPLE VIEW LIFE AS A GIFT FROM GOD

A. They ACCEPT it – with all its difficulties and challenges

B. They ADAPT to it – rather than complain and become a victim

C. They ADJUST to it – Hoping for better things in the future

SUCCESSFUL PEOPLE VIEW LIFE AS A SERIES OF OPPORTUNITIES
1. They maintain a positive outlook on life
2. They look for the good in others and in life
3. They live expecting another good opportunity

SUCCESSFUL PEOPLE VIEW LIFE THROUGH MEANINGFUL RELATIONSHIPS
1. They believe they achieve their best in cooperation with others
2. They are considerate and respectful of others
3. They live to bring the best out in others

SUCCESSFUL PEOPLE VIEW LIFE WITH DIRECTION AND PURPOSE
1. They know their primary objective and purpose in life
2. They know where they are going and set goals to get there
3. They know how to overcome obstacles and disappointments

SUCCESSFUL PEOPLE VIEW LIFE AS A LEARNING CURVE
1. They see continual learning as a joy not a job
2. They are continually attempting new things
3. They are committed to continue growing and increasing

SUCCESSFUL PEOPLE VIEW LIFE AS A CALL TO ACTION
1. They love to work hard to get things done
2. They use their time wisely to achieve their goals
3. They do not allow themselves the luxury of defeat

SUCCESSFUL PEOPLE VIEW LIFE AS A CHARACTER SHAPING SCHOOL
1. They know the value of integrity and maintain high standards in their personal conduct
2. They know the value of a good name and prize it above reputation
3. They place humility above honour and position

SUCCESSFUL PEOPLE VIEW LIFE AS AN OPPORTUNITY TO CREATE SOMETHING FOR GENERATIONS TO COME
1. They easily commit to magnificent causes
2. They make commitments and follow through on them
3. They inspire others to join the cause with them

SUCCESSFUL PEOPLE VIEW LIFE AS AN OPPORTUNITY FOR MORE
1. They never allow contentment to become a selfish word
2. They believe there is more than enough of everything for everyone
3. They want more
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Confidence in God

Steve Penny — Wed, 22 Apr 2009 20:33:40 +0000

Psalm 4:1 -