My six-year-old son has been on a Minecraft kick lately. He loves building things. Minecraft is like a digital version of Legos, allowing him to create things from scratch. For the last several days, he has been working on a house for himself and he even built one for his sister. Then he built a huge castle with all kinds of cool stuff.
Then, yesterday, he was trying to put a "lava river" next to his castle, and the lava caught it on fire and burned it all down. Understandably for a six-year-old, he freaked out. We finally got him calmed down and convinced him to rebuild, warning him of the danger of putting lava/fire too close to his castle.
He spent all of last night and most of this morning rebuilding his castle, making it "even better than before!" Then he decided he wanted a secret cave underneath his castle. This meant that he had to excavate blocks out from under his castle. In order to do that, he used lava to quickly burn the blocks out of the castle foundation. You can guess what happened. It caught his castle on fire...again...and burned it down. This time, it caught the rest of his village on fire and burned all of it to the ground; his house, his sisters house, the shed he had built, and the "pool" building, along with his castle, were all destroyed.
Of course, he freaked out again, then he had to go to school. But this whole saga got me thinking about sin in our lives. Too often we allow one little sin in, and it burns us. We get over it and start to rebuild, but all too often and all too soon, we start letting a little bit of lava back in, thinking we can handle it and that the same tragedy won't strike again. Of course, more often than not, it ends up making things even worse the second time around, and can destroy everything in our lives.
That's the danger of sin. It seems like we can handle little sins and they won't have too much of an adverse effect. But sins have a way of catching fire to anything and everything in their path. Even if we can successfully "put out the fire" in one instance, if we let the sin back into our lives, it can catch everything and destroy all of us.
The question is, where is the lava in our lives? In what ways are we playing with fire, hoping we won't get burned?
Thursday, February 27, 2014
Monday, February 17, 2014
Integrity
I was hanging out with a group of people this past weekend - a bunch of musicians - rehearsing for a recording gig in a couple of months. It was mixed company; three of us that profess to be Christians, and four that make no such claim.
In between jamming, conversation got around to a variety of things. One of them was music and movies, and some of the guys started talking about copying CDs or movies. They talked about this as if it was just common practice and no big deal.
"Ripping" music and movies (or anything else) that you do not own and have not paid for is illegal. It's also just plain dishonest, stealing from the artists, actors, and companies to whom that property belongs. I've heard a lot of excuses that try to justify this. "Most actors are obscenely wealthy" or "A big company won't miss a few songs" or "It's not hurting anyone". That's not the point. The point is this: that product does not belong to you. It is illegal and just plain wrong to steal it. Just because it's a "small" item or something that "doesn't hurt anyone" is irrelevant.
The more frustrating thing is that the other Christians in the group went right along with the discussion, as if there was no conflict of interest. Two problems with that: First, Christians are called to live according to the laws of the land. Romans 13:1-7. Second, Christians are called to set a different example than that of the world. And if we exhibit the same sins the world does, we don't show them that we are different or stand for anything different.
Even if we don't participate in the public conversations about it, being a person of integrity means doing the right thing even when no one else knows about it. It's not just an issue of the appearance of doing right, for when others see or know about it. It's about doing right before God and before yourself, so you know your character is intact.
For what it's worth, I called this group of people out about this. All of them are, to some degree, professional (or at least semi-professional) musicians. They are themselves affected when other people pirate music. I believe I addressed the issue in a tactful and non-judgmental way. But here's the sad thing: the non-Christians took it better than the Christians. Both of the other Christians in the group got a bit upset that I was calling them out about their relaxed attitude about intellectual property theft. Almost all of the non-Christians took it well. I talked to two of them later (to make sure they didn't feel I was being judgmental) and they said they knew I was right and that I hadn't come off as superior or judge-y. They got that I was just sharing my view on it, and one of them said, "I like that you're different from what everyone else stands for."
I see that as a win. But it's very discouraging that the Christians in the group...the very ones that should know better...were the ones that got upset about it. That could be a guilty conscience, but whatever the reason, it's frustrating.
There are many situations where copying copyrighted works is acceptable under the law. For example, I give copies of songs/CDs to people on our worship team all the time. This is allowed under the CCLI (worship music copyright) license, when it's for the purpose of songs (or even possible songs) we might use in worship. I've copied clips from movies to use in a film class I've taught several times. This is allowed under the creative commons license, when it's for purposes of education. I'm not talking about these situations. I've also had people offer to burn CDs for me just to listen to, or movies for me to watch, and I've turned them down. Personal use is not allowed under copyright law. And since I'm called to live according to the laws of the land, I decline.
What kind of standards do you live by even when others aren't around? Are there some situations that you excuse or justify (for whatever reason) even though you know they're wrong? Finally, how do you react when someone calls you out if you don't live/act ethically?
Having strong character is very difficult. But consistency is essential if we want to be people of integrity...all the more true if we profess to follow Jesus. Not only are we called to be honest people of sound character, but we are called to set an example for the rest of the world - to set ourselves apart as people who have different values than the world, and live in a blameless way before man and God.
In between jamming, conversation got around to a variety of things. One of them was music and movies, and some of the guys started talking about copying CDs or movies. They talked about this as if it was just common practice and no big deal.
"Ripping" music and movies (or anything else) that you do not own and have not paid for is illegal. It's also just plain dishonest, stealing from the artists, actors, and companies to whom that property belongs. I've heard a lot of excuses that try to justify this. "Most actors are obscenely wealthy" or "A big company won't miss a few songs" or "It's not hurting anyone". That's not the point. The point is this: that product does not belong to you. It is illegal and just plain wrong to steal it. Just because it's a "small" item or something that "doesn't hurt anyone" is irrelevant.
The more frustrating thing is that the other Christians in the group went right along with the discussion, as if there was no conflict of interest. Two problems with that: First, Christians are called to live according to the laws of the land. Romans 13:1-7. Second, Christians are called to set a different example than that of the world. And if we exhibit the same sins the world does, we don't show them that we are different or stand for anything different.
Even if we don't participate in the public conversations about it, being a person of integrity means doing the right thing even when no one else knows about it. It's not just an issue of the appearance of doing right, for when others see or know about it. It's about doing right before God and before yourself, so you know your character is intact.
For what it's worth, I called this group of people out about this. All of them are, to some degree, professional (or at least semi-professional) musicians. They are themselves affected when other people pirate music. I believe I addressed the issue in a tactful and non-judgmental way. But here's the sad thing: the non-Christians took it better than the Christians. Both of the other Christians in the group got a bit upset that I was calling them out about their relaxed attitude about intellectual property theft. Almost all of the non-Christians took it well. I talked to two of them later (to make sure they didn't feel I was being judgmental) and they said they knew I was right and that I hadn't come off as superior or judge-y. They got that I was just sharing my view on it, and one of them said, "I like that you're different from what everyone else stands for."
I see that as a win. But it's very discouraging that the Christians in the group...the very ones that should know better...were the ones that got upset about it. That could be a guilty conscience, but whatever the reason, it's frustrating.
There are many situations where copying copyrighted works is acceptable under the law. For example, I give copies of songs/CDs to people on our worship team all the time. This is allowed under the CCLI (worship music copyright) license, when it's for the purpose of songs (or even possible songs) we might use in worship. I've copied clips from movies to use in a film class I've taught several times. This is allowed under the creative commons license, when it's for purposes of education. I'm not talking about these situations. I've also had people offer to burn CDs for me just to listen to, or movies for me to watch, and I've turned them down. Personal use is not allowed under copyright law. And since I'm called to live according to the laws of the land, I decline.
What kind of standards do you live by even when others aren't around? Are there some situations that you excuse or justify (for whatever reason) even though you know they're wrong? Finally, how do you react when someone calls you out if you don't live/act ethically?
Having strong character is very difficult. But consistency is essential if we want to be people of integrity...all the more true if we profess to follow Jesus. Not only are we called to be honest people of sound character, but we are called to set an example for the rest of the world - to set ourselves apart as people who have different values than the world, and live in a blameless way before man and God.
Thursday, February 13, 2014
Lessons on Leadership
I've been thinking a lot about leadership, and one of the most key lessons I've learned is this: people tend to live up to our expectations of them. Not only that, but our expectations and perceptions of people tend to cause us to limit their ability to break out of those very expectations/perceptions.
Here's an example of what I mean: one of the guys that is in my circle of influence is a guy who I just did not expect to be a very good leader. I'm not sure if it's his personality or some bias of my own, but my perception has been that he's probably not a very good/strong leader. Note that I'm not talking about affinity; I like this person very much. But, for whatever reason, I've just had it in my head that he's probably not a very good leader.
As a result of that perception, I haven't given him the opportunities to lead (and, in the process, potentially prove my perceptions wrong). But recently I had occasion to give him just such an opportunity (mostly because I couldn't find anyone else available to do so, sadly). He knocked it out of the park. I was way wrong in my perception of him and his lack of leadership ability.
My initial instinct about this was something like, "Why hasn't he stepped up as a leader before now?" But, of course, my own perceptions prevented me from giving him any opportunities in which he could do so. So, my perceptions about him meant that he lived up to what I expected. That is, I expected him not to be a good leader, therefore what I saw was him not being a good leader. And, at the same time those perceptions prevented me from giving him the opportunities to either 1. prove my perceptions wrong (which he did), or 2. (if my perceptions had been right) grow into being a better leader.
This got me wondering how many other people I've done this with. Are there people that I'm holding back by not giving them the opportunities to lead or grow? Am I basing my perceptions of them on lack of evidence to the contrary, which is my fault in the first place for not giving them the opportunities to succeed or fail and provide just such evidence?
I guess what I'm saying is this: at least in this one case, I didn't even give this guy the chance to be a good leader because I was already convinced that he wasn't. I virtually guaranteed that he couldn't be a good leader by not giving him the opportunities to succeed or fail, and then justified it to myself by saying, "Well, if he really was a good leader, I would have seen evidence of it so far."
The ironic thing is that this obviously shows more of a deficit in my own leadership than in his. And I've been on the receiving end of being discounted as a leader without really being given the opportunity to lead. And often I haven't been given those opportunities based on people's perceptions of me that are often completely inaccurate. So I need to check myself that I'm not doing the very same thing to others in my area of influence (obviously I was, but I need to stop).
I need to make sure that I am developing leaders rather than stifling them or counting them out before they're even given a chance. I need to take chances and risks on people and get over my perceptions and biases in order to allow them to thrive. I hope this lesson might benefit other leaders as well.
Here's an example of what I mean: one of the guys that is in my circle of influence is a guy who I just did not expect to be a very good leader. I'm not sure if it's his personality or some bias of my own, but my perception has been that he's probably not a very good/strong leader. Note that I'm not talking about affinity; I like this person very much. But, for whatever reason, I've just had it in my head that he's probably not a very good leader.
As a result of that perception, I haven't given him the opportunities to lead (and, in the process, potentially prove my perceptions wrong). But recently I had occasion to give him just such an opportunity (mostly because I couldn't find anyone else available to do so, sadly). He knocked it out of the park. I was way wrong in my perception of him and his lack of leadership ability.
My initial instinct about this was something like, "Why hasn't he stepped up as a leader before now?" But, of course, my own perceptions prevented me from giving him any opportunities in which he could do so. So, my perceptions about him meant that he lived up to what I expected. That is, I expected him not to be a good leader, therefore what I saw was him not being a good leader. And, at the same time those perceptions prevented me from giving him the opportunities to either 1. prove my perceptions wrong (which he did), or 2. (if my perceptions had been right) grow into being a better leader.
This got me wondering how many other people I've done this with. Are there people that I'm holding back by not giving them the opportunities to lead or grow? Am I basing my perceptions of them on lack of evidence to the contrary, which is my fault in the first place for not giving them the opportunities to succeed or fail and provide just such evidence?
I guess what I'm saying is this: at least in this one case, I didn't even give this guy the chance to be a good leader because I was already convinced that he wasn't. I virtually guaranteed that he couldn't be a good leader by not giving him the opportunities to succeed or fail, and then justified it to myself by saying, "Well, if he really was a good leader, I would have seen evidence of it so far."
The ironic thing is that this obviously shows more of a deficit in my own leadership than in his. And I've been on the receiving end of being discounted as a leader without really being given the opportunity to lead. And often I haven't been given those opportunities based on people's perceptions of me that are often completely inaccurate. So I need to check myself that I'm not doing the very same thing to others in my area of influence (obviously I was, but I need to stop).
I need to make sure that I am developing leaders rather than stifling them or counting them out before they're even given a chance. I need to take chances and risks on people and get over my perceptions and biases in order to allow them to thrive. I hope this lesson might benefit other leaders as well.
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