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Paul Chappell - Is Your Motivation Style Demotivating?


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recording-spiritual-leadership-podcast

I’m excited to announce a relaunch of the Spiritual Leadership Podcast—beginning with this episode!

While past episodes were primarily audio leadership lessons that had been recorded in other venues, such as Spiritual Leadership or Striving Together Conferences, the new podcast will include episodes video recorded specifically for this podcast.

Each monthly episode will focus on practical ministry leadership, with this first one being about biblical motivation. Future episodes will dedicate time to answering questions and addressing topics submitted to qa@lancasterbaptist.org. (Feel free to email your questions!)

You can subscribe to the podcast via iTunes, Stitcher, or YouTube.

That said, I invite you to join me in this first episode as we discuss the types of motivation that are unhealthy and unscriptural and how we can motivate those we lead in a healthy, scriptural way.


(If you cannot view this video in your email or RSS reader, click here.)

 

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Ok, for the sake of clarity I must acknowledge that I did not watch this podcast.  Furthermore, I must acknowledge that the subject matter of the title itself was a little bit of a "turn off" for me.  However, it was the subject matter of the title that moved me unto the following question:

How much Bible doctrine do we find on the matter of "motivational style"?

For some additional "thought qustions" --

What "style" of motivation does God our heavenly Father use to motivate His children?

What "style" of motivation did our Lord Jesus Christ use to motivate His disciples?

What "style" of motivation did the apostles use to motivate various believers?

So then, why was I so quick to be "turned off" -- I just wonder if a subject such as this is more about "leadership philosophy" than about "Biblical teaching" on the matter.

But let us be honest -- By characteristic personality I may be a leader and a teacher; however, by characteristic personality I am NOT a motivator (or, manipulator).

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I must admit, I also did not watch. Why? About 30 years ago, I got sick and tired of "business models" being used as pattern for ministry implementation and evaluation.  (10 minute rant avoided).

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I watched about half of the video and also visited his Lancaster Baptist Church website and it seems to be a Baptist version of the mega church where I used to work.

 

I worked on the tech team (audio/visual/media) at Kensington Community Church and I can tell you that the above mentioned Baptist church spends several millions of dollars on their multimedia/tech department and many millions more on the building itself.  Just to light, shoot and edit their weekly sermons requires, at a minimum, three full time video/editing staff at, at least, $30,000 a year. 

 

KCC had many leadership conventions which we, on the tech team, attended all of them because we had to take care of the media and entertainment.  The above video is dripping with “convention speak” and is designed to teach leaders how to keep congregants actively involved for the sole purpose of the continuance of revenue.  Our conventions were several hundred dollars a person, books and DVDs were peddled &c.

 

LBC offers “counseling” for couples 45 and over via a class called “Family Foundations.”  This requires participants to purchase a $50.00 book/DVD package.

 

As part of the leadership at KCC. I was the "North Campus Portability Director, in charge of keeping six teams of volunteers motivated and "plugged in" to set up and tear down about 3 million dollars worth of audio/video/lighting equipment every Sunday morning at a temporary location for out North Campus.  Part of my job was to take every single volunteer out to lunch and/or dinner once a month to "build relationships" with them.  Both the volunteers and I thought it was strange that it was a requirement and it was a huge burden on me, as my workload was already enormous. Seeing that I had 250 volunteers, I had to eat my lunches and dinners 7 days a week with groups of 5 or ten people at a time.  I was also told to spend about $25 per person per meal.  Those relationship building, motivational meals cost the church over $6000 a month; and that was just my group of volunteers.  KCC did the same thing for all of the volunteers, which was around 2500 at any given time.

 

All of this is to say that I have had a bit of experience in the subject and to shed light upon the source of the above video.

 

Now, to respond to Pastor Markle’s inquiry into biblical motivation.

 

I think there’s a difference between motivation and encouragement.  In my opinion, motivation is something that causes you to take action.  Encouragement is something that helps to lift our spirits and gives us hope.

 

For me, the verses about the promises and wages of sloth are some of the most motivational.

Proverbs 12:27, Proverbs 15:19, Proverbs 24:30-34 2 Thessalonians 3:10.  These verses are certainly not an exhaustive list.

 

There are, however, almost innumerable verses that are encouraging to me.  I would be interested in learning more about how God motivates as well.

Edited by Brother Stafford
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1 hour ago, Brother Stafford said:

I watched about half of the video and also visited his Lancaster Baptist Church website and it seems to be a Baptist version of the mega church that I used to work for.

 

I worked on the tech team (audio/visual/media) at Kensington Community Church and I can tell you that the above mentioned Baptist church spends several millions of dollars on their multimedia/tech department and many millions more on the building itself.  Just to light, shoot and edit their weekly sermons requires, at a minimum, three full time video/editing staff at, at least, $30,000 a year. 

 

 

Now, I'm not saying one way or the other concerning LBC because I'm not at all familiar with them (don't even know how to pronounce the pastor's name -- like 'chapel', like Chap-L with the accent on second syllable, or like 'schap-el or Schap-L'). I'm also not sure how many IB churches you have been intimately familiar with. I, however, have seen several IBCs do more than people would imagine with less budget than people would think possible.

(Some of these are all one church, some are in different churches) I have seen week long meetings with 70-75 people fed 3 meals a day (not continental breakfasts and soup/sandwich lunches- REAL meals) at $0 costs to the church for the food. I have seen 1800 sq ft new addition to a church and the existing 1800 sq ft remodeled at a TOTAL cost of $10K - in 2002A.D.(the complete electrical - including moving the service entrance only cost the church $130!!). I know a church of less than 150 members that owns a radio station. I have seen a church with a total annual budget of only $30K yet gave $6K to missions, had a K-12 school, a ministry at the county fair, a nursing home ministry, a missionary every other month present his ministry, a Bible Institute, a food pantry ministry, a recording ministry and a bus ministry, they had a meeting and housed and fed several guest preachers at NO costs to the church. I could go on if I took the time to think about it, these are just off the top of my head. .

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4 hours ago, OLD fashioned preacher said:

Now, I'm not saying one way or the other concerning LBC because I'm not at all familiar with them (don't even know how to pronounce the pastor's name -- like 'chapel', like Chap-L with the accent on second syllable, or like 'schap-el or Schap-L').

Brother Chappell's name would be pronounced the same a the word "chapel," as in a religious "chapel."

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7 minutes ago, Pastor Scott Markle said:

Brother Chappell's name would be pronounced the same a the word "chapel," as in a religious "chapel."

Thank-you.

 

"Hey ma, I learnt sumptin, you didn't think I could, didcha?"

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Another set of thoughts concerning this matter of "motivating God's people" would be as follows:

Question #1:  If the Lord Himself cannot motivate His own people to serve Him aright, why do I think that I can motivate them to do aright?

Answer #1:  Because human methods of motivation have worked in all departments of life since man has walked the earth.

Question #2:  If my human motivations are moving God's people t0 do aright when God's own motivations did not, will that human motivation produce spiritual growth and spiritual fruitfulness?

Answer #2:  No.  For according to God's Word spiritual growth and spiritual fruitfulness is only produced through abiding in Christ and walking after the Holy Spirit, not by my human motivations and manipulations.

Question #3:  If my human motivations are not sourced in the work of the Holy Spirit and do not produce the growth and fruit of the Spirit, then in what are they sourced?

Answer #3:  If something in the Christian life is not sourced in the Spirit, then the only other source is the flesh.

Question #4:  If my human motivations are actually sourced in the flesh, then even if God's people are moved to do "the right things," what am I actually producing in their character?

Answer #4:  . . . . .

Yet another "thought question" -- When God's people in the Old Testament did not do aright, and the Lord God wanted to motivate them unto doing aright, in what manner did the Lord God direct His prophets to motivate the people?

Edited by Pastor Scott Markle
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I'm of the same mind as you Bro. Scott. If people are not motivated by the Holy Spirit, then no effort on my part can take the place of God's Holy Spirit, nor should it.

We are only required to be faithful and preach the word. We are not responsible for any results or lack of them. This is not to say that we should not be an encouragement to others, we certainly should. But encouragement and motivation are two different things.

Once I get the idea that I can motivate others by my personality, style, presentation, knowledge, speaking skills, or adhering to some man made formula, I am operating from the flesh.

The Holy Spirit is capable of producing results in the lives of sincere believers. If any believer is not willing to respond to the urging of the Holy Spirit, then no amount of motivational tactics on my part can or should be thought of as any better than God can do.

 1Co 3:18  Let no man deceive himself. If any man among you seemeth to be wise in this world, let him become a fool, that he may be wise. 

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I'm not a fan of motivation.  From my experience, motivation is almost completely useless.  It is akin to people getting "filled with the Holy Spirit" by being worked up by an exciting experience.  Like emotional excitement, motivation wears off.  I think that's the reason that God doesn't seem to focus on motivational tactics.  God is much more interested in obedience and commitment.

It's like getting into physical shape.  The reason that most people fail to do so is because they only exercise when they feel motivated or in the mood.  In contrast, if you make the commitment to get up and walk/exercise every single morning, regardless of how you feel about it, you will succeed at being physically fit.  You don't have to like it or even want it; just do it.  Usually, you will find that the desire comes through practicing the commitment.

The problem with churches trying to keep their members motivated is that leadership needs to keep thinking up more and more interesting things to keep that artificial momentum.  I believe churches would do well to focus on teaching obedience and commitment.

Another lesson I learned when I was a very little boy.  The answer to "why do I have to.....?" was always, "Because I said so."  After I obeyed and did what I was asked to do, I understood why I was asked; sometimes it was clear right away, sometimes it took a few years (or decades).  

Edited by Brother Stafford
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18 hours ago, Pastor Scott Markle said:

Yet another "thought question" -- When God's people in the Old Testament did not do aright, and the Lord God wanted to motivate them unto doing aright, in what manner did the Lord God direct His prophets to motivate the people?

It is my understanding that when God's people in the Old Testament did not do aright, the Lord motivated them unto doing aright through the preaching of the prophets.  Furthermore, it is my understanding that the message of the prophets from the Lord at such times was specifically a message unto broken-hearted repentance, not a message of emotional motivations.  Thus even if the techniques of emotional motivation are able to move people unto doing "the right things," if those people do not ever come unto broken-hearted repentance before the Lord for having done sinful wrong against Him, those techniques of motivation are spiritually unprofitable.  Finally, it is my understanding that if a prophet proclaimed, "Peace, peace," wherein there was no peace before the Lord, then that prophet was to be considered a false prophet.  At such times, the correct message would have been, "Repent, repent," rather than, "Peace, peace." 

(By the way, what will help to bring a true, Biblical revival among Fundamental Baptists -- the message of repentance, or the message of motivation?)

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