Axioms

 
I recently hosted a little question and answer forum at the 2009 MinistryTECH conference in Colorado Springs, CO. http://www.minstrytech.org. Someone asked me if I had any Axioms that I followed to help me as a leader. I was very impressed by the question and shared my private Axiom journal with the group. I take credit for absolutely none of the axioms listed below. If I didn't list a source name or verse next to the Axiom then I simply forgot who I learned it from. I have been so blessed over the years to be mentored by so many great people. I can't say that I have met all of my mentors personally. However, I was challenged early in my walk with God to pray for and to seek His wisdom dilligently. My search for God's wisdom has lead me to some unlikely places and some unlikely people. Nevertheless, I do lean on these bits of truth with considerable weight as the situations of my life demand.

In honor of my wisdom seeking friend at the conference last week. I
have posted many of the Axioms that have shaped my thinking over
the years below. Right now with God calling me to take some significant steps of faith in my life. The 3 Axioms that I have been leaning on most lately are numbers 31, 40 and 44. 

My heart is that all would seek and be blessed by God's wisdom. I know God loves to pass it on. Perhaps the leader who asked the Axiom question didn't fully realize how significant it was. Seeking God's wisdom is the most intelligent thing a leader can do.

1. A fool is wise in his eyes. Solomon
2. Wisdom is more precious to a leader than anything else. He/She
   should seek it more than any other position or vantage point. Wisdom
   Comes from God Alone… Proverbs 1:7
3. Many seek an audience with a ruler, but it is from the LORD that man gets justice…Prov. 29:26
4. Hatred stirs up dissension, but love covers over all wrongs… Proverbs. 10:12
5. He who gets wisdom loves his own soul; he who cherishes understanding prospers…Prov. 19:8
6. He who loves a pure heart and whose speech is gracious will have the king for his friend.
   Prov. 22:11
7.  6But godliness with contentment is great gain… Tim 6:6
8. When it comes to teams, organizations, etc. Entropy is constant. Hybels
9. Leadership requires constant propulsion, Leaders can never glide and expect to maintain or gain altitude.
10. Energy is the most important asset a leader brings to the team.  Hybels
11. Effective leaders get their whole lives moving in one direction. Bennis
12. I must be able to handle failure, if I ever expect to handle success.
13. The tact of a cactus sends people away with tiny holes in their flesh. 
14. Never elevate a person to a level of responsibility that is beyond their level of character and integrity. 
15. Know the limitations of the plane you pilot. Don't do too many
    tight turns if the plane can't handle it. It's wing may fly off. Now
    apply that simple wisdom to your team.
16. If you need a plane that can handle tight turns build one. Now apply that wisdom to teams.
17. Am I not destroying my enemies when I make friends of them? A. Lincoln
18. Character is like a tree and reputation like a shadow. The shadow is what we think of it; the tree is the real thing. A Lincoln
19. Don't worry when you are not recognized, but strive to be worthy of recognition.
    A Lincoln
20. Beware the barrenness of a busy life. Socrates.
21. Failing organizations are usually over-managed and under-led.  Bennis
22. Good leaders make people feel that they're at the very heart of things, not at the periphery. Bennis
23. Capital L leaders make each person, item,
    issue, project and task they are focusing on seem like he, she or it
     is the most important thing in the world at that moment even in the
    midst of enormous responsibility. Hybels.
24. A man who won't die for something is not fit to live.  -MLK
25. Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere -MLK
26. To be a Christian without prayer is no more possible than to be alive without breathing. -MLK
27. All the world is full of suffering. It is also full of overcoming. Helen Keller
28. Self-pity is our worst enemy and if we yield to it, we can never do anything wise in this world. Helen K.
29. The most pathetic person in the world is someone who has sight, but has no vision.
    H. Keller
30. Don't let schooling interfere with your education. Mark Twain
31. Do the thing you fear most and the death of fear is certain. Mark Twain.
32. If you try to make an apple into an orange, you get apple sauce.
33. A 'No' uttered from the deepest conviction is better than a 'Yes' merely uttered to please, or worse, to avoid trouble. Gandi
34. Be the change that you want to see in the world. ..Gandhi
35. An eye for eye only ends up making the whole world blind…Gandhi
36. A little learning, indeed, may be a dangerous thing, but the want of learning is a calamity to any people. Frederick Douglas
37. If there is no struggle, there is no progress. F Douglas
38. It is easier to build strong children than to repair broken men. F. Douglas
39. One and God make a majority. F Douglas
40. Where
    justice is denied, where poverty is enforced, where ignorance prevails,
    and where any one class is made to feel that society is an organized
    conspiracy to oppress, rob and degrade them, neither persons nor
    property will be safe.
    FDouglas
41. You can't pursue comfort and conviction at the same time.
    
42. Find the critics kernel of truth. hybels…
43. Seek Godly justice. Justice that makes things right when one person blocks another persons access to the blessings that God Intends for everyone. J. Perkins.
44. If you are clear that God is calling you to do something. Then you need to do it at all cost. M Neal.
45. Live by faith, not fear and you can walk on water. Matthew 14:33
46. let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven. Matthew 5:14-16
47. You can't make big decisions unless you are willing to own up to big mistakes. 
48. If God has gifted you with leadership, If you don't intentionally learn to lead with Godly dilligence, you will intentionally lead people astray. B Smith
49. Freedom from effort in the present merely means that there has been effort stored up in the past. T Roosevelt.
50. When you apologize don't make excuses. Own it. They deserve better, you can do better. B smith.