Tool of Gods Grace

A prayer I wrote using quotes from chapter 2 - Gospel - of Paul Tripp's Lead:12 Gospel Principles for Leadership In the Church  

Lord, the one who saves,

Use me as a tool of grace in people's lives.  And as you do that, help me see the importance others play in my life and spiritual growth.

I pray that the ministry you have for me and my family would challenge me and stretch me.  Remind me that ministry is not about my comfort and predictability.  In these challenges, I will be weak and needy.  Help me embrace my weakness and your strength, God.  I also pray that Trinity and the ministry we will go to will embrace their weakness and your strength.  Lord, use me to help them grow.

Lord, I desire to help a church look at its leadership, mission, community, and methodology in light of the life-changing truth of the gospel.  This will not happen perfectly but every church needs to get better at doing/living/working with the Gospel at the forefront.  May the church that we are at grow in confidence in the Gospel and a commitment to one another.

God, may the church we are a part of be a place where leaders and members can confess their sin to you and one another and then continue to grow in their personal holiness.

May I and other leaders show a maturity that goes beyond worldly understanding and humility, points to Jesus and leads to gospel productivity and long-term spiritual health.

As the gospel makes us into the individuals and the community you want us to be.  Grow in us patience and a willingness to wait on you.

You alone are worthy and deserving of all the glory.  God, as we continue this ministry search, I pray that you would help Trinity Baptist Church, the church we are currently attending, and the church we will go to grow in the gospel.

Amen.

If you have given yourself to building people, you have accepted the call to suffer for the sake of the Gospel.  Leadership in the church is not comfortable and predictable.  It's not a safe place to look for your identity and inner security.  (53)

There should be no more powerful influence on leadership formation, community, and methodology than the Gospel of God's grace. (54)

Gatherings are not just for the purpose of financial, missional, and strategic planning but to nurture gospel confidence and commitment to one another.  (56)

Fear of looking weak and needy will rob us of the help we need for spiritual health. (57)

If we are afraid to confess sin before what should be the most spiritual mature community in the church, we are sadly living in a state of functional gospel amnesia, no matter how robust our theological grasp of the gospel is.  (58)

The long term health and gospel productivity of a church or ministry leadership community are directly related to the humility of the members of the community.  (59)

Leader pride produces personality cults, while leader humility stimulates the worship of God. (60)

Willingness to wait with patient hearts is a clear sign that your leadership community has been and is being shaped by the gospel.  (62)

Gospel encouragement is a defense against the ever-present danger of the pride in accomplishment because it puts credit where credit is due, at the feel of the Savior.  (62)