You have a gift! A God-given natural ability that is the secret key to your success in life. When you identify your gift and begin to utilize it, your gift will make a way for you and bring you great joy and fulfillment! We’ve all been given gifts. Natural abilities in certain areas. It’s evident when watching your favorite sports team – certain individuals are incredibly gifted with athletic abilities. Other people you know have a real gift with words, you can listen to them talk all day. Whether it’s music, math or mechanics, analyzing, accounting or administrating, we all have a gift! The question is: How do we discover and identify what those gifts are?

It took a little time to discover what my gifts were, but once I identified what they were and began utilizing them consistently they’ve caused me to excel and thrive! That’s why I’m excited to share this content with you – it’s my hope that you will discover more of what your gift is and how to utilize it in a way that not only blesses you but also blesses the world around you! In this brief video I not only share how to identify your gift but also what to do with your gift once you’ve identified it.

Watch the video and then reflect on the questions below…

What did you learn? What did you love? What are helpful tools that have helped you identify or grow your gift? Share in the comment section below!

For the full message click here – Your gift will make room for you!

If you’d like to learn more about getting the most from this ministry click here – Start your journey today!

The post How to Identify Your Gift first appeared on John Silkauskas.

According to a recent study done by the Mayo Clinic stress can negatively impact many facets of our physical health, mood & behavior! Here are some of the effects stress can have on us:

Common effects of stress on your body:

Headache
Muscle tension or pain
Chest pain
Fatigue
Change in sex drive
Stomach upset
Sleep problems

John

For the entire message – Click Here

The post Effects Of Stress And How To Deal With Them first appeared on John Silkauskas.

We all fail! We’ve all said things we wish we could take back and done things we wish we could undo. And the truth of the matter is that we will all fail again, and again, and again and in many different areas of life. So what’s the remedy? Well, if we’re going to fail we better learn how to “Fail Forward” so to speak. Failing Forward is all about what you do immediately after failing! But before we go right into “3 Things to Remember When You Fail” I’d like to share a story because stories stick and I believe this story will help you remember these three things well!

2,000 years ago when Jesus walked the earth he began his ministry by assembling a team. This team was known as the “Twelve Disciples” – one of those twelve was a man named Peter. Peter was a leader, he often spoke first, acted first & took the lead when a problem arose. He was a dedicated follower of Jesus for close to three years! Until one night when Jesus was being led to die – to be crucified for all to see Peter began to shrink back, he shied away from being a leader and in a cowardly way he denied even knowing Jesus (3 times)!

Immediately after he did he wept bitterly! He was ashamed that he would deny the one he followed for years, his friend, an incredible and selfless man, this miracle worker, the very Son of God! Thankfully the story does not stop there! After being crucified before many witnesses and confirmed to be dead this man Jesus rose from the grave! Surely this was the Son of God who came to take away the sins of the world! And who did this man Jesus seek after his death and resurrection? The disciples AND Peter! Scripture records Peter being singled out, as if God wanted to make sure Peter got the message! Jesus then appears to the disciples and countless others over a period of the next forty days! These “3 Things to Remember When You Fail” are discovered by Peter on one particular day after Jesus had rose from the grave:

The Disciples had gone back to fishing and Peter was leading the charge. However they had no luck after fishing all night! Then they heard a voice from the shore saying, “Cast your net on the other side of the boat!” When they did they ended up catching more fish then they could haul in! The disciples recognized who this man was, it was Jesus! Peter then dove out into the water to meet him on the shore and this brings up the first thing to remember when you fail:

1. Run TO God instead of FROM God!

Often when we fail we’re tempted to keep failing. We think to ourselves, “I might as well, I’ve already messed up, why not mess up even more?!” Like Adam and Eve in the beginning of Genesis after they sinned they hid from God! This too is another temptation, instead of running back to God we tend to want to hide and run away from Him. But God greets us with love and desires that even after we fail we would get back up and come to Him! Like the parable of the lost son, God our Father is waiting for us to return with open arms! He loves us and desires to pour His love, grace and mercy upon us! So when you fail (and you will) remember to run to God rather than from Him!

Throughout their conversation Jesus has a few questions for Peter. Three times Jesus asked Peter, “Do you love me?” And three times Peter said, “Yes, you know that I love you!” Each time Jesus responded, “Then feed my sheep!” What was Jesus really saying? What was Jesus pointing Peter to? Essentially Jesus was helping Peter to look to the future He had for him rather than his past mistakes. He was calling Peter to rise up and lead again! To take care of the church and lead well! And this brings up the second thing to remember when you fail:

2.   Focus more on the future instead of fixating on the past!

We all have a past, we’ve all made countless mistakes but we make another mistake if we allow the mistakes of our past to trip us up in the present and negatively impact our future! Just as our windshield is so much larger than our rearview mirror we must focus on what’s ahead of us (our future) rather than gaze at what’s behind us (fixate on our past)! Moses was a murderer, David was an adulterer and the Apostle Paul persecuted Christians! They all had a past but God called each of them to focus on Him and the future He had for them! God’s calling us to forget what is behind and to focus our eyes on what is ahead!

Lastly after this session of Q & A Jesus said one more thing that I’d like to highlight! A simple phrase Peter would have heard a few times before, “Follow me.” Jesus was essentially saying, “Stay close to me, continue to follow me and get back into a place of faith! Remember all the miracles we witnessed together! Remember who I am and who you are! Let’s continue to do ministry together and as you follow me remember to believe nothing is impossible with God!” And this brings up the third thing to remember when you fail:

3.   Continue to follow Jesus and stay in a place of faith!

Scripture tells us a righteous man falls seven times but gets back up! It also says the righteous shall live by faith! We’re going to fall but we’re all called to rise again! We’re called to live not by sight but rather by faith! Simply put we’re not to be so easily impacted by negative things we see around us. Rather we’re called to be impacted by the things we see God pointing us to in His Word and through divine inspiration. Jesus was helping Peter to move past his past and it’s negative connotations. Jesus went even further by essentially changing the story!

If you read the Scriptures it was by a fire that Peter denied Jesus three times AND it was by a fire Jesus restored Peter by inviting Peter to express his love for Him three times! God used the very things that would remind Peter of his failure and He made them things that would remind Peter of his restoration and calling! Jesus was essentially changing the narrative! God was changing the story!

And if you too want your story to be changed, simply invite God into your pain, invite Him into your failure and watch what He does! He will take your mess and He’ll make it your message! God has a way of taking our failures and turning them around for something good! So remember these three things when you fail:

1. Run TO God instead of FROM God!
2. Focus more on the future instead of fixating on the past!
3. Continue to follow Jesus and stay in a place of faith!

And be encouraged knowing that failure is never a person, it’s an event. We’ll all experience failure but failure is not who we are! We’re overcomers! So next time you fail… Fail Forward!

Would you like to hear more on this subject?

Click HERE to listen to a recent sermon on Failing Forward!

The post Failing Forward first appeared on John Silkauskas.

Christmastime is one of my favorite times of the year (for many reasons). I love the food, the sweets, the shopping, the gifts, the time with family and friends; however, one of my absolute favorite things about Christmastime is a simple tradition that Emily and I share with each other and the kids: Every night during the season of Advent we start the bedtime process a half hour early. We purposely and intentionally slow down and make room for God in a very special way. We read, we pray, we light the candle(s) and sing songs of praise and worship. It’s a very simple, yet powerful time! God is faithful, and He meets our little family around our dinner table every evening. It’s a humbling and beautiful experience! We make space for God, and He comes and fills that space with His presence! I cherish these times for a few reasons:

• First, I’m teaching my children something very important and pray that they make this a practice for the rest of their lives.
• Second, we all get to share in the moment and worship together as a family.
• Third, this allotted time — where we intentionally slow down — reminds us what we’re really here for: an intimate relationship with God himself!

If you don’t know what Advent is all about here’s a brief summary / guide:

Advent simply means “COMING” – we’re remember that Jesus came and that he’s coming again. It’s a season where we can especially slow down and draw near to him (This is an incredible season that we’re heading into)! Advent is often celebrated with these three things:

1. Scripture / Devotional reading –

You can find Advent devotional resources by visiting “The Bible” app (and choose from countless free Advent devotionals there) or often your local church will provide you with an Advent devotional for free. An inspiring family friendly devotional that my family will be doing together and I recommend is RESET by J.D. Walk – https://store.seedbed.com/products/reset

2. Candle lit wreaths –

These can be homemade (a fun family craft), purchased at any Christian bookstore or bought online at Amazon – https://smile.amazon.com/Christmas-Advent-Candle-Set/dp/B001B7MLRG/ref=sr_1_5?s=home-garden&ie=UTF8&qid=1512099932&sr=1-5&keywords=advent+wreath+with+candles

3. Advent calendars –

These days they have everything from lego advent calendars (they’re fun, we actually did one a couple years back) to candy advent calendars. We use something like this – https://smile.amazon.com/Traditional-Nativity-Calendar-Pockets-Learning/dp/B00GHY2L32/ref=sr_1_fkmr0_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1512100239&sr=8-1-fkmr0&keywords=fabric+kids+christ+advent+calendar (great for the kids)

If you’re not sure about how to navigate through all these things here’s a simple weekly guide with instructions, prayers, scriptures, etc. https://mtbethel.org/bechristmas/pdf/Advent%20Wreath%20Readings%20Handout.pdf  What I usually do is I follow this kind of pattern but read different scriptures, so I might do scriptures like these each Sunday and the devotional, and then on the other nights of the week I might simply do the devotional, prayer and candle lighting. We make it our own, worship, turn down the lights, light the candles and sing songs like Silent Night, O Come let us adore Him or Little Drummer Boy – it’s always a very worshipful time!

Whether you choose to go all out or not, that’s not the point. The point is will you choose to be intentional this Christmas season – to slow down and make room a little extra room to draw near to God? Will you remove some of the distractions and spend time in the presence of the God who made you, knows you and loves you? I promise, you will be greatly refreshed as you purpose it in your heart to slow down and make room for the King! For the greatest present ever given is the gift of His presence! He is Emmanuel – God with us! Praying you richly experience His presence during this Advent and Christmas season!

Holy Advent and Merry Christmas to you and yours!

John

The post What does Advent mean & How do I Celebrate it? first appeared on John Silkauskas.

In my early years of ministry before dad life, even before marriage one of my mentors taught me something that I have not forgotten: Balance! Fast forward to when I first started my family I now had an opportunity to implement this wisdom. I made a commitment to be at home for dinner at least four nights each week. This meant that even if the church had four evening meetings where I was suppose to be present my calendar was already booked! I therefore had to prioritize and determine which meetings I had to be at and which one I could miss. It’s things like these that have helped me lead well at home and work.

I could share a lot of thoughts on leading well like the importance of vision, constant communication, being positive, staying humble, leading by example and many others. However I’d like to focus on these four specific ones today:

1. Think before you _____.

We tell our children to think before they speak and we as leaders need to take heed to this valuable lesson. Not only before we speak but before we act as well! Strategic thinking is probably one of the most lacking things in both our homes and our work! We so easily get lost in the day to day requirements that long term strategic thinking rarely gets done. And it’s easy to see why, we’re so busy wearing countless hats we get lost in the whirlwind of our daily tasks. Don’t make this grave mistake!

Take away – Think strategically on where you’re going and how you’re going to get there!

2. Time outs are essential!

Time outs often help kids to pause, focus, reflect on their actions and adjust their attitude. As leaders I believe we should all take time outs! I’m a better dad when I get a little time to myself, I’m a better pastor and leader when I remove myself for a short time to pause, to focus, to reflect on my actions, my attitude and all that’s happening around me. The best way for me to make time outs a regular practice is by scheduling them in advance. It’s actually part of My Morning Routine!

Take away – Take a moment right now to schedule some time out this week to focus, reflect and adjust accordingly.

3. If it stinks, change it.

This doesn’t just refer to diapers, it refers to everything that’s not working. If something is not working whether it’s our parenting style or one of our processes at work, we need to be willing to make some changes. In a culture that is ever changing some of the ways we do things need to change as well. For example people’s eyes are fixed to small screens whether it’s a laptop or a smartphone. We are literally a screen culture in a digital age and we need to learn to leverage it rather than resist it. Some of our old ways of doing things aren’t working and we need to change!

Take away – Think about what’s currently not working whether it’s at home or work and be willing to make whatever necessary changes may be needed.

4. You need to share!

We’ve all heard this one growing up but how well are we practicing it today? Some of the best leadership principles out there came from Jesus (just like this one)! Think about it, Jesus lived a life of ministry but he also invited his disciples to do the same! He invited the disciples to do what he was doing and we ought to be inviting the people around us to do the same! As much as possible work as a team with the people around you, it will pay dividends in the long run! Work as a team, share responsibility, and delegate where needed. It works both at home and work and as leaders we need to share responsibility and delegate well in order to accomplish all that God has called us to!

Take away – Ask yourself, “Where do I need to share? What things do I need to delegate?”

Lastly, remember to first lead well at home, for this will position you to lead well everywhere else!

The post 4 Keys To Leading Well at Home and Work first appeared on John Silkauskas.