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Posted By Aaron Marcelli on June 25, 2010

Growing up, I was lead to believe that being a follower was a bad thing.  Even now, much of what I read or hear in our culture sends a subtle message that if you are a follower it is because you are weak.  Whether in church, school, work, or media, it is the people who are on the stage, making the noise, or giving the performance who receive the praise.  And along with that goes out a message to everyone else, “You are not as good as this.”

I don’t think though that leadership is desired by everyone, or should be.  Leadership, in general, is a skill, a gift, and a desire.  If everyone in you work or church was trying to lead the way, you would have hundreds of people going hundreds of directions and absolutely no cohesion.

A message we don’t hear enough is this: Be a follower!!  To those who are content with their position at work.  To those who are deeply introverted and don’t want to be leading the charge.  And to those who don’t have the call to spend the majority of their time and effort in being “the guy”, I would first say there is nothing wrong with you! Secondly though I would say, be a follower – and be a good one!  So many times in teaching on this subject it is stated that everyone is either a leader or a follower.  That’s not true.  There are some people who do nothing.  Don’t do nothing, be a follower!

Being a follower means you are following. Find a person or a group that is making a difference and leading the way on an issue you believe in, then give yourself to following them and support them!  A follower is not passive, lazy, or disengaged.  Get in there and be an active presence even as you follow.  And many times what you will find is that a good follower brings momentum to the team or cause.  Because most people don’t follow leaders; they follow other followers.  They sit back and observe what others are doing and then go with the crowd or follow the noise.  So by following something you think is important, you may just inspire others to do the same thing!

We don’t hear this much.  Most “experts” who read and speak on leadership make it sound as though everyone should be a leader and being a follower is a harmful disease.  Such is not the case because any great movement is going to take a crowd of people and within that crowd there can only be so many positional leaders, and if I were the leader I certainly would not want my followers to feel like they were second rate or inadequate.

We need to hear more preaching about Paul’s challenge to, “follow me as I follow Christ.”  If you always have to lead and you always have to be the one in charge, to the point that you will always leave and do your own thing when someone else becomes the leader, then you have insecurity issues and are unable to deal with authority and you need to fix that!  Learn to be an engaged follower.  Humble yourself and give to the cause rather than trying to build your own name, and in turn lead others to this as well!

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Posted By Aaron Marcelli on June 17, 2010

Though I said in my last post that I no longer sweat over trying to figure out how God reveals His will, I am still fascinated by the idea of the concept, as well as how people misunderstand it.  Allow me to share the following illustration that I have totally stolen from a Donald Miller message (though now that I told you where it’s from I guess it’s not stealing anymore).

Let’s say you are invited over to a family’s home for dinner.  You accept the invitation.  You sit at the meal table with the father, the mothers, the son, and the daughter.  Before beginning to eat, the father calls for all of the family’s attention and says,

Family, I don’t want any of you to make any decisions without my approval.  You are not to pick out any new clothes until you have cleared it with me.  No new friends until I have said ok.  When it comes to deciding on a college, a mate, a home, or a job, you are to do absolutely nothing until I have told you exactly what to do.  I will be the one who tells you precisely what to wear, specifically who to date, and the exact moment you are to move out.  You can and will do nothing until I have told you and then you will do exactly as I say.

You would think that father was nuts.  You would think he was a mean, power-hungry dictator. Yet, that is exactly how we view God when it comes to this issue of His will.  We make it about specifics such as places, times, and people rather than simply living in a way that pleases Him.  We use the term “God’s will” as an excuse to sit and do nothing until there is writing on the wall.

I heard Perry Noble once say that he gets mad when people say they are waiting on God.  “We don’t wait on God because He is not late” Perry said.  Living pursuing God’s will in my life, it is easy to point out the flaws in those who are not.  But it is perhaps looking back over my own struggles in this area that I realize how much time I wasted praying and waiting for God to just do it for me when in reality I had been called to action.

God’s will is not a time, a place, a school, a house, or a job.  It’s Him!  God’s will for us is God.  And if we are living with that as our focus and pursuing Him, it’s very interesting how things just tend to work out.  Now, that’s not to say that everything you do will be the “right” move, but it will become painfully obvious when you misstep and you will know to move again.

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Posted By Aaron Marcelli on June 11, 2010

God’s will was always a stressful and confusing issue for me growing up.  I had enough Sunday school teachers tell me that God was not holding His will behind His back that I believed them but I did imagine God’s will to be something very specific and if I missed I may wonder in the wilderness for the rest of my life.

I figured God’s will to be detailed and illusive and be a combination of person, time, and place that if could easily have go by without knowing and having forever missed it.  The revelation for me came during an open forum in high school youth group.  Our youth pastor was having an “ask anything” session in which a student would pose a question and then the youth pastor, with the help of the entire group, would address it.

One student raised their hand and asked how they can know God’s will.  My heart sank yet my ears perked up because I had been asking that question for years.  Our youth pastor asked for a response from the audience and without realizing it, I raised my hand.  When called on, I said, “By the desires He puts in you.”  My youth pastor agreed and when on to comment but I tuned him out as I sat back and marveled over the wisdom that had just come out of my mouth.  Here, for years I had been mentally straining over learning the secret behind God’s will and now the best answer I had yet to hear just came from my own lips.

God’s spirit confirmed in me that what He had lead me to say was true and I was able to accept that.  Never again have I questioned how to know what God’s desires for me are.  Now, when others come to me with concerns about finding their purpose in life, I respond by asking them, “well, what is it you want to do?”  I then stand back and watch as they look at me like I’m being incredibly unspiritual.

But it’s true!  The Bible says that God will give you the desires of YOUR heart.  This passage assumes you are walking with God, hearing from Him, and allowing Him to transform your life. When someone is growing in their spiritual walk and open to the hand of God, God works internally in the persons heart before He works externally in their circumstances.  So if someone has an open heart, God is going to be at work placing passions and desires within that person.  That way the person ends up walking with God and desiring something God wants for them anyway.  This results in us getting to do what we love and God getting glory because we are doing what He intended for us to do.

God speaks to us through our desires.

So….if you are like I was years ago, searching for that illusive will of God, determined it must be something painful, boring, or self-sacrificing, I have two questions for you:

1. Are you walking with God?
2. What is it you want to do?

The answers to those questions may be all you need to know when determining how God desires to use you.

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Posted By Aaron Marcelli on June 8, 2010

Last weekend Katy and I finished our church planting school.  Thanks to all of you who have sent encouraging emails and messages via facebook!

Though we are still early in the game, we are being aggressive in pursuing any opportunities that could get us into Chattanooga or having us better prepared once we get there.  I have looked into a few job options up in C-town.  We are attending a one day conference for church planters later this month.  And I’m counting on my book selling half a million copies so I can quit work.

Ok, so maybe the last one is not very likely.  But we will be doing fundraising soon so we can minister full time and get plugged in to the city of Chattanooga.  So if you know of anyone with a generous heart, the resources to give, and a love for the people and souls in Chattanooga, please shoot me an email!  I plan on being intentional about building relationships with those who could partner with us in this way.

I also hope in the next year to put myself under the mentoring of some guys who have been successful church planters.  One of those is Michael Lukaszewski. Michael planted Oak Leaf church in Cartersville and is a great leader.  For real, you need to follow his blog and his twitter account as I think he always has solid and interesting things to say.  Michael and his staff are leading a one day conference for church planters and their teams.  By being just one day, June 26^th, and costing just $10, the Oak Leaf team is going out of their way to make this a user friendly resource for church planters in Georgia.

The conference is called nuts and bolts and if you would like information or to go with Katy and I, just click on the link or email me.

I’m looking forward to the conference Michael!

Category: Church Planting, Churches, My Life / Personal | 1 Comment »
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Posted By Aaron Marcelli on June 7, 2010

There is a lot of buzz in professional basketball world about free agent Lebron James and which team he will play for next season.  After the Cleveland Cavs were dismissed early from the playoffs I was 90% sure James would play somewhere not in Ohio next year.  After hearing Lebron and others talk though, I am currently about 75% sure James will resign with his home team this summer.

That being said……I see principles for learning in everything.  So I thought how I would go about appealing to “King James” if I were a NBA team owner.  In wiring it out I realized some of the same principles apply in attracting friends, customers, or church visitors.

1. Get rid of hindrances

The Cleveland Cavs have already gone about doing this by firing their coach and general manager, both of whom Lebron is rumored to have disapproved of.  The Cavs are also not resigning any other players that Lebron did not get along with.  If your church or business has some potential “hang-ups” for guests such as location, rules, confusing or mixed messages, you may want to reevaluate these and see if having them is worth losing people over.

2. Consult him on major decisions

Following up on the last point, do you really think the Cleveland Cavs fired their coach and GM without the ok of LBJ?  I don’t!  Who are you trying to appeal to?  Well have you ever thought to ask their opinion on what you do and how?

One of our plans for outreach before we church plant is to approach the people in the community we intend to plant in and ask them to fill out and return a survey about their view of church and what kind of a church they would be willing to attend.

3. Make things comfortable and familiar

In the Lebron James case, the Cavs already have the advantage in this because they are the team closest his home town.  I still believe though that they should bring in his old High School coach as a team assistant.  Lebron loves his old coach and knowing he could be close to him on the professional team would certainly be appealing.

Likewise, what could you do to bring this element to your place of business or worship?  Don’t be so caught up in the idea of having everything as “new” that you alienate people by making them confused and uncomfortable as soon as they walk in your door.

4. Put our best effort forward

If we are trying to sign the best basketball player in the country, we’re not just going to hope, wish, or even pray that he signs with us.  We are going to put forth a solid effort and make him feel valued.  We would bring in the best coach we could get.  We would sign players that would compliment Lebron’s game and let him know we are serious about winning.

If people think you are after them for money or inflated numbers, they will walk.  Are you putting your time and resources into a good presentation and a solid product or are you assuming people will come and already dreaming about the next step?

5. Appeal to his dream

If you know Lebron James (as I obviously do!) you know that his dream is to become an international icon.  Ok, so that’s public knowledge.  But what would you do with that knowledge.  Again, if I were a team owner, I would be spending money out of my pocket to rent advertising space in every major country on the planet and posting a huge image of number 23.  If I care about Lebron, then I care about his dream.  And I would take initiative in helping make his dream happen.  People will always be loyal to those who are helping them accomplish their dream.

What is it people in your family or your community want?  How are you going to help them take steps toward fulfilling that?

So….that’s my foolproof plan for signing Lebron James and reaching your community.  You’re welcome NBA general managers!

Category: Church Planting, Entertainment, Leadership, Sports | 6 Comments »
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Posted By Aaron Marcelli on May 28, 2010

Personal Growth

• Vision
• Faith
• Leadership
• Purity

Salvation and Life Change

• The lost in Chattanooga
• Friends
• Family members
• Homeless
• Addicted
• Opportunities

The Church Plant

• God to grow it
• Relationships
• Finances
• The right place
• People
• Unity
• Launch/core team

My Marriage

• Sacrifice
• Love
• Purity
• Trust
• Partnership

My Relationship with God

• Clarity
• Wisdom
• Faith
• Power in prayer
• To hear from God
  • LISTEN!!!!

Category: Church Planting, Jesus, Prayer, Relationships / Love | No Comments »
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Posted By Aaron Marcelli on May 23, 2010

I recently signed up for a volunteer leadership role at our church.  I figure if I’m planning to one day start a church and lead people, it would probably be a good idea to do that now.  And even though leading in the volunteer capacity of head usher was the only position they needed filled, that’s what I was willing to do.

So this last Thursday’s service was my first day of duty and I showed up wondering how things would go leading a team of people I did not know and most of whom were older than me.  The position fit like a glove and was a reminder for me of how church leadership is my niche and how much I had missed it.  If you are wanting to be in leadership one day, the best advice I could give you would be to find some, any, leadership role you can now – even if it’s going into the men’s room to see which side of the toilet the hand rails are one (yes, someone asked me to do this).

In getting things set up and people in their place to hand out bulletins and take up the offering, I encountered two different reactions from guys.  It just goes to show that there are leadership lessons everywhere.

1. The “ok, let’s go, hurry up” follower

One young man was super pumped to be ushering that night and apparently equally as pumped that I was his leader.  From the moment I walked in and put on my walkie-talkie (which is the true sign of being in charge), this guy was at my side, following me around, wanting to know my plan.  Fifteen minutes before we were to be in place, while some of the others ushers will still eating dinner, this guy was pressuring me to head over to the auditorium and get started.

This guy was all in for the mission.  He was going to hold me accountable and make sure I was leading the way.  But he is also the kind of follower who can push a leader to go too soon, abandon the game plan, and get ahead of the process.  “ok, let’s go” guy will stroke a leader’s ego and make them feel like someone has their back, but be careful they don’t set your pace for you.

2. The “yeah, yeah, I got it” follower

As I made my rounds to the ushers assigning positions and covering the game plan, I had one guy push back a little.  As I described in detail how things needed to go, he avoided eye contact and continually interrupted me by saying, “yeah, ok.  Piece of cake.  Got it!”  Perhaps he has plenty of ushering experience under his belt, but I had observed how just the week before the ushers had got confused and sent a basket down a certain isle three times.  I was going into great details in order to be simple and specific in making sure such an incident did not happen again.

Follower number two however seemed insulted that I was telling him what I expected of him.  Though it is noble that he wanted to be trusted and was letting it known he could handle the responsibility, his attitude came off as almost challenging of authority.  Leaders should not be micromanagers yet the downfall sometimes of this kind of follower is that they overlook the details, which can lead to major problems.

Again, leadership principles are everywhere and experience is the best teacher.  Better I learn to deal with the different types of followers now than when the stakes are higher and I deeply offend someone.

Category: Church Planting, Leadership | 1 Comment »
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Posted By Aaron Marcelli on May 13, 2010

If anyone needs marriage counseling, feel free to give me a call.  I mean, I’ve been married for almost two weeks so I’m pretty much an expert now.

In case you were unable to join us, we had a wonderful wedding day.  We broke a lot of unwritten wedding rules by seeing each other and having our pictures taken before the ceremony.  The people who didn’t have to wait nine hours between wedding and reception appreciated this.

We had the band Simple Fool lead a worship set at the beginning of the ceremony and some of our friends enjoyed the music so much they are now attending the church.

But even after the cake had been eaten, the presents were opened, and our car cleaned up from all our wedding party did to it, Katy and I found ourselves sitting in our hotel room asking, “When will this feel real?”

Though we are still wondering when the reality of our being married will kick in, feedback from others has proven to me that they are now seeing me as “real”.  I started to understand this when a premarital workbook we were doing had me interview my parents.  One of the questions was “how will me getting married effect my relationship with you?”

Immediately my dad spoke up and said, “we will begin to see you as a real adult.”  Thinking about his answer later, I almost got upset.  I knew what he meant by it, but I find the attitude reflected a lot in our society that you’re not legit until you reach this age or have a certain status, in this case ‘married’.

I have a great friend in full time ministry, accomplishing a lot and dealing with a lot of responsibility.  Even though my friend is a good bit older than I, he consistently has people approaching him trying to hook him up with a date or treat him like there’s something wrong with him because he’s single.

When getting mad at my dad and others for waiting until now to take me seriously, I had to realize that I actually had (and have) this attitude toward myself.  So many times I would use excuses to myself like, “well when I reach the next stage in life” or “I’ll get serious once I’m…..(married)”

These excuses caused me to not always take myself seriously and perhaps as a result gave others an excuse to not take me seriously either.  And if I think that just putting on a ring is going to cause others to take me seriously I would be just as mistaken as if I thought the state would give me a license just for turning sixteen.

Marriage is a huge step in life and in most cases causes a lot of growth and reflects maturity.  But having others (as well as myself) believe that now that I’m married my “real life” can begin made me feel like I wasted a lot of time.  It also caused me to never want to judge someone or their worth based on if they are where I think they should be at their current stage in life.

Category: Emotion Issues, My Life / Personal, Relationships / Love | No Comments »
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Posted By Aaron Marcelli on May 8, 2010

Oh, so you’re just single?  You’re just eighteen?  You’ve got just an associates degree?  You’re just a volunteer?

Ever heard any of these?  I’m sure I’ve heard more “just phrases” than I realize.  I noticed it the other day while at the dentist though.  As he was cleaning my teeth he began to make small talk between spits.  After a couple questions he stated, “so you’re just working”?

What?!?!

Just working?  Yeah!  I’m doing what it takes to make money so I don’t end up homeless.  Yeah, I’m putting in 80 hours a week so I can make my car payment and give to church and get married.  Yeah I’m JUST working!  But, his hands we in my mouth so I just nodded and moaned.

I thought about it though.  When we say just anything, we’re downplaying another person or their situation.  “It’s just a cold”.  “It’s just a few hours”.

Kinda makes me wanna step in something, walk through your house and say, “it’s just dog crap”!

The Bible tells us not to let others look down on us and then gives a list of reasons they might, like age or race.  Though we can’t stop others from thinking what they want, I think we are not supposed to take our worth from them.  We live in a competitive society and when others feel poorly about themselves they try to find one thing about one person that doesn’t seem all that great and pounce.

I’m not just anything, and neither are you.  If we have a right view of God, we won’t even judge ourselves as just’s.  Rather, we are. We’re not defined by what we do or where we live.  Our race, gender, height, orientation, or amount of facebook friends don’t make better than anyone else.

God determines our worth and the fact He thought us worthy to save means we’re alright.  He won’t let us have a pity party because we’re not pitiful enough to merit one.  You may be broke, naked, dirty, or ignorant, but you’re His.

Category: Emotion Issues, My Life / Personal, Relationships / Love | No Comments »
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Posted By Aaron Marcelli on April 28, 2010

Congratulations Jennifer Price!  I had someone draw a name from all those who had left comments on my “Help me develop a message” posts and Jennifer’s name was picked.  As a result, Jennifer wins a free copy of my book, Repentance and Recovery.

The book has just been released and for those of you interested in reading my journey of repentance and restoration and what I learned along the way, I am proud to say that several major book stores and organizations have picked the book up.  You can search on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Lifeway, and other websites to find the best price on Repentance and Recovery by Aaron M. Marcelli.

Amazon

Barnes & Noble

Lifeway

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