Right off the bat, I got excited about this book. I have seen the beauty and the hand of God with marginalized people. I have gotten to know houseless people and have worked with people with addictions and alcoholism. As some of you know (because I am not shy), I lived inside prison walls for three years with some fantastic guys who had just gotten caught up with the lures of the world. They will share their dreams and desires with you when they are sober and clear-headed. They are no different than anyone else, trying to survive some trauma in life and making the wrong choice.<\/p>\n
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God sees people’s beauty and hopes and wants to refine them into something beautiful. They can take the life experiences that they have, unique ones, and welcome the refinement that God is putting them through to become effective tools to help and lead others. God takes the rough edges of our lives and sees the diamond that is inside of us – if we are willing to accept the love that is freely given.<\/p>\n
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This is why I am so excited about my project of helping people overcome their addictions, being open to what God sees in them, and following her lead. (as you get to know me, you will see that I rarely call God “he” – it is either \u201cher\u201d or \u201cze\u201d). They need to believe in others who believe in them because they may not have the capacity to do so.<\/p>\n
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We, as a church, can and should help take the marginalized and walk with them, coaching and mentoring them to be leaders and functioning members of society. On page 151, Camacho writes, “Whatever difficult circumstance we have endured, God knows where we are and has allowed us to be there. This is a challenging truth that can set us free. Our pain is not random. God did not leave us and he is not trifling with us.”<\/p>\n
How dare we question that?<\/p>\n
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I know this is a book on leadership, and I look forward to going back to my ways of the past and reading it word for word, but I see so much more in it than just leadership. It goes deeper into the needs of the church to help refine each one of us. Not just the houseless, the alcoholics, or the ex-felons. It is the men and women who have a gift that everyone can see but them and help them build upon that. Prior to getting married, one of our friends took us to a Color Me Mine store as an engagement present. I picked a large bowl and painted some fruit. I still think it was average, but my wife, who is an amazing artist, keeps talking about it 20 years later, telling me what talent I have and how I should be feeding this talent. It is the same in a church – whether coming alongside a small group leader who is hesitant or a struggling pastor who is in doubt. We, as leaders, need to find the gold in others to help them see what God’s desires are for them.<\/p>\n
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I want to develop a program (I don’t know exactly what it looks like yet!) that emphasizes spiritual transformation in recovery. Let God do the work in others if they are willing. Let the Holy Spirit show others how to live in their sweet spot (pg. 136) and bear fruit – not only for themselves and their family but for the church and community itself by remaining sober and discovering the rich vein of gold that God has created for them. I am hoping to teach other leaders how to help people in sobriety discover the richness that God has in store for them and never look back.<\/p>\n
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Spiritual transformation led by a person who is trained properly in helping others find their “sweet spot” will give people in recovery hope. To walk a new path of discovering their passions, how they are wired, and where they can bear fruit for others would be the goal of my project.<\/p>\n
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The deeper a person in recovery goes and sees what God has done for them and what God has planned for them, the easier it will be when the hard times come. They will come, they will for all of us. How deep the roots that were created by God, the Holy Spirit, and the people who have come around them and walked with them will determine how they get through without too many scratches.<\/p>\n
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There are a lot of similarities in the coaching and mentoring discussed in this book, as well as a “sponsor” from one of the recovery programs. Everyone is taught to listen to their sponsor and do everything that he or she says because they have been there before. Jesus has been there before. Spiritual transformation is the key to all this and one I hope to unlock in my project.<\/p>\n
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