Legacy Youth Ministry Resources

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Largest Church Not Dependent on Leader

The Full Gospel Church in Seoul, Korea grew from a handful of believers in the early 60's to over 150,000 members in a mere 20 years. It's the largest congregation in the world. Although many would assume that the phenomenal growth must be due to a strong, dynamic leader, the growth may be more due to his weakness. You see, although Pastor Cho is truly dynamic, he found himself broken through his illnesses. In fact, he had been ill most of his life, including a diagnosis of TB in its terminal stages. He also experienced a nervous breakdown from fatigue and repeated severe ulcer attacks. Finally, he realized that he was so weak that he could no longer manage the church. As a result, the elders started cell groups to minister in each neighborhood, which effectively took the church to the world, rather than expect the world to come to church. So as neighbors began to minister to neighbors, more cell groups were formed until 10,000 cell groups were meeting all around the city. If pastor Cho were arrested or killed, his church could continue. Because its growth was not based solely on his personality and leadership, it's not dependent on his dynamism. ? Copyright 2002 Steve Miller - All Rights Reserved

Graham's Staff Do Humble Service

Billy Graham admires his staff for their willingness to serve. Sometimes he enters a stadium and finds his senior staff putting out chairs. Once he found a senior Crusade director cleaning a toilet in the men?s restroom prior to a service. (Just As I Am, p. 662) We are never too great for ?menial? tasks of servanthood. Our Master gave the ultimate example when He stooped to wash His disciples? feet. ? Copyright 2002 Steve Miller - All Rights Reserved

Songs on Servanthood

Songs about Servanthood ?Unsung Hero? by Kenny Marks ?For the Love of God? by Rick Cua

Walton and Humility

Sam Walton took Walmart from a good idea to the largest retail business in the United States in little more than 25 years. At the time, he was the wealthiest man in America, with a net worth of over $6.8 billion. You?d expect a person of his wealth and achievement to be out of reach of the common person. But his hometown barber in Bentonville, Arkansaw, described him as ?just as common as an old shoe.? Around town, he drives his old pickup truck, wears his familiar baseball cap, often covered with hair from his pet bird dogs. His one story house wasn?t in an exclusive neighborhood. On Wednesday nights he would accompany his wife to their church?s pot luck supper, bringing their own meal like everybody else. And you have to wonder if his humility was a part of his success. I think so. Kurt Barnard, publisher of the Retail Marketing Report, says that it was Walton himself who made Wal-Mart as great as it is. While proud people assume they are right, finding it difficulty to learn from other people, Walton had the ?most uncanny, most extraordinary? ability to learn from people, to figure out who they are and what they want. His concern was more for his customers than his own pockets. According to Barnard, Walton?s philosophy was ?If I can save a penny on the way I do business, I?ll pass it along to my customers.? But many other retailers operated with a ?If I can save a penny, I?ll put it into my pocket? philosophy. It?s that servant heart that people saw when he would visit one of his stores, and jump right in sacking goods for the checkers. (The Cincinnati Post, Sam Walton: The richest man in the U.S., by David Ivanovich)? Copyright 2002 Steve Miller - All Rights Reserved

Don't Go for the Credit

Benjamin Franklin found that in promoting great projects, he could often go further by presenting them, not as his own ideas, but as the proposal of a group of people. In his own words, ?I therefore put myself as much as I could out of sight, and stated it as a Scheme of a Number of Friends, who had requested me to go about and propose it to such as they thought Lovers of Reading. In this way my Affair went on more smoothly?frequent Successes. Thus, don?t present one?s self as the Purposer of any useful Project that might be suppos?d to raise one?s Reputation in the smallest degree above that of one?s Neighbors, when one has need of their Assistance to accomplish that Project.? (Autobiography, p. 87) ? Copyright 2002 Steve Miller - All Rights Reserved

Franklin Struggles With Pride

Benjamin Franklin made a list of virtues in his younger years and worked diligently at attaining these virtues during his life. But he felt that he failed in the area of pride. In his own words, ?In reality there is perhaps no one of our natural Passions so hard to subdue as Pride. Disguise it, struggle with it, beat it down, stifle it, mortify it as much as one pleases, it is still alive, and will every now and then peep out and show itself. You will see it perhaps often in this History. For even if I could conceive that I had completely overcome it, I should probably be proud of my Humility.? (Autobiography, p. 103) ? Copyright 2002 Steve Miller - All Rights Reserved

Dangers of Pride

?Pride breakfasted with Plenty, dined with Poverty, and supped with Infamy.? (Benjamin Franklin, from his Autobiography, pp. 222, 223)

What Does Pride Accomplish?

?And after all, of what use is this Parade of Appearance, for which so much is risked, so much is suffered? It cannot promote Health, or ease Pain; it makes no increase of merit in the person, it creates envy, it hastens misfortune.? (Benjamin Franklin, from Autobiography, pp. 222, 223)

Growing Downward

?We grow up into Christ by growing down into lowliness?. It is impossible at the same time to give the impression both that I am a great Christian and that Jesus Christ is a great Master. So the Christian will practice curling up small, as it were, so that in and through him or her the Savior may show himself great. That is what I mean by growing downward. (J.I. Packer in Rediscovering Holiness)

Carey's Humility

William Carey, often referred to as the father of modern missions, was a great example of humility. Although a brilliant linguist responsible for translating parts of the Bible into no fewer than 34 different languages and dialects, he never attempted to promote himself, to impress people. Carey was raised in a simple home in England and as a young man worked as a cobbler. Early in his life he traveled to India to live the rest of his life as a missionary. But in India he often faced ridicule for his ?low birth? and former occupation. At a dinner party one evening a snob said, ?I understand Mr. Carey that you once actually worked as a shoemaker.? ?Oh no, your Lordship,? Carey quickly replied, ?I was not a shoemaker, only a shoe repairman.?? Copyright 2002 Steve Miller - All Rights Reserved

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