Leadership Isn’t For Pansies!!!

Hi everyone! This is Jared from GenTak, and I just wanted to share something with you.

We all like to be "good little kids," but more often than not, we end up just acting like little kids. And that's what most people see us as: Little kids.

"But were teenagers!" you say. So what? Do we act like it? What should a teenager act like, anyway? Should we be just "big kids," or should we be young adults? The choice is up to you.

If you want to be known as just a "big kid" who only really cares about when the next party is coming up, then you're going to stay a big kid who doesn't really care about making a difference in the world…at least "until I'm older."

But if you want to "step out of your X-box" and be the (REAL) change this world needs, it's high time we step it up, people!

Remember, I'm not saying we shouldn't have fun! If you knew me then you would know that I just love to have to have fun…I consider it my profession. But I know I have responsibilities too, and being a teenager who likes to party (like me) can be a struggle when I know I have things to do in the future.

So I'm going to begin taking the steps today to reach those goals in the future. But it all starts with making the choice to stand up and "be a man, son." Put your pants on and get moving; that's what I have to keep reminding myself.

So if you want to be seen as a young adult who is fully capable of changing the world, you need to act like one! Do hard things, and take a stand to fight against the low expectations
the culture has placed on us.

We need to step it up, as the last post says, and we need to become tomorrow's leaders. We need to start today.

But what does a leader look like?
I suggest you get the book, The 21 Indispensable Qualities of a leader, by John Maxwell,
because that is a great place to start...as well as any other book by him

I can assure you that if you "attend" these "lessons," and apply what you learn to your everyday life, you will find your leadership ability growing like crazy!

DON’T GET COMFORTABLE: If you’re happy where you are, then you’re done.

Wow. Strange title, I admit…but let me explain what I meant by that:

It occurred to me one fine day, with all the birdies singing in the trees and the squirrels scampering around, that I had done some "hard things," and heck, maybe I'll someday do some great things in the future. But…if I get comfortable being "rebelazy," I will never continue doing hard, great things.

Every step we take is not really a step outside our comfort zones. What it really becomes is a step that expands our comfort zones. In effect, we become comfortable doing uncomfortable things. When I thought of that, it really made a lot of sense out of the fact that we are supposed to be continually running the race, fighting the good fight. We have to continually step out and expand our comfort zones. The hard things will only get harder, and it is our duty to do them CONTINUALLY for the glory of God.

Even as I sit here typing this out I am convicted, because I know deep inside that I haven't been continually expanding my context – my comfort zone – and I haven't been pursuing those "everlastingly-harder things." I've become comfortable, and as a result, I have not gone any farther. When you are happy where you are…YOU – ARE – DONE. Finished. Kaput. I think I've made my point. :)

I would like to throw out a challenge to anyone who may read this, to join me and get "uncomfortable" once again. We have a huge mission ahead of us, and we can't let success get in the way.

 

    

Do something, don’t just stand there!

Communication is probably the greatest gift we are given as humans. We can speak and share our thoughts and passions, and we can praise. The tongue is the most dangerous weapon on the face of the earth. Nation have both risen and fallen by it. The tongue is a two-edged sword, and it is a fire. We as Christians have the greatest weapon on earth, and we aren't even using it! We no longer take a stand and speak up We are like silent lambs who watch as our nation, and life as we know it, is becoming enslaved by secularism, humanism, socialism, and almost any other "ism" you can fathom. Maybe you don't believe we are so reclusive. Maybe you think I'm simply a little paranoid. Let me ask you a few questions:

-Where were the Christians when Roe V. Wade came about?

- Where were the Christians during Engle V. Vitale? (Engle V. Vitale was the Supreme Court case where we lost our freedoms because of so-called "Separation of Church and State," Which is nowhere in the Constitution!)

-Where were we when Terri Shiavo had her feeding tube removed?

- What are we doing today? Nothing.

We are given the most effective weapon on earth, far more potent than the atomic bomb…and we don't even use it. Why? Because we no longer believe that the Christian Worldview applies to all aspects of life. Go to church today and you'll hear that "Christians shouldn't get involved in politics," or "God's kingdom is not of this world, so we shouldn't be involved in earthly matters." All we hear today is that we need to trust in and believe on Jesus, and then we will all go to Heaven someday. Don't misunderstand me, that is very true. We do need to trust in Jesus. But we forget that God has made us more than conquerors. We live like we are defeated Christians! Or, some of us have what Gary DeMar calls "escape mentality," where we say, "Oh it really doesn't matter what happens here. Jesus is coming soon!" That is one of the worst tragedies we face: when we don't even care that the world is falling apart. We seem to forget that we have been given authority to trample on snakes and scorpions, and to overcome ALL the powers of the enemy.

The Christian Worldview is much more than just "when you die (in the far-off future) you get to spend eternity with Jesus!" The Christian Worldview is a comprehensive worldview. It has something to say about every aspect of our lives. Every issue we face, the comprehensive Christian worldview has something to say about it.

We need to step out of the shadows and take a stand. How much time do we spend doing absolutely nothing of importance? I know I spend countless hours doing absolutely nothing that really matters. We all have that problem, and it is high time we change. Step up to the plate and live like you have already won, because we have! Fight until the end, race until you reach the finish line. Let's release the ultimate weapon and speak out.

Let's take back America—before it's too late

FAILURE: Your new best friend…you just have to redefine it (and learn from it!)

Want to be a success in your quest to help change the world around you for God's glory? Welcome to the first day of the rest of your life! It's time we learn an essential key to success:
FAILURE

Okay, so I can tell that you are wondering: "What!!! Is this guy CRAZY!? How can you be successful by failure?"

All right, I know it may sound a little weird, but sometimes the truth is just really weird…no, seriously, it's true! Failure can be your best friend if you learn how to utilize it.

John Maxwell (THE guru on leadership), in his book Failing Forward, says that:

"You are the only person who can really label what you do a failure."

So if you think you are a failure, you will be one. If you think that by failing you become a failure, you're wrong—DEAD WRONG!!! The whole theme in Failing Forward (a great book that everyone should read) can almost be summed up by saying:

If you aren't failing, then you aren't growing; if you want to stop failing, you are in for disappointment.

So be happy! If every day you wake up to write another chapter in "A Day in the Life of a Loser," you have the wrong viewpoint. You need to start again…THE FIRST DAY OF THE REST OF YOUR LIFE!!!! We need to change our idea of failure, and learn to harness it for our benefit (and grow, baby, grow!).

It's very important that we do our best to LEARN from our mistakes (failures). Instead of failing over and over again on the same thing, try to find out WHY you failed in the first place…and it may take a few more failures to figure that out. But if you're not afraid to fail, you have nothing to lose!

So stop being afraid of failure, and wake up to find your new best friend, Failure.

Check out John Maxwell's book, Failing Forward, for a much better coverage on this subject. In this wonderful book you'll find out how to get a hold on your fear of failure, how to change your idea of failure, how to use failure to your advantage, and a whole lot
more—all covered in the book, and I highly recommend it. It's really had a huge impact on me.

Keep on climbing, and remember:
failing doesn't make you a failure.

Priorities...stepping outside your Xbox

Well people, now we come to the hard part of making a difference…

Here it is.....to make a difference we have to step it up.

This means giving up a few (or a lot) of things we like to do....I know what some of you are thinking:

"Okay, yeah you're right…so instead of spending 5 hrs on Facebook today, ill only spend 4hrs and 59 min."

Now admit it, some of you were thinking something like that. I know because I go through the same thing every day....its hard to cut back on some things, but we have to, to make room for the important things.

There's just not enough hours in a day to do everything we want....which brings us to our priorities. Priorities are the things that are most important to you, the things you will get done because you really want to.

Is your priority Facebook? Xbox? Or doing something to make a difference? You are going to have to ask yourself this question. Is your day wasted by a stupid thing that doesn't help the world a bit? For a lot of you the answer is yes. Are you willing to make a change? To give up a little "fun" to make a difference?
PLEASE Let us know!! (generationtakeover@gmail.com )

Guys, I hate to break it to you but Your Xbox (or MySpace etc.) will eventually be gone…. People on the other hand, are eternal…why not spend your time helping people see the truth?

Its time to step outside our Xboxes and make a difference! You were made to do more than just "play".

You were born to make a difference in this world...and you can't do it by sitting around watching TV all day!

 

"I CHARGE YOU THEREFORE BEFORE GOD AND THE LORD JESUS CHRIST, WHO WILL JUDGE THE LIVING AND THE DEAD AT HIS APPEARING AND HIS KINGDOM: PREACH THE WORD! BE READY IN SEASON AND OUT OF SEASON. CONVINCE, REBUKE, EXORT, WITH ALL LONG SUFFERING AND TEACHING" (Tim. 4:2)

 

We have a tough job ahead of us…let's use our short time down here on earth, for something that will last…

WHY I’M HERE: Realizing the importance of your purpose in life

What is the greatest calling a person can have? Guess what: it isn’t being a pastor or a missionary or a millionaire (though most of us wouldn’t mind being a millionaire). The answer to the question is very simple: The greatest calling you can have is the calling God has given to you. WOW! Duh, simple wasn’t it? That wasn’t very hard, was it? What is hard is figuring out what your calling is. That’s not so simple.

But you see, God knows what he wants you to do, and He had given you desires and interests that are in line with that calling. Now that doesn’t necessarily mean that a hobby of yours will tell you what your calling is. For instance: Just because you like to fish and you are very good at it, that doesn’t necessarily mean that you are called to be a professional fisherman who makes big bucks at bass tournaments. On the other hand, it doesn’t mean that that isn’t your calling either…

Don’t think you have to be a world famous evangelist to change the world for God’s glory. For heaven’s sake, Luke was a doctor, and Paul was a tent-maker! The point is:

“Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord and not for men”
—Colossians 3:23

So keep that in mind when you are wondering, “what in the world am I supposed to do?!” Seek God’s will, and God will do the rest. And that’s much easier than trying to figure it our by yourself…you’ll never do it. But you do have a purpose—we all do—because God knows the plans He has for you: Plans to prosper and not to harm you. Plans to give you hope and a future (and yes that’s from the Bible). We have a lot to do in the days ahead because WE ARE THE FUTURE. But let’s “eat the elephant” one bite at a time. Focus on today, and let tomorrow worry about itself. (and what do know, the Bible says that too!)

WE ARE THE FUTURE: The Responsibility of today, for tomorrow...

You’ll probably read this sentence a lot in this blog (or at least in this post!): We are the future.

I know, you’re thinking: “So what? Duh! Of course we’re the future. It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to figure that out.”

Ok, you’d be mostly right. The fact that we’re the future is pretty evident. But what does that really mean?

It means that we will be the people who have to take over someday. We, today’s youth, will be the doctors, teachers, lawyers, politicians, etc. of tomorrow. That’s what this blog, Generation Takeover, is all about. WE are the generation that will be taking over. We are tomorrow’s leaders.

So what? I mean, what does that really mean anyway?

Well, it means that we had better start learning about leadership now so we can fulfill those roles in the future…Then again, who says we can’t become leaders and world changers NOW?
I think we can. I think we should. It’s our duty to impact the world around us, whether it be fighting against abortion, volunteering on a political campaign, writing a letter to the editor of your local newspaper, etc. There really is no limit to the impact we can make on the world around us. We just have to remember Philippians 4:13…

“I can do ALL THINGS through Christ which strengthens me”

“Teens who change the world for Christ.” That is our mission statement summed up into one sentence.

Leaders are made, not just born (and by the way if you are not a “born leader”, don’t think for a second that you can’t become one—you can!), and Generation Takeover is simply a tool to help you grow as you develop the leader in you.

Let me ask you a question:

Have you ever thought that maybe your life was meant for something greater than playing the X-box or Wii, or checking your MySpace or Facebook for hours upon hours? I’m not saying these things are bad, I’m just wondering if you’ve ever wanted “something more” in you life.

Let us know how you feel about this. Send us an email (generationtakeover@gmail.com) and Tell us if you feel like your life is meant for something greater; that God has placed you on this earth for a definite purpose. We want to know your story.
The problem that we are facing right now is that Christian teens (and every age group from there on up) are “okay” with doing nothing. And frankly, we are very good at doing nothing. It took a Rebelution to sound the wake up call, and that’s when I saw that we need to “step it up” today: because WE ARE THE FUTURE.