Altitude Determines Attitude

From the OCF website - lots of good military leadership reading on there - check it out:

What's Your Altitude?
by Chaplain Marc Gauthier

Did you know that your altitude determines your attitude? Jesus, the highest being there ever was and ever will be, voluntarily lowered Himself. He put Himself in such a low position that He was called a servant.

What does a servant deserve? Nothing. Whom does a servant depend upon? His master. Whose attitude are we called to display? The attitude of Jesus Christ.

Have you ever been short with others, demanding or demeaning in your encounters with people? Are you quick to judge others and place yourself above them in the pecking order? If the answer is "yes" to any of these, your altitude is too high resulting in an attitude that is too high. Pride, placing ourselves first, is an indicator that we are too high on ourselves.

Recently, we've been extremely challenged by several assignment gyrations. Things we thought we were going to do have opened and then closed. I've struggled with anger, disappointment, and frustration.

These feelings identify that my altitude is way too high. It forces me to remind myself that I'm God's property to do with as God sees fit for His good pleasure. I need to put the nose down and get back to earth just like Jesus did.

Hearing Christ's Call

Jesus calls us to a lower altitude. With that lowered altitude we will start to have the right attitude. When we lower ourselves, when we live life "nap of the earth," we will model the attitude of Jesus. Ultimately the altitude and attitude of Jesus is one of our greatest quality of life steps. When we see ourselves as servants with no rights or privileges, dependent completely on our Heavenly Father we are postured to deal with the headaches, heartaches and unfairness of life in the best way possible.

When you feel tempted to demand your rights or exert your will, lower yourself to Jesus' level. Say to yourself, "I don't deserve anything. Any good thing I receive I get by grace." We belong to God and depend upon Him. If life seems unfair say, "What more can a bond-servant expect?"

Last month I had the unique opportunity to sit in the cockpit of a C130 as it took off and flew out of Bagram Air Base in Afghanistan. When the plane was making its climb over the mountains, I heard a female voice say, "Altitude. Altitude." Pilots know that this is a warning they are starting to get too close to the ground. When the voice warns them, they respond accordingly.

Followers of Jesus Christ need to listen to the Holy Spirit's voice when it warns us, "Altitude. Altitude."

But as Christ's followers, this is not a warning we are getting too low. It is a warning we are getting too high! When you hear that prompting through life's challenges, consider it a warning that you are getting too high on yourself. Your attitude right now is not like Jesus' attitude. Lower yourself, push forward on the stick, and get yourself back to "nap of the earth" flying where Jesus Himself flew as the chief servant.

Remember why we just celebrated Christmas. It is all about a great God who willfully humbled Himself by coming into our world through a manger--and eventually to a cross to be our ultimate example, and most importantly our Savior. As we start this new year, let's strive to model His life in our lives with the right altitude.

Re: How Smart Are You

Below is the latest from Resurgence. Good stuff and pertinent to leading in the Navy. I can tell you that it is difficult to apply though. The tendency can be to lead from "on high" rather than as one with your people - empowering, encouraging, enabling in a collaborative team that leverages the strengths/talents of each member toward the team's goal. Here it is:

How Smart Are you

For as long as I can remember, smart was equated with intellect and brain power. Smart had to do with grades in school, SAT scores, and one's GPA. This was the case until author Daniel Goleman kicked the old paradigm in the head in 1997 by writing Emotional Intelligence, which redefined how we understand intelligence. Goleman makes a case for relational intelligence that knows how to get along with others; being smart at building collaborative relationships. The good news is that emotional intelligence (EI) is not fixed, as IQ is generally thought to be. EI can be nurtured and strengthened in everyone.

Real Wisdom = Healthy Relationships

"But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, open to reason, full of mercy and good fruits, impartial, and sincere" (James 3:17).

It seems to me that James is equating real wisdom with healthy relationships. Is he leaning toward EI rather than IQ in describing wisdom that comes from the Lord Jesus? I find it helpful that Eugene Peterson's paraphrase of James 3:17 in The Message starts the verse off with, "Real wisdom, God's wisdom, begins with a holy life and is characterized by getting along with others..."

This is the era of the team, not the solo leader. Leadership today is more about enabling and empowering than bossing direct reports around out of personal intellectual brilliance. Leaders who are good at developing and maintaining healthy relationships and tapping the power of those relationships will be the most valuable leaders to an organization or church. Long gone are the days in leadership where the know-it-all does it all as he sits at the top and dictates while both under-valuing and under-appreciating what others bring to the table.

Our Piracy Doctrine ;-)

Maybe the answer to the piracy problem is found in this book ;-)

Here's some food for thought on the topic:

By Cdr. Herb Carmen

Best Defense piracy columnist

History shows that stopping piracy almost always requires actions ashore. In the case of piracy near Somalia, very little has yet been done to put pressure on the shore establishment that supports the booming business and burgeoning industry of piracy in the region. By steering clear of the Somali coast and focusing on sea lane protection and escort, navies may make hijacking merchant vessels more difficult for pirates but can only address the symptoms of piracy without confronting the source and the motivations behind it.

Read the rest of the article here.

Texting God

The quote below is from Josh Harris' blog which is taken from Paul Miller's book (on my required reading list). It struck me because life on the ship has become increasingly busy and I have attempted to maintain a relationship with God on the fly. I'll just think in my head a few thoughts to God and call it prayer, but this is no more a relationship than text messaging my wife a couple times a day and saying that we have a great relationship. Testing God is insufficient. Time alone with the Lord, with complete quietness, and no agenda is near impossible on a ship with a roommate and all of the demands that people have of you. Any suggestions on how to do it? I'm going to ponder this a bit and try to write on it, but would love to hear from you in the meantime . . .

"Jesus' example teaches us that prayer is about relationship. When he prays, he is not performing a duty; he is getting close to his Father.

Any relationship, if it is going to grow, needs private space, time together without an agenda, where you can get to know each other. This creates an environment where closeness happen, where we can begin to understand each other's hearts.

You don't create intimacy; you make room for it. This is true whether you are talking about your spouse, your friend, or God. You need space to be together. Efficiency, multitasking, and busyness all kill intimacy. In short, you can't get to know God on the fly.

If Jesus has to pull away from people and noise in order to pray, then it makes sense that we need to as well."

- Paul Miller, A Praying Life, page 47

Hour Glass Sanctification

There is an undeniable, direct link between the Truth of God (which is to say our understanding of It) and our actions. Often a time lag exists as the process works itself out (the theological term is "sanctification"). I think of it as kinda like an hour glass where the sand is poured through the top, eventually finding its way down. Similarly, Truth enters the mind impacting our thoughts, seeping down into our hearts (feelings, propensities, inclinations) before making it to our feet and hands - transformed into action. With time our actions will require less intentional thought as they become holy habits governed by the Word of God. Rom. 12:2, Phil. 2:12-13

Here is a great poem from Paul Tripp in his book "Whiter Than Snow" (highly recommended) that reflects on these ideas.

In The Holy of Holies

Behold, you delight in truth in the inward being. ~Psalm 51:6

In the holy of holies,
Where my deepest thought dwells.
In the secret place,
Of the heart,
Where no one sees,
And no one knows.
In that place where worship,
Sets the course,
For all I say,
And all I do.
In the holy of holies
Where thoughts,
Afraid to be verbal,
And desires,
Never quite spoken,
Determine,
What I will seek,
And say,
And do.
In the holy of holies,
Where greed lurks dark,
And anger stands dangerous.
In the shadows,
Where lust captivates,
And envy enslaves.
In that sacred place,
Of the heart,
Where I plan what I will do,
And rehearse what I will say.
In the holy of holies,
Where love is born,
Or succumbs to hate.
Where gentleness,
Falls to vengeance.
In that place where,
Thinking never ends,
And interpretations,
Become a way of seeing.
In the holy of holies,
Where feelings grow in power,
And overwhelm,
What is sensible,
Good,
And true.
In the holy of holies,
Where I stand naked,
All covering gone,
Before You,
What I am,
As I am,
Void of defense,
Stripped of excuse.
Nowhere to hide,
No reputation to polish.
In the place where You,
Can see,
And hear,
And know.
May you do there,
What I cannot do.
May you create there,
What only mercy can give.
May you hold back,
What I deserve,
And give what,
I could never earn.
May you create in me,
A clean heart.

The Pacific

This is going to be good. Check out the website here.

Effective Comms

I've said it before, I'll say it again - communication is your primary tool as a leader. Our maintainers have wrenches, screw drivers, hammers, etc. but we have our mouths, our written correspondence, and our non-verbal methods to ensure our jobs are done. This week has been crazy - it will only get busier with our upcoming operational schedule. So, my postings are likely to decrease. I did want to use this blog as a means to reflect/log my means of leading. This week I failed a couple times (that I am aware of) in the way I communicated. While walking my spaces with my Divo and his Chief I was asking the Divo about the basics of different pieces of equipment. There was a piece of machinery that he did not know, that I thought he should have. Instead of teaching I simply made a sarcasticlly suprised facial expression in the direction of the Chief and kept walking. Later, another officer told me that my Divo was talking to him about how stupid he felt and his desire to get smarter on his gear. The latter thought is good the initial is not. My simple expression communicated negatively resulting in all sorts of unintended consequences. Be careful what your face is communicating. Below is a good article from Re: on leadership and communication.

Effective Communication: The Leader’s Greatest Skill

Dave Kraft
Leadership Development Pastor at Mars Hill Church

Effective Communication series:

A Skill Worth Learning

Probably no skill is more helpful to acquire and develop than becoming an excellent communicator. I believe that communication is a skill that can be learned. A number of years ago I realized that my ability to communicate well needed major work, so I joined Toastmasters International in order to improve my private and public communication. It was by far the best investment in my leadership portfolio that I have ever made. I am still reaping the benefits of the eleven years I was a Toastmaster.

Author, speaker, and seminar leader Brian Tracy says,

Your ability to communicate effectively with people will contribute more to your success than any other skill that you can develop. I’ve studied success and achievement in America for more than 30 years. I’ve spoken to more than a million people, individually, and in groups, and I’ve taken extensive courses on speaking and the art of persuasion. I’ve read countless books and articles on how to influence, negotiate with, and persuade people. I’ve learned that fully 85% of what you accomplish in your career and in your personal life will be determined by how well you get your message across and by how capable you are in inspiring people to take action on your ideas.

Wow! Is learning to communicate essential or what?

Ethos, Logos, and Pathos

What is involved with saying what you mean and causing others to understand and respond positively? Let’s go way back to Aristotle, who lived, wrote, and taught three centuries before Christ. What he had to say still serves us well today. He believed that effective communication is comprised of the speaker, the message, and the audience, and to get your message across without misunderstanding is a combination of ethos (the credibility of the speaker), logos (the truth and relevancy of the message), and pathos (the emotional and appropriate response of the receivers). The ethos of the speaker sharing the logos of the message will elicit pathos in the audience. What Aristotle believed has been accepted, taught, and practiced for 23 centuries. Must be something to it!