Leadership is the Key to the Kingdom

Matthew 16:19

I will give you the Keys to the Kingdom of Heaven.

I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.

Vitaly from Siberia,Russia & the Ukraine.  Linus, Mike & Pat Heiser

I woke up this morning with this thought, "Leadership is the Key to unlocking the Kingdom of Heaven." Leaders have been given certain keys to unlock their spheres of influence. But you must put the key in the lock and open the doors of heaven for others to come in.

If we look at the scriptures ahead of Matthew 16:19 you will see who Jesus was talking to. It was Peter, who was Jesus main disciple. He was the oldest, but not the smartest.  Peter had something the rest of the disciples didn't, the revelation, Jesus was the Christ, the Son of the living God and he wasn't afraid to say it.

In Matthew 16:17 Jesus said, "Jesus answered and said to him, "Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you but My Father who is in heaven and I say to you that you are Peter and on this rock (THE REVELATION) I will build my church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it."

Leadership and their revelation are the keys to any ministry. Leaders need to reproduce leaders. Every seed produces after its own kind. Mike & Pat have done an excellent job of reproducing leaders in their ministry. It is time for their leaders to reproduce so we can have more keys to the kingdom.

Meru Bible School, 2018

I have a key ring, it has my car key, my house key, my Gathering Place key, my blessing box key and a few more.  Some I don't know what too, but they all open a door to something. If you ever lose you key ring, you can't open any doors, you can't start the car, you can't go to work, you can't get in the house or your work and you can't open your blessing box.

Leaders if they are not discovered, may have the key to open the windows of heaven.  Most leaders are not charismatic, they are down to earth people, who can roll up their selves and get the job done. Actually, they are common down to earth people who said yes to something God wanted done. They are not qualified to do it, but they are willing to step out in faith and see what Jesus wants to do.

Pat Heiser has a great saying and I've used many times: We are just ordinary people, doing extra ordinary things for God, Supernatural things which we are not qualified to do. Do you realize God does not have anybody qualified working for Him.  It is Him, who qualifies us, when he calls us to do something, our hands should shoot up in the air and say, "Look no further, I'm your man or women to do the job through you."

Russia - first graduate class.

What are we looking for when we go to Kenya in February? We are looking for people who are not qualified but willing to be used by God. I've already seen many of them in the spirit.

When we went to Russia, not qualified, we just went.  The students who showed up not qualified but willing to be used.  In 2007 a bishop told me out of the bible school in Jelgava, Latvia in 1991-92, over 25,000 churches have been planted. With unqualified people who wanted to be used by God. These my friends are the keys to unlock the doors to heaven.

I see that same hunger in the eyes of students in Kenya, they want to change a nation for God, they have their hands raised and are saying, "Look no further I'm your man".

So you want to be a Missionary???

Kay & Linus in Russia - 1992

As I'm making plans for my return trip to Kenya, I'm reminded that it all begins with a passport. The first thing one WANTS to do is go to a far-off, exotic land to begin their journey as a missionary. It does begin with a vision, but then the work starts. You NEED to get a passport!

Kay's Passport photo - 1971

Clint, 1971

 If you have a passport, you might want to take a look at the expiration date before you proceed on your journey. There are many travelers who begin looking at their passport the night before the trip and find out it's expired or they can't find it. This can be very stressful and very expensive.  If you don't have a passport, it takes, on the safe side, at least two months to get one.

Three words you need to know, cheap, fast, and good. You can only use two of these words. If you want it fast and good, it won't be cheap. If you want it cheap and fast, it won't happen. You get the picture of the example. There are no short cuts when it comes to your passport. The best way is to allow at least two months in order to have your passport in hand before your trip.

"The very first passport Kay's from 1971, her first trip was to Germany, she was only 19-years old.

I have lots of stories about passports, some very good and some very bad. The good stories always come from people who do not procrastinate. The bad stories come from those who delay until the last minute.

Your journey begins with going to the right post office. Many local post offices don't even know where their forms are because it's been awhile since the last time someone wanted one. Another way is to go online to find the forms. One is old school, the other is new school. I'm old school. I would go to a regional post office where they're familiar with passports and may even help you fill out the forms or at least make sure you have the right ones.

The second stop is Walgreens, or somewhere they take regulation passport photos. This takes minutes if someone is available to take your picture. I would get an extra set and keep them with you when you travel; you never know when you might want to go to another country and you have no way to get pictures.

Now the forms are filled out properly, you have your two pictures and don't forget the fee. No fee means another delay because they don't take the excuse, "The check is in the mail." If you have done everything properly, you will get your passport in about six weeks. Good and fast is about six weeks - there is no cheap. If you delay it will cost you a few hundred dollars to have it expedited.

 I'm reminded of my Russian visa experience about good, fast, and cheap which started in England. I had all of my documents to go to Russia except my visa to get into the country. I had been in England for about a week waiting on my visa to be processed from the U.S. I decided to go to the Russian Embassy in London to see if I could get it faster. After waiting outside the embassy for two hours, I finally got to the front desk and a Russian lady asked me, "What do you want?"
I replied, "A visa to Russia."
"How much do you want to pay?" She asked.
"Why?" I replied.
"You want it fast it won't be cheap, if you want it cheap it won't be fast (about three weeks)" she replied.

I got my visa to Russia in about ten minutes but it wasn't cheap. The alternative of three more weeks in England would be a very expensive stay, and I needed to get to Russia to get the school started. As a missionary, you'll find fast, cheap, and good rarely happens. There are no SHORT CUTS!