Moving the Needle

Leadership Straight from Bill Hybels Moving the Needle It struck me that something that is really important to a leader Does moving the needle... Do you use that expression? Sometimes in an athletic contest in the USA they will put a Decibel level meter to register the applause rate of something going on in an athletic contest. Then they alert the crowd that after this inning or at this time on the time clock we are going to see how much we can move the needle. So everyone yells and screams and they move the needle. That expression has caught on in the USA about moving the needle. In a leader's life in their inner recesses especially a Christian leader you have to say that I believe if the Holy Spirit is in charge of my life I believe if I am operating out of my giftedness with the spiritual gifts God has gifted me. If the Holy Spirit is in charge and I am operating out of my giftedness and I am trying to do something that is within the Biblical parameters of what God wants me to do in this world at some basic level you have to be confident to say I believe I can move the needle. I believe I can move the evangelism needle. I believe I can move the generosity needle. I believe I can move the discipleship needle. I just have to get the right people around the table. We have to have the right conversations and the right kinds of prayers. We have to be ruthless implementors of these cool ideas that we think about. Then we have to be patient to see if we can move a needle. Someone asked about moving the health of your culture needle. It is imminently movable. As is the resource needle, the evangelism needle. You have to have that base level of confidence that God is for you. His Spirit is powerful. He still wants his church to advance. You are on the right side of all of this. When you operate with that kind of confidence you make better decisions. It helps your enthusiasm stay high. If a leader gets to a point when he or she secretly thinks you or I cannot move that needle that is a sad day. People can tell that you gave up. When they see that their leader has given up then they give up.