BUILDING AN EVIL EMPIRE

You come to learn a lot about a person by the friends he selects, and nothing about God proves more surprising than his choice of companions, the hand - picked objects of his intimacy. Abraham pimped for his wife, Jacob cheated his brother, Moses murdered the Egyptian. David murdered someone's husband in order to committ adultery with his wife and marry her. Saul of Tarsus murdered and persecuted the church. Yet all of these ended up on God’s list of favorites. At one time in their life, they all realised the need to chose God to be on their team and they developed a great desire to change.
Jacob got his new name Israel (God-struggler) after an all-night wrestling match with God, and ever since the name for God’s people have harked back to the contest. God’s people are literally, the children of struggle. The company that God keeps will always determine victory and not failure, because He is always within His team. God knows that the choices He made will be developed and transformed, into great men and women of God. They all graduate with the ability to deliver and to transform others irrespective of their historical background. This is the reason leader-developers have decided to spend their lives discipling, equipping training transforming and transforming others.
Jesus knew that Saul, though a murderer and church persecuter was the most suited student of the kingdom lacking training and empowerment. St Paul graduated as the most powerful and effective leaders and transformer of all times. Jesus the teacher developed a passion for communicating the gospel, the power of God.The effective teacher always teaches from the overflow of a full life. The law of the teacher simply stated is this: If you stop growing today, you stop teaching tomorrow.
Neither beauty, personality nor methodology can subtitute for this principle. You cannot communicate out of a vacuum. You can not impart what you do not possess. If you don't know it-truly know it-you can't give it. The reality of teaching is that I as a teacher, am primarily a learner, a student among students. I am perpetuating the learning process; I am still en route. And by becoming a student again, I as a teacher will look at the education process through a radically new and uniquely personal set of eyes. I must keep growing and changing. The word of God of course, does not change; but my understanding of it does change, because I am a developing individual.
A "HERO" IN A MENTAL HOSPITAL
A boy who grew up in the city of Nairobi by the name of Shedrick (the identity changed) had always the midas touch. Shedrick was the smallest in a high school of two thousand students. His parents had to employ a servant to carry his text books because he did not have the strength to carry the heavy text books he had to study. Yet everything he touched turned to gold. As a teenager he excelled in every arena except his church life. Academically he toped everybody in the school. He was known by the many times he walked to the dial to recieve trophies with the highest honor in physics, chemistry, biology, maths, and english, the most important field of study. Even his college years-paid for by a prestigious academic scholarship were unblemished by failure. After college he continued to enjoy success after success that came with his performance in business and social life. But he did not recognize his maker.That was the greatest error he committed.
At the end of his education career, he can be compared only to Professor Ayang Nyong with eighteen digrees. Socially he commanded the highest honor and recognition among the school community. He was the chairman of every social and educational club. By age thirty, he was a millionaire, the chairman of every elite's association and every club. He was voted the patron of every philanthropic association. He was "the friend of the elites" the likes of who matters, He rubbed shoulders with who is who in the manufacturing , transportation, and Agriculture sector. He was the guest of the most powerful who is who in politics. The only thing he disliked was the media coverage.
Respected in the community, he had the favor and the privelege of access to every beautiful lady or girl who mattered in his world. He married the "most beautiful girl in the "world" and had two "perfect" children. He seemed to have the world by the tail in his hand. By this time he was expossed to evil, envying, and competitive business community. Then little by little his success began to erode because of pride and arrogance. Lawsuit after lawsuit plagued his subsidiaries. His popularity began to wane. Within a few short years, he had virtually lost his fame, his family and his empire. Filled with despair and unable to cope he tried to commit suicide. At the hospital he went through days in a stupor, barely able to talk. He refused to see any of his old friends. He did not want them to see their "hero" in a mental hospital. Shedrick is not alone in that mental hospital of life. We have mental patients in political mental unit, manufacturing intensive care unit and marriage intensive care units.
As Shedrick began to open up about his pain, it became clear that as he enjoyed the honor of his friends, he drank himself almost to bad health, he could not handle any failure or loss. He had to win every battle. Any threat to his ideal picture of himself only drove him to further accomplishment, thus building a house of mirrors that covered his disappointment and pain. He had a lot of hurts to cover up that went all the way back to a dysfunctional and broken home. He dealt with the bad in himself, his family and his sorroundings, by working to create more good. Unable to deal with an imperfect world, he became a ticking time bomb. And at thirty eight, he exploded. Shedrick tried to build an image and a life that was all good. When the bad came the fall was crippling. He felt immediately and hopelessly all bad. The shortest and the most painful life a hero could live without God. King David in Psalms 127:1 sums it with these words, "Except the Lord build the house, they labour in vain that build it; except the Lord keep the city, the watchman waketh but in vain."
THE CHALLENGES OF BUILDING A SUCCESSFUL MINISTRY
Bishop Dennis began his ministry enthusiastic about serving God and others, thirty five years ago. His wife shared his vision. Together, he felt, they would have a wonderful marriage and ministry. Bishop Dennis worked very hard to support his wife and four boys. In his private time he did a wonderful work, heading the evangelistic department in his local church. Dennis's zeal and dedication to the Lord was rewarded when God choose him to head an Internationa Christian organization at a very early age of thirty four. He became the chief host of many international guests coming to the city for conventions and church gatherings. He became part of the world elites from many parts of the world. Sooner than he expected, he was on his way to America to represent Africa as a delegate. He was to minister and give his testimony among the richest families of the world.
Two years latter Dennis moved with his family to America. He joined a Theological College as a special student graduating with a masters degree. He qualified to proceed for a doctoral program in Missions. He enjoyed divine favour and love of God. Many partners felt led by God to bond and support a man and a powerful revival ministry. There are recorded testimonies of dead people coming back to life in America and Africa. God gave him great financial breakthrough and favor with many people who attended his meetings. The future looked bright with churches in Santa Fe Springs, Fontana, Westminister in California and in Eugene in Oregon State. People donated cars, others gave buildings for the new church start, others furnished his home, others offered to drive him and gave their money for whatever course.
Dennis was forced to hand over the churches to other ministers to concentrate on healing his marriage which never happened. Dennis described symptoms of fatigue, mild depression, low motivation, anxiety, and fantasies of running away from the very wife he loved. She turned violent. He landed in an intensive care facility while he was away from home. But God healed him after one night in the hospital. I have had trouble in my work before this, "I have always wondered why my marriage had to end up this way.
As we continued to talk, I saw before me a loving and compassionate person, a husband and a loving father, someone who was very good with people. In fact, he was almost too good. Having a soft heart, he could not bear to let a suffering person go without help. Whenever anyone called, he would drop whatever he was doing to help the person in crisis. Dennis better known as brother faith by his agemates is also known for helping others. He is credited for helped student families, pastors families and the general community.
But the reality of life had to prove him wrong. According to Dennis's confession, the hardest thing in life is to correct a wrong that was never committed. His wife refused people to come for fellowship in his home. She supported a group that was out to divide the church. She nagged him at the dinner meetings going on in Hotel. Finally she disaproved the family devotions in the evenings and mornings with their children. The famous home fellowship, praise and worship, and prayers were stopped. She refused him to witness door to door evangelism within the neighborhood. Everybody was shocked why the fellowship was derailed.
Dennis felt he was always giving in to his wife. When they went somewhere or did something, he gladly agreed to do what pleased her. He did not resented her wishes, yet she was selfishly jealous of him whenever they passed near a church sign board with his name as the speaker the following Sunday. Many times he had to walk out of the house at night instead of being involved in a fight due to accelerated violent insults. At one time in winter night he drove out toward the mountain and fell asleep on reaching the bottom of the mountain. When he woke up he had pheomonia which took him years of treatment to recovered.
Dennis's life didn't turn out as he had planned. However he did not burn out. He did not quite the ministry. He decided to seek for a secular job to try to apeace her. He trained in salesmanship but God intervened with a strong no. Dennis resigned in tears of repentance.But his wife turned against him, She hated anything to do with the ministry and God. She stayed home on Sunday which was okey with Dennis because anytime she came to church it was to create confusion and anxiety among the worshippers. Finally she refused him to pastor his own children or people to come for fellowship in his house . The children reacted against her decision and they too had to face the bitter side of their own mother. Something that left the children in a devastarted bitter relationship. A time came when she could not hold it any more, she exploded with hurts and pains in our home fellowship.
His faltering marriage was to be full of violence and worded insults. His wife continually nagged him without any specific identifiable wrong. She complined that he was married to books, education, and the ministry. The resentment generated the spirit of hate, unger, pain, and bitterness. They operated a joint account but at the height of bitterness and hate she withdrew the money closed the accaunt and opened another one in her name leaving Dennis without any means of livelihood. Finally she ended attacing him while asleep in bed. She called the police accusing him of being a violent man yet they had never fought before. Dennis was escorted out of his house into the street on a cold winter never to come back.Today it is twenty years since they were seperated by the police.
However, the rest of his ministry suffered a great setback. Dennis refused to be distrated from the high calling of God. He did not loose the zeal to work and to support the family. In addition to family responsibilities. Every minite of his life was jammed with activities. He seemed to have more time for the things he enjoyed most. Teaching and preaching the word. He commands an army of good friends from all over the world. Los Angeles, seattle, New York, Nigeria, Ghana, South Africa, France, Britain, Australia and Mexico. Jesus did not come to deliver us from trouble and problems. He came to join us in the trouble and problems, through the trials and tribulations together with us. "Take your cross and follow me" He said.
The question Dennis has continued to ask is, " Did my ministry end up this way yet I had commited my life to christ and dedicated the best of my time to the ministry and family? It is not always true that people suffer for wrong doing. More disturbing than the failing marriage was his faltering ministry. The level of dysfunction among ministers concerns everybody because their unhealthiness is then passed down to their congregations and family members. You can see five types of common dysfunction among ministers today, especially in the independent charismatic movement: They lack the most important element of fathering meaning no affirmation, encouragement or spiritual covering. They lack correction and accountability resulting in pride and moral failure. They lack fruitfulness because they have no training in mentorship, evangelism, pastoral skills, leadership and discipleship. It prevent churches from multiplying as they should. They lack healing of wounds and hurts needing restoration from bad experiences that cause many pastors to suffer silently because of sins and addictions. They lack leadership and doctrinal teachings meaning many of the top leadership in the ministry today are untaught, result in biblically illiterate and dysfunctional churches and communities.

"We really have to relay the foundations of ministry in this country," he says. "Many pastors have not been fathered, so they become 'posers'—they are just looking to impress people.'" Pride, is a primary reason why so many leaders in the church and society have fallen in recent years—including mature spiritual fathers who had years of successful ministry behind them but stumbled in their later years. "You look at leaders in the Bible like king David, king Solomon, king Saul, or like Samson, and you find that years of success can lead a person into pride. And when pride comes, it brings a lack of accountability and lack of accountability leads to failure in the ministry, in marriage and family life and pain. Therefore it is good to understand that except the Lord build a ministry using you, the minister labour in vain.