MAP: Mandate, Assignment, and Purpose for Leaders Who Feel Stuck

Clarity is the missing ingredient for a lot of leaders who love Jesus, serve hard, and still feel stuck.

In this episode, we unpack a simple framework called The Map because most of us do not need more hype or more grind. We need clear direction that keeps our energy from bleeding into burnout, frustration, and constant second-guessing.

The Map has three layers:

Mandate is the Great Commission. It does not change with your zip code, job title, or season of life.

Assignment is the current role God has entrusted to you, whether you are on staff, volunteering, parenting, building a career, or rebuilding after a transition. We name two traps that crush joy fast: overattaching your identity to a role, or undervaluing your season through comparison.

Purpose is who God is forming you to become. When that question goes unsettled, louder voices will try to name you, shape your values, and hand you a competing map.

We close with three recalibration questions every leader needs: Am I rooted in the mandate? Am I faithful in my assignment? Is my purpose intact?

Subscribe, share this with a leader who needs clarity, and leave a review so more people can find the path forward.

Transcript

Welcome And Summer Energy

SPEAKER_01 0:10

Hey, what's going on everyone, and welcome to the Worship and Leadership Podcast. My name is Elmer Gaias Jr. And like always, I'm here with my boy Louis C.

SPEAKER_00 0:21

What is every excited to be here with y'all today? An exciting day. It's a it's a you know why? Why? Because for our kids, the school year has come to an end. It has. And we are going into the summer. Summertime. Come on.

SPEAKER_02 0:40

School. Summer?

SPEAKER_00 0:44

Ever? Is it summer? Summer for the summer for the summer. Yeah. Sorry.

SPEAKER_01 0:49

It's fun. It's good times. We don't have to take kids. I know your kids go on the school bus. Right. And I take my kids. And so, like. But we don't have to worry about practices.

SPEAKER_00 0:59

No practices. You know, all that other kind of stuff, man. It's like, man, you just went to recitals, concerts.

SPEAKER_01 1:04

My oldest is graduating high school. My God in heaven.

SPEAKER_00 1:08

Man, Jordan, we're so proud of you, man.

SPEAKER_01 1:10

Proud of you, son. And so it's a it's a fun, fun time of the year. Praise the Lord. Graduations coming up. And here we go. Come on. Here we go. Here we go, man. Let's go. Hey,

Why Leaders Lose Clarity

SPEAKER_01 1:20

today we're gonna flip the script a little bit on on what we're sharing on the podcast. I know the last well, we've been talking about a lot of different things. Yes, we have. We we've been obviously we started the season talking about worship, worship foundations, and then a few weeks ago we were talking about AI. Yep. Then we talked about Islam. Yes. And then last week we had a conversation about worship, and it was really good about uh building a healthy worship culture, right? Which ultimately begins with you, and so we were just kind of recalibrating. But today we're gonna talk about something that we actually came upon at the beginning of this season. That's right. And so we were at the end of I believe episode one, and we were just talking about uh the mandate that God has for every believer, and then the assignment that we get, and then we talked about our purpose, and then you came up with an acronym.

SPEAKER_00 2:12

Called it the map. The map. Come on, all of my door the explorer fans. You know, it's I'm the map. I'm the map.

SPEAKER_01 2:23

Come on now. And we're gonna talk about it today. We're gonna talk about it today. We're excited. It's been a moment. We've been we prepared this podcast several weeks back. Right. We're like, all right, let's finish what we actually had planned out.

SPEAKER_02 2:34

Right.

SPEAKER_01 2:34

And now we're ready to dive in and talk about it. And so again, thank you, those of you that are joining us on YouTube and on all the different streaming platforms. You might be listening to this podcast, not watching us, so you're missing Willie's beautiful, pretty face. What did they tell you you have a face for radio?

SPEAKER_00 2:51

My mama said I got a face for radio. My Lord. If I stand in front of a trainer to make it take a dirt road, my God. She used to have to feed me with a slingshot. Didn't have to buy me a match for Halloween. I'm always the before pictures when they talk about medical procedures.

SPEAKER_01 3:17

Oh man. You should check out the YouTube videos. You have to. You have to.

SPEAKER_00 3:22

You have to. Look at Jacob over there.

SPEAKER_01 3:27

Oh man. Okay, so we're gonna we're gonna dive in. Yeah. And so the the purpose, and so kind of just a lead up to how we're gonna frame this conversation, is that most leaders often struggle, they don't struggle with motivation, they struggle with clarity. Yes. And there's a lot of times that, and it was part of that conversation, that first episode, that that we struggle as leaders or even just as believers, to know or to have that drive to be motivated to do what we were called to do as believers, to go and make disciples, to go and and and serve our local church, our communities, and and to fulfill the purpose God's given us. We struggle with it because there's lack of clarity.

SPEAKER_00 4:09

Yes, absolutely. And to your point, Elmer, it's like I I think of a motivated leader that lacks clarity, it's like it's like a really powerful car, like like a sports car, finely tuned, high performance, right? I mean, that thing is sleek, right? Precision precision engineering, driving through quicksand. It just gets bogged down, slogged, right? And so, you know, some of you may feel that way, like you're high capacity. I mean, you're super gifted, anointed, and talented, but you feel aimless and you're kind of getting bogged down in minutiae, or maybe you are expending a lot of sideways energy, right? And what does that lead to? Frustration and burnout. And we want to help, you know, hopefully bring some clarity and and and give some teaching that we feel like will really be beneficial and bless you.

SPEAKER_01 4:55

Yeah. And and the question is for those of you that are listening or watching, is do you know where you're going? Yeah. It's it's one of those things that when you start a job, you're like, you don't hopefully you don't just do it, well, we all do it because we you know it's we need to make a living, right? Right. When you sign up for a job, if it's at Papa John's or, you know, whatever it is that you do, yeah, the post office. Yeah, it's it's like I want to do something that I enjoy and I can make a living with, you know, and but when it comes to life in general, like do you know where you're going? Yeah. As you're planning out, mapping out a you know, again, my son's graduating high school and we're having the conversations, all right, what's next for you? What are you wanting to do? What do you feel your purpose is? And so now we're having those difficult conversations for teenagers. Yeah, you know, I I remember when I was, I didn't know what I wanted to do. Absolutely. And then, but as you grow older and you and maturing, you start realizing your gifts and your purpose and your passions and and what actually feeds you, right? Feeds your soul, like what brings that satisfaction, and then and then it allows you to have that clarity. And so there's a question because a lot of people are living life and they don't know where they're going.

SPEAKER_00 6:01

Absolutely. And how many of you know, in order to get to where you're going, you need some guidance. So you need a map. You need a map. You need a map. Come on, somebody. You know, I remember Elmer, the first time that I drove on a long extended trip by myself, I was in college and I was doing an internship. And so I attended a school in Worcester, Kentucky, and I'm I'm driving up to do this construction internship in Clinton, Iowa. Clinton, Iowa. Come on, Jacob, up there in the prime of the prairie. Where's Iowa on the map? It's it is about four miles south of Canada. That's how it feels anyway. My Lord in heaven. I ain't never been that far north in my life. I didn't know there was nothing north of Kentucky there, but I didn't know that there were states that were north of Kentucky. So I just remember, you know, talking with my dad. I'm like, all right, all right, dad, I'm planning this trip, you know what I'm saying? Need you to help me now. Again, this is before, you know, Yahoo and MapQuest and all of that jazz, okay, for all you millennials. It was Rand McNally Atlas. And I ain't talking about the miniature size, I mean the full page. I mean, that took up, it was like a sunshade. And my dick, me and my dad, we grabbed a highlighter, we started right there in Kentucky, where I'm from my dorm room, all the way up to the hotel that I'm gonna be staying at in Clinton Iowa. You would have to get out of the car, open it on the hood of the car. Old school, bro. You ain't open, yeah. Phone, iPhone, I was a figment. And so he he shows me how to do this, and I remember him telling me he was like, hey son, listen, if you feel like you're getting lost, just pull over, pull out the map, and check your landmarks, okay? If you get lost, just pull over, pull out the map, check your map, landmarks, and then get back on order. It'll guide you. And he would say, trust your map. Yeah, trust your map.

The Map Framework Explained

SPEAKER_02 7:50

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 7:50

And so when we think about a map, it really isn't an acronym, okay? So we're gonna we're gonna walk you through three things that we believe honestly will help you. So sort of like three markers or three elements of your map, okay? Three elements of your map. And I guess really kind of but before we get there, before we get there in talking through this, let's let's kind of diagnose again before we offer this framework, thinking through this, Elmer, sometimes we we tend to blur these layers. And I and we want to keep you from doing it again. The the struggle for a lot of you leaders is clarity, okay? So the map is the mandate, it's the assignment, and it's the purpose. And we want to help bring clarity for all three of those layers, okay? Why? Because when there is a lack of clarity, there's instability. There's instability in your heart, there's instability in your mind, there's instability in your spirit, there's instability in your relationships, there's instability in the tasks that you're doing, you become unmotivated. Also, the enemy lives in the blur. The enemy lives in suspicion and doubt and confusion. He seeks to cause division, division in the body and division within you, dividing you from your purpose, dividing you from your assignment, dividing you from the mandate God's placed on you. And so we don't want to help, we don't want you to separate those lay, those layers because that's a misdiagnosing of your life. And so if the enemy can't destroy your calling, and again, he can't destroy your calling, but if he can't heal it, he'll try to destroy your clarity. He'll just try to get you unsure of what you're supposed to be doing, where you're supposed to be going.

SPEAKER_01 9:17

Yeah, and a lot of people think that that, oh man, I need to be more passionate about what I'm doing, and and like I just gotta get more, give it more time, and and you'll give it more time and you'll you'll adjust your your calendar and your schedule and or you'll commit to certain things even more, thinking that giving it more attention is gonna fix things. But it's not. If you don't have clarity and precision of where you're going and direction, like you're talking about the map, right? It it doesn't matter how much energy it'll it just it's it just drains you more and more. And even the things that you love, yes, there's there's things that I'm super passionate about, and but and there's some seasons where I just feel like it's it's sucking the life out of me. Yeah, because I'm doing it with no purpose, yeah, with no guide guidance as far as like it's just things I'm doing. Right. And so this is really important.

SPEAKER_00 10:07

Yeah, clarity is important. Come on. So listen, we we're gonna break it

The Mandate And The Great Commission

SPEAKER_00 10:11

down, okay? Three layers. The first layer we're gonna look at is the mandate, okay? Is the mandate. So this is the shared, permanent, non-negotiable commission. So think Matthew 28, 19. Think the Great Commission. Jesus tells his disciples, go therefore in all the earth and make disciples, comma, teaching them to obey all that I have commanded you. And so, can we just pause right here and recognize this the for for those of you that are believers, followers of the Lord Jesus Christ, this is a non-negotiable. Like this is why we exist. Like, this is why you are here on this planet as a Christ follower, is to participate in the Great Commission to further it. Can I remind everybody it's called the Great Commission and not the Great Suggestion? And so what we are to do now is to recognize God saves you and He sends you. It's called the Great Co-mission, which it's the if that's a military term. You you've been you've been authorized, you've been equipped, and you've been ordered to. It's it's your reason for existing. Yes. This is why we exist. This is why we exist. And so when we think about this, okay, what you are building, it's not traced back to activity. This isn't task-based. This is mission focused. So what does that mean? Everywhere that you go, irrespective of your zip code, of your area code, or your pay stuff, you are on mission for God. Okay, it is about the one more. You are every single day praying and seeking the Lord and saying, God, I need you to put me in spaces and places where I where I get to bring the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ to bear. Okay. And so then what happens is that it reshapes your relationships. It reshapes how you how you view your work, your vocation, whether you are working uh in the home, outside of the home, whether you are leading a corporation, a company, or working for one, whether you are a student, an intern, and an apprentice, whether you're unemployed, irrespective, you've you become suddenly jobless, you've become suddenly gainfully employed. The mandate and admission means that ultimately, why you are there, the space and the reason why you're there, the reason why you're connected with people, specifically those outside of the church, is so that you can be a guidepost, an ambassador to invite them to become part of the family of God. And and reason the reason why that is so encouraging is because we live in a world that seeks to tell us what the mandate is, that seeks to tell us why we are here. And so the world will tell you, well, you're here here to make money, to make uh as as much money as you can. You're here to leave a lasting legacy. You're here here to become the most populist and most popular person out there to gain the most followers, to become the greatest influence. And then if and then what happens is depression and despondency set in when you find yourself not doing those things. Wow, I'm not making any money right now. Either from circumstances under my control or beyond my control. I'm not super popular. I don't have the most amount of friends. Man, I'm I'm not super influential. I'm I'm I don't have a legacy to lead. I'm not married, I don't have children. So man, maybe, well, maybe this isn't for me. Maybe I maybe I'm I'm shouldn't be here. Right? That's where lies start to come in and depression and despondency and distortion comes in. But the Great Commission is for every single Christ follower on the planet. And God can use you to be an in a spiritual influence, a kingdom influence in the lives of people that are already in your spheres of influence, your job, your school, your family, your your neighborhood, at the supermarket, at the movies, at the library, out in public. You can be a kingdom influencer. We talk about being an influencer, you can be a kingdom influencer, and that's the great thing. You can take the pressure off yourself and say, this isn't about what I don't have, it's what I do have, which is the gospel, which is what people need.

SPEAKER_01 14:03

Yep. And I and we we heard this said a few weeks ago. Everybody has a story. Like we we all have a story, we can all share our story, and our story is can inspire people. Yeah, you know, I I think everyone has a unique testimony of where the Lord has brought you from and how he's rescued you from sin.

SPEAKER_02 14:20

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 14:20

But we all have our unique story that will inspire people, but then there's the gospel that will transform their lives. That's it right there. And so that that's where as believers, we have to grow in our in our boldness and trusting that okay, your story could be good. That's a starting place. Absolutely. That's a starting block. But then we got to lean on the full weight of the gospel that it's it's not our own story that's gonna transform a person, it's the gospel. And the Holy Spirit intervenes and he takes care of the rest. And he just says go.

SPEAKER_00 14:49

Yeah, that's it.

SPEAKER_01 14:49

Go and make disciples and and teach them and baptize them. And so just go and do what he's calling us to do. He he goes with us, that goes before us, yeah. He gives us everything that we need, too. That's right. Like, so we're not going empty-handed into these conversations. I I I recall a season of my life where the mandate kind of it kind of flipped a little bit. I remember I was in ministry and uh in Texas, and then I was doing it for a long time and several years, more than a decade out of church, and I loved it. And God was doing incredible things at the church, and and I really felt a release from from the Lord in that season to step away from from from that ministry. And and then I started what what was an artist development company, yeah. And you know, I had friends that we were already doing music videos and spoken word videos and and branding and all that merch and all this stuff, and it's all the things that I loved because I'm a musician, a creative, and so I'm still doing the same things that I was doing in church in a sense, but what I realized was when I was in that season of church, for me it was it became more of it dependent on people's reaction. Yeah, and so I I lost that sense of purpose because every Sunday was how do I, how can we make it bigger? How can it be better? How do people respond? How do we get their reactions to be more engaged? And it was more about what the people, how they reacted to the Sunday experience versus the discipleship part that we're talking about right here. And so it's easy for us in church, you know, in either on a staff on staff at church or even serving at a church to think that making disciples is is leading them in those moments where there's they're screaming and they're shouting of excitement and they're lifting their hands, you know, for a worship leader like me, it was it was more like are they re-responding to what we're singing and what we're saying? Did they like the songs? Were the lights right? Right. Was it was the mix, the audio mix right, you know? And it became it became about all those little details that I didn't have full control about of every single one of them. And and it got exhausting. Sure. And so then for me, it was like, you know, I could walk away from this, and then I went and did my own thing, which would still look the same, but I it almost felt like I had more control of it. Yeah, and then my pastor at the time, uh Pastor George, he's just like, Hey, uh, I know that you want to go do your own thing, but the call of God is on your life, and I'm not letting you walk away from the ministry that God has for you. Oh, good. And I I appreciate it so much. And then he actually sent my wife and my family, my our family to Nashville, yeah, and we relocated from Dallas to Nashville. But it was one of those things where making disciples became a burden, or like we said earlier, I got burnt out because the there was no clarity. Yeah, my my guideposts became people's response versus the their the the life change and the intimacy and their their personal growth and development. Like I was missing the mark, like it was it was more about the moment than it was about the the lifestyle change that they were making. Yeah, you know, and so because of that, it led me outside. And if it wasn't for the man of God that said, like, hey, hey, like there's ministry all over you. So I'm like, you need to you need to step into this. And yeah, I'm glad I was obedient. But that's one of those things that we could easily miss what God's calling us into when we make it about, well, it doesn't feel right, or or or but a lot of times it doesn't feel right because we're looking at the wrong metrics.

SPEAKER_00 18:29

I was gonna say, yeah, to your point, it's I think it's practically like you said, it's it's pulling back and asking the most important question. Why? Okay, why am I here? What needs to be in front of me? Well, what needs to be in front of you is the mission. It's the fact that there are lost people all around you that are that are spiritually dying, that are desperately in need of the savior. And so when you when you reframe that, then then you're able to say, like we say here, you know, the mission of Life Point Church is to lead people to become fully devoted followers of the Lord Jesus Christ, right? And Pastor Mike, you know, said it emphatically, and it and it's true. Hey, it's the one thing we do, but it is everything that we do. And and and so again, the the mandate, it is the one thing you do, and it is everything that you do. It is the great commission. That is why we are here. And so practically, if you are wrestling with a lack of clarity, I just want you to take some time, do Romans 12.3. Romans 12.3 says to make an honest assessment of yourself and ask yourself, why am I here?

SPEAKER_01 19:29

Why am I doing what I'm doing? Why am I serving students? Yep. Why am I rocking babies to sleep?

SPEAKER_00 19:34

Yes.

SPEAKER_01 19:34

Why am I singing at church? Why am I? Why am I leading a small group? Why am I preaching?

SPEAKER_00 19:38

Come on. Why am I in the parking lot? Why why are we planning these events? Just hey guys, what's the end goal of this? What's the payoff? What's the win? Okay, is the win that Jesus is on full display? Is the win that we invited people into the kingdom? Is the win that we share the gospel? Okay, all right then. The win isn't even a full room. No, or full plot, or it's not it's not numbers. Again, everything I say has nothing to do with numbers. Jesus is elevated, we share the gospel, and we invite. Okay, we won. Because that's mission. That's mission.

Assignment Seasons And Two Traps

SPEAKER_00 20:08

And so the second layer is the assignment. The second layer is the assignment. And so this the assignment is seasonal and it's vocational. That can shift and it can change. I mean, Elmer, you and I, we've talked about our occupational past. We've had many different jobs and many different roles. Well, I just shared like I went from Dallas. Right.

SPEAKER_01 20:26

And then our pastor said, I need you to go to Nashville. Right. And so we moved our family to Nashville in 2013, and that was we stepped into a new assignment.

SPEAKER_00 20:36

Absolutely. And so, so for those of you that are listening, again, your your your assignment is what you're doing currently right now. It's your role on whatever team that that you are. And again, so don't think, don't think pay, don't think income. It's it's assignment. If you're a stay-at-home parent, that is your assignment for this season, okay? And we want to help you redeem that. But there are two traps that you have to be careful of that the enemy wants to uh ensnare you with, okay? So the first trap is over-attachment, okay, is assigning it is assigning too much significance to this assignment. Okay, it's giving too much significance to this assignment. And the other trap is undervalue, okay? It's not seeing it as redemptive enough, okay? And so when we talk about overattachment, what does that mean? It's your identity being fused to your role. And so now you have become enmeshed. It's like the Chinese finger trap. You've become enmeshed and you've become absorbed into this role. And the danger is this not if, but when the transition happens, there's death, if there's a mourning that happens, and it feels like part of you has died. And some of you know what I'm talking about. When that when there's a transition, whether it's voluntary or involuntary, and if you have enmeshed yourself and attached yourself too closely to that assignment, it will feel like a funeral. And you, what are you doing? You're robbing yourself of celebrating the new assignment that the Lord is bringing yourself into. Okay. And can I just encourage you the anointing? Travels with you. It's not the assignment. The anointing. It's God's favor. It's the Spirit of God on the inside of you, His favor, His blessing, His gifting. That is what you take with you. And again, the other trap is undervaluing. Okay, undervaluing the assignment. And what does this mean? It's comparison. Wow. I'm well, I was the in the in the last assignment, in my last role, man, I was doing this, this, and I was a part of that. And I had this. And in this one, man, I feel like I'm more behind the scenes. I feel like I'm less influential. I feel like I'm less visible, less known, I'm less happy. And can I remind everybody, comparison is the thief of joy. And this was a trap gommer that I personally fell into. And it was about 2017. 2017, my my our family and I, we had moved from Alabama. We lived in Tuscaloosa. Hey, look, roll tide. Come on, somebody. Ray, praise the Lord. And uh we lived there for about a decade. And that those were some of the most spiritually formative years for us. That it was during that decade. Number one, it was a year of just a lot of highs and a lot of lows, but a lot of awesome things. Carolyn and I, we we welcomed both of our children. Uh the Lord bless us with both of our kids while we were living in Tuscaloosa. The Lord called me into ministry in Tuscaloosa. Again, just a lot of awesome wins there. And I remember, you know, again, serving on our church staff by vocational. I was a violent, I was a volunteer pastor, basically. And just learning a lot, being a chance to be a part of a lot of things, writing messages, writing classes, even to the point where helping to pastor one of our campuses there. Just a lot of ministry activity that happens. And then in a moment on July 10th to 2017, it's just it's all gone. The job that I was at, there was a reduction in force, so I'm let go from my position. And so Carolyn and I were praying through this, and the Lord calls us back home to Clarksville, Tennessee. And I just remember in that moment, obviously thinking, first and foremost, I want to make sure we're getting our family settled. And so the Lord provided for us to stay with some family until we were just kind of rebuilding our life, you know, and just okay, like Lord, what where are you leading us? And so then the Lord shows us, hey, I want you here in Clarksville. So obviously, I'm looking for work. I'm putting out resumes, all this stuff. And then I start to work for a very well-known sports apparel company. And I'm I'm there for two, almost three years. And I remember that first year, that of course I'm thankful, excited, hey, I have a job.

SPEAKER_01 24:20

You were the model for Kanye West's shoes, right?

SPEAKER_00 24:23

I I was absolutely I was the model. You know, so you know how they look like big boats and everything. And they said, we need somebody's foot that is so deflicted that they can that they can fill that mold. And you know why they call them Yeezys? Because when they saw my feet, they was like, Ye! Sorry, that's my fault. They had the 3D print to shoot around my foot. That's why they're so that's that's what it looked like that news. You can thank me. My feet look like they're throwing gang signs, man. My toes just like they one side is the blood, the other side is the crypts.

SPEAKER_01 24:58

And then you got the cross in the middle.

SPEAKER_00 25:00

You know, the cross in the middle, but Jesus redeems it. That's what he does best. I can pick up an orange with my foot, man. All right, you worked for this. I can palm a basketball with my toes. You worked for this company. I worked for this company. And uh, and I just remember, you know, it's it's a long drive, and it's cute. And and we had we we started coming to Life Point Church at that point in time. So we I remember you know, we we moved back in in August of 2017. We said we started attending at the very end of August right here in 2017. And I just remember then, you know, we were just attending, you know, just getting a feel. And I'm working at this company, driving back and forth, you know, to just outside of Nashville. And man, it is it's a long drive. So it's a lot of a long time. And I just remember, man, just crying out to God. Because all that ministry activity, it just in a moment, gone, like a puff of smoke. And I'm I mean, crying out to God, angry, confused, like, God, why? Why did you let this happen? Like, why? I mean, what was all that for? 10 years of this awesome ministry tip. Yes, it was hard, but it was fun, it was amazing, lives changed, salvation, healings, miracles, and it's like, I'm not, I'm not a part of any of that. And by this time, we're we're attending church for a few months, and so I had you know gotten pretty pretty connected with Pastor Mike, you know, and just learning some connections with him and Pastor Chris Hodges, Church of the Highlands, and everything, because we had attended some of their campuses in Alabama. And so, man, he and I, we we became fast friends. We really did, and you know, we would text, you know, just often. And, you know, I would I would hook him up, you know, with sports apparel coupons and everything, you know, because he, you know, he got boats too, you know. So and and so I remember one day I'm driving, and he just randomly he sent me a text and he he had shared a it was a podcast of a sermon, and I remember the title

Redeeming Work As Mission Field

SPEAKER_00 26:43

of the sermon. I don't even remember the pastor's name who preached, but the title of the sermon was called The Myth of the Sacred Secular Divide. And in in the the the whole thrust of the sermon, the premise of the sermon was that there are not activities that are more spiritual than others for the Christian. There are not things that you do, there are not vocations and assignments that you are a part of that are more or less kingdom focused. And that was the revelation that I needed because I'm going to work and I'm crying and I'm like, God, you got me here in management for a sports apparel company. This ain't ministry. This isn't what I want to be a part of. This isn't what I was doing, you know. Again, I'm bi vocational in Alabama, but like I'm looking at my job as like funding me to help do ministry. I'm like, this keeps one on the table so I can keep doing pastoring, and you know. And he that the so and so the pastor he makes this statement. He says, There's no such thing as JV Christianity. And he makes that statement. I'm on the interstate going 85. I'll pull the car over. And I am weeping. I am weeping, Elmer. In that moment, the Lord is showing me, son, you your your assignment has changed. The mandate hasn't. That mission field now, it before the mission field was the people that was coming into the church or the people in my neighborhood. Now the mission field is the people in my office. It's the people on the production floor. He's like, son, there are people there. They're lost without me. If they die today without me, they're gonna spend eternity apart from me in hell. And I've seen you there on assignment. And in that moment, I just remember my come my viewpoint completely changed. I couldn't wait to get to work because the place that I was working had an almost 83% Muslim population. 83%. And I remember pulling in to the office and saying, okay, now when okay, God, who you who who needs to hear the gospel? And so what I would start doing, it was a huge facility, almost half a million square foot under, it was massive. So what I started doing, I just did prayer walks. And so as I'm walking and checking on employees and talking with, you know, folks, I'm just I'm praying and saying, okay, Lord, speak to me. Holy Spirit, speak to me. I'm praying for, you know, for folks that that need the gospel. God, right now, would you just penetrate hearts right now? God, would you just save the loss? God, would you stir revival? And so then what I just so now, so now it's changed. And so now people are coming up to me. And there are folks talking with people on the production line. And I'm saying, hey, how's it going? This, this, oh, well, you know, you know, my my parents back back in my homeland, they're really sick. And so a lot of folks, again, they're migrants and they're working, so they can send money back home to support their family. My mother, she's really, really sick. And so I'm trying to make money so I can send her so she can get some medical supplies. She needs really bad medicine. And I said, okay, well, hey. And again, she's 3,000 miles away. I said, Well, hey, can I can I pray with you? And they look and they're and he's shocked. And really? And I said, Yeah. I said, Can I can I can I pray with you? He's like, Here? I'm like, yeah, right now, yeah. I said, You keep working. I'm just gonna lay hands on you. Can I lay hands on your shoulder? And I just prayed for your mom. Prayed and said, Lord, your words is in Psalm 103, verse 3 that you heal us of all of our diseases. And so, God, I'm thankful that you're not constrained by money. I'm praying that you would heal my friend's mom in the name of Jesus. Amen. And and I just remember, going away, end of the work week comes. First shift they work from from Monday to Thursday. He can't this guy comes up to me again. He's a Muslim. He comes to me, tears streaming. Hey, hey, Willie, I I I need to talk to you, man. It's about my mom. And so I mean, he is like ugly crying. I'm thinking, oh man, something something happened, you know? And he said, this is what he said. He said, the Jesus you prayed to healed her. And I was like, what? Let's go, man. You know, I mean, it was just and he stops and he's like, Can you tell me more about him? I mean, in that moment, it was just, you see, okay, God, I was undervaluing this assignment. I was there for two, almost three years, and the Lord allowed me to lead seven Muslims to Jesus Christ. Because of the shift, I began to redeem the assignment and say, This is not about clocking in. This isn't about a paycheck. It is about mission, it's about souls. There were seven people that the Lord said, I need to send you there, and I need you to tell them about me. And I'm like, man, God, so now you know what I think when I think about an assignment? Man, I I wish I could have led more if I would have, if I would have properly valued the assignment. And so I just want to encourage you wherever you're at, you're in the right mission field. Jesus says to us in the book of Matthew, he says, the harvest is plentiful. Yeah, it's the laborers that are few.

SPEAKER_01 31:19

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 31:19

And so we get to pray for more laborers, and you're a laborer, and there are people there that the Lord wants you to harvest in it.

SPEAKER_01 31:24

Yeah, no, that's amazing, bro. That's such a powerful story. And one of the things about the assignment is that God, God is watching our faithfulness. Yeah. And there's a lot of us that will complain and we will be like, oh, I don't, I don't love what I'm doing. I hate what I'm doing, or this is the worst thing ever. But like, like you in your story, you had to redeem that and you had to see it through the eyes of Jesus. Yeah. And and and that's one of the things he calls us is to be good stewards of not just the gifts that we have, but of our moments and our seasons. Yeah. As a parent, as a husband, as a son, yeah, but also as an employee. Yeah. And uh, and so everything we do is measured by faithfulness. Like, you know, if you're faithful with the little, he'll he'll give you the much. Yes. And so I think that's those are important things. And a lot of times we want to get ahead and we want the next thing, you know, in in in ministry. I I I'm just gonna stick to your story. Sure. Like you want the thing that you were already a part of, you know, but in the season, God was stretching you, and I think he was exposing you to a whole nother group of people. Absolutely. And it was uncomfortable, yes, but it grew you. Yes. And and now like there's this bolen about you that you're you're able to speak to more people and without holding back. Yes, sir. Right. But a lot of times it's it's the process itself that that grows things in us. Yeah, and so we have to be faithful to the assignment so that we could become what we need to be for the next assignments. And so a lot of people prematurely want to self-eject into into the next thing, into the next big thing. I think nowadays, because of social media and and all the things that we see. I was listening to something earlier, and and one of the com the conversations was that back in the days, people attended before cars and all that stuff, people attended churches in their in their little towns. Yeah. And they would just walk there.

SPEAKER_02 33:17

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 33:18

Excuse me. And then when the cars came out, like they would drive to church together, but only when dad was home, because like dad's the one that drove.

SPEAKER_02 33:26

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 33:26

And then like families drove to church together, and you had station wagons and all these things, right? And now it's changed because now church comes to you on your devices, and and so we're constantly hearing all these things. And so the the influence of of technology and the advancement of advancement of society, it's just it wants us to keep advancing and wants us to move forward and faster without really developing things in us. Yeah, so there's a lot of us that are experts at so many things, but we can only do it so so much, yeah, you know, very little, because we've never really committed. Yeah. And we're always like, let me try this, let me try that, let me try this. And and we're constantly trying to stay up to date with trends and not really committing to to a trait, yeah, a trade. Come on. I have a friend, Carlos, who's in my small group, he's a plumber, and he's always talking about like this is one of the things like, you know, you make great money, but like not a lot of people are doing it anymore. Yeah. But it's one of those things it's it's needed. Yeah, there's so much work. Everyone has pipes, everyone needs water, everyone needs a toilet. Come on, man. And so, but just like you have to commit to whatever assignment you're at you're in in right now, yes, and and learn and grow and put it in God's hands and ask him, Lord, show me what where I need to be more sharp, show me what I need to store better. And I guarantee you, as in showing your faithfulness to the Lord and even asking. Sometimes we'll just do the thing without even turning to God. Yeah. Like He's He's there with us. Absolutely.

SPEAKER_00 34:58

Yeah, absolutely.

SPEAKER_01 34:59

The Holy Spirit wants to lead us.

SPEAKER_00 35:00

Absolutely. And I and I think that's what I think that's how we can grieve the Holy Spirit. It's like you said, you know, listen, you know, I I wear this bracelet every single day.

Faithfulness And Seeking Wise Counsel

SPEAKER_00 35:09

Three simple words pray, listen, and move. Pray, listen, move. And and and we get it out of order, right? We we we move first. And then that's where, oh man, now there's like a clarity, I'm getting bogged down, I'm I'm in the muck in the mire. And then now we we we want we want to listen and say, okay, well, you can't listen first. You have to start with praying. Yeah. And and so can I just invite you, even with your assignment, hey, you may feel restless. You may feel like, man, I I need to jump ship and I need to switch roles, I need to switch lanes. Is that what the Lord has for you? Seek him first. James 1, 5. If you don't have wisdom, you can ask him and he will give it to you. But also seek his people, seek wise counsel. The Bible says they're safe in a multitude of counsels. That's why I love smart girls, that's why I love the body of Christ because we're able to sharpen their the spiritual gifts. Some people have a word of knowledge, and like you said, that pastor was like, hey, son, I really feel like you need to stay and be rude. That was a word of knowledge for you that you needed. And so some of you, you need to be able to first of all humble yourself. James 4, 6, he gives grace to the humble, humble yourself, and then seek wise counsel, seek counsel from the spirit, and then counsel from spiritual people, spirit-led people.

SPEAKER_01 36:16

Yeah, and I'll say this before we move on to to the final point is that sometimes the assignments and the lessons that we're learning as we're going through through the different seasons, the the it's not for you. Yeah, there's sometimes that you have to endure and you go through it, but there's somebody around you that's watching how you're gonna respond. And everything you need, God's already given it to you to to overcome and to come come out on the other side victorious, right? Yeah, but there might be somebody watching, and there's that, and again, like you you were at this company, and and God used your presence there to lead these people to to Christ. Yeah, and in the same way, God will place you in seasons, things will happen, and your response, the things you turn to, are you turning to God or are you turning to are you just reacting? Are you trying to figure it out? You're on your own. Yeah, our kids are watching. Yes, our kids are watching everything that we do. And so I really think every season, every assignment that I've been a part of, uh, my wife and I always say that, you know, it's one thing to tell your kids that to have faith. Yeah, it's another thing to show them. Yes, and to actually live and and walk out your faith.

SPEAKER_02 37:28

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 37:28

And so I I think that's been a big value for us as a family. We're not just gonna tell our kids go to church, right, worship God, you know, read your Bible. No, we're gonna lead by example and we're not we're not gonna shy away from walking by faith without showing them and actually leading them in it. Yeah. Because I I think there's been decisions that we've made that have opened the doors for our children. Like they've been exposed to the world in in so many ways, literally, yeah, because we've said yes to Jesus and in really hard situations and giving up so much and and leaving so much behind. And and now our kids, I think what God has for them, I can only see it much bigger than anything I can imagine for my own life. That's right. And I want that for them. I want the reach that that they're able to that they can attain for for people and leading them to Jesus. I want it to be bigger than anything that I could do on my own. And so, you know, I want to set them up. And so sometimes the assignment, we we make it about me and how I feel. Right. But just again, you said earlier, just take a step back and evaluate who's impacted by your season in this assignment that you're in right now.

SPEAKER_00 38:38

Come on, that's a good word there, Pastor Elmer Canyas Jr. the second. Come on. Come on now. And so this this last layer is

Purpose As Identity In God

SPEAKER_00 38:46

purpose. And and so purpose, it's hey, listen, it's the deepest layer. So again, quick recap. You know, we have the mandate. I mean, that's the why. The assignment, it's the what. But purpose, I want you, it's it's who. It's who you are. So think identity. It's who you are now. Here, hear this though. It's who you are becoming in God. Who is God shaping you and forming you to be? It has nothing to do with titles, nothing or positions, nothing. Not at all. It ain't tied to a paycheck, not tied to a uh an org chart. This is tied to creation. I mean, this is Genesis. This is the book of Genesis. Like this is this is formation. This is God saying, I created you on purpose with a purpose. And the purpose is identity, it's who you are. And so this is this is worship. This is you and Jesus. This is you and God. And this has to be, I would say, probably the firmest part of the map, right? I I would say so. And which is why it's last, because like it's it's it truly is foundational. Because if you don't know who you are and your identity, let me tell you right now, there are lots of voices, Elmer. Come on, help me preach, brother. Lots of voices that are happy to tell you who you are.

SPEAKER_01 39:55

Oh, yeah.

SPEAKER_00 39:55

Lots of voices. And hey, I don't need to name the the the issues, but that we're living in that right now. And you get little hearts, yeah. You get a bunch of little hearts. Come on now. And and and that's your identity. Oh, that's who I am. That's oh, that that's me right there. Or you get or or or certain individuals or certain organizations or certain ideologies that are, I'm telling you, they're motivated to tell you who you are. Oh, you don't know. Well, let me tell you who you are. And so this is where we have to go to the to the scriptures, and we have to remember that we're made in the image of God. Yahweh says, let us, right? The plural majestic trinity says, let us make man in our image.

SPEAKER_01 40:30

Can we can we poke the bear a little

Competing Ideologies And Spiritual Warfare

SPEAKER_01 40:32

bit? Sure. I I think since we already talked about other things a few weeks ago, I think when you talk about other ideologies, there's a lot of things that are out there in in public education and even things that are publicized through politics, yeah, that a lot of times try to divide people and it it makes you feel like you know, like you're either with with them or not. Right. And then it it divides. Yes. And and one of my spiritual fathers, he says, you know, the the elephant or the donkey, neither of them win. It's the Lamb of God. And and the lion of Judah. Come on. And so, but a lot of times we want to favor one side or the other. You know, Black Lives Matter, like all these different things that happened over the last decade that really brought a lot of division to our country. Yeah. And it and it really caused even like all the LGBTQ stuff, all these things, so much right now that's just consuming our lives through media. Right. And all of these things have challenged our identity. Yep. And so when it comes to this, this purpose, now we feel like we have to appease everybody. Yeah. You feel like, oh, we we have to make amends because we we're called to love. Right. And so then our purpose can easily get distorted. Going back to mandates, yeah, we're called to make disciples of all men, to lead them to Christ, to become like Christ. Yeah. That doesn't mean just to love them and where they're at and to to let them live that way. No, right. We're called to lead people to repentance. Correct. Come on. So so that that's where the purpose can get really distorted. And you're like, oh, as long as I love them, that's fine.

SPEAKER_00 42:10

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 42:11

No, it's much bigger than that.

SPEAKER_00 42:13

Yeah, I'm so glad you said that. So now, okay, so so we've given you the proper map, which is which is theological. It's uniquely theological and it's and it's biblically informed. And all those other ideologies, LGBTQ, racist ideology, this lives matter, hey, Proud Boys, whatever it is, all of those, you know, it is Islamic, not everything outside of the gospel has its own map, too. Like you said, they have a mission. I remember looking at certain websites like BLM's page, and I mean, you look at their mission statement, and I'm gonna tell you right now, organizations like that, they are uniquely anti-Christian and anti-family. Straight up. They'll let you know we are trying to tear down what they call the traditional heteronormative family. They're trying to take their, we're against a patriarchy. I'm just telling you, you have these organizations that are like that. Planned Parenthood. Again, the ideology, it's eugenics. They are trying to exterminate entire ethnic groups. That's a mandate. That is why they exist. Let's just call a spade a spade. And it's and it's it's racist, it's it's uh dehumanizing, it's divisive, it's demonic. It's demonic, yeah. Straight up from the enemy. That's what it is, right?

SPEAKER_01 43:24

And so it's spiritual warfare.

SPEAKER_00 43:25

It is straight up space. Pastor Mike's been teaching us through in First Thessalonians. It is straight up spiritual warfare. You gotta recognize it. So that so they have their own, they have their own mandate. And they and according and then associated with those mandates are assignments. There are roles, there are spokespersons, there are lobbyists, there are activists, there are professionals, and and so these are people who are influential. And that so now though so think of now, it's boots on the ground, and it's coalitions, and it's collaborations, and it's committees, right? And getting into these these spaces, universities, into hospitals, into politics. And so now. I remember I was reading an article. There was a person who had committed a heinous sexual crime. And what the judge was, and and they were and they were an illegal immigrant, and they committed a heinous sexual crime. Heinous. I'm not going to give the details. I was reading a story just yesterday. Heinous sexual crime. And it's like, okay, they're in the country illegal. They're undocumented, have made no effort to become a naturalized or legalized citizen. So it's like, okay, well, deportation is, I mean, that that's the outflow of that. Because you're a criminal, you're a threat to minors. And there is a judge who not only pushes back against that, bars them, but reduces that sentence from a felony to a misdemeanor with time served.

unknown 44:41

That's crazy.

SPEAKER_00 44:44

That's wicked, Elmer. That is demonic. I mean, that's the judicial, political, sociopolitical stage, and it's and it's because of activism. I mean, that's the activity, which is antithetical to what the gospel says. No, the gospel says to protect the oppressed and the weak. That is doing the exact opposite. It's protecting the oppressor.

SPEAKER_01 45:05

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 45:05

So again, and then now again, we look at the purpose. Why do we exist? Well, you're born in the wrong body. That's not, you can be whatever you want to be. You can identify with whatever you want. You can change. You can shift. So can I tell you that the world has its own map too? And that's why we have to be sober-minded. The apostle Paul says, do not be ignorant of Satan's devices. Don't be ignorant of these things. Can I just call you as Christ followers to wake up and see, make sure that you're following the right map?

SPEAKER_01 45:34

Yeah. And that's where, like we said earlier, Satan lives in that blurry line. That's where spiritual warfare happens. Because again, our our purpose, we have our purpose, we have our calling, our assignment, the mandate. But if we're like, okay, but I'm a Christian, I go to church, I serve at my church, you know, I do all the things I love, but if we don't love to and lead people back into the mission to become fully devoted followers of Christ, which means that we gotta lead them into repentance.

SPEAKER_00 46:03

That's it. It's like you said, it's stopping first. I mean, so the apostle Peter, he shares the first, he preached the first message, the first sermon after Pentecost in Acts 3.

Repentance And Resisting Shortcuts

SPEAKER_00 46:15

They're cut to the heart. And because he tells her, hey, the Jesus that you crucified, that you killed, he's alive. And and and he's he's Lord. And you're gonna answer to him. And it says, brothers, what means what must we do to be saved? First thing he says is repent. Repent and then be baptized. Jesus, when he comes out of the wilderness, first thing he says, repent. Why? For the kingdom of God is at hand. And so the first thing you have to do, when we talk about what is repentance, let me just define it for you real quick. It's an about face. It's a 180. You're going down a specific path, you're going down a specific trailway, you stop, you turn completely around, 180 degrees, and you go back the opposite direction. So if you are right now caught up in a map, if if your mandate is not great commission based, if your assignment is not about doing things to redeem and help and bless others and unite instead of divide, and if your identity is wrapped up in anything other than being a bloodwashed believer, if it's wrapped up in anything else, can I invite you, implore you to repent, to turn away from it? Hey, listen to me, look at me. It will not lead to the life that it's promising to you. The devil is lying to you. John chapter 8 says, the devil is the father of lies. And what the world wants to do is what it's really the devil. The devil wants to hijack the path to freedom, to peace, and fulfillment. And in the book of Matthew, after Jesus is baptized by John the Baptist and rushed into the wilderness, I believe it's Matthew 4, it says the enemy comes to tempt him. And the the last temptation, the first one is turn the stones into bread, the second one is cast yourself off the cliff, the third one is bow. And this is what he says to him. It says he shook, he took them and showed him all the kingdoms. And he says, basically, if you'll bow, I'll give you these kingdoms. Why does he say that? Well, because scripture says that Yahweh, God, says to Yahweh, the Son of Man, I have given you these, the nations as an inheritance. And the devil short circuits that he wants to short circuit and he says, You don't have to go to the cross. The cross is not the way for you to get the nations. Bow to me. He wants to short circuit God's prescribed path. And let me tell you right now, all of these other maps, hear me, folks, are Satan's attempt to hijack God's prescribed path.

SPEAKER_01 48:26

Yeah, and that's where the assignment that you're on, you could you could find a shortcut. You could find a like, well, let me self-eject here. Let me, because it's uncomfortable. And you know, you think about Jesus going to the cross, that was there's nothing comfortable about dying on a cross.

SPEAKER_00 48:41

He prays to Gethsemane. Lord, take it from me. Yeah. I don't know anybody unless they're a crazy person who'll be excited about getting crucified. Yeah. But he said, not my will. Yeah. Right? He says, okay, no, no. He says, Lord, I'm going to resist the attempt and the temptation to self-reject and hijack in the short circuit. I'm going to because Jesus had his own map. He was on a mission, he was on assignment, and he knew his purpose. Come on.

SPEAKER_01 49:07

We got to endure. So there are those seasons. So just encouragement for those of you that are that are on this map where you are wanting to become a fully devoted follower of Jesus every single day. And you wake up and you're like, God help me. Just trust in the Lord. Your strength is found in Him. He is everything. And He just continue to build upon that firm foundation and He's got you. Yeah. And uh and there is a purpose to pain. There's a purpose to all of it. And so you're gonna you're gonna make it. We're gonna make it. Amen. And all that. So I think one of the things going back to spiritual warfare, it doesn't announce itself a lot of times. It just it kind of blends in with what we're doing. And so again, going back to how you said there is the world has an agenda, yeah, it has its own map, and then the Lord has a map for us. There's those blurry lines that we could easily be like, but that's okay. Right. I could do this. Right.

SPEAKER_00 50:02

You know, that let me just say, and the reason why is because of the nature of Satan's MO. Paul says that Satan disguises himself as an angel. Guys, listen, get the Hollywood theology out of your mind. He's not red with horns in the pitchfork and a tail. That ain't the devil. Um, he looks like common sense. He looks like your best friend. He masquerades as an angel of light. You're not scared of an angel. Yeah. You you you embrace and welcome an angel. Feels like peace and rest at times. And purpose and excitement. Oh, yeah, that's I like that. And then he says, and his workers as ministers of righteousness. So his agents, just like again, they're agents for the kingdom of heaven, they're angels, agents for the kingdom of darkness. And it says they masquerade as angel, as ministers of righteousness. So we use these terms like social justice, right? And we talk about affirmation, we talk about acceptance, we talk about inclusion. Hear me. If they're not flowing with Jesus, they're masquerading as ministers of righteousness.

SPEAKER_02 51:02

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 51:02

They're masquerading. I'm telling you, they don't mean you're good. They don't, they, their, their, their aim is not your good. I'm telling you, it's not, it's your destruction because they're flowing with Satan. And he seeks to steal, kill, and destroy. He's called the adversary for a reason. Yep.

SPEAKER_01 51:15

And so we want to close

Three Questions And Closing CTA

SPEAKER_01 51:16

with this. We want to give you an assignment or some homework. Let's call it homework. Homework, yeah, yeah. All right. And I wrote it down. Ask yourself these three questions, even either right now and write it down, or you know, at some moment throughout this week. Just ask yourself Am I rooted in the mandate? Again, what the Lord has called us to do. Am I faithful? Am I faithfully sorting my assignment? And then finally, is my purpose intact? I think those are important questions to kind of just like you said earlier, take a step back, recalibrate, evaluate, and ask yourself those three questions to see, all right, where am I at? Yeah. And then once you find out, like just take it before the Lord, I think, and just like ask the Lord to help you either with clarity. You know, I know for us, we're here as pastors at our church to help people and to and to pastor people. You know, we're not we don't do podcasts all day.

SPEAKER_00 52:08

No, right.

SPEAKER_01 52:10

Uh, but we're here, we're here to help people. Again, our mission is to lead people to become fully devoted followers. And so we want to help you as a listener. And so send us, send us a message. Absolutely. You know, DM, whatever you need to, uh, however, we can serve you. We want to help bring clarity because we don't want the enemy to live in those blurry spaces in your life. And so I know this has helped us. Amen. Uh, again, it was something we just came upon.

SPEAKER_02 52:32

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 52:33

Map, but I think it's a great way to be reminded. You know, am I living out the life that God's called me to live?

SPEAKER_00 52:40

Amen. Amen. Elmer, this was a fun episode. It's fun, man. I really enjoy this. I love it. Appreciate you. And I just I'm thankful we get to do this together.

SPEAKER_01 52:49

Yeah, man. Same, same. I appreciate it. And so we love you guys, and we're grateful that you guys get to be a part of the podcast as well. So if you're watching on YouTube, just hit subscribe and you can see all the sermons and all the fun stuff that we do here at Life Point Church. And if you're watching listening on Spotify or any other streaming platform, just hit follow so you can stay up to date to all the new episodes that get uh posted every week. And so until next time, peace out. Peace out.