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Speaker 1: For a bishop must be blameless as the steward of God,

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Speaker 1: not self willed, not soon angry, not given to wine,

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Speaker 1: no striker, not given to filthy lucre, but a lover

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Speaker 1: of hospitality, a lover of good men, sober, just, holy,

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Speaker 1: temperate Titus one seven through eight. Dear Lord, you have

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Speaker 1: set clear standards for leaders in your church. For that

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Speaker 1: I am grateful. Because the flock of God can be

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Speaker 1: vulnerable to corruption, its shepherds must be people of integrity.

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Speaker 1: But I also know these qualities do not just apply

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Speaker 1: to pastors and ministry leaders. These qualities apply to anybody

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Speaker 1: who desires to be effective for the Kingdom of God.

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Speaker 1: Purify my heart, strengthen my character, and refine my conduct

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Speaker 1: for your glory. Lord, in Jesus' name, Amen, thank you

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Speaker 1: for joining me in prayer. Stay tuned for today's free podcast,

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Speaker 1: Meditative Prayers with Zach Clinton, where you can draw close

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Speaker 1: to God and find strength in him.

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Speaker 2: My friends, welcome to your meditative prayer on Stoic Leadership.

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Speaker 2: It's get the most out of your spiritual journey. Use

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Speaker 2: pray dot com every day and make prayer a priority

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Speaker 2: in your life. Again, our goal for today's meditative prayer

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Speaker 2: is all about stoic leadership. So right now, let's just

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Speaker 2: head to a calm space. Let me take a minute

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Speaker 2: to gather your thoughts, quiet your spirit, close your eyes. Now,

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Speaker 2: fix your attention on God and know what He has

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Speaker 2: for you this day again, today will be meditating on

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Speaker 2: Titus chapter one, verses seven to eight. From the King

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Speaker 2: James version, they read for a bishop must be blameless

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Speaker 2: as the steward of God, not self willed, not soon angry,

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Speaker 2: not given to wine, no striker, not given to filthy lucre,

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Speaker 2: but a lover of hospitality, a lover of good men. Sober, just, holy, temperate.

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Speaker 2: Right now, my friends, let's just take some time to

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Speaker 2: adore God for being the perfect example. God, I look

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Speaker 2: to you and praise you for your greatness. I worship

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Speaker 2: you for the salvation found through your sacrifice and submission

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Speaker 2: at Calvary, for your perfect portrayal of leadership and love

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Speaker 2: displayed at the Cross. I praise you for you overcame,

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Speaker 2: you challenged the world, and you won. I extol you

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Speaker 2: for your life is a living example of hope and

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Speaker 2: victory for all of humanity. You see leaders lead by example.

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Speaker 2: It is human nature to mimic and mere observed behavior,

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Speaker 2: especially if those perceived as powerful or in positions of authority.

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Speaker 2: As a godly leader, you were called to imitate Christ

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Speaker 2: and to lead by example. Jesus Christ was a consistent

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Speaker 2: and complete illustration of what a leader should be. He

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Speaker 2: lived to serve and served in love, placing the needs

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Speaker 2: of others before his own, and seeking to do God's

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Speaker 2: will in all things. As Christ lived and led, so

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Speaker 2: should you Understandably, this can seem a daunting duty, as

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Speaker 2: Jesus set the bar pretty high. Yet do not be

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Speaker 2: discouraged or disheartened. God knows the task of leadership is

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Speaker 2: not easy and that you are not perfect. You will

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Speaker 2: war with yourself and struggle with your flesh to lead

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Speaker 2: as Christ dead. Nonetheless, you must not allow imperfections and

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Speaker 2: insecurities to stop you or to keep you from striving

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Speaker 2: to imitate Christ and to lead by example. So right now,

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Speaker 2: in this moment, confess your sins and shortcomings to the

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Speaker 2: Holy Spirit, and he will care for you and aid

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Speaker 2: you along your path. Now, let's make the transition by

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Speaker 2: taking a moment just to dwell on God's amazing leadership.

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Speaker 2: Think of how Jesus acted while here on this earth.

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Speaker 2: Thank him for submitting himself in obedience to God's will,

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Speaker 2: for continuously and wholeheartedly loving others in kindness and humility.

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Speaker 2: Thank him for setting aside his personal desires for the

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Speaker 2: benefit of mankind, and for being the perfect example to

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Speaker 2: be emulated. Give thanks to God for his leadership over you, yesterday, today,

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Speaker 2: and always. My friends, God is present and he is

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Speaker 2: listening to you. Jesus was intimately acquainted with the burden

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Speaker 2: of leadership. He is aware of the struggle and hardship

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Speaker 2: associated with being looked up to. As Jesus persevered in

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Speaker 2: setting the example through his actions, you will too because

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Speaker 2: you're not alone. So right now, in this moment, ask

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Speaker 2: the Holy Spirit to help you submit your whole heart

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Speaker 2: to Christ. Ask him to empower you with conviction and

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Speaker 2: determination to love is Christ loved, To live as Christ lived,

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Speaker 2: and to lead as Christ led. Remember, leaders should embody

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Speaker 2: the attributes they wished to see in others. A leader

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Speaker 2: should live a holy and blameless life filled with self control.

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Speaker 2: For leadership requires a life of humility and righteousness, filled

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Speaker 2: with peace, hospitality, love, wisdom, and lacking in greed. A

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Speaker 2: leader should be like Christ and should lead by example.

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Speaker 2: So be encouraged by God's love and his testimony and

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Speaker 2: strive to love and to lead others in God's likeness,

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Speaker 2: and I promise you will reap God's blessings. My friends,

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Speaker 2: thank you for completing today's meditative prayer on pray dot com.

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Speaker 2: By incorporating this healthy habit as a daily practice, I

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Speaker 2: believe not only are you making prayer priority, but you're

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Speaker 2: also strengthening your walk with God. As always, my name

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Speaker 2: is Zach Clinton, Vice President of the American Association of

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Speaker 2: Christian Counselors, and we love being a part of your life.

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Speaker 2: Hey to find out a little bit more information, inspiration, help, hope,

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Speaker 2: and encouragement, I would encourage you to visit our website

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Speaker 2: at AACC dot net. Again, that is AACC dot net.