Well, good morning. Good afternoon. Good evening. Good, great, good God. It's another podcast from can I say good God is. God is good, isn't he?
God is good. Yeah. Here's a good God. The Bible says God is good. Yeah.
Thank you and in Uganda forgiveness. Ugandan Macumba on noon G kids. Yeah, the Chyna. Guys good all the time. Anyway, it's us.
Hi, and welcome to this podcast, brought to you by the School of safe and humble profits. Our crew consists of really experienced leaders from different nations who work and operate with churches locally and internationally. Our aim is to bring you the most up to date thinking and teaching on how to use prophetic gifting safely and with humility. Let's join our host Ian for another episode of the current series.
I'm Ian banner from the school of safer profits. Thanks for getting hold of this free podcast. I won't go through the whole usual thing because I just want to save us a bit of time. And we have my friend Jonathan again, we're in the middle of this what I think is a very godly agenda to do with resilience and how we do that. And actually, what I'd like to talk through now is we did this image in a previous podcast that the Weibull we ballast Yeah, that means it when it's not overcomes, it kind of bounces back up. So I guess what I want to do for a few episodes is talk about the balance that you need to create in your life. And you made me remember a story that was about me and my wife when we were young. Now in England, there is a famous lock in Scotland at a lake is gone called Loch Ness. And if you know anything of English culture, there's a there's iconic rumors of a monster that lives in the lock. So so we traveled up to Scotland to go sailing, actually. And we hired an 18 foot boat with a motor. And so I
tell you, you saw Nessie did it.
That will be the name of the month. That's
the name of the counselor. Sorry, yeah, now,
but, you know, now I've done sailing courses I could sail. Miller was with me and another friend was and she'd also done level one training course. So we were going to hire this boat and we got there at this place that's on the lock, you hire the boat yourself for a week, up and down the Caledonian canals. And I was just say, interested that the company were quite comfortable giving this 18 foot boat with sands and a motor to nearly anybody who turned and I sort of turned off and when, by the way I am, you know, Royal yachting association level three trained, you know, I need another two days and I can be an instructor. Do you need to say anything? You went? Oh, it's alright. Nobody capsizes these bugs ever. And I went, what? Anyway, let me show you. So he took me outside. He showed me the boat out of the water. And if you imagine I'm looking at the the front of the boat. Yeah. Right with a little tip of it. And that's the beat you see? Yeah. sticking out at the bottom wasn't just one heavy haul. Yeah, but there were two angles. I was picking out because he went. He went no matter what you do. If you tip the boat too much one way, one of those will come out the water and it'll be so heavy. It'll put you back in. Wow. He said so these are unsinkable. I know, as in Titanic unsinkable. Anyway, don't be silly. But you will not be able to catch up no matter what you do. You won't be able to capsize these boats because this ballast stops happening. Yeah. And I've never seen a hole with with two sticking out ones on the sites like wings almost. Now, when you were sailing, you couldn't see them. But if you got to a real extreme tip point, they would just appear at the surface. And then no matter what was happening, you could go back down again. Now I'm not saying it made everything safe. There was a little moment when a scalpel that mill had for some pottery zinged across the cabin. Thankfully, we weren't in it. But the image that we've talked about the ballast made me think about what what we want to build for resilience. Yeah, of course, the Birding analogy is brilliant, because it includes the sails that catch the wind, the power that comes from the Holy Spirit and catching the wind. But if we can build balanced in our life, well, then we we can avoid capsized. And now we will get to talk a bit about how you restore people. Because I'd love to do that. You're brilliant at that. I think you've restored people so many times. And you know, I want to learn what your key messages are there. But let's talk about palace. So how do you you, you get value. So I want to create a word that's useful for prophetic people and all leaders, which is self care. Yeah. And what I mean by that is stewarding the gift that you have of your life and your health that God has given you stewarding it well so that you can create this balanced in your life. What do you think of that so far? One?
I think it's I think it's a vital thought. I think often When we talk about self care, we might think, oh goodness, that's me looking after myself rather than God looking after me. But actually, we cooperate with the work of the Holy Spirit, we cooperate with God, in all our lives when we say a man, you know, we, we are agreeing with with God. God expects us to sleep. Jesus fell asleep in the middle of a storm, famously on a boat, you know, and then, obviously, the disciples thought, well, he doesn't care, but he was exhausted after a day of ministry. You know, sleep is an important thing. And, and that's one one of the areas of self care, God expects to sleep God expects us to eat Elijah was given food as well as sleep, he wants us to eat healthfully, not on the run, not as late at night, and, you know, and then filling ourselves with sugar to keep the energy levels up during the day, He expects us to actually exercise a bit to actually, because that's good for all that sense of both physically and emotionally. Actually, exercise is really important. something I do every morning, as you know, as I go for a walk.
Yeah, but number of times jumped in like we both live near a really big park park in Sheffield number of times we see each other. Honestly, try not to interrupt you too much. Because I know it's that time you see, I don't sort of go oh, why are you there? 10 minutes, I'm saying it's time for you to take your medicine. Absolutely. I mean, that about you needing orthopedic medicine,
it's it's that restorative power of certain things are big three things out there. There's lots of others. But the issue is, God is not going to spoon feed you healthy food, you have to feed yourself, God isn't going to took you up in bed and read you a nurse, you know a nice bedtime story. He expects you to make sure that you get to bed, God isn't going to take you for a walk, or go jogging with your tablet. He expects you to do these things. Now if Jesus did all these things, which he did, as well, then I think it's right that we look after our bodies, the temple of the Holy Spirit. Look after our minds what at whatsoever is pure whatsoever is what think on these things. Look after our, our thoughts in other words, and look after our emotional health too, I guess. And and we are fearfully and wonderfully made. So all those aspects are really, really important. Well, I
think mind is a brilliant one to think about as well. And I think I don't know, maybe certainly, European American culture is we think about the bodies. I mean, let's reverse one Corinthians 619 It says listen says Do you not know your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit who is in you whom you have received from God you are not your own your broader price therefore honor God with your bodies. Now I think everything you said is true about keeping yourself healthy and doing all those things every word is brilliant, but also I think there's the mind side is absolutely part of the same temple the same temple your bodies are a temple so we want to look at that a bit in a moment but again, we're we're back in the category of this balance in leaders lives where again, you read it well the reason I use the word self care is because as what we what we you know, you know, Jesus said love love, love others as you love yourself if you don't love yourself first What are you doing? And there's almost an element that I think spiritual I want to talk about which is take care of yourself. In fact, I mean, I know that people know me I'm I'm slightly overweight, a lot of the weight sort of training we're on the road training I've had in the past it always starts with Are you taking care of yourself? Yeah. You brought that out as well as what you said are you balancing your diet well and things like
that. So when I had my I had about 2020 something years ago, I had to take three months out of ministry for burnout. At that time I was working very long hours we just got the building things were going wrong with it if you remember we were down to go all the details but every time I was coming home there was something going on. I wasn't taking days off I wasn't taking rest. I was working working working I was getting agitated with it all I didn't seem to be able to switch off you know in my mind or in my spirit from what was happening. And it all came to a crunch one day where I just couldn't have I couldn't I couldn't go on anymore My My mind was worrying like a spinning wheel just going faster and faster. And and I just needed the break that I should have been having the bricks that I should have been putting in the brick time I should have been building into my life to create the balance or create the ballast hadn't happened. And actually, the result was I needed take a longer break. So So for instance, if you're an athlete, I'm not an athlete I didn't bid a sport like you have you know in the past but they warm up, you've got bowlers have to warm up you stretch, you do all the stretching this that and the other there's a lot of talk now in sport about some of the muscle injuries that footpath ballers are getting and other people are getting. And actually, I was I've watched this product very interesting, a lot of it was because they weren't warming up properly. All right, they weren't actually taking care beforehand, creating vast, creating ballasts. So suddenly they're on a sprint, and the hamstring goes or whatever. Now this is a it's a physical analogy. But if you're not looking after yourself, you know, physically, emotionally, spiritually, you were well pull a muscle, they
couldn't pull your muscle. Yeah.
And, and that, that is that is kind of a problem. I think for us if we don't, if we don't notice the signs of the beat, because you know, why you disquieted within me or myself, nothing is something the psalmist said, if you're not reading the signs of your disquiet, do know that you're feeling anxious, you're feeling agitated, you're feeling not settled, you can't rest, when you sit down, you're all over the place in your head doesn't mean you don't know how to be settled at peace, then I would suggest to you, you need to, you need to be looking after yourself, because you are on the verge of actually not of something potentially that could happen to you, which wouldn't be so bad.
I mean, if you think about the analogy of the boat, and the ballast that we have, I know, as a sailor, if you don't have some ballast, you are just tossed and turned everywhere. And strong wind can make you drive into the shore and damage the boat. If you don't have ballast, even small thing is have center boards that you put down to help with this. So I mean, the main message you want to give about this point about creating this self care ballast is, it's an investment, if you don't do it, there will come a time when you will regret not doing it. And we
tend to want to take care of our spiritual lives as if they're separated for everything else. That's the only thing that matters. So quiet times praying week, God ringer, but, you know, we told all those things, you know, and those we tried to set up. But actually, you know, we are we're we're integrated Israel, that we have, obviously had the spirit of the Lord, they live in us, we are His people, those of us who have given our lives to the Lord Jesus Christ, but we've also body soul and spirit and, and all those three things. If our bodies are the temple of the Holy Spirit, then we need to make sure that our bodies have been looked after.
Yeah, I love the idea of all three, and you know, we can make these leaders because you know, you know, you're being paid for by the church in the day after your time. So
it's, it's really that obligation. Exactly. It's hard. It's really not
you feel an obligation to be showing that you're doing spiritual things. And if somebody sees
you going for a walk, or oh, why are you praying pastor? Why are you you know, on your knees or reading your Bible? Or you spend
an hour in the gym everyday? Do you spend an hour praying every day? So the
thing is, that only does I think not only does I don't can't speak for everyone, but mostly not all leaders, including me. People meet me and say, even today, I'm on sabbatical at the moment. But even today, I met somebody from our church, I was yesterday. And they said, How are you doing? And you know what I said, the classic thing that churches is, I'm really busy. I'm supposed to be on sabbatical. And because we want to justify our existence by our busyness,
busyness for spiritual stuff, yes busyness.
Well, our business by spread, because we justify it by saying well visited this person, I've done that I'm doing this, that the other, you know, there's always got to be a sense of justification for our existence. You know, what doesn't have to be but that's how, how sometimes we're wired, we have to say, I don't think that I'm just walking around the park today, and I'm not doing anything kind of thing. I'm actually I'm busy. I mean, Jesus was busy, but he also took
rest is you doing the work the heat took? Yeah, I mean, I think it's particularly a problem for leaders who you know, essentially do not have a job or that job. Absolutely. You're that point. Yeah. I need to show I'm busy doing spiritual. But the reality is for the ballasts to work for you long term. It's like a three legged stool. You need the Spirit you need the mind and you need the body Correct. All being given the medicine of life. Yeah. And you've
got to find things that will reach you Aren't you? Now for me as a human being? Who loves the Lord? There are things that also give me pleasure, which are not overtly. You know, the Bible and prayer. Yeah. Do you know what I mean? It's
some might say secular pastimes, yeah, I'll give you joy. They give me joy, mental health and balance,
and also give me a measure of objectivity to the ministry I'm in because actually, I'm reengaged with other aspects of life, Jesus was able to have meals with people, Jesus was able to have conversations with people. I mean, we we don't know. I mean, John's Gospel says at the end, there's all these other things that Jesus did that we haven't got. Time to write about. But I think the danger that we have is that we think, oh, Jesus was always praying with people always preaching and this that near. As far as we know, Jesus walked from place to place. Now he was have friends with him. But he was walking. It was recharging physically, as a result of that. He was actually not in front of a crowd. Every time he was doing that. He was moving from place to place. I mean, actually, nowadays, we have cars and everything's immediate, isn't it? Our phones are immediate, our, our, you know, our car. Food becomes something we do quickly. When Jesus went to somebody's house for a meal, it will take time, Jesus was able to have time, in a way that many people these days, feel we time is our enemy. You know, we really need to fit as much as we can into every day. And if we don't, we're not justifying our existence. I think Jesus managed to do at a much slower pace of life without a mobile phone, without a desktop, without sort of a car.
While I remember, this is about a year ago, the BBC picked up an item from an American Evangelical, charismatic church where the leader was asking to raise funds for the third Learjet that they had Lord help us on. And it was so obscene, even the BBC picked it up and carried it and there was a video of this guy saying to camera, I honestly believe if Jesus was alive today, he'd be running a large international ministry like I am. And he'd be using Lear jets to get around for efficiency.
And I honestly believe he's wrong, of course.
How wrong can you be? How wrong can you be? That isn't the Jesus that we know and love? And of course, what that brings out is he doesn't know Jesus? No, because he doesn't know Jesus. If you knew Jesus, he wouldn't you wouldn't put his name to such an appalling idea is that? In fact, I was this morning having an early morning coaching session with someone and they talked about, and they've been inspired by a book called The three mile an hour God, which is a Japanese book. Yeah. Which said, You know, Jesus did everything at three miles an hour, you didn't do anything else.
I mean, it's worthwhile saying about this is that self care is not self indulgent indulgence. Yeah. You know, it is not. It is not selfishness. It's not about actually, I'm going to stuffed myself with food. That's gluttony. It's not about I'm going to just, you know, surround myself with luxury, you know, it, but self care is about, it's about being at our best for Jesus. So that when we called upon, we're able to respond. Yeah, yeah. Really? I mean, you know, I think that, that if we don't care for ourselves, then we are much more liable to crash emotionally. That's the issue. That's one of the places that we've got off physically.
Yeah. I mean, this is where we're sort of in this subject of ballasts. You're saying slowly build your balance by saying take care of it. We're going to finish with there's a proverb, I wanted to talk briefly about proverbs 1722. It says, a cheerful heart is a good medicine. Yeah. But a crushed spirit dries up the bones. And I guess there's obviously a message there about your mental state, your cheerful but also I just love the word medicine. Yeah, I love the idea that you take. So we have an idea that medicine is drugs and you know, you got to eat doctors and get things that you take through your mouth. In Africa, medicine can also mean you know what you get from the witch doctor syndrome. But the word medicine is also just you can use it as a general word to mean I am investing in myself to bring out good things to get the best of me out.
I mean, Big Western words a cathartic therapeutic thing. Is that actually what the sense of a cheerful heart is a sense of it's a heart that's at peace with itself and its world. Yeah, that is not a troubled heart. And, and you we need there enough troubles in this world there is trouble, you will have trouble. That's the promise of Jesus to you. But to find things, and we haven't mentioned it, because I think there's something you want to talk about another thing about relationships, friendship, because another one of the ballast in this is not isolation, it is being with people, but to find ways that actually renew your joy, renew your spirit, renew your life is really, really important. You will you will, there are things that will make you sad, and things that will trouble you Jesus Himself, in a wept over Jerusalem. He felt the pain of a society that was going to reject him. But he also was a man of sorrows we read, but he was also one who laughed, we heard and rejoiced when, you know, things went well for his disciples when he sent them out. And and you know, even Jesus definitely knew what it was to know joy as well as pain. There's no doubt about it. We need that.
Yeah, this whole area is about in our imagery of ballast for the boat. Yeah, it is. How do you feel ballast, you create this balance, you look at your body, your mind and your soul. You work on all three, it is not a problem that you got to work on all three, you don't want to be a person with one leg of a stool, you know, the spiritual I put 25 hours in? Yeah, I mean, I remember meeting a pastor in Uganda once who didn't have a house, he didn't have a wife and his office, he had a table and his bed was next to where and he slept there. And he did and he fasted a lot. And I just, I wanted to urge him to be balanced about things. Not intense, you know? Yeah, I'd be interested to see where he's got to that person.
So I mean, it's interesting. They may, of course, talks about the joy of the Lord being our strength when and they were in a massive building project. And had, you know, garments, and all the rest of it goes on while they were building and everyone had this mind to work. But there was something in that community sense of togetherness and relationship and hope, whilst they were working, that there was joy in that too. If you get no joy in your life, that actually will affect the quality of the ministry that you
have as well. under percent and your mental
as well as your Yeah, everything. Absolutely.
In fact, I mean, we must rejoice
with those who rejoice as well as weep with those who weep. That's what the scripture says. So we've got to know what it is to know joy. Yeah,
I have things that bring joy to our lives. Absolutely. Yeah. I mean, shout out to anyone who gets to listen to the joy FM, which is an American, lovely, lovely American radio station, charismatic one, the joy of bringing joy into your life. It's fantastic. I do love it. Whenever I'm in America, I dig it out. Wherever we are, and we listen to it at the joy FM because it is about I guess the chance question I want to finish with is Yeah, have you got the balance? Are you taking the medicine physically? No, I don't I don't mean paracetamol. I mean, just how you eat, how you look at? Do you go for cycles? Are you taking the medicine spiritually? That's as well, you know, I used to read the Bible so much solidly. And how are you taking your medicine mentally? Yeah, you know, and that means being aware of when your edges as you said earlier,
I think when we're out of that balance, we become much more intense about everything we do. And that intensity, really can affect how we project what God is asking us to do. The ministry we have the calling we have. It's really hard, it becomes a burden. Everything becomes a massive burden, desert, there's a weight, there's a heaviness because we've never got rid of the load and, and it feels like you become almost like a slave rather than a son in servitude to a calling rather than feeling like I am in partnership with my father, you know, and this is my father's business. And I'm actually I'm actually part of the company, you know that the company profits the company that God's called me to. It's so important that we do find pleasure, and you know, as his right hand, there's pleasure forevermore, we got to find pleasure in life. Thank you, Lord.
Amen. I'm going to finish with just a verse from Ephesians sorry, Philippians rather Philippians four, one of my favorite passages. Frankly, I know what
that letter is.
It is the joy joy one. So I've chosen this one from verse 12 For verse 12, I noticed we need noticed that plenty I've learned the secret, secret sauce or must have been contested in all situations. I can do all this through Him who gives me strength. So what's this episode been about? It's about this balance this self care, taking care of yourself so that you are emotionally stable. Amen. Father, thank You for what we've talked about. And we just want to release and bless this words, these messages, these thoughts to people. As we move forward. I thank you for our time together. I thank you for the time that people will be listening to this if they listen to their car, if they're listening to it whilst going to work if you're listening to it while walking around the world. We know this is being listened to and we want to thank you Lord, bless me. Thank you for all those who hear this less this word. Yes, Lord. Amen. Amen.
That's it for another episode. The School of safe and humble profits is a UK and International Christian ministry, bringing you the best and most up to date teaching on all things relating to prophetic gifting. Subscribe to our podcast by following at safe profits on Twitter or subscribe on our website safe profits.org For more information, visuals and show notes. Join us next time for more from the school of safe and tumble profits.
