writings

Every one must endure criticism. Actually, the higher you go in ministry and/or responsibilities at work the more you will be criticized. It is impossible to become an effective leader without receiving criticism. Moses was a humble and godly man, yet the Bible records the many times he was criticized. Imagine if Moses would have told the people of Israel, “Enough! I quit! I’m going back to Midian to tend sheep with my father-in-law!” Thankfully, he chose not to do that. Moses endured until the end of his life and ministry, even though family and leaders alike criticized him:

KORAH’S CRITICISM

“They gathered together against Moses and Aaron, and said to them, ‘You take too much upon yourselves, for all the congregation is holy, every one of them, and the LORD is among them. Why then do you exalt yourselves above the assembly of the LORD?’” — Numbers 16: 3

AARON & MIRIAM’S CRITICISM

“Then Miriam and Aaron spoke against Moses because of the Ethiopian woman whom he had married; for he had married an Ethiopian woman. So they said, ‘Has the LORD indeed spoken only through Moses? Has He not spoken through us also?’ And the LORD heard it.’” — Numbers 12:1-2

Each time God intervened because of the attitudes and criticism of the people, including Moses’ family. Sad to say, but times have not changed. Leaders continue to receive criticism to this very day. And the quicker leaders understand this, the quicker he or she will learn not to allow shallow complaints and criticisms to affect their hearts and decisions.

NOTE: Criticism can wear you out if you are not careful. Moses allowed the continual complaints to wear him down emotionally to the point where he allowed it to cause him to disobey God. Consequently he lost the privilege of taking the people of God into the land of their inheritance (Numbers 20:7-12).

Several things to consider when you are criticized:

You can fight those who criticize you, or you can let the Lord fight your battle. We see in the scriptures how God intervened on behalf of His people time and time again (2 Chronicles 20:17; Jeremiah 1:19; Jeremiah 15:20), and He does a much better job than us!

Remember that there might be a strand of truth in most criticism, so seek to find any nugget of truth that might help you identify an issue for you to correct. At the end of the day, you are responsible to grow and be the best you can be. Constructive criticism is one of the ways for you to see what you need to change about yourself so that you can be a better person, father/mother, businessman/woman, minister, etc.

Criticism is part and parcel of being a leader, so if you are being criticized, take it as a compliment because all great leaders get criticized. It goes with the territory.

People are watching the way you go through difficulty, so remember that you are leaving an example for others to follow. What example are you giving to your family and friends?

Don’t allow criticism to paralyze you. If you hear it, move on anyway. Protect your heart by not meditating on the criticism. Receive the good parts of it, and chuck the rest.

Go to God for strength. Remember, The Lord Jesus prayed to the Father for strength before going to the cross. Jesus said that He is with us always.

As you successfully endure criticism, you grow internally stronger to resist and handle any future criticisms.

Are you believing for great things in the future? King David once said that God presents a table in the presence of his enemies. In other words, as people criticize you unfairly, God will see to it that their words will fall to the ground. He will vindicate you, and those that criticize you will see you prosper anyway, right in their midst.

Always remember: Greater is He that is in you, than He that is in the world (1 John 4:4).

Applying wisdom to everyday life for extraordinary results,

Victor Nazario

Most people that I speak to want to be effective in their lives and business. However, this doesn’t happen automatically. There is a powerful process that is available to help you to be effective and prosperous. Today, I want to share with you the secrets of powerful mentorship from the life of the prophet Elisha.

Elisha was mentored by the Prophet Elijah (1 Kings 19). Once Elijah was finished with his ministry, Elisha became the main prophet. This was able to happen because Elisha properly positioned himself as a willing student and disciple.

Fathers and mothers don’t work, provide and protect their children to keep them helpless and dependent, but to prepare them as they grow up. But once the children do grow up, they will be ready to embrace life and responsibilities in an effective way because of their parent’s mentorship and training.

The senior prophet Elijah prepared Elisha with and for a purpose. When the fullness of time arrived, Elijah released and empowered Elisha to that very purpose.

We appreciate mentors for what they do to prepare us for life, ministry or business. Having said that, the flip side is that in order to receive from a mentor, you have to become a good student, or one that is willing to be mentored. Only willing students will receive the benefits that their mentors have to offer them.

Another thing to consider is that mentors are human and flawed. For you to receive from your mentors, you have to realize that you are not there to criticize your mentor. You are there to learn from them. Mentors are doors that open up great opportunities for us. However, doors come in many sizes, shapes and colors. One should never focus on what the door looks like. The focus should be the pathway that the door can lead you to once it’s opened.

Front entrance doors can only be opened with a key. Today we might have a metal key, or it might be a key card. But in each case, it is only a specific key that will open that door. It is the same with our mentors. In order to receive from a mentor, one must realize that there are keys that must be present for a mentor to open up to you. Some of these keys are:

You must respect your mentor (this includes their time, style, preferences, etc.)
You must honor your mentor
You must obey their instructions
You must give them permission to speak truth to you. This means that they will offend you when they reveal your bad habits, but you must be able to “get over it” quickly. In the military, they break your bad habits and toughen you up before you can qualify to be called a soldier. If you can’t endure boot camp or basic training, you won’t be able to qualify as a soldier.

In the same way, if you cannot control your emotions when being mentored, this will hinder you from receiving from a mentor. Many get upset or offended with their mentors when challenged, and they eventually give up or walk away from the process.

When we look at the life of Elisha (the student), we can see several vital characteristics that gave him the edge that allowed him to receive the mantle of his mentor, and the full release into a powerful and legendary ministry:

1) He was teachable. Even when his mentor was tough, Elisha still submitted to his mentor.

Joshua had a teachable spirit, and he ended up being a mighty leader.
Timothy had a teachable spirit, and his ministry is still remembered today.
Saul didn’t have a teachable spirit, so his legacy was destroyed.
Samson didn’t have a teachable spirit, so he ended up in prison. He was tortured, mocked by the enemy, and eventually lost his life in the process.

“My people are destroyed for lack of understanding” (Hosea 4:6)
“A wise man will hear, and will increase learning” (Prov 1:5)

A teachable person dares to reach for new truths in God, dares to submit to other Godly men and women, dares to change, dares to invest in their education and future, and dares to press beyond their comfort levels.

2) He was willing to submit to wise and Godly mentorship.
“He that walks with wise men shall be wise: but the companion of fools shall be destroyed” (Prov 13:20).

1 Thess 5:12-14 (NIV), “Now we ask you, brothers, to respect those who work hard among you, who are over you in the Lord and who admonish you. 13 Hold them in the highest regard in love because of their work. Live in peace with each other.

Stay away from:

Those who belittle and put down your God-given dreams. I emphasize God-given (That also means dreams that are aligned with God’s Word. I stress that not every dream is God-given).
Human leeches that are only interested in what they can get from you. True friendship gives. It’s not only interested in taking.

Spend time with those who:

Who build up your faith and confidence.
Who respect your God-given dreams.
Who appreciate your uniqueness and gifts.
You love you enough to speak truth to you, even when it hurts. Mentors are not primarily interested in making you feel good. They are focused on helping you to grow, to learn, to develop important habits for success and to help you enter into your more beneficial future.

3) He was sensitive to the Holy Spirit and flowed with God’s Will quickly and willingly
1 Kings 19:20, “And he left the oxen and ran after Elijah…” You can see here that Elisha quickly responded to his mentor. Many today quickly spout out excuse after excuse as to why they cannot obey their mentor. That is an important difference between successful and unsuccessful people.

4) Elisha gave his mentor the opportunity to help him to unlock the greatness that was within his all along. All he needed was proper mentorship.
Elisha had in him all that he needed all along. He just needed the training and the “hand-off” in the correct season.

5) He knew how to work with his mentor. He treated his mentor with respect and honor.

Jesus being our chief model and example showed us how to serve others.
When we serve from the heart, we bestow appreciation to that or those that we serve
We are at our best when we learn the privilege of serving in honorable endeavors. This means helping and serving others in some way, shape or form, whether it is in ministry, business or family.
Keep serving even though you are criticized or rejected (Jesus went to the cross even though many rejected his love
Great leaders are great because they serve many people (He who would be great shall be the servant of all). CEO’s serve entire companies.
They who know how to serve eventually become effective leaders.

The world needs great leaders. However, in order to be a great leader, one must first be a great student or disciple like Elisha. The challenge is set before you. Will you be a great student? Who is your mentor? Have you sought out that relationship? Well, what are you waiting for?

Applying wisdom to everyday life for extraordinary results,

Victor Nazario

The Criticism Factor

The Importance of Mentors