Amanda Wells

What an awesome year!

Can you believe that we have passed the half way mark already!

     We have had a really busy year so far but it has been a very exciting one! We had amazing meetings in France and the UK. Miracles, healing’s and men and women becoming passionate about the marketplace was really exciting!

     Then it was onto New Zealand for some amazing meetings. Then I travelled to Indonesia to minister for Evie Kesek and also looking at wholesalers for business.

While there we a week with Dr Pat Francis at Ps Indri Gautama’s conference. It was an amazing time where business ideas flowed, creativity was continuous and was like a steady stream the whole week.

It was amazing to to spend the days with awesome sisters from around the world. Evie Kesek from Indonesia, Freda also from Indonesia, Bev Murrill (Bev and husband Rick lead CGI in the UK) from the UK (Bev and I didn’t stop laughing), Irene Swan from Malaysia and Eunice Liberty (Gerome Liberty’s wife) from South Africa. It was amazing we laughed together, worshipped together, prayed together and would suddenly break out in song as we sat down at lunch or dinner and half hour later find our food was cold but our spirits lifted.

We named ourselves the Chayil sisters and never have I seen such strong friendships forged in such a short amount of time defying culture and language!

Business News

We have been working to get our DCEU drop ship site up and running having shored up some wholesalers already and after my visit to Indonesia. The way we are operating the drop ship company is that we will have one major site selling many types of accessories, or we could say 'affordable luxury'.

     So many people are wanting to start a business but don't have the funds etc, so we have set up our main site and for those who join our Silver and Gold programs we will set up a website for you and allow you to sell our stock also which means you make money.

Contact us if you wish to know more.

Providence Foundation

As I said in my last newsletter as I am so committed in so many areas at the moment I have decided to step back from my work at Providence. I still support this amazing organisation and will still continue to lobby the government where abortion and adoption is concerned in Australia. So I know Providence will be an amazing answer to a generational and cultural endemic in our society.

Dr Pat Francis

I will be helping with Kingdom Covenant Leadership Institute, where you can gain a Bachelors, Masters or doctorate degree. www.kclinstitute.org

     It is a 21st century approach provides a well-rounded curriculum in Theology, Christian Counseling and Business Studies. It can be done affordably and with minimal disruption to your regular obligations. KCLI has made affordable, accessible education and training is now available to you. If you wish to find out more please contact me and I will help you register.

     I will keep you posted in the coming weeks!

Coaching/Mentoring on My Website

I have been coaching on my website this year and am now working on setting up a consultancy firm with the help of Dr Pat Francis

    Will keep you posted. MasterClass SILVER is a powerful, comprehensive training portal designed to bring your life and assignment into alignment with its original God-breathed design.

    With foundational Kingdom and personal development teachings from Amanda, this tool is vital whether you are in the business arena or church sphere. We are at a point today where we need to know how to affect the marketplace accurately, with new dialogue and effective strategies.

    The MasterClass provides courses of a weekly video and teachings and weekly business and Leadership Tips, to prepare you for your assignment. Many ask me, "How do I start?" MasterClass SILVER will provide answers!

How Leaders Can Develop The Power Of Strategic Thought

Leaders at any level, in any field or endeavour, recognise the importance of vision. In fact, so much is said and written about vision today that it is in danger of becoming nothing more than a buzz-word. In some quarters, vision has become an industry in its own right; entire bookstores tell us how to set goals and targets for achievement.

 

For a leader, though, vision must be seen as much more than a buzz-word, something to put in the title of a seminar or conference.

     Vision keeps us alive. Vision keeps us focussed and disciplined; it enables us to say that most difficult of words, 'no', to things that will distract us from our core purpose. Without vision, we are in danger of losing our grip on what is essential for us, becoming

emergency-driven responders rather than purpose-motivated leaders.

     Sadly, vision is all too often replaced by things that seem easier to control. For example, a reliance on phenomena. Many Christian leaders hope that 'power experiences' alone will build their house. Or that legalism, a reliance on rules and regulations to maintain the status quo, will somehow substitute for vision.

     We often get into ‘negative‘ control and manipulation but remember Jesus was the ultimate leader who could control and manipulate a circumstance to be a positive! This is a new concept to many, it is met with anger because most of us question ‘how is control or manipulation ever positive’? Think of the many instances where Jesus always had full control. In the Garden of Gethsamane, Jesus was able to manipulate a hostile situation into a life lesson for many. On the Cross He would not allow His life to be taken, He manipulated the hour and time and laid it down. On the sea, when religious fanatics tried to push Him off a cliff, Jesus was able to manipulate every situation so as to control it for a positive outcome.

      The danger here is when we allow manipulation and control to drive a negative consequence and turn instead to bureaucracy, building intricate systems of administration which are easier to develop than a real heart-felt, inner conviction.

     Thankfully, though, many Western church and ministry leaders are now throwing off all this baggage and positioning themselves to discover the divine design for their situation.

     Yet, many leaders who have a vision do not yet have a strategy. If our dreams are going to bring us influence, purposes must come into a place of convergence with concrete plans.

There are at least four things that are true of strategic thinking:

1. Strategic Thinking is focussed on the Long-Term.

Real influence is not born in a week, a month or even a year of 'revival' meetings. John Wesley helped to turn one third of his nation to Christ because his focus was on more than just his next sermon or book. He was focussed on achieving a long-term, pragmatic result.

     He would preach to thousands in open fields, then form his converts into local societies (today we might call them 'church plants'). Then he would take the most enthusiastic of these people and form them into weekly classes of no more than twelve members.

     He worked to this strategy for many years. It was a simple method, but one which he and his followers adhered to with vigour - hence their name, the 'Methodists'.

     It is deeply upsetting that we have a regrettable teaching where if we just have endless meetings, amazing healing's and miracles then revival will break out and the city be transformed. This is a misconception and history proves that building this way has no long term sustainability and will peter out in 5 years resulting in no long term generational change!

     If you are a Christian leader, the key strategic question for you is this: 'If Jesus doesn't return in next few years, what kind of city do you want people to be living in, ten years from now?'

     To succeed in leadership, we need a vision of a preferred future, a future in line with God's kingdom - and strategies to help promote that.

 

 

2. Strategic Thinking aims for a Specific Target.

In Acts 16-17, Paul obeyed a sovereign call of God and did something that was destined to change history. He took the gospel to Europe for the first time. If Paul had not obeyed, Europe might not have the proud heritage of spiritual outreach it has had for the past two thousand years. There were two things Paul did when he set out to reach western cultures for the first time.

     First of all, Paul's strategy involved the targeting of cities. Major population centres like Philippi, Thessaloniki and Athens were all in Paul's sights. His strategy recognised that God wants to speak where people are listening. He also saw that there can only be momentum where there is first mass.

     This is a simple principle of science. He targeted areas where there were large population bases, so that the models he built would be transplanted and copied in other areas. If we read Malcolm Gladwell books ‘The Tipping Point‘ and Outliers‘ we see a remarkable nuance where a large populace can be changed by a small percentage.

     By 2070, many experts expect there to be as many as 9 billion people living on this planet. Ours in an increasingly urbanised world; this is the age of the megapolis, the super-city, and more than ever before, we need leaders who will strategically target urban centres - and make it their life's work.

     Secondly, Paul's strategy targeted spheres of influence. The first Europeans brought to Christ through Paul were people of influence in different areas. Lydia was a woman of commerce and trade. The Philippian jailer was a bureaucrat; a civil servant. Dionysius was a politician; a member of the city council. And the philosophers of Mars Hill were the academics, educators, and patrons of the arts at the time.

     Through Paul's strategic thinking, the Holy Spirit was able to sow seeds of the kingdom in each of the areas where Europe would thenceforth have a major influence on the world!

     In our time, strategic thinking will demand that we do the same. We must position ourselves to have long-term influence in, for example, the media, the arts, education, sport, politics and the law.

 

3. Strategic Thinking calls for Alliances.

Strategic thinkers are good at building alliances with other leaders because, for them, the goal is more important than the method or style. We must think globalisation not insulation. If we only build for what happens on a Sunday and with a small group of people we will never succeed in kingdomizing our world.

     Today, we're seeing alliances built between leaders of new churches and leaders of older, more established churches. The new church strengths of vision, passion and ease of mobility stand well alongside the old church strengths of credibility, financial resources and the like.

     Alliances are forming between Christian groups with very different histories and modes of operation. In an increasingly secularised world, we know we must work together, pooling precious resources, if we're to tackle some of the really big issues affecting people's lives.

Not only ‘church alliances‘ but it is time the church made alliances with the world! We have been so frightened of the world for so long that we left it in the dark with tragic results. It is time the Esther’s, Joseph’s and Daniel’s rose up and positioned themselves with alliances that will help them shape and align our cities for His kingdom.

4. Strategic Thinking demands Sacrifice.

Any new level of favour or influence is preceded by a new call to sacrifice. Influence will always flow toward those who have the strongest convictions; those who are willing to lay everything on the line for the cause.

     Reading Romans 15:20-21, we see Paul's motivation for ministry -- the drive to pioneer, to 'boldly go where no-one has gone before...' In our postmodern western world, faced as we are with an growing tide of godless ideas and lifestyle options, so much of the church has sunk into a defensive mode. We need less maintenance mentality and more of this sacrificial, pioneer spirit!

Australia and Canada were 2 nations not built on slavery. Australia was built on convicts and much has been made of our convicts roots. Let me through a curve ball in here. Slaves are in bondage, they have their spirit broken but a convict maybe in chains but his mentality is how to cheat the system and become free! A criminal has a strategic and tactical mind and often most criminals are entrepreneurs who lost their way!

Would you like Pastor Amanda to come and visit your church?

Then please email the office and make a booking!!

amandawellsministries@gmail.com