By John March, Pastor of New City Covenant Church in
St. Louis Park, MN 

However, during Lincoln's presidency he was largely perceived as a failure. Lincoln failed in business. He was only modestly successful as a lawyer. He lost more elections than he won, and once he became president, he made lots of mistakes. He was less of a visionary leader who pushed the country ahead into new territory than he was a reactor to the circumstances that were thrust upon him. The Civil War was a forgone conclusion before he was sworn into office, and the Emancipation Proclamation was issued out of necessity, not visionary leadership. Lincoln himself commented, "I claim not to have controlled events, but confess plainly that events have controlled me."

But, as leaders, isn't this true for you and me too? We often inherit problems we didn't cause, and we all make mistakes.

What makes Lincoln great is that he never gave up. He had perseverance and integrity, so that when leadership got hard, he never gave up or compromised his beliefs to make things easier.

As leaders we can learn from Lincoln's example. We often quit our jobs, abandon difficult relationships, or give up on God the moment things don't go well for us. Because we don't want to fail, we take a shortcut or avoid the problem altogether. But Lincoln's life reveals that it's more important to persevere through our problems (even if we fail), than it is to always succeed.

Lincoln isn't remembered for knowing everything or always succeeding. He is remembered for being honest (hence the moniker Honest Abe) and for persevering as president despite tremendous hardship. He is remembered as a legend because of how he responded to pain not because he avoided it.

We don't get to choose what difficulties befall us, but we can choose how we respond. We can choose to persevere in truth and become legends like Lincoln. The best leaders are the ones who have experienced failure but have the strength of character to keep going just like Lincoln did.

Promotional materials and registration for the 2012 NWC Annual Meeting are now available online. Your church will receive print promotional materials shortly as well, and we encourage each church to hang at least one promo poster (back side of print brochure after flap is torn off) to make your congregation aware of this year's events.

The 2012 Northwest Conference Annual Meeting, which will feature the theme "Mission Friends: Love Mercy, Do Justice," will take place April 20-21 at Alexandria Covenant Church in Alexandria, MN.  

Dr. Soong-Chan Rah will be the keynote speaker for both the NWC Annual Meeting, and the Ministerial Association Annual Meeting, which takes place April 19-20 at the same location. Rah is Milton B. Engebretson Associate Professor of Church Growth and Evangelism at North Park Theological Seminary in Chicago, IL, and the author of "The Next Evangelicalism: Freeing the Church from Western Cultural Captivity."

From Covenant Trust Company

The New Year is here, and with it comes New Year's resolutions. As people vow to drop a few pounds, stop bad habits and start good ones, consider what you can drop, stop and start to reach your financial goals for 2012.

Of course, you'll need to set financial goals before you can reach them. Your goals should be realistic and attainable, but also challenging. After establishing goals, decide what you will need to drop, stop, and start to reach them. Dropping services that you don't use or closing money accounts with high fees will help you maximize your income and investments. If your goal is to lower the principal on debt, perhaps you'll need to stop using some of your credit cards. Do you want to lower the volatility of your portfolio? Start reviewing your asset allocations on a regular basis and balance them as needed.

Not only will setting challenging but attainable goals help you start the New Year off right, but it will also set a strong foundation for the future. The task might seem daunting, but don't feel like you have to do it on your own; Covenant Trust Company can help you evaluate your financial situation and achieve your short-term and long-term goals.  

Contact our local Financial Service Representative Kevin Lawson, CFP® at 1-877-222-3960 or kelawson@covenanttrust.com. With our knowledge, experience and desire to serve, we can help you reach your goals in 2012 and in the years to come.

©1/2012, Covenant Trust Company. All Rights Reserved.

Congratulation to Sarah Monson, worship leader from New Day Covenant Church in Rochester, MN, and her husband Trever, on the birth of Isaiah Richard Monson on Jan. 20. Isaiah was 8 lbs. 3 oz. and 20.5 in. Please be sure to keep this family in your prayers.

Communications Corner