I am not fond of SMART goals because they are too mundane and meager. In case you don’t know, a SMART goal means using the word SMART as an acronym to set goals. SMART represents Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-bound.

It’s a good starting point, but not for leaders because leaders set problem-solving goals. They identify a problem and try to solve it. Sometimes, a problem can be enormous. In that case, the SMART goal strategy doesn’t apply because it requires you to set “Achievable” goals.

We are in an election cycle now. You don’t hear the candidates talking about their SMART goals. Each of them tries to solve some monumental national or regional problems. Whoever has the best policies and capability to solve the issues will get my vote.

What problem are you trying to solve? Last week, I talked about Bob Peirce, who felt called to solve the massive orphanage problem after the war and founded World Vision. Young and penniless, if Bob Pierce had set a SMART goal, he would have concluded that solving the orphanage problem was not SMART because it was beyond his ability to achieve.

However, Bob Pierce knew, it was achievable by relying on God. Jesus wants us to solve significant problems rather than set SMART goals. In today’s scripture lesson, Jesus tested Philip by asking him how to feed a crowd of five thousand people following them.

When he looked up and saw a large crowd coming toward him, Jesus said to Philip, “Where are we to buy bread for these people to eat?” (Jn 6:5–6).

According to Mark, Jesus was training his disciples to become apostles. Disciples are followers, but apostles are leaders. (I mentioned this last week.) Jesus was teaching them to be leaders who solve problems. He wanted them to be scholars rather than students.

How would you solve the problem if you were Philip?

Philip answered him, “Six months’ wages would not buy enough bread for each of them to get a little.” (Jn 6:7).

I checked online, and the average monthly wage in the United States is about $5,000. That means even $30,000 worth of food would not be enough to feed them. Philip used the SMART goal, and he knew it was not achievable. They couldn’t afford it.

Jesus doesn’t allow his disciples or apostles to have a limited mindset. Have you ever settled for less because of your limited mindset? I am sure we all do, but Jesus wants to stretch our mental limits and think far outside the box.

What problem is God calling you to solve, and what limitation are you encountering? Time, talent, or treasure? Do you have limited time? Limited talent? Or limited finance? Jesus wants us to think outside of those limits.

Jesus doesn’t want us to set SMART goals. He wants us to set Miracle Goals. That’s what godly leaders do. They make miracles by thinking outside of human limits—not just thinking outside of the limits but acting outside of the limits.

When you think and act outside those limits, you discover that they don’t exist at all and realize that you arbitrarily set those limits. When you have a breakthrough like that, you witness a miracle. Jesus wants us to set Miracle Goals.

In today’s scripture lesson, Jesus fed five thousand people using minimal resources. We will learn from this miracle the profound lessons of discipleship leadership to solve insurmountable problems and to move mountains. Let’s begin!

Do you know that one of the best-selling nutritional supplement categories is energy supplements? If you search for energy supplements on Amazon.com now, you will get over 20,000 items. Three years ago, I did the exact search and got 8,000, and I thought that was too many. It grew almost three times in three years. What does it tell you?

It tells me there is a shortage of physical energy, and many people have become dependent on energy supplements as a quick fix. I heard about people getting extremely rich by selling energy supplements. The market seems ever-expanding.

For example, everyone today knows Red Bull—the energy drink sold over twelve billion cans in 2023, almost two cans for every human. A can of Red Bull costs $0.9 to make but sells at $3 or more. The wholesale price is around $1.80. So they make nearly 20 times the profit.

Why do people lack energy? Can instant energy pills or drinks leave long-term damage down the line? They do, but people would rather risk their health for an instant energy boost. Some drink it for entertainment, and others for productivity.

Today, I would like to introduce a natural energy booster that doesn’t cost anything. It’s part of the Leadership Spirituality I have researched for decades.

Humans are composed of body, mind, and spirit. Our physical energy comes from healthy nutrition, mental energy from sound learning, and spiritual energy from proper devotion. When all three are well integrated, we have wholeness, which gives us the most energetic state without the Red Bull.

Conversely, three things drain our energy: eating wrong, learning wrong, or devoting wrong. Energy supplements cannot replace these mistakes. Supplements should be used as supplements but not as substitutes. Instead of reaching out for a quick fix, we should figure out what is draining our energy.

I’ve discovered that nurturing spiritual energy is crucial because no matter how well you eat or how smart you are, life without devotion is meaningless.

For example, what activity in life requires the most energy? Childbearing. Where do mothers get that amazing life-giving energy to bring a new life into the world? Love and compassion. Love is spiritual.

Some might want to say love is an emotion, but it’s part of the spirit. The Bible says the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. These are spiritual fruits, but they manifest as emotions. A healthy spirit produces healthy emotions.

If you are spiritually nourished, you will feel energetic even if you don’t have time to eat. We read in the Bible that there were times Jesus did not have time to eat because he was busy healing and helping people, yet he appeared energetic as if he had already eaten.

For example, when Jesus reached out to the Samaritan woman at the well while the disciples went into the city to buy food. The disciples returned, and the Bible says,

Meanwhile the disciples were urging him, “Rabbi, eat something.” But he said to them, “I have food to eat that you do not know about.” (Jn 4:31–32).

What food did Jesus eat? At the beginning of this story, Jesus was already tired after a long journey, but now he appeared nourished and satisfied without eating physical food. What did he eat that turned him from tired to triumphant? What’s his secret?

The context shows that the secret is love and compassion, but you might wonder how you can consume compassion as nutrition and how it can immediately reenergize an exhausted body. Love and compassion can make supermen and superwomen out of ordinary people.

In today’s scripture lesson, Jesus trained his disciples to become leaders and showed them how to become “energizer bunnies” because leaders on a mission sometimes may not have time to rest. We learn that even the disciples didn’t have time to eat but continued to work long hours energetically.

Today, we will explore compassion as an energy booster through today’s scripture lesson and learn how to naturally and spiritually energize your life without sugar water or Red Bull. Let’s begin.

Once upon a time, a woodcutter was chopping wood by a river. As he swung his axe, it slipped from his hands and fell into the river. The woodcutter was poor and could not afford to lose his only tool. Desperate, he sat by the riverbank and cried.

Suddenly, the angel guarding the river appeared and asked why he was crying. The woodcutter explained his plight, and the angel dived into the river, emerging with a golden axe. “Is this your axe?” asked the angel.

The woodcutter, with tears in his eyes, shook his head. “No, that’s not mine,” he said. The angel dived again and came up with a silver axe. “Is this your axe?” asked the angel.

Again, the woodcutter shook his head. “No, that’s not mine either,” he said. Finally, the angel brought up the woodcutter’s old, worn-out iron axe. “Is this your axe?” asked the angel.

The woodcutter’s face lit up with relief. “Yes, that’s my axe,” he said, his voice filled with gratitude. Impressed by the woodcutter’s integrity, the angel rewarded him with all three axes. (End of the story.)

This allegory might sound childish, but it edifies those seeking wisdom. Integrity may sometimes sound silly in a situation like this, but God rewards those who have it.

First, let’s define integrity because most assume integrity means honesty. Integrity is more than honesty. It means being integrated. It’s similar to wholeness—being whole and complete.

In telecommunication and IT, “system integrity” means every part of the hardware and software functions as intended to complete the tasks.

In humans, integrity represents wholeness, giving us a healthy and harmonious body, mind, and spirit. So, integrity is more than honesty. It’s congruency among our actions, thoughts, and beliefs. A person without integrity acts incongruently from their thoughts and beliefs.

If you were that woodcutter, how would you react when the angel showed you the golden axe? You might say, “It’s not exactly mine, but I don’t mind using it. Better than nothing!” Don’t you think it’s both honest and humble? You don’t want to trouble the angel to dive down the river for you again.

I have seen people like that woodcutter. They are down to earth. They don’t take what’s not rightfully theirs. If you have such people among your friends, you are blessed because they make reliable friends, and you can trust them for life.

Integrity has at least two major benefits:

• It gives you peace, and you will sleep well.
• It gives you the power to influence people.

A Chinese proverb says, “Those who don’t act against their conscience in the daytime will not fear ghosts knocking on the door at night.” (白日不做亏心事，半夜不怕鬼敲门。) Integrity makes you sleep soundly at night because you have a clear conscience.

Secondly, a person with integrity emits subliminal power over people. They influence good people and intimidate bad people. Those who lack integrity fear people with integrity. They are like a bright light shining into the darkness, so the darkness hates them.

We live in a world that promotes compromise. Maintaining integrity in this fallen world is not easy. But we must strive to attain and maintain our highest integrity because it makes you sleep well and gives you the power to influence good people and intimidate bad ones.

Today’s scripture lesson tells the story of a man of integrity, John the Baptist, against dark and violent tyranny. John died with integrity, but he didn’t lose; tyranny lost. Jesus said,

“For what does it profit a man to gain the whole world and forfeit his soul?” (Mk 8:36 ESV).

When someone loses integrity to gain worldly profits, they lose their soul. So, today, we will explore how to protect the power of your integrity and wholeness when the world tries to compromise you. Later, I will also share what it is like to be at the pinnacle of integrity. So, let’s begin!