Perspectives on Leadership

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This is Leadership Week on MinistryLIVE. Look for all of the posts this week to pertain to the topic of leadership. We are going to lead off today with a perspectives post on leadership.

• Brandon – The Value of Leadership
• Lindsey – The Risk of Leadership
• Ben – Servant Leadership
• Ray – An Example of Leadership “David”
• Tyler - Leadership by Example

Brandon Collins

Leadership is one of the things that make us human. This may sound extreme, but think about this: leadership is influence. It is all about how we relate to other people. You’ve probably heard that humans are social creatures, this means that we measure a large part of our lives by the interactions we have with others like us. “Did I make a difference? Does anyone love me?” These are social questions. Any social interaction demands leadership. No two people are the same and so they will never see something exactly the same way. This means that when two people agree, one of them has submitted to the other. And there lies the essence of leadership.

Are you the one who people submit to? This is not a power hungry question. Our race needs leaders: people with creativity, ideas, vision, and the resources to reach those visions. Leadership is really asking the question, “Who will do the extra work (mentally and physically) for the benefit of us all?”

Ben Bacon

The leader is a servant?!

Don’t look at me, Jesus said it (Lk. 22:24-26.) Ok, I realize that the context of the passage is the disciples someday being seated together with Christ in the heavenly kingdom but don’t miss the principle: leaders are called to be servants. We are commanded numerous places in the New Testament to serve one another with what we have (cf. Rom. 12:3-9; Gal. 5:13; Eph. 4:11-13; 1 Pet. 4:10). Let me tell you what that does not mean.

Deflate your head, leadership requires service!

Let me dispel a rumor: your ministry is not about you. God did not place you in your position for any other reason than that He loves to use weak, foolish things (1 Cor. 15: 26-29). You’re like a turtle on a fence-post; you didn’t put yourself there and you can’t keep yourself there. Moreover, God hates pride and, when we are proud, we oppose God (Jas. 4:6). Being a servant leader requires humility.

Be a servant, NOT a slave.

Being a servant and being a slave is not the same thing. Service requires courageous leadership because true service does ultimate good to the one or ones being served. If you’re encountering pressure because you’re preaching the Word, then servant leadership means not collapsing under the peer pressure. Surrender at this point is not servant leadership but cowardice. The servant leader does his followers true good by teaching them the truth, even if they don’t like it (Eph. 4:12).

He who exemplifies true servant leadership, leads and serves the people entrusted to him by God. But where do I start serving those who I lead? I have several suggestions:

• Find out a need of someone in your church and humbly meet it. Serving your people physically shows them that you care.
• Stand up for what God’s Word says and don’t back down. Stand firm and hold fast to your calling (Eph. 4:12), the edification of the saints. Preach it, teach it, and live it to the glory of God.
• Make every effort to work yourself out of a job: teach, instruct, and disciple one-on-one. Teach them how to replace you and how to teach others to replace them.

Lindsey Young

Do you desire to be a great leader? Then you must be aware of the risks involved.

Let’s name a few:

• When you stand up for righteousness, you risk being mocked.
• When you propose a new idea, you risk being shot down.
• When you speak, you risk being misunderstood.
• When you make a choice, you risk being questioned or criticized.
• When you are watched, you risk being scrutinized.
• When you are standing tall, you risk falling a lot farther down.

Let me quickly explain these risks in a little more detail.

Scrutinization: If you hold any position of leadership, you will be scrutinized. What you say, what you do, how you respond and handle situations, what things bring you joy and what draws pain in your life, all of it is out for open display before every seeking eye. Not only must it be this way, but it is better this way. You are the example and people should be able to watch your life. With the privilege of leadership comes a great deal of responsibility. You are the model that others will seek to follow. People long to know you are real, but they often wait to see if you will fall.

Falling into sin: It can be easy in leadership to let down your guard. You can begin to think that you are above falling into sin, and therefore are all the more likely to do so. Make sure you get accountability in leadership, so this is prevented.

Questioned/Shot down: Your ideas will often seem improbable. And some of them will be. It’s your job to seek high, yet achievable goals. Don’t expect everyone to understand you at first. Remember, chances are you have had time to mull over your plans, the listeners have not. Being willing to wait, willing to adjust and willing to listen to the advice of others. Even if they shoot you down first.

Criticism: When you are in leadership you must understand that not everyone will agree with you. Not everyone will like you. Ask yourself, am I all right with this? Remember, your primary focus in leadership is to be displaying a Christ-like model of leadership and Christ-like character in your conduct. This will sometimes mean you will be questioned or mocked for taking the hard stand against sin. But, if you are seeking to please the Lord, are in God’s Word daily and surround yourself with Godly accountability partners, you will find joy in leadership and be able to handle and succeed despite the risks.

Ray Deck

With all of that said, let me take a minute to introduce you to someone who knew the risk of leadership and stepped up anyway. David is one of my favorite leaders in scripture, and we all know that he took great risks as a leader. Stepping out as a young man to face Goliath was so gutsy that we still use the David-Goliath metaphor today. It is universally understood that taking on a “Goliath” takes courage. David is the guy who inspired the cliché. Time after time he found himself in a place that was void of leadership and he stepped up. He didn’t need a title to be a leader. He didn’t need a position or outside endorsements. David just needed a God to follow. And David made mistakes, sure, but when you think about the name David do you remember his mistakes or do you remember his courageous leadership of God’s people?

We are going to examine his life a little more in depth later this week. Like… on Friday, but for now let me add that the rewards greatly outweighed the risks. Yes, there are risks in leadership, but the chance to impact many people for Christ is well worth any potential risk. My challenge to you is: go for it!

Step out. Take the risk. Chase the Lion. I guarantee you that the reward of a multiplied impact will be well worth the risk. Stay tuned this week as we discuss Leadership.

Tyler Collins

To say that leadership by example is important would be the understatement of the millennium. Many leaders don’t realize that 90% of their leadership happens when they are “not looking.” The old saying, “actions speak louder than words” is always true, and even more so when you are a leader. Whether you are a parent leading your kids, a teacher leading the classroom, a youth worker leading your teens, or a pastor leading a congregation. The number 1 principle for leadership is lead by example. Let’s look at two biblical examples that show that this is not a option when it comes to leadership. If you are a leader you are already leading by example the real question is…where does your life lead people? To God, or somewhere else?

1. Example 1 is the Apostle Paul. He understood this principle very vividly and practically. That’s why we can read such statements like 1 Corinthians 11:1 where he says “Follow me as I follow Christ.” He realized his life was leading people somewhere no matter what he did, so instead of saying, “don’t watch my life!” He said follow my life as I follow Christ’s life. For another passage on Paul’s leadership check out 1 Thessalonians 2:8 as well as THIS article.
2. Example 2 is none other then our Lord Himself, Jesus Christ. A quick look at any of the gospels will quickly tell you that everything that Jesus did was leadership by example. Because He died to be our savior He set Himself up to be our example. But even during his earthly life his method of transforming the disciples into usable vessels is rather clear, He lived with them, worked with them, ate with them, laughed with them, and walked with them. During their ministry together except for a few times when he sent them out on their own He was always with them teaching them with His life and with His words.

The bottom line is we are all leaders in some way. There are always people looking to us for guidance so the question we must ask ourselves is what will they see?

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Filed under Ben, Brandon, Discipleship, Leadership Week, Lindsey, Perspective, Ray, Staff Writer, Themed Weeks, youth ministry

Tags: chase the lion, courage, influence, leadership, ministry, ministy leadership, servant leadership