TOOLS for LEADERSHIP
Items to help the leader be a servant leader and develop leaders
WHO IS IN CHARGE OF THE FUTURE?
How does a leader prepare for the future and lead into the unknown? It is easy to gather the necessary tools to complete a job when you know exactly what the job is, but what about preparing for the unknown? What do you gather? Who do you turn to? If you do not know where to go then where do you start? Answering the question of how to prepare provides specific steps that are expected to be communicated and then applied to our life. That question is important, but first we need to discuss a more important question. The question is ... Why? Answering the question of how only provides the steps of action. When answering the question of why reasons are given that will provide a foundation for our future action. If only the how question is answered then our thinking is shallow and applicable action is based only on the advice of someone else rather than foundational reasons that provide direction and a course of action. We must start with why and then eventually get to how.
When thinking of the unknown there are many questions and multiples of undiscovered answers. Also the unknown often brings fear. When faced with an unknown and often fearful situation the mind begins to play games with our thinking and possible response. Questions of capability and capacity rise to the forefront of our thinking and we wonder if we are up to the task. The answers to these questions require the development of knowledge and skills.
To begin the process of preparing for the unknown one must come to the point of involving God. Without Him there is a system of thinking and decision making that is based solely on personal preferences and desires. If we truly believe that God is who He says He is then we must live as people of faith who trust in a completely sovereign God. Proverbs 16:9 states that “The mind of a man plans his way, But the LORD directs his steps.” The key question is how does one develop personally and then come to an understanding of the course and direction for life?
Personal research into leadership development has shown that there is a core problem. The issue at stake is the development of Godly leaders for the local church. The question is two fold. First, How do leaders develop? Secondly, How does one go about developing these leaders? Research has made it clear that all to often potential leaders do not understand a key theological issue. The issue at stake is the sovereignty of God.
All to often much time and effort is poured into the lives of potential church leaders only to see them struggle and many times fail in ministry. The question is why? The greatest need remaining and still is for consistent and competent leaders in the church today. The difficulty in developing leaders for the church is that often there is a bias toward developing leaders that look like western leaders. In this view there is often one single leader who is responsible for the whole operation. This leadership style is based on performance and simply getting the job done. Little thought is given to the concept that leadership involves a group and consensus. There is a second bias in leadership development that places a focus on the development of external skills rather than internal characteristics that ground and provide a foundation for the leader. Research and experience point to these flaws in development as key issues found in the failure of development.
The struggle lies in the development of a belief and practice of the sovereignty of God. Our personal Biblical theology will often hold to the position that God is sovereign but we often do not put it into practice. When asked to identify who has the most influence on a good leader only about 75% of the respondents surveyed chose God as the greatest influence. In the survey this question addressed the issue of theological beliefs and how those surveyed apply their beliefs to life situations. The difficulty is that one quarter of those surveyed did not see that God was the sovereign influence in life while the majority affirmed God’s sovereignty in directing life but very often did not allow Him to be sovereign in their life.
When we think about our unknown future we must depend on God who is sovereign and knows our future.
KG 2020 jethrotools.org
How does a leader prepare for the future and lead into the unknown? It is easy to gather the necessary tools to complete a job when you know exactly what the job is, but what about preparing for the unknown? What do you gather? Who do you turn to? If you do not know where to go then where do you start? Answering the question of how to prepare provides specific steps that are expected to be communicated and then applied to our life. That question is important, but first we need to discuss a more important question. The question is ... Why? Answering the question of how only provides the steps of action. When answering the question of why reasons are given that will provide a foundation for our future action. If only the how question is answered then our thinking is shallow and applicable action is based only on the advice of someone else rather than foundational reasons that provide direction and a course of action. We must start with why and then eventually get to how.
When thinking of the unknown there are many questions and multiples of undiscovered answers. Also the unknown often brings fear. When faced with an unknown and often fearful situation the mind begins to play games with our thinking and possible response. Questions of capability and capacity rise to the forefront of our thinking and we wonder if we are up to the task. The answers to these questions require the development of knowledge and skills.
To begin the process of preparing for the unknown one must come to the point of involving God. Without Him there is a system of thinking and decision making that is based solely on personal preferences and desires. If we truly believe that God is who He says He is then we must live as people of faith who trust in a completely sovereign God. Proverbs 16:9 states that “The mind of a man plans his way, But the LORD directs his steps.” The key question is how does one develop personally and then come to an understanding of the course and direction for life?
Personal research into leadership development has shown that there is a core problem. The issue at stake is the development of Godly leaders for the local church. The question is two fold. First, How do leaders develop? Secondly, How does one go about developing these leaders? Research has made it clear that all to often potential leaders do not understand a key theological issue. The issue at stake is the sovereignty of God.
All to often much time and effort is poured into the lives of potential church leaders only to see them struggle and many times fail in ministry. The question is why? The greatest need remaining and still is for consistent and competent leaders in the church today. The difficulty in developing leaders for the church is that often there is a bias toward developing leaders that look like western leaders. In this view there is often one single leader who is responsible for the whole operation. This leadership style is based on performance and simply getting the job done. Little thought is given to the concept that leadership involves a group and consensus. There is a second bias in leadership development that places a focus on the development of external skills rather than internal characteristics that ground and provide a foundation for the leader. Research and experience point to these flaws in development as key issues found in the failure of development.
The struggle lies in the development of a belief and practice of the sovereignty of God. Our personal Biblical theology will often hold to the position that God is sovereign but we often do not put it into practice. When asked to identify who has the most influence on a good leader only about 75% of the respondents surveyed chose God as the greatest influence. In the survey this question addressed the issue of theological beliefs and how those surveyed apply their beliefs to life situations. The difficulty is that one quarter of those surveyed did not see that God was the sovereign influence in life while the majority affirmed God’s sovereignty in directing life but very often did not allow Him to be sovereign in their life.
When we think about our unknown future we must depend on God who is sovereign and knows our future.
KG 2020 jethrotools.org