4. Our purpose here on earth has alignment in heaven.
Our purpose is very clear, to make disciples, which of course includes evangelism first.
(If we don’t first introduce someone to Christ and see that relationship begin, how can we disciple them? Our purpose as a disciple has never been only to gather in a holy huddle but to share the gospel with others.)
We have a great deal of freedom in how we accomplish the mission, but ultimately, it’s not our will but God’s that we must stay in alignment with.
He withdrew about a stone’s throw beyond them, knelt down and prayed,“Father, if you are willing, take this cup from me; yet not my will, but yours be done.” (Luke 22:41-42)
As a leader, how do you stay in alignment with the mission and purpose of God? It’s easy to get so busy doing ministry that we can lose track of the big picture.
5. Grace, faith, and humility set the tone for our leadership.
I must admit, we could list so many other core traits here, so feel free to add some that are most meaningful to you. But for the sake of brevity, I’ll focus on just three.
Grace shapes how we treat those we lead.
Grace is one of the earliest gifts we encounter as a new disciple, love is perhaps the only thing that precedes it, and they form our leadership.
Grace enables so much within the heart of a leader, from patience to forgiveness, without which it’s nearly impossible to lead following Jesus’ model.
Faith shapes our trust in God and belief in the future.
Faith allows us as leaders to trust and follow God, as well as keep hope in the future alive.
Let’s be honest, our faith takes hits along the road of leadership, and doubt creeps in, but as we remember God’s faithfulness, our faith is renewed, and we keep going.
Faith and trust are the foundation to a leader’s vision and belief that it can be realized.
Humility reminds us that without God, we can do nothing of eternal significance.
Life has its own unique way of humbling you; it’s much wiser to choose the path of humility on your own.
The challenge is that humility is not always such an easy path, and after all, how do you know if you are humble and much humility is enough? Right?
It’s not so much that you try to “achieve” humility. Humility is based more on the idea that you don’t feel superior to or better than others because of what you have, your status or authority, and equally, it’s not about feeling inferior to others.
Humility, at its essence, is following the example of Jesus.
This article about effectiveness as a leader originally appeared here.
