THREE TOP PRIORITIES FOR EVERY LEADER

A great and timely reminder by Dave Kraft

I hear the same refrain everywhere I go: “I’m so busy, tired, exhausted, running on empty. I don’t think I can handle this any more. I don’t think I can keep this up much longer. Everything seems to be a top priority. I don’t know where to start!”

In the name of simplicity, let me share three top priorities for every leader. If you are one of the fortunate ones who has an agreed-upon ministry or job description, there is a good chance these are not currently on that description, but should be if you are to lead the way that Jesus intends for you to lead.

1. Regularly Listening To God

If you are like me, there are many voices–other people in my life and some inside my own head–telling me to do this or that, be here or there, help this person or that person. Of all the voices that I need to listen and respond to, first is that of God himself. I need, with his grace, to live and lead for an audience of one.

“…and the sheep listen -to his voice. He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out…” John 10:3 (NIV)

“The Lord came and stood there, calling as at other times, ‘Samuel, Samuel.’ Then Samuel said, ‘Speak for your servant is listening.” 1 Samuel 3:10 (NIV)

“Pray that the Lord your God will tell us where we should go and what we should do.” Jeremiah 42:3 (NIV)

“Listen for God’s voice in everything you do, everywhere you go; he’s the one who will keep you on track.” Proverbs 3:6 (The Message)

Whatever your “spiritual disciplines” are, make them a consistent, regular part of your daily and weekly rhythms. Cut down on all the other noises around you so you can tune into what he is saying to you and live in responsive obedience.

2. Constantly Developing Leaders

Poor leaders do it all by themselves, good leaders invest in others to help them. If you are following a God-given, God-size vision, you would be a fool to try and do it by yourself. You would also cheat others out of using their God-given talents by doing it all yourself. All leaders, regardless of their roles and responsibilities, need to be constantly pouring into the next generation of leaders so that:

1. You can focus on your unique contribution
2. Others can maximize the total contribution that can be made
3. Organizational morale will be high

I have never been involved with a church or Christian organization that had enough leaders.  Maybe one exists out there somewhere, but I have never encountered it or read about it. Most everyone is looking for new leaders. This mandates being proactive, intentional, deliberate and prayerful in deciding whom to select, developing those you select and  then deploying them in ministry. You will want to have both a philosophy and a pathway for leadership development. It will not happen accidentally. Every leader needs to be prayerfully looking around and focusing on a few future leaders.

“And the things you have heard me say in the presence of many witnesses entrust to reliable men who will be qualified to teach others.” 2 Timothy 2:2 (NIV)

“But select capable men from all the people—men who fear God, trustworthy men who hate dishonest gain—and appoint them as officials over thousands, hundreds, fifties and tens.” Exodus 18:21 (NIV)

3. Pacing Yourself

Years ago I would ask leaders how they were doing and I would hear: “I’m super busy.” Today when I ask, I hear: “I’m super tired.” Pacing is critical to longevity in leadership. We need to remember that we are in a marathon–not a 100 meter sprint. By his grace, discovering and maintaining a healthy balance between ministry, personal and family is paramount. Learning how to practice Sabbath as a principle– not just a day–may save your life. Having times of intense engagement, intermingled with deliberate times of disengagement, will keep you physically, emotionally and mentally healthy.

“You chart the path ahead of me, and tell me where to stop and rest. Every moment, you know where I am.” Psalm 138: 3 (The Living Bible)

“Are you tired? Worn out? Burned out on religion? Come to me. Get away with me and you’ll recover your life. I’ll show you how to take a real rest.” Matthew 11:28 (The Message)

“Energy, not time, is the fundamental currency of high performance. Without the right quantity, quality, focus and force of energy, we are compromised in any activity we undertake.”

“Performance, health and happiness are grounded in the skillful management of energy. Leaders are the stewards of organizational energy—in companies, organizations and even in families. They inspire or demoralize others first by how effectively they manage their own energy and next by how well they mobilize, focus, invest and renew the collective energy of those they lead.”  – The Power of Full Engagement” by Jim Loehr and Tony Schwartz

Please make these three your top priorities so you can be a “Leader Who Lasts.”

• Listen regularly to God
• Constantly develop other leaders
• Intentionally pace yourself

5 CRUCIAL ATTITUDE DIFFERENCES BETWEEN CHURCHES THAT GROW AND CHURCHES THAT DON’T

A great post by Carey Neiuwhof....Challanging!

So…what’s the difference between a growing church and a declining church?

Well, there are many, but one of the biggest differences I see is the attitudeof the leaders.

The leaders of growing churches almost always share a common attitude.

So do the leaders of declining churches.

And the attitude has a huge influence over the results each church sees.

Attitude may or may not be everything, but it’s close.

Here are 5 attitude differences I see again and again in growing churches and declining churches.

1. WE CAN V. WE CAN’T

Perhaps the biggest differences I see between growing churches and declining churches is the attitude around what’s possible.

Growing churches believe they can.

Declining churches believe they can’t.

They’re both right.

One of my all-time favourite quotes is Henry Ford’s “Whether you believe you can or believe you can’t, you’re right.”  He’s correct.

Growing churches make a way when there’s no way, which seems to be what God specializes in if you read the Bible.

When you sit around your leadership table, do you come up with 20 ways to make it happen, or 20 reasons why it won’t work? That tells you far more about your church than you probably want it to.

Growing churches believe they can. It’s that simple. And even if they’re wrong, at least they tried. The mission is important enough to take significant risk.

2. THEM V. US

Declining churches focus on themselves.

Growing churches focus on the people they’re trying to reach.

If your leadership table conversations are all about the needs and wants of your members, it’s a sign that your church is insider focused.

The mission of the church is to reach the world. Growing churches not only know that; they live it.

Besides, who likes to hang out with selfish people?

And ironically, selfish people almost always end up in a very surprising place: alone. Because a life devoted to self ultimately leaves you alone. That’s also true for selfish churches.

If you’re becoming smaller and smaller, is it because you’re selfish

3. PRINCIPLES V. PREFERENCES

Declining churches focus on their member’s preferences.

Todd didn’t like the music. 

Allison thinks we’re not deep enough. 

Bill wants to start a new program.

And so the leaders respond, trying to please everybody.

In reality, declining churches bend to the preferences of its members.

Growing churches don’t.

Instead, they focus on the principles (even strategies) that will help them reach new people.

Is your leadership team principle-driven or preference-driven? There’s a world of difference between the two

4. PROACTIVE V. REACTIVE

This is a close cousin of points 2 and 3 above, but the difference is deadly or life-giving depending on where you land.

Growing churches are proactive. They choose their agenda and immediately get on issues that can impact their future.

Declining churches are reactive, letting members determine the agenda and reacting to problems as they arise.

In fact, most declining churches are so busy reacting to problems other people raise that they never get around to charting a course for the future.

If you never get around to charting a course for the future, you will have no future.

Growing churches have a strong bias for setting their own agendas, not in the selfish sense, but in a way that determined leaders see what the mission requires and decide to deal with it.

The leaders in a growing church simply refuse to yield to the agenda of others that would take them off mission.

And as a result, they are far more effective.

5. NOW V. EVENTUALLY

Growing churches act. And they act now.

Declining churches don’t.

Declining churches don’t actually say they won’t act, they’ll just say they’ll get to it ‘eventually’, or someday, or ‘when the time is right’—which means never.

By contrast, as I outlined here, great leaders and great teams banish the word ‘someday’ and other words from their vocabulary.

If you want to be effective, you act.

If you want to be ineffective, you don’t.

Talk without action has little value. And too many church leaders specialize in talk.

In addition, too many church teams meet for the sake of meeting.

If you can’t remember the last time you made a major decision that changed the course of your church, your leaders are wasting their time.

If you talk about the same issues meeting after meeting with no resolution, you’re not leading, you’re spinning your wheels.

Does that mean you have to act on everything? Well, yes and no.

If you’re not going to act, strike the item off the agenda and move on.

If you are going to act, act. Now.

Just make a decision and move on with it. Don’t get stuck in the no man’s land of believing the lie that talking about things solves things.

As my friend Casey Graham says, action produces traction. So act.

7 CHARACTERISTICS OF SHALLOW LEADERSHIP:

A challenging post by Ron Edmonston.  

Growing in our leadership abilities — including growing in the knowledge of leadership and the relational aspect of leadership– should be a goal for every leader.

Sadly, many leaders settle for status quo leadership rather than stretching themselves to continually improve. They remain oblivious to the real health of their leadership and the organizations they lead. They may get by — people may say things are “okay” — but it isn’t excellent.

I call it shallow leadership.

Perhaps you’ve seen this before in leadership. Maybe you’ve been guilty of providing shallow leadership. For a season, at least. I certainly have.

Still wondering what shallow leadership looks like?

1.  Thinking your idea will be everyone’s idea. You assume everyone is on the same page. You think everyone thinks like you. You stop asking questions of your team. You stop evaluating. 

2.  Believing that your way is the only way. You’re the leader — you must be right. You’ve had some success. It went to your head a little. So, you’ve become head strong. You’re controlling. You make every decision. You never delegate.

3.  Assuming you already know the answer. You think you’ve done it long enough to see it all. You quit learning. You stop reading. You never meet with other leaders anymore. 

4.  Pretending to care when really you don’t. You have grown cold in your passion. You may speak the vision but they’re just words to you now. You go through the motions. You’re drawing a paycheck. But, truth be known, you’d rather be anywhere than here right now.

5.  Giving the response that makes you most popular. You like to be liked. You never make the hard decisions. You refuse to challenge. You avoid conflict. You run from complainers. You ignore the real problems.

6.  Refusing to make a decision. You had a setback. Things didn’t go as planned. You’ve grown scared. You’re overwhelmed. You refuse to walk by faith. Your team won’t move forward because you won’t move forward.

7.  Ignoring the warning signs of poor health. Momentum may be suffering. Things may not be “awesome” anymore. You look the other way. Your soul is empty. You may be unhealthy. The team may be unhealthy. You refuse to see it.

We never achieve best with shallow leadership. The first step is to admit. 

7 ESSENTIAL QUALITIES THAT MAKE YOU A LEADER WORTH FOLLOWING

Carey Nieuwhof shares 7 essential qualities that make you a leader worth following. 

How do you know you’re a leader worth following?

By definition, that’s what a leader is: a person whom others follow. (If no one is following you, you’re probably not a leader, unless you’re pre-launch, but even then, look back at your life. Has anyone followed you… ever?)

Naturally, you can gain a following through a variety of means. Not all are great.

Dictators gain following. So do cult leaders. So do criminals.

Not all leadership is great leadership.

Which raises the question, how do you know you’re a leader worth following?

If you’re a Christian, I think this adds another dimension to your leadership.  You need to model leadership in a way that reflects the character and heart of Christ.

So what exactly does that look like?

I’ve met thousands of Christian leaders in my two decades of leadership, and when I think about the leaders I believe are worth following, seven qualities keep rising to the top.

1. HUMILITY

Of all the qualities and characteristics I see in great leaders, humility is one of the greatest. It’s also rarer than it should be, even amongst Christian leaders.

Christians don’t always do humility well. Sometimes we equate humility with groveling or low self-esteem. It is neither.

C.S. Lewis said it so well when he wrote that true humility is not thinking less of yourself; it’s thinking of yourself less.

God gifted you for life and ministry. But the point is that God gifted and equipped you for ministry, you didn’t. The gift always says more about the giver than it does about the recipient.

Trying to take credit for your gifting makes you like a song that ignores its composer.  It doesn’t make the song less powerful; it just distorts what’s going on.

Any alternatives to humility lead straight to arrogance. And as even Jim Collins’ research has discovered, humility is the primary differentiator between good leadership and great leadership. He argues that ego-centric, celebrity-style leadership is the antithesis of great leadership.

Struggle with ego? Be a little less impressed with yourself and more impressed with your team. Better yet, be deeply impressed with God.

2. INTEGRITY

Most of us think integrity is a good thing, but what does the term mean?

On the one hand, it means that who you are on the inside matches what you appear to be on the outside. You are consistent to the core.

The concept of integrity springs from the original Latin root of the word, which means ‘intact.’  In other words, can you withstand the crisis intact? A house with integrity (a solid foundation that is what it says it is) will withstand a storm. A house with a flimsy foundation won’t.

‘Normal’ doesn’t test your integrity. A crisis does. If you want to see how deeply your integrity runs, just look at your last crisis.

If you want to improve your integrity, take the steps you need to ensure your private walk matches your public talk.

3. A PASSIONATE FAITH

These points are in no particular order, but still, you might wonder why a passionate faith isn’t #1.

First, people would expect it to be #1… so to sound fresh and make sure you don’t skip it; it’s #3.

A passionate faith is the ultimate hallmark of Christian leadership.

But the part that lags in many leaders is the passion part. Leadership can make you weary. Like paint, passion fades over time.

It’s so important to make sure your passion stays fresh. (Here are 5 signs your passion is white hot.)

Your team will only ever be as passionate about the mission

4. EMOTIONAL HEALTH

There are a lot of emotionally unhealthy leaders in leadership, but if you want to be a leader worth following, get healthy.

Your health as a leader impacts your entire church regardless of the size.

I am part of a church that’s home to over 2000 people. I don’t know many of them by name. But I do know this: the health of a leader impacts everyone in the organization. Everyone.

If you’re healthy at the top, you’ll be healthy at the bottom. If you’re unhealthy at the top, you’ll be unhealthy at the bottom.

Emotionally healthy people recognize, understand and manage their own emotions and reactions. They also know, understand and can (appropriately) influence the emotions of others.

Think about it. Isn’t that what the majority of church conflict is about?  Exactly.

Your church or team will only be as healthy as you are. Why?

Because eventually, healthy people won’t serve under an unhealthy leader. And unhealthy people won’t stay for long under a healthy leader unless they want to get well.

5. TRUSTWORTHINESS

Trust is confidence, and in leadership, it operates at two levels.

First, there’s personal trust. Personal trust is about:

Telling the truth.

Character.

Integrity.

We’ve already talked about that.

But there’s another element to trust, and that relates to your performance.

There are more than a few leaders who personally have solid character  but are untrustworthy as leaders because they don’t deliver.

The key to instilling confidence in your team as a trustworthy leader is simple: do what you said you were going to do when you said you were going to do it.

If you’re sloppy, undisciplined and miss deadlines, your team will never fully trust you. And they’re right not to.

6. TEACHABILITY

You may be the leader, but you also need to continue to be a learner.

Being an effective leader is not as much about being the teacher as it is about being teachable.

If you’re not learning, you’re not growing.

The truly exceptional leaders allow their teams and followers to teach them too. This isn’t just about peer learning, or learning from mentors, conferences or books.

It’s about a posture of openness.

The more teachable you are, the more people will love being led by you.

7. CLARITY

One of the most challenging aspects of leadership is establishing clarity.

Think about it. Leadership is complex with many variables. Your head spins from the uncertainty involved. I get that.

Leaders worth following, though, do the hard work of creating clarity.

You can’t always be certain. But you always have to be clear.

The alternative is ambiguity. No one can follow or get excited about ambiguity. And ambiguity doesn’t change the world.

Ways to Relax When You’re Overworked

A helpful blog originally posted by Rick Warren.

It seems that many leaders readily confess that they are overwhelmed, overcommitted and overworked; maybe more than many. So what’s a leader to do? Rick Warren shares ways to relax when you’re overwhelmed.

5 Ways to Relax When You’re Overworked.  As ministry leaders, we approach each day with passion because we’re working for God, and our mission is literally to see the world saved. But the fact is, there will always be more work to do in ministry, and that’s why we must deliberately take time away from work.

God did it, resting one day after working six, so why should we think the world will fall apart if we aren’t on the job 24/7?

Here are five steps you can take toward recovery from ministry workaholism.

R – Readjust Your Values

The costs of workaholism are enormous: divorce, alcohol abuse, heart attacks and other illnesses, fragmented and fractured relationships, unhappiness, and loneliness.

Ask yourself these questions:

Why am I working so hard? Do a motive check. What drives you to do this? Are you trying to prove something?

Is the payoff worth it? Why do you keep fighting to get to the next level? What can you realistically expect? Is it worth sacrificing your life for it?

Your life is too important to waste on second-class causes. Readjust your values.

Ecclesiastes 5:15 says, “In spite of all our work there is nothing we can take with us” (GNT). God doesn’t expect you to save the world single-handedly, and believe me, your kids need you, too.

E – Enjoy Your Rewards

Ecclesiastes 3:13 says, “All of us should eat and drink and enjoy what we’ve worked for. It is God’s gift”(GNT).

Most of us never slow down long enough to enjoy what we’ve got, but it’s a mistake to postpone enjoyment. “One of these days I’m really going to start enjoying life. Just after I finish this next project . . . ”

Listen: It’s not true. If you don’t enjoy life right now, then when you do have free time on your hands, you’re not going to know how to enjoy it.

Learn to enjoy life right now, in the moment, because you’re not guaranteed tomorrow.

L – Limit Your Labor

Figure out, realistically, how many hours you should work and then hold yourself to that schedule. Don’t wear yourself out in your work.

Exodus 20:9-10 says, “You have six days in which to do your work, but the seventh day is to be a day of rest dedicated to me” (GNT). Every seventh day you take a day off. Pastor, this is not a suggestion; this is a commandment!

God didn’t create you so you could constantly work. Your best requires rest.

Limit your labor by scheduling three things in your life:

• Rest
• Recreation
• Relationships

If you’re married, there’s a fourth one: romance.

These are part of God’s plan for your life. If you don’t schedule these, you’ll never find time for them.

A – Anticipate God’s Care

Matthew 6:31-32 says, “So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them” (NIV).

A lot of our workaholism is rooted in worry. You have to put your security in something that can’t be taken from you. Trust that God knows your needs and can provide for you.

A Christian man, after struggling for years, finally said, “God, I’m going to give you my business. You’re the CEO now. You’re in charge of my career—the profits, payoffs, promotions. It’s your business now and you run it.”

The next day his business warehouse burned to the ground. He was seen standing outside the warehouse with a giant smile on his face. He said, “Last night I gave my business to God. If he wants to burn it down, it’s his business.”

He had a new perspective: God will handle it! As quickly as he burned the thing down, he can raise it up again. That’s called trust.

X – Exchange Your Pressure for God’s Peace

Jesus said in Matthew 11:28, 30, “Come to me, all of you who are tired from carrying heavy loads, and I will give you rest . . . the yoke I will give you is easy, and the load I will put on you is light” (GNT).

Jesus came to give you a lifestyle that is easy and light. If you’re carrying a load that is heavy and overbearing, then it’s not from God.

Perhaps you have been in this lifestyle so long, you don’t know any other way. You’re dead tired, but you can’t seem to stop. God has a word for you: “Trust me. I’ll take care of you. Exchange your pressure for my peace.”

What do you want written on your tombstone? What are you living for? If you’re living for your work, you’re selling yourself short. Work is an important part of God’s plan for your life. But your work will never satisfy the deepest needs in your life. It wasn’t meant to—only Jesus Christ can do that.

Running with the ultimate pace-setter: Jesus What can marathon training teach us about running a life-long race with the Lord of all?

An inspiring post by Richard Powney

I love running. Growing up as a kid, if you wanted to get me to go somewhere you simply had to challenge me to a race and I’d be there in a flash. I’ve found that people’s reaction to running is quite similar to reactions to Marmite – people either love it or hate it.

With the London Marathon taking place in April, this time of year is when many people are embarking on marathon training; two members of my family got a place in the ballot and started their training at the start of January. This means embracing early morning runs in the dark (a good head torch is an essential piece of kit), setting aside a good chunk of time for your long run on a Sunday, and making sure you eat enough of the right sort of food and keep hydrated. All in all, running a marathon takes a lot of planning, commitment and hard work.

I’m not surprised that the apostle Paul uses running to help draw out elements of Christians’ life of faith. In 1 Corinthians 9:24 – 25 Paul encourages us to ​“run in such a way as to get the prize. Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last, but we do it to get a crown that will last forever.”

I’ve found that running has been very helpful in teaching me about the importance of discipline, perseverance and hard work in my walk with Christ. The longer I remain as a disciple of Jesus, the more aware I become of my clear need to join in with the tax collector’s prayer: ​“God, have mercy on me, a sinner.” My only hope is in the grace and mercy of the God and Father of my Lord Jesus Christ. And yet, this does not mean that I don’t need to put any effort into my life of faith. As Dallas Willard writes: ​“Grace is not opposed to effort, it is opposed to earning. Earning is an attitude. Effort is an action.

Leaders keep developing.

A great article from Tony Morgan Live! 

“Keep putting into practice all you learned and received from me—everything you heard from me and saw me doing. Then the God of peace will be with you.”  Philippians 4:9 . Here Paul addresses how to learn to lead, and how to prepare others to lead.

Here’s an important thing I know from this verse about growing leaders: We all need teaching, modeling and coaching to develop into the leaders God has called us to be.

Pause for a few minutes today to think on the questions below. Where is your biggest gap in leadership development today

I 

should also note: As a leader you will need to revisit these questions throughout your life, as your environments change and as you lead at new levels. You may see yourself cycle through this model in various capacities over time. 

Leaders keep developing.