The midway point is always a point of evaluation. As we near the midway point, we need to reflect on the goals established for 2017 and determine where we are in reaching those goals.

This period of evaluation provides a critical step in our approach to the remainder of the year.

Now is the time to make necessary corrections, adjusting either our plans or goals. At least three areas require consideration.

One, do we have the necessary resources to complete our goals for the year? If we are not half-way toward our goals, then it is possible we need additional resources.

Two, are the right people in the right positions to implement our plans? At times, we need to determine if the right people are in the right positions. If not, we may need to make changes.

Three, have we communicated appropriately the vision and essential steps to achieve it? Communication cannot be overstated. Unless everyone understands the vision and the steps needed to reach it, any attempt to reach our goals is hindered.

Let’s make sure we do not miss the opportunity to evaluate accordingly.

To this point, we have considered three questions that all great leaders ask. There is a fourth question these leaders ask that is also significant to consider: “What might be missing?”

Mike Maddock, who writes for Forbes online, claims “great leaders are open to the fact (and it is a fact) that they are missing something.”

We do not have the space to list all the possible answers to this question. It should be noted that what is missing can range from the most simple of ideas to the most complex of leadership teams.

The value of asking this question, and for leaders to impress upon others the need to answer this question, demonstrates the kind of humility great leaders need in their leadership.

When humility is part of the leadership equation, along with an openness to the possibilities, then followers will provide answers.

A sense of creativity, innovation, and motivation will exist to provide a stronger morale in achieving short and long term goals.

We cannot underestimate the power of humility seen in God’s leaders.

Is this urgent or essential? What should we stop doing? These two questions provide the foundation for the questions that great leaders ask.

The third question Mike Maddock contributes in this Forbes article is another step in leadership development: “What makes you feel strongest?”

There is no doubt when it comes to great leaders needing to understand their strengths and weaknesses. They know the areas where they are weak and how to find the individuals who have strengths to complement those areas.

By doing so, great leaders continue to focus on their strengths. Numerous sources claim that leaders should focus 80% of their time in areas of their strengths and only 20% in areas of weakness.

While this may sound opposite to what we consider the right approach, great leaders tend to prove the theory.

Focusing on the areas of passion and strength makes a good leader great, and makes a great leader outstanding.

The challenge for us is taking the time to ask the right questions and make sure we provide the answers to deliver what is needed to reach our greatest potential.

Yesterday, we looked at the first of four questions great leaders ask. The article, written by Mike Maddock for Forbes, has powerful insight into questions leaders should ask. The first question involved answering the difference between what is essential and urgent.

The second question is one that also demands thought: What should we stop doing?

This question follows on the heels of the first question. Once a leader understands what is essential, there are certain elements to be eliminated.

These elements distract leaders and become time stealers, robbing leaders of the time to focus on matters of an essential nature.

Through the process of eliminating areas of lesser importance (what we should stop doing), leaders can focus their time and energy on the essential side of the “to-do” list.

The implication for spiritual leadership is significant. Spiritual leaders realize the need to prioritize life and work by recognizing the proper balance between what is urgent versus essential.

As we make our way through each question, please take time to consider the answers in application to the leadership needed in the church today.

Voltaire is noted as having said, “Judge a man by his questions rather than his answers.”

The Forbes website provides information about several areas concerning leadership.

One specific article focuses on “Four Questions Great Leaders Ask.” Over the next few days we want to look at each of these questions and how they apply to spiritual leaders.

The first question: “Is this urgent or essential?”

Every leader wrestles with determining the difference between urgent and essential matters. Often times the urgent matters distract leaders from what is essential. A common phrase is “the tyranny of the urgent.”

While leaders in every field deal with how to address the balance between these two areas, the stakes increase when considering spiritual/eternal matters.

Jesus was the Master at asking questions. One of the great studies of the Gospel accounts involves the questions asked by or of Jesus. A study of these questions demonstrates the powerful leadership of our Lord.

Spiritual leaders are needed who recognize what is essential and lead with an urgency to help others discover the way to what is essential for their lives.

Strategic planning involves long-term aims and interests and the means of achieving them.

The Director of Strategic Leadership at the University of Tennessee, Dr. Kate Atchley practices a strict approach to each student.

Dr. Atchley asks several questions each student must answer as they prepare for the program as part of the entrance assessment.

Where are you as a leader?

What kind of leader do you want to be?

What is the gap between these two points?

What kind of plan needs to be developed to bridge the gap?

This type of self evaluation is essential for advancing a strategic plan for leadership development. Each leader must consider where they are and where they want to be, and only when leaders understand the specifics of what separates these two points can a strategy be developed to narrow the gap and become the leader desired.

While the assessment is part of a business leadership model, the spiritual application also has powerful implications.

The relevant question to consider is, “Are we bridging the gap between where we are and where we want (or perhaps need) to be?”

Two of the most unused, yet the most needed and powerful words are “thank you.” To be thankful and to express appreciation are descriptive of what is needed in leadership.

The primary purpose is not to spend the entire post focused on areas for which leaders should be thankful, but rather to consider why leaders should be thankful.

Leaders should be thankful because…

1) God has placed them in this position to glorify Him.

2) The opportunity to influence others for the Lord is the greatest task on earth.

3) Hope is the message provided through godly leaders.

4) Others are trusting in leaders to show them the way.

5) Leadership is making a difference on an eternal scale.

More answers could be provided if space and time allowed, but suffice it to say that leaders must recognize why they should be thankful as much as understanding what we are thankful for and the need to show gratitude.

Our God is great. Let us thank Him who has given us leaders!