Imagine how different our lives would be if we wrote a “rule of life.” The idea behind this concept is to focus on our purpose in life.

Before considering the connection to leadership, answer the following questions.

Have we ever sat down and written out our purpose of life?

Why are we pursuing the course in life we are pursuing?

What do we want to achieve and get out of life?

Would we be willing to write down our purpose in life?

What implications would exist with having a written purpose for life?

Knowing and reminding ourselves of our purpose in life will continue to keep us focused on the impact of our words and actions.

Having a “rule of life” gives us meaning and hope for what the future holds.

A rule of life changes the way we see God, develop family, and influence others.

At some point sharing our rule of life with others encourages others to do the same. Remember, our rule of life should incorporate our understanding of God, His working in our life, and our desire to glorify Him.

“Did I offer peace today? Did I bring a smile to someone’s face? Did I say words of healing? Did I let go of my anger and resentment? Did I forgive? Did I love? These are the real questions. I must trust that the little bit of love that I sow now will bear many fruits, here in this world and the life to come.” Henri Nouwen

We are all familiar with the expression, “people don’t care how much you know, until they know how much you care.” Answering the questions presented by Nouwen are foundational to caring for others.

When Paul wrote the church at Philippi, his emphasis and theme spoke to the need of putting others above self. Centered around the example of Jesus, Paul identified several, including himself, who were concerned about the brethren at Philippi.

Imagine what the church would be like today if, at the end of the day, everyone took the time to answer the six questions above. If we focused on putting others above ourselves: their needs, concerns, cares, worries, and desires, the church and this world would sure be a better place.

While the root of these two words is the same, they have a major difference. The first involves the feelings of the recipient and the second involves the intention of the contributor.

Consider the second thought.

The possibility exists that someone can be intimidating and not be aware of it. This is not the intention or motivation. A person simply carries his or herself in such a way it exudes an intimidating presence.

If this is the case, we should learn to make necessary adjustments to overcome this persona.

However, it is not uncommon for leaders to feel they need to be intimidating to accomplish or achieve their goal or purpose.

This style of leadership will only create a temporary and false sense of accomplishment. In the end, people do not want to follow such leaders. If they do, it is only because they feel trapped. Hope is lost and there is no purpose for the future.

People should not be intimidated by leaders and leaders should not be intimidating.

We are leading people to heaven and they need leaders who give them hope! Think Souls.

While this phrase may be overused, it expresses a thought worthy of application.

Two key words represent the significance of this phrase: expect and prepare. Every leader needs to possess and portray a high level of expectation as well as preparation.

Sadly, the opposite mindset often exists. Leaders can expect the worst, while preparing for the best. They tend to be pessimistic, even though they desire positive results. In the end, the final analysis leads to a leadership that confuses followers and creates a lack of trust.

Turn this around, however, and a leader can present an optimistic confidence by which followers develop certainty and conviction.

Leaders must always expect the best because the result instills hope in all who follow. The key element is preparation. To be prepared for the worst, leaders must consider a few questions:

1) What is the worst possible scenario?

2) Who will be affected if this happens?

3) What actions need to be taken to prevent the worst case scenario?

4) How will we respond if the worst case occurs?

These four ideas prepare a foundation for leadership success by minimizing the opportunity for the worst.

One of the greatest qualities of leaders is the ability to elevate or stimulate someone morally or spiritually.

Too often, the primary place of influence is the pulpit and it can easily become a place where we seek to support agendas, pet peeve’s, a hobby horse, or the latest religious fad.

Consider two key principles for public preaching:

1) A reminder of what the Bible says about sin is good, but unless the entire congregation is caught up in a specific sin, pointing out the specific sins of a few does not elevate the brethren morally or spiritually. Approach those caught in a trespass in a biblical manner and save the pulpit for encouragement.

2) Remember, those assembling together on Sunday (at least the majority) assemble because they want to do what God says. These faithful brethren strive to live according to God’s will. The time we are given is an opportunity to encourage them, lift them up. Using this time to belittle, degrade, or condemn them is counter-productive.

Much more could be said, but consider the importance and value of lifting others up in leading them to the cross.

Growing up, most of us knew the menu when mom said, “P B and J.” A peanut butter and jelly sandwich seemed to speak of a healthy lunch, the perfect combination of protein, grains, and carbohydrates. Although subjective, few items go together in the same way.

From a leadership perspective, P B and J carry another important thought.

Promise: Leaders hold promise for a better tomorrow. While emphasizing the superiority of Christ, the writer of the book of Hebrews points out that Jesus provides a better promise because of the better hope in His sacrifice.

Belonging: Every person wants and needs to fit in. A sense of acceptance exists when we belong. Leaders who make it possible for others to belong possess the ability to give others the security of a stable environment.

Journey: The path to success brings numerous challenges, but also rewards. Success is not about a destination, it is the journey. How good and bad are perceived throughout the journey determines the level of success.

The next time we hear P B and J, maybe we can remember the leadership connection.

“Have the wisdom to walk away from things and people that aren’t good for you.” Thema Davis

Pondering today’s thought leads to several interesting ideas.

First, leaders who desire to please everyone, in reality, end up attempting to please only those who matter least. This element usually consists of the minority who speak loudly and critically of any decision or activity that does not originate with or is controlled by them.

Second, it takes wisdom to identify the people who aren’t good for you. This is usually subjective to the individual. However, a few qualities stand out in this category: negativity, cynicism, malicious, deceptive, self-centered, and venomous are a few that are unhealthy for any relationship.

Third, the ability to walk away rests upon knowing the value of one’s own mental, emotional, physical, and spiritual health. Walking away also involves courage, a courage to do what is right, even if it is not popular or even accepted by the majority.

The wisdom to know the people who aren’t good for us and the courage to walk away from them are steps toward a happier and healthier leadership.

One of the greatest fears people have today is public speaking. However, fear of the unknown tends to rank near the top. Perhaps it is because it encompasses so many different areas.

We fear the unknown with the economy.

We fear the unknown with our own job security.

We fear the unknown with health and safety.

If we allowed it to, we could fear the unknown with every area of life. Certainly, the unknowns of leadership would also qualify.

The task before us in spiritual leadership is to remove those unknowns for others. When we consider death, there is a fear of the process of dying and what happens at death, the unknown.

The answer has been provided in Scripture. The body will return to the dust, but the spirit returns to God who gave it.

Because of the death and resurrection of Christ, the fear of death has been removed. The unknown has now been made known. We can provide no greater confidence to others than sharing this hope. Because He lives, all fear is gone. Think Souls!

We are all familiar with this common phrase. The idea is that no matter what happens in life, or what the need might be, there is an app for it.

Generally, this thought is pretty accurate. There are apps that deal with health, fitness, world news, travel, banking, social media, photography, weather, education, leadership, and the list is unending. You may be one of those reading today’s post from the Leadership Fund app right now. If so, thanks!

More to the point: when we consider the far reaching nature of our leadership, are we influencing others in areas concerning life’s circumstances and their various needs?

Imagine the impact on others if they knew that leaders were a resource they could turn to instead of a technological device.

Granted, leaders are not equipped to address “every” area of life. However, the greater our ability to provide answers to the circumstances and needs of life, the greater our opportunity to influence others in the right direction. Ultimately, isn’t this why we are leading?

The definition of today’s word introduces an interesting concept for leadership. Metabolism refers to the chemical processes that occur within a living organism in order to maintain life. If that were not enough, we also learn that two kinds of metabolism exist: constructive and destructive. One involves the work of synthesis among various components that strengthen life and the other breaks it down.

The application to leadership is not a large gap to cross. Leaders carry the responsibility of pulling together the processes needed to maintain life in this living organism called the church. We are also aware that two types of leaders exist in this realm. Constructive leaders work to synthesize the components needed to strengthen life and destructive leaders seem to constantly look for ways to tear it down.

We need to focus our energy as leaders in striving to be positive and build up the direction of the church through our leadership.

There will always be challenges to our leadership and obstacles to overcome, but constructive leaders will focus on ways to pull it all together and strengthen the fabric needed to maintain life.