Leading is a gift best given, not received. Calvin Coolidge said it best, “No person was ever honored for what he received. Honor has been the reward for what he gave.”

The Western mindset generally leans more toward what we receive. After all, “What’s in it for me?”

True leadership and honor are connected to giving.

When we give ourselves to the task of leading others, then the spiritual outcome saves souls.

We need leaders. We need spiritual leaders. Will we give ourselves to leading others today?

This is where honor is rewarded. Think Souls!

Working in different countries can be challenging, especially when communicating. Without a good translator we struggle to know if everyone understands the message.

How is our leadership translated into the lives of others. Even when we speak the same language, there can be confusion translating leadership.

Does our message sound foreign to those we communicate with at work?
Is the intent of the message misunderstood because of how our leadership is translated?
Do we translate proper goals through the proper channels to the proper people?

Let us make sure our leadership is translated in ways that helps others reach the goal.

We live in such a self-centered world. Our efforts and concerns are primarily structured around a what’s-in-it-for-me mentality.

This mindset is subtly developed and so difficult to overcome. Albert Pike said, “What we have done for ourselves alone dies with us; what we have done for others and the world remains and is immortal.”

Think about the significance of this thought in relationship to spiritual leadership. We fail miserably and our legacy is meaningless unless we learn from this thought.

All we do should be done for others. This is what truly lasts. Think Souls!

A few years ago, a good friend presented material on conflict resolution. He introduced the subject by comparing the similarities of police officers and preachers. Unusual, but the truth could not be denied.

Among several points, one stood out connected to leadership, “We desire to help others.”

Obviously, this post is not about someone who holds any position with the wrong motives. It is simply to say, the majority of those involved in either field do so because they want to help others.

We need to ask ourselves, Are we leading to help others?

Expansion is the action of becoming larger or more extensive. We talk about expanding a program of work, a building project, and even investments.

What about the expansion of our leadership?

We can easily fall into the “comfort zone.” We enjoy the status quo and before long nothing happens. Our leadership needs to be expanded. How?

Read material dealing with the growth of our leadership skills.
Spend time with successful leaders.
Ask God to open doors and grant us wisdom.

If we will get out of the rut and ask for a little help, our leadership will expand to greater levels.

Alfred Einstein said, “Not everything that counts can be counted, and not everything that can be counted counts.”

Far too often, leadership deals with the bottom-line mentality. What we measure is important, but the value of influence, cultivating character development, or meditative prayer cannot be measured. Yet, they are life changing.

We may have multiplied thousands of dollars invested, but what is it really worth? We may have many people sitting in the pews, but are they spiritually mature? We may spend hours reading the Bible, but do we apply it properly?

Our leadership may not always be measured, but it should count for something.

Jesus said we are the “salt of the earth” and “light of the world.” This indicates the difference we make in the world.

Then Jesus said something interesting, “If the salt has become tasteless, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything…”

Good involves health, specifically good health.

When used in the context of leadership influence, we find a powerful idea.

As leaders, our influence should contribute to the spiritual health and well-being of others.

When heaven is the destiny, our leadership must be good for others to reach the destination.

Transitions are sentences that build bridges between two parts of communication. These bridges make it easier for people to follow what we’ve said and the direction ahead.

As leaders, the concept of transitions is critical.

We build a bridge in relationships. Establishing and maintaining quality relationships requires effective communication.

We build a bridge for future leaders. Leaders are always needed. We make this transition smooth through mentoring.

We build a bridge to eternity. The task before us is to transition from the physical to the spiritual realm by teaching and example.

Are we building bridges with the right purpose and in the right direction?

What is our objective? What are we trying to achieve? Do we have a mission?

Sadly, as spiritual leaders, our mission often gets skewed because the mission becomes more about us than God. It becomes more about what we want to achieve, rather than what God wants us to achieve.

Leaders have a responsibility to know and believe in God’s mission.

We must be honest enough to examine ourselves closely and ask hard questions about whose mission we are fulfilling.

Let us arise and lead God’s people in unity, and let us work together to fulfill God’s mission.

Life has a way of knocking us down at times, maybe a few more times than our share. When we are committed we keep getting up.

David McNally said, “Commitment is the enemy of resistance, for it is the serious promise to press on, to get up, no matter how many times you are knocked down.”

When we are committed to a cause, we oppose resistance. We are motivated, dedicated, focused, and we stop at nothing.

Nothing is more deserving of our commitment than the cause of Jesus. His life, death, and resurrection are worthy of our efforts to press on and do whatever it takes.