Never give up! Do not quit! Keep putting one foot in front of the other.

Does this sound familiar?

Leadership must be built on the foundational stone of persistence.

Will we get discouraged?
Will the negative often overshadow the positive?
Will we want to move on?
Will we want to quit?

The answer to these questions, and more, is YES! But, like the child who knows persistence is eventually rewarded, we must recognize the need to be persistent in leading others to heaven.

This is not an easy path, but it will be worth it. Stay the course!

We often develop relationships because we believe there is a payoff down the road. Samuel Johnson wrote, “The true measure of a man is how he treats someone who can do him absolutely no good.”

Our leadership gains momentum if we learn to avoid favoritism, develop consistency, fairness, and the highest level of integrity.

Why is this important? Because God shows no partiality. He does not look at the color of our skin, nationality in our passport, age, gender, or the amount of physical prosperity. He simply examines the heart of each person. Do we?

Cal Newton’s book, Deep Work,provides amazing insight into the disruptive nature of distractions to the type of work that matters.

He expressed this thought, “Clarity about what matters provides clarity about what does not.”

Leaders need to be clear regarding what matters. With this clarity it is possible to eliminate other matters that tend to distract us. Then we can focus on a deeper work critical to the spiritual purpose God desires.

We need extended time without the constant barrage of social media, email, texting, and phone calls. The result is time that allows us to challenge our minds to think more deeply.

Throughout the New Testament we find people looking for Jesus, but for different reasons.

Herod looked for Jesus to put Him to death.
The magi looked for the King of Israel.
The Pharisees and Sadducees looked to trap Him.
Multitudes looked to be healed by Him.
Led by Judas, an angry mob, soldiers, and religious leaders looked to crucify Him.

Jesus asked, “Whom do you seek?”

Who do we look for today? Can others find what they look for through us. If they look for Jesus, will they find Him? Here is where spiritual leadership begins.

Moses experienced an intimate relationship with God that was “face to face, as a man speaks to his friend.”

Is it possible to develop an intimate relationship with God like one shared between the closest of friends?

What can we learn from the example of Moses?

He desired to know God more than anything else.
He sought the favor of God through obedience.
He communicated with God daily.
He loved God’s people with an incredible intercessory love.
He led with a passion to fulfill God’s will.

The New Testament teaches us to walk with God based on several parallels. Spiritual leaders should not only desire this intimate relationship, but strive to achieve it.

What is our purpose? We cannot lead effectively without it.

God had a purpose in sending Jesus.
Jesus had a purpose in going to the cross.
The apostles had a purpose in their preaching.

What is our purpose, yours and mine, in our day to day existence?

Spiritual leadership has but one purpose: lead others to heaven. The reason we strive to live a godly example is to fulfill this purpose.

For this reason we develop relationships with others. Nothing is more important. Nothing is more rewarding. Fulfilling our purpose makes the difference.

Most people relate to a time in life when they were misunderstood.

Children are misunderstood by their parents.
Employees are misunderstood by their employers.
Students are misunderstood by their teachers.
Citizens are misunderstood by governing authorities.

We get the point.

Developing the ability to communicate so others understand is a necessity in leadership. Jesus asked on several occasions, “Do you understand?”

Being understood is directly connected to understanding others.

Instead of wondering why we are misunderstood, we must work hard at understanding others while leading them to heaven. Think Souls!

An incredible leadership quote comes from Rear Admiral Grace Murray Hopper, “You manage things; you lead people.”

Managing requires little in the way of feelings, dreams, plans, or anything else. The only concern is getting the job done.

However, leading requires feelings, dreams, and the plans of others. Leadership is helping others realize all of these through their role in accomplishing the ultimate goal.

This kind of leadership is not an easy task, but a rewarding one. It will not happen quickly, but when it does the world can be changed.

Manage the things, but lead people. Lead them to heaven.

Can we negotiate a resolution to problems before we face them?

Consider these suggestions.

Anticipate problems. We often try to avoid problems at all cost, at times to the point of denial. It will not work. 

Talk to problem solvers. Great leaders have dealt with problems on many levels. Take time to learn from their insight.

Practice what is called the 101% principle. Find the one percent we agree on and give 100% to it. If we start here, problems are resolved more quickly.

This does not exhaust the possibilities, but it provides a foundation to negotiate problems before we experience them.

We need short- and long-term goals.

Initiating enthusiasm with the big picture in view can be easy. Visualizing the overall accomplishment the first few weeks and months is exciting.

The problem is maintaining enthusiasm and motivation along the way.

We get discouraged. We struggle. We tend to lose sight.

When we achieve success in smaller tasks, it is easier to stay excited about our involvement in reaching the long-term goals.