Tag: Church

Ability, Motivation, Attitude

Lou Holtz once expressed, “Ability is what you’re capable of doing. Motivation determines what you do. Attitude determines how well you do it.”

Scripture indicates we all have abilities. God intends for us to grow His church by utilizing our abilities.

What motivates us when we examine the leadership situation today? Are we comfortable with leadership left to someone else?

The choice of attitude is critical. When our attitude is misguided, motivation suffers.

It is time to step up. If not, the future of the church may rest in the hands of those who are incapable, unmotivated, and misguided. Where will that leave the church?

Survival

Few ideas are more significant than the need for survival. For some, the need to find a meal for the day is a matter of survival. For some, getting through the day with their life is a matter of survival.

Leadership survival is an area of great need within the church of the twenty-first century.

Leaders must survive challenges to their leadership in matters of faith and practice.

Leaders must survive false accusations to their character by dissenters.

Leaders must develop survival skills against the forces of division.

When it comes to leadership, survival is a priority. Communicate it. Live by it.

Ambitious Leadership

Defining ambition is not difficult. The difficulty arises when we consider where our ambition lies.

Is our ambition driven by financial security, power, or authority?

Would our ambition be characterized by selfish and physical priorities, or a spiritual focus?

Paul identified an ambition that was spiritually and eternally developed, because we make it our ambition to please the Lord.

When our leadership is driven to please the Lord it changes our approach to every area of life, and the church will grow in the grace and knowledge of our Savior.

Courageous Leaders

How will our influence be remembered in the church and community where we live and serve?

Will we be remembered because of the change we made for the better?

Will our leadership have an impact for the eternal good of others?

Harry Truman once said, ”Men make history and not the other way around. In periods where there is no leadership, society stands still. Progress occurs when courageous, skillful leaders seize the opportunity to change things for the better.”

If it seems as though the world stands still around us, then maybe it is time we stood up to lead. Seize the opportunity to change things for the better.

A Sense of Urgency

John Kotter’s book, Leading Change, describes eight steps to ultimately anchor change within organizational culture.

The first step is to “establish a sense of urgency.” Without it, the possibility of change diminishes.

Often times, awareness of a problem or crises does not go unnoticed, but an overwhelming problem of complacency prevents action producing correction.

The church faces a leadership crisis. We find that some deny the reality of the situation, while others tend to ignore it altogether.

Who will lead from the next generation? What plans are in place to train future leaders for the church?

Unless we realize the urgency of the situation, nothing changes and the result will leave the church without leaders.

Uniformity

The power of uniformity is based on the development of consistency, invariability, stability, and the regularity that characterizes leadership.

These four words are the defining qualities of uniformity.

Consistency must be lived according to the message believed and proclaimed.

No matter what the cost, invariably, leaders must show up.

Followers need leaders with stability, which provides them with security.

Regularity is fixed and unchanging, without varying.

Uniformity is critical in leading as God desires. While there may be challenges to the development and fulfillment of these qualities, when we practice them, our leadership grows stronger and lasts longer.

Working Together

“It takes a village to raise a child.” Whether we agree or disagree, one thought is clear, each part is connected and contributes value to the development of the whole. This includes leadership.

Followers need leaders and leaders need followers. Each relies on the other to fill specific gaps that develop stronger relationships.

God designed the church this way. Romans 12 and 1 Corinthians 12 claim the church consists of numerous individuals possessing a variety of gifts. One gift is not greater than another, one person is not more valuable than another, and the proper function of the whole requires each to exercise their ability accordingly.

The Design of Leadership

What is our leadership designed to do? I once read, “A ship is safe in the harbor but that is not what it was designed to do.” Unknown

The answer is simple. We were designed to lead.

Too often I hear of situations where men are qualified to lead, but unwilling to step up and take the responsibility.

Why? Because they feel safe. Most want to avoid challenges, controversies, and confrontations.

Our leadership was never designed for such.

The Lord’s church needs leaders. Rise up men of God and lead!

Our God has called us to the greatest task on earth.

Vision and Mission

In an effort to develop a vision and mission statement, we often get the ideas reversed, and rightfully so, since they are interrelated.

The mission of an organization, specifically the church, describes “what to do.” The foundation is built on the purpose of our existence and the mission directs every decision for all related activities.

The vision describes what we desire to see as a result of the mission. The vision takes into consideration the image of the future that connects the long-term desires with achievable goals.

We must communicate both the vision and mission if we hope to achieve any level of success.

Leadership Development

Where do we begin with leadership development? The task is daunting. To illustrate, a Google search for “Leadership Development” indicates there are 2,590,000,000 possibilities to consider.

When we learn to specify areas of leadership development within the scope of the church or areas of spirituality, the field narrows.

Again, we discover the same struggle: where to begin. Perhaps we can begin by narrowing our search with two questions: 1) What needs exist? 2) What piques our interest?

The priority of where our leadership begins rests on the need. However, we will also find that areas of interest keep us motivated to grow in leadership.