Tag: Responsibility

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.

A Great Responsibility

When Paul wrote Timothy, he used an interesting word translated entrust. The idea was to take what was entrusted to him and entrust it to others.

At the root of this word is the concept of placing before or into the hand of another. It represents responsibility. Whatever was placed into the hand carried a responsibility of placing into the hand of someone else that it might be perpetuated into the future.

When we apply the concept to leadership, this principle indicates a succession that leaders must consider for the future. How seriously do we take this responsibility?

Urgency

When we consider what’s on the line as it relates to leadership, we begin to understand the urgency.

Throughout the Old and New Testaments we find God’s provisions for leaders. He positioned individuals to lead.

God designed His church to function with leaders. Their function is outlined in the letter to Ephesus (Ep. 4:11-13).

People need someone to follow. Christians should provide an example of leading in the family, workplace, and community.

The breakdown of the family indicates an urgency for husbands, wives, and parents to keep a more biblical focus.

May God bless us with the courage and boldness to fulfill our responsibilities.

A Question

I first saw this question on a church building sign.

The question challenges the depth of our faith and the strength of our vision.

The question requires a deep reflection into our soul to determine where we are and where we want to go.

The question brings a responsibility to act, requiring us to get up and do something.

The question applies to every individual and congregation. It stretches across every generation, culture, and era.

Before you read the question, remember to give serious consideration to the question before answering.

The question is simply this: “What would you attempt to do if you knew you could not fail?”

Responsibility

The concept and practice of seeking the best in other people and putting their needs above our own is rare.

Marvin J. Ashton said, “Be the one who nurtures and builds. Be the one who has an understanding and a forgiving heart, one who looks for the best in people. Leave people better than you found them.”

We do well to follow this example in our relationships with others.

Consider the responsibility. God entrusted us with the lives of people, and nothing more fulfilling can be done than to make their lives better than we found them. This is great leadership!

Potential…Part 1

Measuring potential as an individual or a team is challenging.

John Maxwell calls it, “The Law of the Lid.” Here, he discusses the potential of leaders. When the ability of a leader is raised in keeping with the same level of dedication, the overall success of influence increases dramatically, thus reaching greater potential.

Three components help determine the potential of each individual or team: Actions, Abilities, and Attitude.

Leaders carry the responsibility of helping others reach their potential, however small or great the potential.

Tomorrow, I will briefly share a few thoughts related to these three components.

Values-Based Leaders

Challenges usually arise when something goes wrong or at least not the way we want. At that moment, we decide to either take responsibility or cast blame.

Casting blame on others seems to justify our own actions as acceptable and right. Yet, such is not the case.

Leaders must realize that people are not objects to be used to advance their own agendas. They conduct themselves with a greater self-examination and take responsibility for their own thoughts, words, and actions.

An honest look inward is a prerequisite to a values-based leadership that demonstrates the kind of character God wants in us as leaders.

When A Leader Fails

I have been fascinated with a number of quotes and principles regarding leadership and what happens when leaders fail to be trustworthy.

One primary thought expressed by John Maxwell, “Everything rises and falls on leadership.”

On more than one occasion I have heard various news reporters express the idea of accountability. Specifically, one analyst expressed that what leaders need to do when mistakes are made is to confess the mistake, take responsibility, and let the chips fall where they may.

What happens when leaders fail?

Leaders will experience failure and make mistakes. How leaders strategically maneuver during these times determines the level of trust from those who follow.

Justice

God’s people have always been charged with caring for the poor, widows, and orphans. More than 2,000 verses in the Bible touch on this subject, none more powerfully than James, “Pure and undefiled religion in the sight of our God and Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their distress, and to keep oneself unstained by the world.”

We’ve not done a good job. Somehow, we need to consider how we are going to care for these needs.

We must not excuse ourselves by allowing other organizations to assume this responsibility.

It is time for spiritual leaders to take the lead regarding God’s justice.

The Invisible

To lead the most unlikely, we have to see the unseen, or as they are often described, the invisible. What is meant by the invisible?

The invisible are people we cannot or choose to not see. Why?

Perhaps it is the color of their skin, the type of clothes they wear, the home where they live (or lack thereof), the way they smell, of perhaps the lack of personal hygiene.

Maybe we do not want to see because we are afraid of the responsibility.

It is difficult to lead those who are invisible to us. Think about it!