Tag: Sunset

Risky Leadership

Leadership involves risks. The risks will often be great and challenging, but we cannot avoid them.

Not everyone is going to agree with the decisions made by leaders, regardless of the risk. Trying to please everyone is impossible.

Not making a decision may lead to greater risk.

The risk factor is primarily limited by the size of our faith.

The risks become minimal when we believe that our God is great and that He is involved every step of the way.
With God, the risks are worth taking.

Pursuing Success

Everyone wants success. Finding anything that suggests only one step to success is next to impossible. Most material emphasizes a range of three steps to twenty-five steps.

Ten of the most common ideas include, but are not limited to the following.

Preparation must come first.
Do the homework.
Keep a learner’s mind.
Create strategies for achieving the goals.
Establish good time management.
Use failures as a guide.
Abide by the rules.
Make a list of one’s values.
List out dreams and goals.
Find a mentor.

Success does not have a magic formula, but with a little hard work and time, the results can be exciting.

Integrity

How would you define integrity?

I’ve asked this question for several years and the responses vary to some degree. However, one primary definition remains constant, “Integrity is what you do when no one else is watching.”

The type of television shows and movies we watch, along with other activities we participate in when no one else is around speaks to our integrity.

No one can have stellar character publicly and trashy integrity privately without eventually suffering the consequences.

We develop character when we focus on our integrity, and this development begins with a self-examination of our moral compass.

An Expanding Leader

Expansion is the action of becoming larger or more extensive. Unless we are able to think bigger, plan larger, trust more, and implement options to achieve expansion, we will not grow beyond the shadow of our own leadership.

The challenge for leaders today is to eliminate the “status quo” and move forward to greater heights.

Expansion, whether we like it or not, is a part of God’s plan and we are privileged to participate in that plan.

Let us set our eyes on a greater horizon, a more global mindset, and implement plans to expand the borders of the Lord’s kingdom.

The Pioneer

The pioneering spirit is a rare quality today. Think about going where no one has gone before.

While we build on the successes and failures of others to improve who we are and where we are, we still need an edge to our leadership.

God can take us places and open doors that have never been reached if we are a willing tool in His hands.

Since God can do far more abundantly beyond all we ask or think, we need to start thinking bigger and stop limiting Him.

Adventuresome, pioneering, or any other word we choose, leaders need to walk this path.

Amazing News

When the news is exciting, we want someone to tell us and, in turn, we tell others. Good news is often difficult to find.

Sadly, the good news of Jesus is becoming less and less exciting. The distractions of commercialism, family, health, finances, and life tend to exasperate the joy and excitement of something as intangible as a relationship with Jesus.

We need to remember, “People don’t care how much you know, until they know how much you care.”

If the news is exciting, tell everyone. When the news is overwhelmingly beyond a level of excitement, be thankful and share.

Self-Evaluation

The challenge of taking time to examine our own character and see how it measures up can be frustrating.

Simon Fuller said, “What angers us in another person is more often than not an unhealed aspect of ourselves. If we had already resolved that particular issue, we would not be irritated by its reflection back to us.”

People who are critical of others often struggle with the same issues in their own life.

When we correct the unresolved issues in our lives, we can see more clearly how to help others. Please read Matthew 7:1-5.

A Matter of Trust

Can we trust someone simply because they say, “Trust me”?

Scripture is clear about the need for us to trust God and He is worthy of our trust.

Consider the opposite: Can God trust us? Do we have and demonstrate the type of character that is worthy of His trust?

Trust means we are faithful to our promise and we guard what has been entrusted to us.

God entrusted us with His word. If we are trustworthy we will be good students of His word and diligent to make application. When this happens, it makes it easier to share it with others.

Applied Leadership

What is the significance of the word – apply?

Biblically, it’s about acting, doing, or making something happen. Jesus claimed that wisdom is based both on hearing His words and applying them (Mt. 7:24-27). James warns of being self-deluded if we hear without application (Jas. 1:21).

What good does it accomplish to hear something that will improve our walk with God, help us mature in faith, or strengthen our relationships with others but do nothing?

Leadership requires us to provide an example of application if we ever hope to lead others.

Others-Directed Leaders

While we want others to understand what it is like to walk in our shoes, walking in their shoes is not as appealing.

Leaders need the ability to sympathize and empathize with others. Thus, we need to see through their eyes.

What will we see when looking through the eyes of others?

We may see ourselves differently.
We may see more hurt or pain.
We may see greater joy, love, faith, and peace.
We may also see different levels of need we that overlooked before.

Whenever we see and feel what others see and feel, our leadership becomes “others-directed.”