Become that which you wish to see in others
Become that which you wish to see in others.” This is what it said inside my fortune cookie several years ago as a fairly new Christian. I just happened to be complaining to God at the time about how a certain leader did not have the character I expected and I was upset and disappointed.
When I got home, I took the fortune, glued it to a sheet a paper, and wrote around it all those things I hoped to see in this other person. I then framed the sheet and put it up in my prayer room. I am certain that to this day that I have not obtained to everything that I expected of this other person as my leader.
With leaders, I can sometimes look to what I expect from them rather than how I can support them and make their lives easier. Seeing their flaws (the spec in someone else' eye) distracts me from focusing on my own leadership deficiencies.
Our leaders frequently influence us and shape our lives. Genuine leaders are the people that we look to and learn from. Because of this, Paul writes to Timothy in 1 Timothy 3:1-4 (MSG), “A leader must be well-thought-of, committed to his wife, cool and collected, accessible, and hospitable. He must know what he's talking about, not be overfond of wine, not pushy but gentle, not thin-skinned, not money-hungry. He must handle his own affairs well, attentive to his own children and having their respect...”
When it comes to leadership, effective styles are vastly different. One leader may have strengths in organization, another in creativity, and another in strategic focus. One may have an outgoing personality and another more reserved. However, there are certain characteristics that all effective leaders have in common. For instance, one expects that their leader is competent in their area of leadership (knowing what he is talking about as Paul notes). He or she must also be able to relate well with others (be well-thought-of).
Ken Blanchard outlines several characteristics for godly leadership in his Lead Like Jesus Sermon Notes.(1) Out of these, the three key characteristics he highlights are a Spirit-filled heart, a compassionate heart and a servants heart.
The first and foremost leadership quality he notes is that one must be filled with the Holy Spirit. He writes, “A Christ-like leader’s heart should be filled with the Holy Spirit. A leader should be like a full cup; he/she just splashes over and blesses others who are near. When someone is empty and in need in their own life, they have nothing to give to others.
We can only lead others when we are being fed and led ourselves. This requires that a leader, like Jesus, take some time to get away with God and be filled up. Ken Blanchard quotes Ken Boa who writes, “External action should derive from internal reality, and this requires a rhythm of solitude and engagement, restoration and application, intimacy with Christ and activity in the world. ... During the quiet times of the devotional life, we gain the perspective and power we need to live with character and composure in the context of daily demands. 'In repentance and rest you will be saved, in quietness and trust is your strength.' (Isaiah 30:15) “
I am nothing without your love” sings in the background. For myself I have found that it is a leader's passion for and relationship with Christ is the characteristic that frequently has the greatest impact on me. When I see someone who is filled with Christ and passionately pursuing Him, it is like salt that makes me thirsty for what is real and genuine. I long to have that kind of relationship with God myself.
On a very worn and torn piece of paper, I have a quote that I have prayed for myself for years. It says, “I am called to be a man (woman in this case) filled with holy, passionate, extravagant affection for Jesus” and “That is what I want to minister to people – inspiring others into intimacy with Him.”
While someone may have a wonderful and compassionate heart towards humanity, they will soon become like a dry well if they are not being filled on a regular basis. “In his sermon notes, Ken Blanchard also quotes Oswald Chambers who wrote, “If I am devoted to the cause of humanity only, I will soon be exhausted and come to the place where my love will falter; but if I love Jesus Christ personally and passionately, I can serve humanity though men treat me as a doormat.”
In Mark 12:30-31 Jesus says, that the greatest commandment is to “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.” And he goes on to say that the second is to “Love your neighbor as yourself.” Having a heart of compassion and service towards others (love) is the natural outflow and the next greatest characteristics to having a heart that is filled with Christ.
As the saying goes, “I don't care how much you know until I know how much you care.” Ken Blanchard notes that a quality of leadership is to have compassion on people. As he notes, Jesus didn't resent the large crowds who intruded on His time, he had compassion on them and healed their sick.
He goes on to write, “A Christ-like leader responds to people the same way. We don’t see people as a mass of humanity to be manipulated for our own personal advantage. Neither do we resent people as interruptions to our personal agenda – we see them as sheep needing a shepherd. A shepherd loves his sheep and knows them by name. A shepherd feeds his sheep by leading them to green pastures and still waters. A shepherd finds the lost sheep and rescues them from peril even though it’s inconvenient or dangerous. A shepherd puts the needs of the sheep above his own. That takes a compassionate heart. “
While someone can have a title of leader and exert power over another by right of their position (a boss with authority to fire for example), they are not a genuine leader unless people willingly follow them. People follow leaders who genuinely care individually for them and are concerned for their best interests.
As Ken Blanchard notes, Jesus was the greatest example of a leader with a servant's heart toward the people. He writes, “Jesus was the most effective leader who ever lived because He was sensitive to what people’s needs were.“
The question that rises to the surface for myself is, how do I define success? Do I define success by having godly characteristics (my relationship with Christ and the love I demonstrate to others) or based upon the world's terms (my own financial gain, recognition or power)? And what about producing results? I guess I ask this because I frequently define success by results. But what results am I focused on - the kingdom of God coming or me obtaining some achievement I can hang my hat on? "All I have in this world is fire from above, all I have in this world is You.... All I want is to be faithful, all I want is You" sings in the background.
Paul says in 1 Timothy 4:12, “Teach believers with your life: by word, by demeanor, by love, by faith, by integrity...” and in 1 Timothy 6:6 Paul says, “But godliness actually is a means of great gain when accompanied by contentment. For we have brought nothing into the world, so we cannot take anything out of it either.”
What is really going to matter at the end of the day is not having achieved great feat's but my character. What will matter is if I am faithful at loving God well and letting it spill over in loving others. Lord, I too often become confused about the direction I am going and start pursuing success on the world's terms. I long to lead more like you. I long to have more of You in my life. Would you redirect me according to Your Word?
1. http://www.leadlikejesus.com/resources/free_default.asp
When I got home, I took the fortune, glued it to a sheet a paper, and wrote around it all those things I hoped to see in this other person. I then framed the sheet and put it up in my prayer room. I am certain that to this day that I have not obtained to everything that I expected of this other person as my leader.
With leaders, I can sometimes look to what I expect from them rather than how I can support them and make their lives easier. Seeing their flaws (the spec in someone else' eye) distracts me from focusing on my own leadership deficiencies.
Our leaders frequently influence us and shape our lives. Genuine leaders are the people that we look to and learn from. Because of this, Paul writes to Timothy in 1 Timothy 3:1-4 (MSG), “A leader must be well-thought-of, committed to his wife, cool and collected, accessible, and hospitable. He must know what he's talking about, not be overfond of wine, not pushy but gentle, not thin-skinned, not money-hungry. He must handle his own affairs well, attentive to his own children and having their respect...”
When it comes to leadership, effective styles are vastly different. One leader may have strengths in organization, another in creativity, and another in strategic focus. One may have an outgoing personality and another more reserved. However, there are certain characteristics that all effective leaders have in common. For instance, one expects that their leader is competent in their area of leadership (knowing what he is talking about as Paul notes). He or she must also be able to relate well with others (be well-thought-of).
Ken Blanchard outlines several characteristics for godly leadership in his Lead Like Jesus Sermon Notes.(1) Out of these, the three key characteristics he highlights are a Spirit-filled heart, a compassionate heart and a servants heart.
The first and foremost leadership quality he notes is that one must be filled with the Holy Spirit. He writes, “A Christ-like leader’s heart should be filled with the Holy Spirit. A leader should be like a full cup; he/she just splashes over and blesses others who are near. When someone is empty and in need in their own life, they have nothing to give to others.
We can only lead others when we are being fed and led ourselves. This requires that a leader, like Jesus, take some time to get away with God and be filled up. Ken Blanchard quotes Ken Boa who writes, “External action should derive from internal reality, and this requires a rhythm of solitude and engagement, restoration and application, intimacy with Christ and activity in the world. ... During the quiet times of the devotional life, we gain the perspective and power we need to live with character and composure in the context of daily demands. 'In repentance and rest you will be saved, in quietness and trust is your strength.' (Isaiah 30:15) “
I am nothing without your love” sings in the background. For myself I have found that it is a leader's passion for and relationship with Christ is the characteristic that frequently has the greatest impact on me. When I see someone who is filled with Christ and passionately pursuing Him, it is like salt that makes me thirsty for what is real and genuine. I long to have that kind of relationship with God myself.
On a very worn and torn piece of paper, I have a quote that I have prayed for myself for years. It says, “I am called to be a man (woman in this case) filled with holy, passionate, extravagant affection for Jesus” and “That is what I want to minister to people – inspiring others into intimacy with Him.”
While someone may have a wonderful and compassionate heart towards humanity, they will soon become like a dry well if they are not being filled on a regular basis. “In his sermon notes, Ken Blanchard also quotes Oswald Chambers who wrote, “If I am devoted to the cause of humanity only, I will soon be exhausted and come to the place where my love will falter; but if I love Jesus Christ personally and passionately, I can serve humanity though men treat me as a doormat.”
In Mark 12:30-31 Jesus says, that the greatest commandment is to “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.” And he goes on to say that the second is to “Love your neighbor as yourself.” Having a heart of compassion and service towards others (love) is the natural outflow and the next greatest characteristics to having a heart that is filled with Christ.
As the saying goes, “I don't care how much you know until I know how much you care.” Ken Blanchard notes that a quality of leadership is to have compassion on people. As he notes, Jesus didn't resent the large crowds who intruded on His time, he had compassion on them and healed their sick.
He goes on to write, “A Christ-like leader responds to people the same way. We don’t see people as a mass of humanity to be manipulated for our own personal advantage. Neither do we resent people as interruptions to our personal agenda – we see them as sheep needing a shepherd. A shepherd loves his sheep and knows them by name. A shepherd feeds his sheep by leading them to green pastures and still waters. A shepherd finds the lost sheep and rescues them from peril even though it’s inconvenient or dangerous. A shepherd puts the needs of the sheep above his own. That takes a compassionate heart. “
While someone can have a title of leader and exert power over another by right of their position (a boss with authority to fire for example), they are not a genuine leader unless people willingly follow them. People follow leaders who genuinely care individually for them and are concerned for their best interests.
As Ken Blanchard notes, Jesus was the greatest example of a leader with a servant's heart toward the people. He writes, “Jesus was the most effective leader who ever lived because He was sensitive to what people’s needs were.“
The question that rises to the surface for myself is, how do I define success? Do I define success by having godly characteristics (my relationship with Christ and the love I demonstrate to others) or based upon the world's terms (my own financial gain, recognition or power)? And what about producing results? I guess I ask this because I frequently define success by results. But what results am I focused on - the kingdom of God coming or me obtaining some achievement I can hang my hat on? "All I have in this world is fire from above, all I have in this world is You.... All I want is to be faithful, all I want is You" sings in the background.
Paul says in 1 Timothy 4:12, “Teach believers with your life: by word, by demeanor, by love, by faith, by integrity...” and in 1 Timothy 6:6 Paul says, “But godliness actually is a means of great gain when accompanied by contentment. For we have brought nothing into the world, so we cannot take anything out of it either.”
What is really going to matter at the end of the day is not having achieved great feat's but my character. What will matter is if I am faithful at loving God well and letting it spill over in loving others. Lord, I too often become confused about the direction I am going and start pursuing success on the world's terms. I long to lead more like you. I long to have more of You in my life. Would you redirect me according to Your Word?
1. http://www.leadlikejesus.com/resources/free_default.asp
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