5 THINGS I WISH EVERY CHRISTIAN LEADER BE REMINDED OF (Pt 4)

I continue from where I left off in the last post.

4. LEADERSHIP IS ABOUT EQUIPPING PEOPLE. “And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers, for the equipping of the saints for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ,” (Ephesians 4:11-12).

Read this scripture again, please. It was a great shift of paradigm for me when I eventually noticed what God’s Word says here. For myself as an example, I am called as a pastor and teacher, not just to do the work of the ministry, but to equip, make ready, train and empower the saints who will now do the work of the ministry!

My leadership call therefore is to empower the believers in the local church to lead. My effectiveness will not be measured by the people who sit and listen to me, but by the number of people those ones in turn lead and influence for Christ! I am called not just to do the work but to recruit, train, empower and equip others to do the work of the ministry.

So to speak, I’m a kingmaker. My job is to raise kings! I’m the power behind the throne! Kingmakers don’t dress like kings. Most times they are invisible in public. But they are the power behind the throne!

Kingmakers don’t sit on the throne either. They are not in the spotlight but their wisdom directs the throne. I do not have to worry if the people I am called to lead outshine me. That’s how it should be. Every true father prays his sons should surpass him. I don’t have to be a limiting lid on the potential of the ones I’m called to serve. I should rather be a dream-releaser, which is my assignment as the leader.

To help the saints to discover, develop and deploy their dreams, gifts and talents in the service of the kingdom is what those of us in ‘ministry’ are called to do. If all of us senior leaders know and do this, we will have less pew-warmer(s) in our churches and have more world-changers. And we will stop measuring the strength of our ministries by the seating capacity of our auditoriums but rather by the sending capacity of our missions and ministry departments. Need I say more?

5 THINGS I WISH EVERY CHRISTIAN LEADER BE REMINDED OF (Pt 3)

I do hope you have enjoyed the first two posts in this series. You can read them here and here.

3. LEADERSHIP IS NOT LORDSHIP, IT’S SERVANTHOOD. This actually is a corollary to the previous point (see yesterday’s post). As leaders, we are not lords, we are servants! How that needs to be etched afresh in our hearts in this self-serving 21st century (end-time) culture.

Jesus came saying, “You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and those who are great exercise authority over them. Yet it shall not be so among you; but whoever desires to become great among you, let him be your servants. And whoever desires to be first among you, let him be your slave – just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many.” (Matthew 20:25-28)

In this kingdom to which we belong, we operate by a different set of rules. Our own leadership begins with service. In fact, it continues and ends there. Not that as leaders we become doormats, no! It just means that for us to lead at the highest level, we are willing and ready to serve on the lowest. We do not wear a chip on our shoulders. We are as ready to be in the spotlight as we are to take the towel and wash the feet of the people we serve, (that is, to do the most mundane of jobs) like our ultimate role-model (Jesus Christ) did on that night a couple thousand years ago (see John 13:3-7, 12-17). Oh, please open your Bible and read this story again. It would refresh your mind.)

The way UP here, dear co-labourer is DOWN. We give up to go up! That’s the way it is here. We serve to lead and how much of a buzzword that has become today in management circles – servant-leadership. I tell you something, this is where they got it from!

“The kings of the Gentiles exercise lordship over them, and those who exercise authority over them are called ‘benefactors’. But not so among you; on the contrary, he who is greatest among you let him be as the younger, and he who governs as he who serves. For who is greater, he who sits at the table, or he who serves? Is it not he who sits at the table? Yet I am among you as the One who serves.” (Luke 22:25-27)

Think again about these words of Jesus and measure yourself. YOU WILL SUCCEED!