Who is a leader?
It is not true that only pastors or cell leaders are leaders in the Christian circle. We are all leaders in different ways. For example, a counselor can be considered a leader because the counselee looks to him for direction and guidance. Parents can be considered leaders because they have the responsibility to lead their children in the way of the Lord. Husbands are leaders in the household.
The skills of leadership are very important. If leadership skills are not successfully applied, a counselor can lose the respect of his counselee, a parent loses control over her child and husbands losing control over their wives.
Can anything be done to make a person a more effective leader?
Studies have shown that leaders are generally self-confident, creative, intelligent, ambitious, independent and enjoy command over others. If we look at the traits, we will agree that some of them are inborn traits. For example, there is very little one can do if one is not born intelligent or creative.
Even the Bible teaches that leaders are “born” in the sense that God selects certain people to give leadership skills to. The Bible teaches that leadership is a spiritual gift. That means some have it and some just don’t.
Romans 12:68 (NIV) We have different gifts, according to the grace given us. If a man’s gift is prophesying, let him use it in proportion to his faith. 7 If it is serving, let him serve; if it is teaching, let him teach; 8 if it is encouraging, let him encourage; if it is contributing to the needs of others, let him give generously; if it is leadership, let him govern diligently; if it is showing mercy, let him do it cheerfully.
While leadership is a gift, there are certain elements in leadership that can be taught. These are the dos and don’ts of leadership. If one bears these principles in mind, one can be a better leader regardless of whether he has the gift of leadership.
What is the difference between secular and spiritual leadership?
If a person is a great leader in the secular world, does that mean that he automatically makes a good Christian leader?
It has been determined that leaders are situation specific. In other words, a leader who is successful in one situation may fail miserably when presented in another situation. For example, Hitler was a great leader when it comes to leading his fellowmen to war but few will disagree that he would fail miserably as a leader in a church. Therefore, the attributes that make a person a successful leader in the secular world may not make him a good leader in the church. This is because Christian leadership calls for different and at times opposite traits. Here are some of the following.
| Secular leader | Spiritual leader |
|---|---|
| Self-confident | Confidence is in God |
| Creative and doing things differently | Follows God’s examples closely |
| Exercises control over others | Would rather lead by example |
| Uses connection with others to get things done | Uses connection with God or prayer to get things done |
Therefore, even if you hold leadership positions in the secular world, you cannot assume that these leadership skills can be directly applied to the Christian circle and make you an effective Christian leader. There are still principles to learn to make yourself an effective Christian leader.