Lead Courageously

Page Index

Called To Lead
A Personal Vision
Commitment to the Task
Skills and Resources
Faith

In the face of adversity, change, opposition, and often self-doubt, where do I get the courage to lead?  The answer is not exhaustive, but sources of courage for leaders include: a call from God, a compelling personal vision, commitment to the task, access to skills and resources, and faith.

Called to Lead

"The word of the Lord came to me, saying, 'Before I formed you in the womb, I knew you, before you were born I set you apart; I appointed you as a prophet to the nations'" (Jer. 1:4-5).

"When I heard these things, I sat down and wept. For some days I mourned and fasted and prayed before the God in heaven" (Neh. 1:4).

"While they were worshiping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, 'Set apart for me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them'" (Acts 13:2).

". . . I am compelled to preach. Woe to me if I do not preach the gospel!" (1 Cor. 9:16).

The courage to lead begins with a clear sense of being called by God to lead.As the prophet Jeremiah illustrates, the forces and factors that go into such a divine call are hidden and highly personal. The way we hear God's call is often equally distinctive. Nehemiah discerned it through an overwhelming awareness of need. Barnabas and Saul heard it in the context of a group of dedicated peers.

In The Purpose Driven Church, Rick Warren uses the acronym SHAPE to point out that, however it comes, God's call normally conforms to the way he has designed us.

How God Shapes You for Ministry

Spiritual gifts
Heart
Abilities
Personality
Experiences

(Rick Warren, The Purpose Driven Church, p. 370.)

The call to lead, for example, starts with determining if I have the spiritual gift(s), heart (i.e., passion, motivational bent), abilities (natural talents), personality (temperament, etc.), and experience needed to be a leader. Still, it is important to remember that like everything else in the Christian life, the call to be a leader always includes the exercise of faith (Rom.12:3).

The call to be a leader often engages us in struggle. "Had I known about it before hand," Martin Luther confessed, "(God) would have had to take more pains to get me in. . . .I would not take the whole world to enter upon this work now. On the other hand, when I regard him who called me, I would not take the whole world not to have begun it" (Norman Shawchuck, Leading the Congregation, pp. 65-66). As paradoxical as it seems, joy is the fruit of suffering in and for a ministry to which we have been called (Heb. 12:2).

Leadership is often hard. But as Paul's example illustrates, there is an even greater "woe" if the call to lead is not heeded (1 Cor. 9:16). This can manifest itself in outward circumstances as in Jonah's case or internally as in Paul's. Either way, the outcome is the same. By virtue of their calling, leaders are compelled to lead. They cannot avoid it. "The call beckons. No matter how tough the situation, no matter what is done or said, no matter how intense the trial -- one must obey" (Shawchuck, p. 67).

The decisive thing about God's call is that when it is discerned, "it ascends to occupy the primacy of all of one's desires and goals. For those who hear the call, there is no other alternative" (Shawchuck, p. 66). The call to lead provides the only adequate foundation for the courage to lead. Whatever else may be involved, leading courageously begins here.

Resources:

A Work of Heart: Understanding How God Shapes Spiritual Leaders , by Reggie McNeal. McNeal focuses on the process God uses to shape leaders.

Leadership, by James MacGregor Burns. Burns is the father of transformational leadership. In Part 2 of his book, Burns devotes nearly 100 pages to trace how leaders develop. Using historical examples, he describes (1) the psychological matrix of leadership (i.e., the "cocoon" of personality, the "wellsprings" of want, the "transmutation" of need, etc.), (2) the social sources of leadership (things like family, schooling, self-esteem, social role), and (3) the crucibles of leadership (ambition, need for gratification, "openings and closings" of opportunity to lead, structure, etc.).

Leading the Congregation, by Norman Shawchuck and Roger Heuser. Part 1 of this book is a powerful description of the inner dimension of church leadership, including the experience of the divine call.

The Making of a Leader, by J. Robert Clinton. Drawing from his study of hundreds of leaders, Clinton outlines six stages of leadership development and provides checkpoints to clarify where you are in the process.

Personal Vision

"His word is in my heart like a fire, a fire shut up in my bones.  I am weary of holding it in; indeed, I cannot" (Jer. 20:9).

"I was very much afraid, but I said to the king, . . . 'Why should my face not look sad when the city where my fathers are buried lies in ruins, and its gates have been destroyed by fire?'" (Neh. 2:2-3).

Courageous leadership begins with God's call.  It is fortified by a compelling personal vision, what some have described as the concept of destiny.  It is the answer to the question, what is God summoning you and you alone to accomplish in your generation (Acts 13:36)?  We could put the question differently.  Not so much what vision do you own, but what is the vision that owns you?  What is your life mission, your reason to be, your unique purpose in life? 

There are three parts to this question.  The first is the mission each of us shares with the whole human race:  to know God, and enjoy him forever, and to see his hand in all of his works (Acts 17:30; 1 Pet. 2:9).  The second is the great "co-mission," to share the message and reality of God's love with one another and with a hurting world (Matt. 12:28-31; 28:18-20).  The third is to fulfill the destiny that is uniquely your own:  to use your greatest gift, which you delight to use; in the places or settings that God has caused to appeal to you the most; and for those purposes that God most needs to have done.

It is important to separate the question of personal destiny from that of corporate vision so prevalent today.  What many do not see is that corporate vision only matters to people -- leaders included -- to the extent that it reflects their own vision and helps them to fulfill it.  There is incongruence between the individual and the organization, but that can be an asset.  On the one hand, the tension it creates can help individuals to enhance their own growth.  On the other hand, it can force the organization to work harder at being viable and effective.  Vision, in short, is not an organization's, or even the leader's, private domain.  "A congregation is at its best when vision is breaking out everywhere" (Shawchuck, p. 139).

Leaders who are gripped by a compelling personal vision have a solid platform for leading courageously.  They are confident and able to (1) seek the places or settings that most need their unique vision for ministry; (2) bring their vision to every task and organization that God calls them to serve; (3) model that vision in their behavior and be genuine; (4) articulate the vision in concrete and positive terms; (5) expect that God will raise up around them people who have complementary gifts and visions of their own; (6) empower people to refine and achieve their personal visions beneath the umbrella of the leader's own growing vision.  They are not enslaved by the organizations they serve or the expectations of the people in and around them.

Resources:

First Things First, by Stephen R. Covey.  Covey discusses life management (vs. time management) based on personal mission.  Appendix A, "Mission Statement Workshop," is an excellent tool for leaders or leadership teams to use in either an individual or on a team-building retreat.

Focused Living Resource Kit, by Terry Walling.  Walling walks leaders through a process of bringing strategic focus to their life and ministry.  His approach is based on the theories and concepts of J. Robert Clinton.

Commitment to the Task

"If I perish, I perish" (Esther 4:16).

Along with calling and personal vision, commitment to the task is an added source of courage for leaders.  The Old Testament story of Esther is an example.  In a time of national crisis, Esther needed to be reminded of the extremity, as well as the opportunity, of her own situation.  "If you remain silent at this time, relief and deliverance for the Jews will arise from another place, but you and your father's family will perish.  And who knows but that you have come to royal position for such a time as this?" (4:14).  She responded to that challenge with commitment, and in the process she also found courage.

In The Fifth Discipline, Peter Senge has conveniently outlined several possible levels of "commitment" to a vision. 

Possible Attitudes Toward a Vision

Apathy:  Neither for nor against vision.  No interest.  No energy.  "Is it five o'clock yet?"

Noncompliance:  Does not see benefits of vision and will not do what's expected.  "I won't do it; you can't make me."

Grudging compliance:  Does not see the benefits of the vision.  But, also, does not want to lose job.  Does enough of what's expected because he has to, but also lets it be known that he is not really on board.

Formal compliance:  On the whole, sees the benefits of the vision.  Does what's expected and no more.  "Pretty good soldier."

Genuine compliance:  Sees the benefits of the vision.  Does everything expected and more.  Follows the "letter of the law."  "Good soldiers."

Enrollment:  Wants it.  Will do whatever can be done within the "spirit of the law."

Commitment:  Wants it.  Will make it happen.  Creates whatever "laws" (structures) are needed.

(Peter Senge, The Fifth Discipline, pp. 219-20)

Senge argues that in most organizations there are relatively few people who are "enrolled" -- and even fewer committed.  The great majority are in a state of compliance. 

Of the three types of compliance, "genuine compliance" is the most problematic because it is often mistaken for commitment.  The difference is that people who are committed truly want the vision.  Genuinely compliant people merely accept it; the vision is not their own.  The result?  "The committed person brings an energy, passion, and excitement that cannot be generated if you are only compliant. . . .  A group of people truly committed to a common vision is an awesome force.  They can accomplish the seemingly impossible" (pp. 218-22).  Senge is speaking of organizations but his comments apply to leaders as well.  Leaders need to make a genuine commitment to their calling and vision.

One important way leaders demonstrate commitment to their calling and vision is by linking it to their calendar.  Here is a sample process:  (1) Decide your fundamental priorities -- three to five areas that are key to fulfilling your personal mission in your present setting.  (2) State these in writing, along with what you expect to achieve in each area.  (3) Write out a brief statement of how you plan to achieve these priorities -- i.e., list three to five measurable goals under each priority.  Steps 2 and 3 need not fill up more than a single page.  (4) Finally, set aside a day every three months to review what you have written, to see what you have accomplished, and to plan your strategies for the next three months.

Resources:

The Fifth Discipline, by Peter Senge.  See especially the chapter on shared vision.

Sonlife's Vision (Advanced 1) training seminar is built around the development and practical implementation of vision in a local church setting.

Focused Living Resource Kit, by Terry B. Walling.  Section 2 of this material is especially focused on developing a personal mission statement and applying it to your calendar.

Skills and Resources

"'Ah, Sovereign Lord," I said, 'I do not know how to speak; I am only a child'" (Jer. 1:6).

"But David said to Saul, . . . 'Your servant has killed both the lion and the bear; this uncircumcised Philistine will be like one of them'" (1 Sam.17:34, 36).

"Be diligent to present yourself approved to God as a workman who does not need to be ashamed, handling accurately the word of truth" (2 Tim. 2:15, NAS).

Nothing is more demoralizing to a leader than walking into a situation unequipped and ill prepared.  On the other hand, nothing is as empowering as knowing you possess the skills and resources necessary to get the job done.  Proven skills and resources make it possible for leaders to lead courageously.  Effective leaders work hard at continually expanding and improving their skills.

For inexperienced leaders (sometimes for experienced leaders, too), coaches and consultants are the best source of help in the short run or in emergency situations.  In The Church Growth Answer Book, Gary McIntosh gives organizations some tips for choosing a consultant (pp. 160-61).  The following are directly applicable to leaders who are seeking guidance in selecting a personal consultant or a coach:

1. Conduct a needs assessment: In what area do I need help?   Am I willing to pay the price (time, cost, personal) to get help?
2. Ask questions:  Can this person provide me with the help I need?  Can they refer me to someone else who can help?
3. Select a coach/consultant who is a teacher.  The goal is not to produce co-dependency but to equip you to lead.
4. Involve the coach/consultant "before your house is burning down."  Consultants are not miracle workers.  If you are planning to use coaches or consultants, bring them in before it is too late.

Leaders acquire experience through a process of life-long learning.  "Life is full of lessons that we can all learn everyday.  To a large extent, that's what living is about.  But leaders are much better than most people at recognizing those lessons and using them" (Noel Tichy, The Leadership Engine, p. 59).  In Leadership that Works, Leith Anderson outlines the following process for maximizing the process of accumulating experience as a leader: 

1. Know how you learn.  "Would you rather read a book, watch a movie, talk to people, listen to others, observe someone do something, or take a formal class?  All are valid, but not all are good for you, so choose the one that fits you best" (p. 182).
2. Take responsibility for your own learning.  "Design your own program.  Hold yourself accountable.  Don't depend on others to tell you what you need to know" (p. 182).
3. Ask questions.
4. Listen.
5. Check out other organizations and systems than your own.  "Each year at Wooddale Church the staff takes an entire workday for an 'experience' retreat" (p. 183). 
6. Study mistakes.
7. Choose your mentors.  "A mentor is someone who has taught us so much that we know how he or she would handle a situation even though neither of us has ever actually faced anything like it before" (p. 185)

In his Focused Living Resource Kit, Terry Walling devotes a whole section to unleashing the power of personal mentoring in a leader's development and growth.  (As Anderson and Walling both indicate, this is a more intensive relationship than that of the coach/consultant referred to above.)  To effectively identify and select mentors, Walling recommends these steps: 

1. Clarify your personal goals.
2. List the type of resources you need to address your current and future development.
3. Create a list of potential mentors. 
4. Select and approach a mentor with your mentoring goals and allow the mentor to give input. 
5. Establish the mentoring relationship. 
6. Bring closure to the relationship when the mentoring exchange is complete.

Resources:

Being Leaders, by Aubrey Malphurs.  The appendixes alone are worth the price of the book.

Courageous Leadership, by Bill Hybels.  The dust jacket describes this as "the most important book he [Hybels] has ever written.  It is an excellent read.

Releasing Your Church's Potential, by Robert Logan & Tom Clegg, ChurchSmart.  Not just a resource, but also a guide to resources in key areas that impact leaders of churches.

Faith

"'Do not be afraid of them, for I am with you and will rescue you,' declares the Lord" (Jer. 1:8).

"I have set the Lord always before me.  Because he is at my right hand, I will not be shaken" (Ps. 16:8).

"When I am afraid, I will trust in you.  In God, whose word I praise, in God I trust; I will not be afraid. What can mortal man do to me?"  (Ps 56:3-4).

"So we say with confidence, 'The Lord is my helper, I will not be afraid'" (Heb. 13:6).

Ultimately, courageous leadership is a matter of faith.  That has always been the case, but there are times when it is more obvious than at others.  Especially in a day like our own, filled with rapid, pervasive, often unpredictable change, leadership is an ongoing act of faith.  For leaders today, faith is not a luxury; it is a basic requirement to survive. 

As leaders we need to take stock periodically.  I need to ask, what is the real object of my faith?  In Shepherding the Church, Joseph Stowell has pointed out that it is possible to focus my faith on the wrong thing (pp. 207-8).  When I focus faith, for example, on

• People -- I find myself managed and manipulated by the expectations of others.
• My Plans -- I find myself managing and manipulating others.
• Prosperity -- I find myself striving for outward success.
• Safety and Security -- I find myself unwilling or unable to take risks.
• Human Wisdom -- I ultimately find myself facing chaos.
  

"The blessing to shepherds [leaders] who by faith focus on the providing work of God is that they are freed from hinting, manipulating, controlling, and demanding gain [or security] . . . for themselves."  Faith has the freedom to obey God and "lets God manage the outcomes" (p. 220).

In addition to periodically examining the object of my faith, it is also important that I consider its vigor.  Is it passive and dead or active and alive?  Does it truly grab hold of something specific?  By faith, according to Hebrews 11, we "understand" (3), Abel "offered" (4), Noah "built" (7), Abraham "went" (8), Jacob "blessed" (21), the parents of Moses parents "hid him" (23), and Moses "chose" (25).  In short, when I exercise true faith in God, my whole being is engaged:  my mind (assent); my heart (trust); my will (commitment). 

At some level, true faith actively believes, for example, that:

• What is humanly impossible is possible with God (Matt. 19:26).
• All authority is his (Matt. 28:18).
• Where sin abounds, grace does much more abound (Rom. 5:20-21).
• When I do not know what to pray, he will help me (Rom. 8:26).
• No matter what, he will work all things together for my good (Rom. 8:28).
• Nothing can separate me from his love (Rom. 8:37-39).
• He is faithful in every testing (1 Cor. 10:13).
• Every promise God has ever given is "Yes!" in Jesus (2 Cor. 1:20).
• God always causes me to triumph in faith (2 Cor. 2:14).
• When I am weak, he is strong (2 Cor. 12:9-10).
• He never leaves me or forsakes me (Heb. 13:5).

The courage to lead in the face of adversity, change, opposition, and self-doubt comes from a variety of sources: God's call, personal vision, commitment to the task, having the needed skills and resources.  In the final analysis, though, courageous leadership is an issue of faith.  "My confidence and hope is rooted in Jesus Christ. . . .  It is when I believe this and live this that I am able to be the kind of leader Christ wants for his church" (Anderson, p. 170).

Resources:

Overcoming the Dark Side of Leadership, by Gary McIntosh & Samuel Rima.  This book is not directly related to the topic of faith.  However, it effectively reminds us that not all driving forces within a leader are positive.
 
Trusting God, Jerry Bridges, NavPress.  This book is a good review of the issue of trust in God, especially as it relates to adversity.  It is not specifically addressed to leaders.

(Updated 3/04)