Shepherds

I'm not going to lie, I had a great week. It had a lot of good that happened in it. My weekend was relaxing and great as well. Now I'm approaching Monday morning and I'm getting a little stressed out about the incoming week. Although the biggest day of next week is Monday(tomorrow), so once I get past that I believe I am going to be just great. Moving on...

In class this week we learned about leadership. This is a topic I am very passionate about, and I get excited talking about it. We are called to leadership as Worship Leaders. This can be scary because we don't want to step out and make a fool of ourselves. God has given us these gifts and we need to in turn give them back to Him.A good thing to know is that leadership is not a gift, it is a skill. Therefore, we can practice and get better at it. Notice how I said practice. No leader is born a great leader it must be learned.

Leadership can be defined many ways. Two definitions I like are 1. Moving people and ideas forward. 2. Taking initiative for the benefit of others. These definitions outline some of the best leaders in history and in the world today. Both of these definitions have one subject that stands out, people. As a leader you obviously need people to shepherd and lead. They are above all the most important part of leadership. They are the leaders number one priority. I don't believe you can be a great leader and hate people. You need to put their needs above your own. (Christlike*)

In order to be a great leader you must first be a great follower.. Let me tall you why. If you were never motivated by a leader to move, how can you motivate others to move? Having good leadership needs to be practiced. Like anything else that requires practice, you can't be afraid of failure. It happens a lot. I have led many events into utter failure because of many reasons. I learned from my mistakes and I kept right on going. I know I will make mistakes again, I'm only human. I will do my best to learn from them and not repeat them.

I think one of the most important things about being a leader is having good communication skills. A lot of bad leadership I see is because of poor communication. You need to be precise in your communication and eliminate ambiguity. Also a thing to look out with, is how leadership is so close to selfishness. Selfishness is taking initiative for the benefit of yourself. You don't want to get going down the path of selfishness and lead others only to benefit your own desires.

Lord I pray that I can continue to be molded into a great leader. May I become more and more each day like the perfect leader, Jesus. I pray that I will hold others above myself and that I would lead to the best of my own abilities. I pray that I speak truth. Let my priorities line up with your priorities, God. Amen

Acts 20:28  Keep watch over yourselves and all the flock of which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers. Be shepherds of the church of God, which he bought with his own blood.


Matt Brown