Kiokee Baptist Church

Declaring. Demonstrating. Discipling.

Leadership

Change to Grow

It is easier to act your way into feeling that it is to feel your way into acting.

That is one of my favorite sayings and it is so true.  I have been trying to get back into shape by exercising and watching what I eat.  I love to eat and I really hated to exercise, so something had to change.  I went to the doctor for a checkup and the PA told me that she wanted to put me on more medication.  I looked at her and said that is not going to happen and asked what I needed to do to avoid that.  She simply looked at me and said to adjust your diet and exercise.  Something clicked and I said that I could do that.  I started immediately changing my diet, and then started exercising.  I didn’t feel like doing either one, but something remarkable happened.  As I continued each week, I started to feel better and I actually missed it when I didn’t exercise.  Sometimes when I walk, the feeling to exercise is just not there, but as I go further, the right feelings just take over. 

I had to CHANGE in order to grow.

One of my favorite stories is from England and is as follows:
[blockquote name=”Anonymous”]
When I was young and free and my imagination had no limits, I dreamed of changing the world.  As I grew older and wiser, I discovered the world would not change, so I shortened my sights somewhat and decided to change only my country.  But it, too, seemed immovable.  As I grew into my twilight years, in one las desperate attempt, I settled for changing only my family, those closest to me, but alas, they would have none of it.  And now as I lie on my deathbed, I suddenly realize:  If I had only changed myself first, then by example, I would have changed my family.  From their inspiration and encouragement, I would have been able to better my country, and who knows, I may have even changed the world. [/blockquote]

So a question that we all have to answer is: do I really want to experience personal growth in my life?  That is followed by a second question which is: what am I willing to change in order to grow?

We will discuss in the next blog the different areas that we all need to grow in.

Thanks for taking time to read this.

Leadership & Personal Growth

What comes to your mind when you think of leadership?  There are many definitions of leadership out there.  My favorite definition of leadership is from a man who has been a big influence in my life through his conferences, books, videos, blogs, etc.  That man is John Maxwell, and his definition of leadership is very simple.

Leadership is influence.

The reason that I like that definition is that it makes everyone a leader because everyone has influence.  The only difference is that great leaders have a lot of influence and lesser leaders have less influence.  Leaders are both born as well as made.  Since we are all leaders and we obviously were born, that just leaves the made part.  All leaders can become better leaders because we can improve our level of influence.

As we look down through history to the present day, there have been a lot of great leaders, but one stands out.  Jesus was the ultimate leader.  He was God in human flesh, one hundred percent God (Deity) and one hundred percent man (Humanity).  That is hard to comprehend but it is biblically true.  Jesus really is a model for us to follow as leaders.  One of the amazing things about Jesus’ leadership was that he was a great follower.   We read over and over in scripture that Jesus went out sometimes in the morning and sometimes in the evening to communicate with the Father.  Matthew 14:23 is an example of Jesus going away by himself to pray.  He did what his Father asked him to do.

He followed and was obedient. 

This is one of the greatest keys for all leaders.  You have to be able to discipline and lead yourself.  Without this, you can never really advance as a leader.  Jesus was a great model for us.  Self discipline is essential to our growth as a leader. 

A final thought to this blog.  Successful leaders simply do the things that unsuccessful leaders refuse to do.  The secret to your success or failure as a leader can be found in what you do daily. 

A question for you to think about.  What does my daily routine look like as I try to develop as a Christ-like leader?

Let me know what you think.