This chapter was on man as a leader. This chapter does an OK job on the topic on keeping it biblical in all aspects, but doesnt underscore how much the world pollutes the leadership endowed by God, through Paul and other scriptural writers.
As my other posts on this book, my attitude and outlook on leadership can be divided into before I was a Christian and after I became a believer.
The secular world is filled with quotes, tips/tricks, programs and techniques on becoming a leader.
My initial foray into leadership came, when I was starting a business in India and then in US, driven by books by Alger, Chuchill, Zig Ziglar, Dale Carnegie, Covey, Goleman and the like. I even read several miltiristic leadership styles from Tzu, Mcarthur, Napoleon and then switched to sport leadership books from Wooden, Riley, Lombrdi and every other third-rate football coaches.
More recently, in the last half decade (pre-Christianity), it was dominated by Adam Grant, Clayton Christiansen, Daniel Pink, Jim Collins and ofcourse, Jack Welch.
All of them were contrite at best. Although the techniques helped me with some of the problems at a given stage and made me feel good or bad about my own behavior and actions, there were no real fundamental differences.
John C Maxwell was billed as a Christian author on leadership. I was sorely disappointed in that as well. Even the character-ethic vs self-image also only does surface treatment of this important topic.
The problem in all of these writings are that, they assume you want to be a leader, have options to be one and all of them have few variations, but primarily corporate.
I stopped reading all of these styles of books when I became a believer. One of the challenges I realized was that- the leadership qualities only come secondarily to my walk with Lord and in being a Christian by my faith-driven living. Without the core and the renewed heart, all of the recipes in the above books are but a superficial tips which will make you be a hypocrite, as the world expects you to be someone, you have no idea about.
At the same token, we cant just read a book on Jesus Christ Leadership techniques. The servant-leadership books and messages also miss the following facts -
- you have to have the Holy Spirit sealed salvation
- you need to have been called by God to any position of leadership
- God calls you to have the leadership at home with your wife and children before venturing anywhere. If you are single, then you have bit more freedom.
- your leadership style, workings all have to be aligned to God's message in the Bible
- you cant make it about cliches like servant-leadership or Christ-centered leadership which are but labels and in some books more worldly in its treatment
- just because you have walked longer with the Lord, doesnt automatically make you a leader in a specific area. You need #2 on this list.
- relationship with God and the walk is how you find out what it means to be a leader in any area of your life.
The main point Doriani hits is that being a leader is more important than doing things that make you a leader, harkening back to Nike Christianity message. This is the central message of the book and is more true in terms of leadership than any aspect, as the world defines all sort of doing lists over being.
The rules for a leader as given by Paul and others (via the Holy Spirit) in the Bible starts with being godly and building a strong core relationship with the Lord, before expanding to being a husband and leading your wife and as a father leading your children etc. An elder in a church is but a outward manifestation of what is already happening within a person and within the 4 walls of his home.
One of the main point, I do agree with Doriani is that, Christian leaders and leaders (in any field) who are Christians at the very least must meet the pagan standards of leadership, barring all the social justice non-sense, in this decade.
A fundamental theme of this style of leadership are
- sacrifice
- ministering to others
- making tough choices that are Biblically based, so everyone knows where you standards
- prayer
- submitting to the final authority of Christ Jesus
In the end, I am really not worried about what leadership position I am placed in my job, church, world/community etc. as long as I lead myself well in Spirit under the grace of God followed by leading my wife and sons as the head of the household. Anything else only comes second to this.