Should we be tithing? What does it monetarily cost to follow Jesus – is it 10% of your income? How much of our Christian message, method and motivation is based – should be based - on our church's and our pastor's financial statements?
The Bible clearly teaches us what spiritual leadership is supposed to look like – and what is teaches may be shocking to most of us!
Biblical leadership is likened to being a shepherd, however many Christian leaders of our day fall woefully short of this example. So, how do you gain trust, foster teamwork, inspire and evaluate, all at the same time? Watch this short vlog and then listen to the podcast of the same name.
(Part 2 in a 2-part series) About a month ago we began talking about leadership – Christian leadership - and how important it is for a Christian community – any community - to have significant leadership. Without leadership, people tend towards their own way and more than that, without leadership people tend towards a self-centered and incomplete perception of the world around them. Our last conversation revolved around the internal aspects of leadership – what makes a leader from the inside out – today we talk about what makes a leader from the outside in.
(Part 1 in a 2-part series) Leadership – In today’s world, it is one of the most important necessities of life and sadly it is one of the most absent aspects of life. Humanity needs leaders. We need leaders to show us a vision, to clear a path, to walk the path first and to thereby help us walk the path. Christians just like humanity need leaders as well. Sure we have Jesus as the Captain of our faith and sure we have the Apostles, the 12 pillars of Christianity, but we also need those whose examples we can see, touch and relate to here and now, at the end of the age. So, what makes a Christian Leader?
If you look around the world we live in, you will see all kinds of crises. There are worldwide political, ecological, and social crises. There are family and religious crises. There are national crises of debt, jobs and economy. With all of these varied crises, there is one element that is common to all. I would go as far as to say that if this one element were firm and stable, then the crisis associated with it would be far less of a crisis and much more of an issue. This one element is Leadership. With it, there is a past track record, a present direction and a future vision. Without it, there is – well, without it there is crisis and with that crisis there is diminished hope. While we are not in a position to address most of the crises just mentioned, we will take this morning and address Leadership in Christianity – how important is it and what gives one the ability and the authority to lead?
