Developing Kingdom Leaders – Tom Yeakley

Taking the Mystery out of Leadership

Archive for the tag “emerging leaders”

24 Nov 2014

What a Leader Does – DO

We continue to reflect upon a good way to organize our understanding of the complex subject of leadership.  Using the simple outline of Know – Be- Do – Reproduce we can categorize the important functions of this vast subject called leadership.  Today we will address the category of “Do – What a Leader Does.”

1. Leading and your family

Offices in the home can create unusual stresses

  • Regarding your spouse when your both are at home – respect each others ‘turf’ when working at home
  • Put in a good day’s work; discipline yourself to focus and stay on task
  • Set ‘office hours’ when working at home and actually do your work during these times as planned

Love your kids and help them love God and God’s work

  • Involve your children in prayer for people in the ministry
  • Have people in your home as guests and ask your guests to tell stories to your kids about their walk and experiences with God
  • Give your kids responsibilities at ministry activities, when appropriate – it can be as simple as greeting people at the door or serving refreshments
  • Build a positive identity and a sense of ‘being special’ because they are children of a staff who is serving in this ministry
  • Avoid building a child-centered home – see Mark 10:29-30; Luke 18:29-30

2. Leading meetings

Learn to lead a better meeting!

  • Meetings are a part of organizational leadership, so learn to lead good ones!
  • A nice outline for setting meeting agendas is to remember that good meetings have 3 parts – ‘business,’ development, relationships
  • Leading your team in development does not mean you have to be the development expert – just bring some intentionality to this function and lead your team in seeing that all are being developed

Have fun together with your team!

  • Don’t be so serious all the time!
  • If you are not creative at having fun, ask as team member to lead the team in this area with your oversight

Set realistic agendas and schedule with a margin when you lay out the meeting plans

Help others accomplish their work by including them in your meeting plans, but remember that it is your meeting, not their meeting

Be sensitive to time zone changes for those who travel, need for  regular breaks, free time, recreation needs, individual sleep patterns (individual rooms for those who snore?), and personal dietary needs

3. Increase your leadership capacity

Work with an administrative assistant

  • A good assistant will greatly increase you capacity to lead
  • Personal chemistry is very important in your ability to work together with your admin assistant
  • Know what you need and want in an assistant before selecting the person
  • Do you want someone to keep you organized, or are you by design well-organized and you want someone to implement your ideas and plans?
  • Be sure your assistant knows your calendar and schedule so that they can assist others who may need to contact you
  • Keep an on-going Action List with both short-term and long-term action items to be focused on and scheduled when appropriate
  • Review your calendar and Action List weekly with your assistant and update it as needed

4. Additional ‘How To’ Leadership Ideas

  • Seek to “ruthlessly eliminate hurry” from your daily life and schedule
  • Prepare to transition your leadership well – be intentional in the transition and plan ahead; don’t wait to be forced to transition your leadership in a crisis
  • Operate with “Planned Neglect” – you can’t do it all now; so decide what will have to wait in order for you to give your attention and effort the most important things now
Posted in #3 DO - What a Leader Does and tagged , , , , , , , , ,
03 Nov 2014
2 Comments

Organizing Your Leadership Thinking

Leadership is a complex and challenging subject to grasp the whole of the topic.  All one has to do is to look at the shelves of leadership books in the local bookstore to see that few are attempting to address the entire subject.  They each take a slice of broad subject, dissecting their particular piece of interest, but failing to address where this fits within the whole.

Some time ago in a brainstorm session with a colleague we attempted to address the subject of leadership as a whole, breaking the topic down into its major components.  After much thought and debate we came to these four big categories as a way to think about the subject of leadership.

Leadership Outline

  • Leadership Thinking – KNOW
  • The Leader – BE
  • Leading – DO
  • Developing Other Leaders – REPRODUCE

The US Military Academy has some of three of these components in their outline of the subject as described in the book, The West Point Way of Leadership.  Their outline of Know, Be, and Do is a great developmental model for general leader development.  But as Kingdom leaders we must add one additional topic – Reproduce.

By looking at the perfect Kingdom leader, Jesus, we now see the complete outline of the subject of leadership and leader development.  Jesus spent a great deal of His leadership developing the next generation of leaders who would carry on the movement after He was gone.  It is the responsibility of Kingdom leaders to develop more leaders.

As you think about your own development as a leader you will want to focus on these four general areas of leader development.  As you think about developing other leaders you will also want to think about these four areas.

When mentoring another leader often their felt need is for leadership skill development.  Perhaps the main reason for this felt need is the fact that new leadership responsibility often comes with deadlines.  Thus the pressure to grow in a previously unknown skill to meet our deadline.  That’s why the bookshelves are full of ‘how-to’ leadership topics, for the authors are often addressing the felt needs of the readers.

While leadership skills are important, we must not neglect the other three areas of a leader’s development.  We can have wonderful leadership skills, for example, but no character to support them and end up with tyrants or dictators.  All four areas are necessary for good leaders and leadership.

How’s your thinking about leadership?  Can you point to the gospels and identify where Jesus demonstrated these four areas of leadership?  Can you also see where He addressed these same areas as He developed The Twelve?

Posted in #1 KNOW- How a Leader Thinks, #4 REPRODUCE - Developing More Leaders and tagged , , , , , , , , , ,
20 Oct 2014

Good Leaders Assess!

A year ago (12 Aug 2013) in this blog I discussed in principle the concept of assessment for Kingdom leaders.  This week we will address that same subject of assessment, but with much more detail.

Assessment is a Kingdom Value

a. God Will Assess

Mat. 25:14-30 – the master of those servants returned and settled accounts
Lk. 19:11-27 – the master called each servant to see what they had gained
1 Cor. 3:10-15 – the fire will test the quality of each man’s work
Heb. 13:17 – your leaders…men who must give an account
Jam. 3:1 – we who teach will be judged more strictly

b. Spiritual Leaders Must Assess

1 Kgs. 3:9-12 – give your servant a discerning heart to govern the people
1 Cor. 5:12 – Are you not to judge those inside [the church]?
Heb. 13:17 – your leaders…they keep watch over you
Paul’s letters to Timothy were based upon assessment of Timothy’s needs

 

What Three Things Do Kingdom Leaders Assess?

a.  The Staff and Co-laborers
• Personal walk with God – basics; Are they continuing to pursue Christ wholeheartedly?
• Family – talk with the spouse; spend time with their children
• Christlike character;  Are there obvious flaws / trends that need to be addressed?
• Spend time with them in their mission responsibility; Ask God for discernment and ability to see root issues.
• Funding;  Are they raising sufficient funds to meet their family needs at this season of life?

b.  The Ministry / Mission
We want to assess using the same calling, vision, and strategy that we have agreed to as our purpose, outcomes, and direction.

• Preparation Phase
a. Seeking God
b. Determining and clarifying their mission focus
c. Choosing an identity for the context
d. Determining resources needed to accomplish the launch and move to sustainability

• Launch Phase
a. Evangelism and relating to the lost
b. Establishing young Christians
c. Broad-base methods and networking
d. Recruiting, not just inviting
e. Creating your identity

• Building Phase
a. Equipping laborers for the harvest
b. Selection of those who demonstrate heart and commitment to the calling and vision
c. Teams and teamwork – building teams towards a common vision

Essential Building Blocks
a. One-to-one
b. Small groups
c. Large groups
d. Training in vision and skills for producing spiritual generations
e. Leading

Leadership Skills
• Communication Skills – public and interpersonal
• Organizational Skills

c. The Key People
• Personal walk with God – basics; Are they continuing to pursue Christ wholeheartedly?
• Do they have a vision for spiritual generations of laborers?
• Do they have a heart for and are they personally laboring?

 

Posted in #1 KNOW- How a Leader Thinks, #3 DO - What a Leader Does and tagged , , , , , , , , , , ,
13 Oct 2014

Decisions of Wise Leaders

Kingdom leaders are called on to make wise decisions that honor Christ and accomplish God-given mission.  It seems that when we are just beginning our leadership careers the decisions we make are often choices between good and bad; right or wrong; black or white.  But the longer we serve and the more influence and responsibility we have the more challenging the choices.  Now it is a choice between good, better, and best; right or right for this situation and context; or it can seem as if all decisions are all different shades of gray.

The following are some decision-making principles that can help when having to make a ‘tough call’ —

• Spiritual leaders are called upon to make wise decisions. Wisdom comes from God. We can have it, if we ask for it!      James 1:5-8

• Wisdom in decision-making is insight into the true nature of things and discernment as to which option to take.      James 3:13, 17

• Decision making styles: vary; there is no right or wrong style for the context can determine which style is best to use at which time:  autocratic; participatory (consultative or consensus); or democratic

• Steps to Making Wise Decisions

1. Pray for Godly wisdom.      James 1:5
2. Believe that God will lead you.      James 1:6
3. Go to the Word for direction.      Ps. 119:105, 130
4. Think! Use your mind!      Prov. 14:8; 1 Pet. 1:13
5. Seek counsel from other leaders.      Prov. 15:22
6. Wait for God to clarify the options.
7. Decide!
8. Be responsible for your decisions.

• Obstacles to Making Wise Decisions

1. Fear of failure      Ecc. 11:4; Prov. 24:16
2. Haste      Prov. 19:2
3. Bad motives      James 3:13-16
4. Lack of emotional control      Prov. 29:11, 22

• All (I’m excluding involuntary reflexes) decisions have to go through our:  emotions, intellect, and will

• Time verifies good decisions and exposes the fallacy of poor decisions.      Luke 7:35

• Delegating helps insure that the team leader is making decisions concerning the most important issues.      Genesis 18:17-26

So what decisions are you making today?  Have you taken the time to reflect upon some of your previous decisions to determine what ones were wise and what ones not?  Is there a tough decision that you’ve been putting off?  It’s time to decide!

Posted in #1 KNOW- How a Leader Thinks, #3 DO - What a Leader Does and tagged , , , , , , , , ,
06 Oct 2014

Rewards for Service

The Bible has a lot to say about rewards for faithful and good service.  While salvation is a free gift, Jesus does take note of our service and will reward us for it.  It does appear that rewards can be lost as well due to unfaithfulness.  Again we note that rewards can be lost, not salvation.

The following is a Bible study on the subject of rewards.  Reflect on the passages and seek to find application for your leadership regarding recognizing and rewarding those you are leading.

REWARDS FOR SERVICE

1. Salvation vs. Rewards

Salvation a free gift, not worked for; results in eternal life and forgiveness of sins; through faith – Eph. 2:8-9
available to all – Jn. 3:16
never can be lost – Jn. 10:27-30

Rewards awards given for service to God; distributed in heaven; available only to Christians; can be lost

 

2. Rewards

Matthew 16:27  –  For the Son of Man is going to come in his Father’s glory with his angels, and then he will reward each person according to what he has done.

• based upon the work we have done

1 Cor. 3:8  –  The man who plants and the man who waters have one purpose, and each will be rewarded according to his own labor.

• based upon our labor (planting and watering)

1 Cor. 3:14  –  If what he has built survives, he will receive his reward.

• based upon the quality of our work

2 Cor. 5:9-10  –  So we make it our goal to please him, whether we are at home in the body or away from it.  For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive what is due him for the things done while in the body, whether good or bad.

• based upon living a life pleasing to God

Col. 3:23-24  –  Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving.

• is an inheritance from the Lord based upon working with a whole heart

Hebrews 11:6  –  And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.

• based upon seeking God earnestly

Rev. 11:18  –
The nations were angry;
and your wrath has come.
The time has come for judging the dead,
and for rewarding your servants the prophets
and your saints and those who reverence your name,
both small and great–
and for destroying those who destroy the earth.”

• given to the Lord’s servants and prophets

Rev. 22:12  –  “Behold, I am coming soon! My reward is with me, and I will give to everyone according to what he has done.

• based upon what we have done

 

3. Examples of Work That Will be Rewarded

Matthew 6:1-6  –  for acts of righteousness done with pure motives: giving to the needy and secret prayer

Matthew 6:16-18  –  for righteous acts with pure motives: fasting

Matthew 10:41-42  –  given for showing kindness and hospitality

Luke 6:35  –  for loving your enemies; being kind to the ungrateful and wicked

1 Cor. 3:8  –  for evangelizing (planting) and discipling (watering)

 

4. Rewards Can Be Lost

1 Cor. 3:10-15  –  lost because of poor quality of service

2 John 1:8  –  lost because we are deceived by false teachers who do not acknowledge Jesus Christ

Rev. 3:11  –  lost for not enduring during a time of trial

 

Is there someone you are leading who needs some recognition or reward for a job well done?

Posted in #1 KNOW- How a Leader Thinks, #3 DO - What a Leader Does and tagged , , , , , , , , , , ,
29 Sep 2014

Morale – Focus on It!

In the great leadership book by Dwight Eisenhower titled Crusade in Europe, he devotes a good deal of attention to the subject of maintaining high morale among the troops under his command.   You’ll note his number one item:  Morale is the key to success!  Here’s a list of other lessons learned from his experience as Supreme Allied Commander of the European Theater during WWII:

FACTORS CONTRIBUTING TO HIGH MORALE

1. Morale is the greatest single factor in successful warfare.

2. The individual is the key to success.

3. Communicate correct information to counteract negative propaganda.

4. Maintaining the initiative not only keeps the enemy on the defensive, but builds morale.

5. Success in reaching a goal or series of victories builds morale and esprit de corps.

6. When the enemy is successfully attacking, calmness, firmness and optimism are essential
to win through to victory.

7. Keep the civilians informed of the progress of the war.

8. Visit the troops frequently in the field.

9. Talk to the troops about everything. Ask them if they have discovered any new trick or
gadget to use in fighting .

10. Mutual confidence, a feeling of partnership, is the essence of esprit de corps.

11. Take initiative to find out their problems. Don’t wait for them to come to you.

12. Men must feel that they are being treated equally and fairly.

13. Men must know their own accomplishments are understood and appreciated.

14. Leadership, discipline, technique, as well as numbers, equipment, mobility, supply and
maintenance are prerequisite to the existence of morale.

15. Morale will suffer unless all ranks thoroughly believe that their commanders are concerned
first and always with the welfare of the troops who do the fighting.

16. Provide recreation and furlough time. Veterans like to return to their own unit. Relieve
units from front-line duty periodically.

17. Higher commanders devote every minute of their time to tactics, logistics and morale.

Posted in #1 KNOW- How a Leader Thinks, #3 DO - What a Leader Does and tagged , , , , , , ,
22 Sep 2014

Moving On to What’s Next

Here’s a second conversation with Lorne Sanny in March 2003 – this topic was on Moving On to a New Leadership Role.

Many make the mistake of rushing to what’s next
o They don’t like to live with the ambiguity of not knowing what they do
o It’s like wading across a stream – don’t rush; take one step at a time
o Hebrews 11:8 – Abraham did not know where he was going when he left

Delayed gratification is key attitude
o It’s about contribution first, then organizational issues second

Don’t be afraid of pursuing dead ends
o Not every road is the right road the first time

Many are so driven to production that they can’t wait to get on with something else
o Rest and hope in the Lord – Ps. 130:5
o Walk with God day by day – Ps. 61:8

Consider your responsibility to your family at this stage of life
o Grandparents role – Ps. 128:6

  •  “see” means get to know your grandchildren
  •  Doesn’t mean that an international assignment is wrong if you have grandchildren
  • But if live away from them, be all there for them when you furlough or are with them
  • It’s the little times together that can really make a difference in their lives

Be sure to give the new leader who follows you “space”

Restrain yourself from offering your advice and opinions after you leave (unless asked)

Don’t “overstay your welcome” as a leader
o Know and determine when to leave your role to another
o Don’t wait until you have to be asked to leave!

Posted in #1 KNOW- How a Leader Thinks, #3 DO - What a Leader Does and tagged , , , , , , ,
08 Sep 2014

Knowing God’s Will

Leaders are often asked for advice and counsel regarding decisions that others are making.  They want to do what is right and know God’s plan for their life.  Here’s a simple outline for advising others on how to find the will of God.  Knowing how to discern God’s will for ourselves and finding His pathway forward can be challenging for us all. With so many options and competing voices, the cacophony can be distracting or confusing at best. How can we know His will for us as we seek to lead others?
The Lord generally uses five means to guide us as we go forward along His path. While He can and does on occasion use other “spectacular” means (angels, visions, dreams, burning bush, pillar of fire, a speaking donkey), these five means are most often used to guide us.
#1   The Word of God – God will use His Word, the Bible, to guide us. It can be as objective as a command or as subjective as a personal promise. But He will never lead us in a way that would contradict His revealed Word.    Psalm 119:105
#2   Personal Peace – When we pray about our situation His Spirit who dwells within us will confirm with our spirit that we are on the right path. This does not mean that we will have all the answers for our questions or that we may not be anxious in wondering how it will all work out. But there will be quietness within our soul that He is leading us.    Isaiah 30:21
#3   Wise Counsel – As we seek counsel from others God will speak through them to help us discern His will. We are reminded that in the abundance of counselors there is much wisdom. Therefore, we are looking for a general consensus from those we ask for counsel. And we choose counsel from those who are more mature in the Lord than we are and hopefully those who want God’s best for us.    Proverbs 15:22
#4   Critical Thinking – Dawson Trotman said, “God gave you a lot of leading when He gave you a brain. So use it!” We are taught not to “lean on your own understanding,” not “don’t use your own understanding.” I’ll often make a pro-contra or plus-minus list regarding the advantages and disadvantages I can see when making a major decision.    Proverbs 3:5-6
#5   Circumstances – The Lord can direct through open as well as closed doors. But just because there is an open door it does not mean that we are expected to walk through it. Our adversary can also open doors of opportunity to get us off track. Paul was directed by God on his second missionary journey by running into three closed doors until he finally arrived in Troas and in a vision directed to Europe.    Acts 18
So what can we conclude? God wants us to know His will. He planned it and designed us to accomplish it. Thus He will direct us if we ask Him. The key is our willingness to obey and do His will. Romans 12:1-3 confirms that we will know His will if we are willing to do it.  And God being God, He has no trouble communicating. These five means will align and point to a common destination. We will know His path for us; that’s not the problem. The challenge is in following the path. For God’s path usually involves faith and often sacrifice and those can scare us.

Are you searching for His pathway for you? Or perhaps you already know His desire for you, but you’ve not yet yielded to that guidance. It’s time to step up and step out by faith and follow Him!

Posted in #1 KNOW- How a Leader Thinks, #3 DO - What a Leader Does and tagged , , , , , , , , , ,
18 Aug 2014
2 Comments

The Traveling Leader

The thrill of looking out the airplane window long ago disappeared. It seems like all the fun has gone out of traveling by air, and now what we can look forward to is getting off the plane as soon as possible. But many leaders have to travel. Leading a geographically dispersed team can involve frequent air or land travel. Here’s some ideas on how to travel and lead well.

 Limit your overnight travel when your children are young. The demands of parenting when the kids are young are such that frequent overnight travel can be overwhelming for the parent left behind. As Kingdom leaders need reminding that our greatest contribution and lasting legacy can be through our children (and grandchildren).

 Help the family celebrate your trip with special events while you’re away. When you do travel, seek to make it a special occasion with special treats and activities if possible. That way, your leaving can become something to look forward to, not something to dread.

 Be all there when you return home. Remember, the trip ends the day after you return. You’ve been away serving others, giving yourself wholeheartedly to them. And now you return home and need to recharge and catch up on what’s happened while you’ve been away. If not careful this can lead to a passivity at home when you return or a distractedness, instead of continuing that servanthood and applying it to your spouse and children who have been anxiously waiting for your return.

 Take notes to remember key observations and experiences and debrief with your spouse when you return from a trip. With today’s technology you can keep current in most places through phone, texting, or email. Be intentional about keeping your lives integrated and not separate. But realize that the level a detail shared depends upon your spouse’s desire and perhaps confidentiality issues.

 For longer trips be wise in how tightly you fill the days. As a general rule consider breaking the days into three parts – morning, afternoon, and evening. Schedule two of the three parts and keep one part open for recharge and personal time. Schedule breaks within your trips so that you can take an entire day off for some mental or physical activity that you find refreshing.

 Take a To Be Read file with you on a trip. I’m often sent articles or resources recommended for me to read. I’ll print them out and place them into a To Be Read file that goes with me when I travel. As I read, I toss and lighten the load in my briefcase.

Traveling well is an art and requires you to know yourself well. What makes you most effective when you are out of your routine at home? You and your family are paying a large price to travel so you will want optimize this effort. Don’t waste this opportunity nor neglect your family responsibilities either. Be wise!

 

Posted in #3 DO - What a Leader Does and tagged , , , , , , ,
11 Aug 2014
2 Comments

How Many Apples in the Seed?

The question is not how many seeds are in the apple, but rather how many apples are in the seed? It’s a matter of perspective and vision. Vision sees the potential of the multiple apples that can come from one seed that is planted and nurtured to the point of maturity. And not only that one apple tree from that one seed, but true vision sees orchards of apple trees that can come from a single seed given enough care and time.

Leaders with vision see the current reality and also the future reality that they are seeking to create. They see what is and what is not yet. The future that they see they see by faith knowing that unless God intervenes then it will not be realized.

Vision differs from dreams or fantasies. Vision can see how, by the grace and empowering of God, our current reality becomes the future. Dreams or fantasies hope for that future, but have no connection or pathway from the present to the hoped for future state.

Vision needs to be big enough to attract and recruit resources (people and money), but not so big that it is immediately dismissed by others who hear of it because it seems impossible, outlandish, or unattainable.

Vision casting is both an art and a science. What to share when talking of our vision is the science of vision casting. It must include enough information to answer anticipated questions before they are asked. It must not include so much detail that it bores those who are interested. How leaders share their vision for the future is an art in that sharing too much too soon can overwhelm some, while understating the vision can lack sufficient motivation or inspiration to attract the necessary resources.

Jesus cast vision when recruiting His initial four disciples – Andrew, Peter, James, and John. He had already spent a year with them (John 1-4) getting to know them and they getting to know Him. They had visited His home, seen him change water into wine, talk with a Samaritan woman at a well, and engage Nicodemus in conversation about eternal life. Now He comes to them and asks them to leave their vocation (fishing) and join Him. He lays out for them a vision of a future state. He says, “Follow me and I will make you fishers of men” (Mark 1:14ff).

Did these men fully understand this vision? Probably not. But they did have enough of a context and an understanding to make a very important decision. They left their home and vocation in order to pursue Jesus and this vision together.

How’s the clarity of your vision? Can you share it in such a way that it is clear, succinct, and compelling to others around you?

Posted in #1 KNOW- How a Leader Thinks, #3 DO - What a Leader Does and tagged , , , , , , , , ,

Post Navigation

← Older Entries
Newer Entries →