Developing Kingdom Leaders – Tom Yeakley

Taking the Mystery out of Leadership

Archive for the tag “mindset”

28 Dec 2015
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Trusting God When Life Does Not Make Sense

Over 30 years ago Dana and I packed all of our belongings into 50-gallon drums, welded them shut, and placed into the back of a rental truck. We had given away our winter clothing, household goods, and even our wedding gifts. I’d stenciled our Indonesian address onto the drums and drove the truck to a railhead in Chicago for what was supposed to be a six-week trip to Indonesia. Unfortunately, the barrels were lost and we would not recover them again for 10 months.

We were going to Indonesia to work with young married couples on the eastern end of Java. But a three-year wait in Chicago had not provided a long-term visa. So, we decided to move ahead with a student visa to study language with the hope of obtaining a long-term visa later.

Two more years of language study still did not yield a long-term visa and so we exited the country to wait in Singapore to see what God would do. Ten weeks of waiting and praying resulted in a new visa, but one that required us to stay in West Java and work with single, undergraduate students, something we had never done before. Could God and our Nav leadership be trusted?

Dana and I began to pray over John 15:16 as a promise for our work with students: “You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you so that you might go and bear fruit-fruit that will last….” The next few years saw amazing fruitfulness in the ministry and we later transitioned the work to an Indonesian staff couple who had come to faith as students in the ministry.

That change in our visa and job led to two decades of serving globally and within the US with student ministry leaders. Who could have imagined how the Lord was working when we were redirected from one end of Java to another? In retrospect it was perfect! But in the midst of the journey, God asked us to trust Him, that He knew best and was sovereignly directing us, even when it did not make sense or feel so good to us.

As we come to the end of 2015, has God interrupted your well-designed plans? Does it seem as though your life journey has taken an unexpected detour or a long delay? Are you trusting Him for this next season knowing that He has promised to never leave or forsake you?

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14 Dec 2015

Leading into Ethnic Diversity

It does not take a “rocket scientist” to see that our world today is experiencing one of the greatest migrations of peoples in history.  All over the world large populations of people are leaving their homelands for the hope of a better future.  With the rapidly increasing ethnic diversity in our own country, if we don’t become more ethnically diverse, we will find ourselves marginalized with a ministry to a shrinking number of people.  The demographic sand is shifting beneath our feet!  We must adapt or die!

These changing demographics will demand new approaches, thinking, materials and a different kind of laborer.  The laborers needed to reach across these ethnic differences will have to be people who are flexible, able to adapt, and ones who are comfortable with differences.  Their watchword will be, “Not wrong, just different.”

Jesus’ disciples thought it strange that He, a Jewish rabbi, would associate with a Samaritan woman. Jesus demonstrated courage and a willingness to be misunderstood. He took risks and moved out of Jewish comfort zone to touch this one.  We will have to be and do the same as we follow Him into an increasingly ethnically diverse audience.

This will not be easy.  Change is never easy.  All people are most comfortable with those who are like us.  But Jesus modeled an incarnational model where he adapted and adjusted to humankind in order to fulfill the will of His Father.  We can do no less because we are called to imitate Him.

May God use you to plant good seed that will multiply many times over in the lives of those who are ethnically different from you.  May He give you wisdom to lead into increasingly ethnically diverse contexts that demand a willingness to leave the old behind and embrace the new, for His glory!

Posted in #1 KNOW- How a Leader Thinks, #3 DO - What a Leader Does and tagged , , , , , , , , ,
02 Nov 2015

The Grateful Leader

The Apostle Paul in his message to the Athenians while standing in front of the Areopagus says this about God:  “…he himself gives everyone life and breath and everything else” (Acts 17:25).  Has is every struck you that all you have as a leader finds its source in God Himself?

Yes, you have accomplished some things as a leader through your wise decisions, good stewardship, faithfulness, and hard work.  But think a minute.  Who gave you the mind to be able to make decisions?  Who created an ability to discern what was good and not so good in your stewardship?  Who created within you a will that enables you to choose to be faithful?  And who created within you a desire to work and accomplish a task?  Yes, all these things, and yes, everything we are and have finds its source in Him.

Therefore, what should be our response?  It must me one of contrition for taking any credit upon ourselves, humility, and a proper perspective that truly “in him we live and move and have our being” (Acts 17:28).

How about making a gratefulness list?  What are you grateful to God for?  Express them to Him from a sincere heart of praise and thankfulness.  Can you truly thank Him for everything including those things that don’t feel or seem good or pleasant?

Here’s some things to get you started:  your relationship to Him, your spouse and family, your mind and body, your spiritual gifts, your role and influence, your opportunities for service, your friends, your team, your possessions, your experiences, and your weaknesses (see 2 Cor 12:9).

A grateful, thankful spirit is attractive.  It bleeds authenticity.  It brings proper perspective.

“Rejoice always, 17 pray continually, 18 give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus” (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18).

Posted in #2 BE - Who a Leader Is, #3 DO - What a Leader Does and tagged , , , , , , ,
21 Sep 2015

Leadership Jazz – 3

Max DePree has the following to say about leading from beliefs, values, and vision in his excellent work titled, “Leadership Jazz.”

“From a leader’s perspective, the most serious betrayal has to do with thwarting human potential, with quenching the spirit, with failing to deal equitably with each other as human beings.

“Beliefs and values are the footings on which we build answers to the questions, “Who matters?” and “What matters?”  The promises we make as leaders must resonate with our beliefs and values.

“It behooves us, then, to find our voices.  Leaders must speak to followers; we must let them know where and how we stand on the important issues.

“Vision is the basis for the best kind of leadership.  A vision exists somewhere when teams succeed.  Instinctively, most of us follow a leader who has real vision and who can transform that vision into a meaningful and hopeful strategy.

“Another fragile facet of a leader’s character is what I call an eagerness for the fray. The best leaders I know are always anxious to get to the job at hand, to do what they are there to do.

“Real preparation consists of hard work and wandering in the desert, of much feedback, much forgiveness, and of the yeast of failure.

“Moving up in the hierarchy does not confer competence.

“The only appropriate response to a promotion is ‘Good grief, have I got a lot to learn now!’

“Success tends to breed arrogance, complacency, and isolation.  Success can close a mind faster than prejudice.”

A leader’s communication, both verbal and written, will focus those around them on various issues.  Pick and choose your communication topics to ensure that your influence is focused on those issues that are most strategic and important for the mission at this time.

What are you communicating about?  What are your followers focusing on as a result of your communications?

Posted in #3 DO - What a Leader Does and tagged , , , , , , , , ,
14 Sep 2015
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Leadership Jazz – 2

Max DePree in his great leadership book, “Leadership Jazz” has some excellent thoughts regarding a leader’s promises.

“Though I’m still learning things about being a leader, I can tell you at least two requirements of such a position:  The need to give one’s witness as a leader—to make your promises to the people who allow you to lead; and the necessity of carrying out your promises.

“Followers can’t afford leaders who make casual promises.  Someone is likely to take them seriously.

“For no leader has the luxury of making a promise in a vacuum.

“A leader who backs away from her promises under duress irreparably damages the organization and plants the seeds of suspicion among her followers.

“The best leaders promise only what’s worth defending.

“It’s important to understand that leadership is a posture of indebtedness.  The process of leading is the process of fulfilling commitments made both to persons and to the organization.

“Knowing what not to do is fully as important as knowing what to do.

“Remember to think of followers as volunteers.  Remember, too, that the goals of the organization are best met when the goals of people in the organization are met at the same time.

“Here are several questions that leaders should expect to hear.  The answers to these questions, you see, are some of the promises leaders will make.

  • What may I expect from you?
  • Can I achieve my own goals by following you?
  • Will I reach my potential by working with you?
  • Can I entrust my future to you?
  • Have you bothered to prepare yourself for leadership?
  • Are you ready to be ruthlessly honest?
  • Do you have the self-confidence and trust to let me do my job?
  • What do you believe?”

If you are a verbal processor you can unintentionally make promises that you never intended.  As a leader your words carry extra weight and your thoughts expressed are assumed to be decisions.  You did not intend your words as final, just talking and thinking aloud, but others remember and will quote you in the future.  Beware of communicating what to you are just thoughts in a process but others hear as final decisions.

Are you a faithful leader?  Are you faithful to your word?  Can you be counted on to do what you say you will do?

Posted in #2 BE - Who a Leader Is, #3 DO - What a Leader Does and tagged , , , , , , ,
07 Sep 2015

Leadership Jazz

Max DePree has a second leadership classic titled, “Leadership Jazz.”  Here are some of his thoughts on the subject of faithfulness in the section, “Finding Your Voice.”

“Let me suggest five criteria as a way to start thinking about faithfulness.

  • Accountability for others, especially those on the edges of life and not yet experienced in the ways of the world, is one of the great directions leaders receive from the prophet Amos.  Amos tells us that leaders should encourage and sustain those on the bottom rung first and then turn to those on the top.
  • Integrity in all things precedes all else.
  • The servanthood of leadership needs to be felt, understood, believed, and practiced if we’re to be faithful.
  • There is a great misconception in organizations:  That a manager must be either in control or not in control.  The legitimate alternative is the practice of equity.
  • Leaders have to be vulnerable, have to offer others the opportunity to do their best.  Leaders become vulnerable by sharing with others the marvelous gift of being personally accountable.

“One becomes a leader, I believe, through doing the work of a leader.  It’s often difficult and painful and sometimes even unrewarding, and it’s work.”

Are you becoming a faithful leader?

Posted in #1 KNOW- How a Leader Thinks, #3 DO - What a Leader Does and tagged , , , , , , , , ,
31 Aug 2015

Taking Time Away

I’m seeking to model leading from an overflow of my own walk with the Lord.  In doing so I’m taking time away from the routines of leadership in order to refresh my soul and body.

What fills your tank?  When was the last time you had an intentional break from your routine responsibilities?  Are you leading from an overflow or is your tank near empty?

Don’t think you need a break?  Ask your spouse?  🙂

 

Posted in #3 DO - What a Leader Does and tagged , , , ,
03 Aug 2015

Leadership is an Art

Max DePree in his classic work titled, “Leadership is an Art” had the following thoughts regarding a basic definition of leadership.

“The first responsibility of a leader is to define reality.  The last is to say thank you.  In between the two, the leader must become a servant and a debtor.  That sums up the progress of an artful leader.

“Leaders don’t inflict pain, they bear pain.

“The measure of leadership is not the quality of the head, but the tone of the body.  The signs of outstanding leadership appear primarily among the followers.  Are the followers reaching their potential?

“Leaders are also responsible for future leadership.  They need to identify, develop, and nurture future leaders.

“Leaders owe people space, space in the sense of freedom.  Freedom in the sense of enabling our gifts to be exercised.  We need to give each other the space to grow, to be ourselves, to exercise our diversity.

“Another way to think about what leaders owe is to ask this question:  What is it, without which this institution would not be what it is?  Leaders are obligated to provide and maintain momentum.  Leadership comes with a lot of debts to the future.

“Leaders are responsible for effectiveness.  Much has been written about effectiveness—some of the best of it by Peter Drucker.  He has such a great ability to simplify concepts.  One of the things he tells us is that efficiency is doing the thing right, but effectiveness is doing the right thing.

“To be a leader means, especially, having the opportunity to make a meaningful difference in the lives of those who permit leaders to lead.”

Leadership is an art to be developed over time.  It is attention to  development of ourselves, seeking to be the best leader we can be.  And the amazing thing is that the Lord allows us to ‘practice’ on His people.  This should serve as a good reminder that we are not that important in the total equation.

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27 Jul 2015

Great Leadership Books

‘Of making many books there is not end…’ (Ecclesiastes 12:12).   Just enter any bookstore and look at the litany of leadership books filling the shelves.  I’m often asked to help leaders sort through the many and find the few best books on the subject of leadership.  Here’s my suggested list of foundational leadership books for someone who wants to get a good start on this challenging subject.  It’s a good start for building a leadership library.

Leadership Bibliography

Books to be read for a foundational understanding of leadership

 The Bible  –  read and study this Book first as your basis for understanding the principles of spiritual leadership;  this will be the grid through which you evaluate all other teaching on the subject of leadership

Leadership Concepts

   1.      Spiritual Leadership / Sanders

  2.      Leadership is an Art  /  DePree

  3.      Leadership Jazz  /  DePree

  4.      Leaders:  Strategies for Taking Charge  /  Benni & Nanus

  5.      Principle Centered Leadership  /  Covey

  6.      The Leadership Challenge  /  Kouzes and Posner

7.      The Making of a Leader /  Clinton

Leadership Practice

  1.      The Effective Executive / Drucker

  2.      Developing the Leader Within You  /  Maxwell

  3.      Developing the Leaders Around You  /  Maxwell

  4.      The Training of the Twelve  /  Bruce

  5.     Leading from the Sandbox   /  Addington

  6.     Leading Change  /  Kotter

7.     Biographies of great leaders  –  Dawson Trotman, Hudson Taylor, George Mueller, J.O Fraser, Adoniram Judson, Amy Carmichael, etc.

Posted in #1 KNOW- How a Leader Thinks and tagged , , , , , , , , ,
13 Jul 2015

A Sacrificial Life

Sacrifice means, “to give something up for the sake of something of higher value.” Sacrificial living is to give up our own lives for the purpose of following Christ. Jesus modeled the perfect sacrificial life by giving His very life for the sins of mankind. It is this type of lifestyle, one that chooses to live for others instead of self, that models real love for people (John 15:12-14).

Sacrificial living is a daily decision, not a one time event. Paul urges us to, “…. offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God–this is your spiritual act of worship (Romans 12:1).” We are to continually offer ourselves to God as living sacrifices as an act of worship to God for all He has done for us. He died for us! Living for Him is the least we can do!

Jesus reminds us that being His disciple means, “If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me” (Luke 9:23). To follow Christ means that we must first deny ourselves. That is, give up all rights to our own plans, desires, dreams, and hopes for our lives and let God determine our future. It is an abandonment of self into the loving hands of God. Secondly, we must take up our cross daily. To the first century audience, the picture of a person carrying a cross meant that they were condemned to death by the Roman government. They had no future–only death. Jesus uses this picture to illustrate that this death to self is to be daily, not just a one time decision. Each and every day we must choose to live for Christ and not self.

Sacrificial living goes against the wisdom of this world. The world says to seek self-gratification. “If it feels good do it!” The implication being, if it doesn’t feel good, then it should not be acted upon. To choose to deny self in order to gain the opportunity to serve God is something that will be hard for others to understand.

Are you living for self or dying to self?  It’s a daily, moment by moment choice and lifestyle.

Posted in #2 BE - Who a Leader Is and tagged , , , , , , , , , , ,

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