Most valuable insights for me from the book: Leighton Ford, Transforming Leadership
What is Transforming Leadership?
Bernard Bass says that Transformig leadership is that kind of motivationwhich raises the consciousness of people about what they want. Is the diference betwenn the transaxtional and trasformational leaders.
Transactional laders, says Bass, work within the situation, transformational leaders change the situation
Transactional laders accept what can be talked about; transformational leaders change what can be talked about.
Transactional laders acccept the rules and values; transformational leaders change them.
Transactional laders talk about payoffs; transformational leaderstalk about goals.
Transforming leadership motivates people to do more that they expected to do, by raising their awareness of defferent valuesand by getting them to trascend theeir self-interests for the cause and by expanding theis portfolio of needs and wants. This kind of leadership has four common elements: vision, comunication, trust ans empowerment.
a). Vision
A large part of leadership lies in vision casting.Ordinarry people are drown not so much to programs as to leaders who inspire. Charles Blair says that vision is a God-given dream that has three ingredients that equally important: method, timing and goal. It is also the ability to see in a way that compels others to pay attention.The hardest quetion sthat a leadr must ask about vision is how that vision relates to God’s will? is the dream his vision? Is the method his way? Is the timing his moment?
Charles Swindoll writes in his Quest for Character that vision is spawned by faith, susteined by hope, sparked by imagination and stregthened by enthusiasm.
b). comunication
Jesus knew the importance of communication – he could articulate his vision.
The re some lessons about communication that we can learn from Jesus. They are comunication imperatives for transforming leadership.
- Clarity of speech comes from clarity of purpose.
- Know where you are heading: beliavability comes in direct proportion to a quiet sense of confidence (Mt 12,19).
- Know your source and your identity: words live for ever; therefore must be handled with care (Mt 12:34).
- Know the power of language: how they hear is as important as what you say.
- Know your audience: having the truth is only half the battle
- Know your craft: knowing wheen is as important as knowing what to say.
- Know your timing: simplicity means to say one thing well
- Know your point: také your calling seriously, but do not be anxious for yourself
- Know where your resposability begins ans ends
10. Know your enemy ans your ally.
c). trust
Empowering leadership for Jesus meant not merely to get the job done, but to help people to grow and trust them to get the job done. An empowering leader give others resposabilities and trust them, support them and pray for them as Jesus did.trust is the lubrication that leps relationships and organizations work smoothly.
d). empowerment
The very heart of Jesus leadership was and empowering and transforming leadership. His goal was to plant and grow his own „mind“ in his people.Shepherd is tha biblical term for the leadr who empowers others. Shepherding people writes Kalus Bockmuehl means to help them grow, it demands thoughtfulness about how to make the other one great and it implies nothing less than the act of true friendship for others.Drucker’s maxims about empowering others are revelant and inspiring:
- Do not put people just in learning experiences, put them in doing-chieving enables people to grow.
- No one is able to develop everybody; the mark of a good leader is knowing whom he can develop and whom he cannot.
- Do no tput your people to work with poeple if you are not willing for them to medel themselves after them. Augustine said that in picking a taecher for your gifted son you should ask whether you want your son to také him for a model.
Most valuable insights for me from the book: Rick Warren, The Purpose Driven Church.
Myths about growing churches
- 1. The only thing that large churches care about is attendance. Every church needs to grow warmer through fellowship, deeper through discipleship, stronger through worship, broader through ministry and larger through evangelism. Church growth is the natural result of church health.
- 2. All large churches grow at the expense of smaller churches. God called us to be fishers of men, not to swap fish between aquariums.
- 3. You must choose betwen quality ans quantity in your church. Quality refers to the kind of disciples a church produces. Quantity refers tto the number of disciples a church produces. Quality atracts and create quantity. We should want bowth!
- 4. You must compromise the meassage and mission of the church in order to grow. Achristlike church will have the same drawing effect on people as Jesus had. Jesus drew large crowds yet he never compromised the truth.
- 5. If your are dedicated enough, your church will grow. It takes more than dedication to lead a church to grow; it takes skill. Churches grwo by the power of God through the skilled effort of people.
- 6. There is one secret key to church growth. Church growth is vomplex matter. It is seldom caused just by one factor. There is more than one way to grow a church. It takes all kind of churches to reach all kind of people.
- 7. All God expects of us is faithfulness. This statement is only half true. God expects bowth faithfulness and fruitfulness. Jesus difined faithfulness in terms of behaviour – a wilingness to také risks (that requires faith) in order to be fruitful.Our faithfulness is demostrated by our fruit.
- 8. You can not learn from large churches.God has not called us to be original at everything. He has called us to be effective. You can learn from other churches without becoming a clone. We learn best by observing models.
Why becoming a purpose driven church
If you were to look up the word „drive“ in a dictionary, you’ll find it says drive means „to guide or control or direct.“ Every church is driven by something. It can be : tradition, personalities, finances, programs, events, or seekers.
A Biblical and balanced alternative is to become a Purpose Driven Church. Matthew 16:17 Jesus said this, „I will build My church and the gates of hell will not overcome it.“ Circle the word „build“. Notice the church is something that must be built. Whose church is it? Jesus’. And who does the building? Jesus. It’s His church and He does the building. But the Bible says that God also works through people. The foundation for healthy balanced growth is a clearly defined purpose. The church’s foundation will determine its siye and strength. Zou can never built larger than zour fjoundation can handle. I f zuo want to build a healthy, strong, and growing church you must spend time laying a solid foundation. This is done by clarivying in the minds of everyone involved exactly why the church exists and what it is supposed to do. Rick Warren presents five reasons why a church need to define its purposes:
- 1. It builds morale. 1 Corinthians 1:10 says „Let there be real harmony in the church [so there won’t be any splits in the church] Be of one mind in thought and purpose.“ God wants us united in thought and purpose. We need to be united. One of the reasons Saddleback has grown
2. It reduces frustration. Isaiah 26:3 (Good News) „You, Lord, give perfect peace to those who keep their purpose firm.“ The church does not have time to do everything. The good news is, not everything is worth doing in the first place. Even better, God doesn’t expect you to do everything. A purpose statement not only defines what you do, it defines what your church doesn’t do.
- 2. It allows concentration. Philippians 3:13 says „I am bringing all my energies to bear on this one thing, forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead.“ Having a clear purpose keeps your priorities straight. It keeps you from majoring on minors. When light is focused, it has tremendous power.
3. A clear purpose attracts cooperation. People want to join a church that knows where it’s going. It’s easier to get on board when people know the destination.
Proverbs 11:27 says, „If your goals are good you will be respected.“ It keeps people from joining your church with false assumptions and it weeds out those with hidden agendas.
4. It assists evaluation. Having a clear purpose assists evaluation. 2 Corinthians 13:5 „Examine yourselves and see whether you’re in the faith.“ Test yourselves and your purposes become your standard by which you evaluate your progress and your growth. Are we doing what we ought to be doing? There are only two questions in church growth and church health. One, „What business are we in?“ and two, „How’s business?“
Absolutely nothing will revitalize a discouariged church faster than rediscovering its puspose.