For my reading for my last seminar, I choose two of John Maxwell’s volumes on leadership that I had not read previously. Through this reading, I learned some valuable lessons concerning leadership. The first lesson was concerning influence. In Developing the Leader Within You, Maxwell wrote, “Leadership is influence. That’s it. Nothing more, nothing less.”
Since I have influence, I must use it for God’s glory. Since you have influence, you must use it for God’s glory. You might think that you don’t have any influence, but you are infleuncing someone – either for better or for worse.
Children, spouse, coworkers, neighbors, family members, and other people you come into contact provide an opportunity to lead them. But if someone took a class on how you were living and leading right now, what would they be learning?
Would they be learning:
- My religious devotion and my personal holiness don’t match up
- I am at my worst when I am with the people I love the most
- I choose my job over my family
- I am insecure about what others think about me
- I am haunted by past mistakes
- I am unwilling to go any deeper in my relationship with Jesus
- I am steadily growing to be more like Christ
We are leading. We are influencing. But some self reflection is a good thing this morning: what is the message you are sending?
Travis Agnew serves as the Lead Pastor of Rocky Creek Church in Greenville, SC. His most recent book is Just (About) Married.