Developing Leaders & Building a Legacy
  • Blog
  • About
  • Contact
  • Other Works

Three Questions to Ask About Leadership Perspective

4/17/2018

0 Comments

 
One of the things that has become apparent in the last couple years is the self-fulfilling bubble. In other words, we have built ourselves into tribes where we hang out and listen to people who are like us, who think like us, who look like us, who hold the same convictions, etc.

The benefit is affinity and familiarity. I spent last week with over 12,000 brothers who have the same convictions on theology, Christ, mission, and the church. It was really cool to see the fellowship formed. But if that's all we do, if that's only who we hang out with, if all we're doing is spending time in totally homogeneous circles, we're missing what God has done in designing His church.

I preached Sunday through 1 Corinthians 12:12-14, and one of the richest things I saw in that was the fact that God has woven a heavenly tapestry in the Church, and it doesn't always look like us. So as leaders in ministry, here are three questions for us to ask ourselves regularly:

1. When was the last time I spent time with someone older/younger than me? In the book Spiritual Leadership, J Oswald Sanders makes it clear we need a Timothy, a Barnabas, and a Paul. A Timothy is someone younger than us, someone we're investing in. A Paul is someone older who's investing in us. A Barnabas is someone in our situation, an encourager. God has designed the Church to be a multigenerational fellowship. Younger guys, those older saints in your church worked hard to provide for their family and build the congregation you serve. They may not like your music or agree on everything with you, but you can learn much from them. Older guys, don't let your last chapters be filled with regret or bitterness. Invest in the young men who will be leading the Church after you.

2. When was the last time I spent time with someone of a different race than me? The first step here is to recognize that our racial background has a way of not only informing our worldview but also how we're viewed by the world. The experiences of our African American, Hispanic, and other racial minorities are very different from ours. We can no longer live in mono worlds, and if we're going to lead well we must take the initiative to engage with others who aren't like us. I'm grateful for the leadership of Family Church in West Palm Beach Florida and how they've recognized the cultural and ethnic melting pot of South Florida and sought to intentionally minister.

3. When was the last time I spent time with someone who votes differently than me? In our cable news cycle world, we've forgotten the lost art of civility. It's discouraging to see the rhetoric on all sides, where anyone who doesn't agree is Hitler. In 2014 Pew Research found out that there was no ideological overlap in the Senate, which had historically been the deliberative body of compromise and mutual engagement. Unfortunately, in the Obama/Clinton/Trump climate we've seen for the last few years has caused us, on both sides, to dig in trenches. Our churches have people of good conscience on both sides of the political aisle, and if we read the Gospels we'll be quick to see that Jesus cannot fit our political spectrum and cannot be hijacked to fit our expectations.
0 Comments



Leave a Reply.

    Scott M. Douglas

    A blog about leadership and the lasting legacy of family ministry. ​

    Archives

    February 2022
    January 2022
    November 2021
    September 2021
    April 2021
    October 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    July 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015

    Categories

    All
    Book Review
    Burnout
    Change
    Crisis
    Delegation
    Digital Presence
    Family
    Family Ministry
    Finances
    Goals
    Leadership
    Legacy
    Manhood
    Networking
    Parenting
    Personality
    Planning
    Relationships
    Salary
    Social Media
    Starting Well
    Student Ministry
    Teaching
    Team Leadership
    Team Ministry
    Time Management
    Vision

    RSS Feed

    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
Proudly powered by Weebly
  • Blog
  • About
  • Contact
  • Other Works