1 - Types of Leadership

We are going to focus on leadership gifts, and there are three areas of leadership that I will focus on. I am going to characterise three types of leaders, but in reality we are normally strong in one type, reasonable in the second and weak in the third.

The social leader is very sociable. He befriends people easily and loves to chat and to get to know others. He is the life of the party. People can trust their thoughts to this person and they are popular.
The change oriented leader wants to improve things. They see areas for growth and come up with ways to make things work better. They want to change the world and make it a better place. They are movers and shakers.
The goal oriented leader is an achiever. Once a goal is set, they can carry it out and get it done. They are able to work out every step that needs to be taken and are self disciplined to do all that is required of them.

You might see yourself in one of these roles, maybe more, maybe none of them. They are exaggerated to make the point. Each of them is needed. Without the others, the group would not be as rich. Each person adds something to a group.

LEADERSHIP

The first and most important lesson in leadership is to take care of your relationship with Jesus. It is the source and summit. The source - all our strength comes from him. The summit - our ultimate goal is to be with him.

Please read Luke 10:38-42

Leadership is not about doing, it is about being. Ultimately being at Jesus' feet listening to him. It is the best part. The saints achieved so much in their lives - why? Because they loved Jesus. They were captured by that love. They spread that love. The first thing is to have that love. Prayer builds that love. By spending time in prayer we grow in love and become purified of our wrong motives for doing things. We no longer seek goals for our sake, but for his sake. Ultimately Jesus will give us the strength to pray like he did, "Father not my will but yours be done."

If we live it, others will see it and they will begin to follow, even without us saying a word. "Preach always, if necessary, use words." What better sign can we give than to go to prayer. Jesus himself gave this example.

We must be disciplined as leaders. St. Paul knew this. Please read 1 Cor 9:25-27. How do think he was disciplined?

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