Along the Way: A Note to Leaders

There are many joys and hardships to being a leader in any given situation. Leaders are useful and necessary regardless of location, whether in a church or elsewhere. However, leadership is a serious role and should be done with passion and persistence.

The usual focal point that is before me as a leader is direction and the group itself. However, I have learned a lump-some of pointers and unexpected incidents along the way. Leadership has its way of presenting stress to the individual in every given situation. Leadership is not simply a gift, it is a learned skill. The effectiveness of your leadership is often based on time and experience. For example, my pastor has had numerous ups and downs but has pastored for years now. There are many decisions that he has made that have seemed farfetched to me in the moment. However, as issues and complications have unfolded, his choices turned out to be the absolute best and he has achieved excellence in his method and process of leading. Even the Bible bears witness to elders and gray hairs! The wise man that wrote Proverbs said, "the glory of young men is their strength and the splendor of old men is their gray head." (Proverbs 20:29 NKJV) Despite the mention of grays, my pastor doesn't seem to have much.

I have spent countless hours, days, and months trying to stand as a leader and one thing is certain. Along the way, I have become better at being a leader and making wiser decisions. This leadership thing is more process and progress than simply arriving. The key to leadership is going the extra mile and enjoying the adventure. There are mountaintops and valleys along the way, but the only necessity is a willing soul that decides to grow along the way.

Personally, I have come to appreciate where I've fallen short and I've learned how to navigate through the valleys. The people that you lead will not simply be a reflection of you, they will also latch on to the passion that you portray.

At the end of the day, a leader shouldn't be measured by failures, but their success is measured by their passion and willingness to grow along the way.