Leadership

Leadership. Not all of us are leaders. Nor should we, necessarily, want to be. Effective Christian leaders are God-ordained. Lets look at two concepts dealing with leadership.
The first concept refutes an old erroneous one. The false idea is that a leader has to have someone following him, and that if he doesn't, he's not a leader. Wrong. In fact, the good leader can--and must--at times, stand alone. He must be so sure of where's he's going and how to get there that nothing or no one can get him to turn back. Look at Joshua, for example. Joshua's greatest act of leadership didn't occur during one of his many victorious battles but before the battles began. When Joshua, with only Caleb by his side, stood up for His Lord with an entire nation screaming at him that he was wrong, that was leadership. There were no followers, and Joshua didn't need any. God's glory was more important than anything else, even his own life and popularity. The theme song of God's leaders has always been, "Though none go with me, still I must follow."
And that brings us to the next concept. The good leader is first and foremost a good follower. And he knows whose footsteps to follow--his Lord and Savior's. The Christ-like leader continually follows his Lord's directions and continually reflects His Lord's character. Thus, the leader knows that he is the least important member in the group--the ultimate servant, just like His Lord. At the same time, he recognizes that God holds him to the greatest accountability as to the direction of the group. He also knows where he is going even if he's never been there before. And he knows that His Lord goes before him to prepare the way. If a man hasn't learned how to follow and Whom to follow, he can never lead the way effectively.
Being a Christian leader is not easy. A person must first be a follower, and he must also be ready to look behind him, see that no one is following him, and never miss a stride. His Lord's "well-done" will be worth the trip.