Characteristics of a Christian Leader:
Competence
Chosen:
The starting point for any Christian leader is discipleship.
Unless we know we are chosen, children of a loving God,
we will lead from an insecure place, constantly twisting our
privilege of a leadership position to meet our own needs
I lead from God’s love not for his love
Prayer is the foundation of my leadership
I seek to obey Jesus’ commands
I study the Bible to know God more deeply
I meet with a person to whom I am accountable
Chosen
Call
Character
Community
Call:
Christian leaders need to respond to God’s particular purpose for our life. We need to know how God
has shaped us and how he wants to use us.
Do what you are … Spiritual gifts, Heart’s desire, Abilities, Personality, Experience
Character:
Character is foundational to everything. You can be a gifted person, a talented leader … but without
godly character it all falls apart. Character shines through in how we treat people on a day-to-day basis,
who we are when we are under pressure and when no-one else is looking.
Just as he who called you is holy, be holy in all you do (1 Peter 1.15)
Character is important because people won’t follow those they can’t trust; character issues push leaders
off the rails and people model themselves on their leaders.
Competence: … builds on Chosen, Call and Character
Leaders lead themselves. Watch your life and your doctrine (1 Timothy 4.16)
Leaders embody kingdom values (e.g. people have intrinsic worth, truth is found in relationship)
Leaders discern, articulate and implement God’s vision
Leaders develop other people
Community:
Christian leadership is not meant to be solo, but a team experience where the gifts of the team
complement and balance one another. Christian leaders will submit themselves to learn from others
and work with others for the common goal of bringing glory to God.
James Lawrence, Growing Leaders, brf, 2004
Mavis Payne, 2011
SU Mission Director’s Personal Leadership Goals
Name:
Mission:
Date:
Characteristics of a Christian leader:
lives out of who they are in Christ (Chosen)
works consistently with who they are (Call)
reflects God’s character in their life (Character)
is competent in leading themselves, discerning
& implementing God’s vision & investing in
others (Competence)
o understands their leadership style & leads with
others (Community)
Competence
o
o
o
o
Chosen
Character
Call
Community
o Using the scale 0 – 5 (where 0 is low/not at all and 5 is high/consistently)
assess yourself against the five characteristics of Christian leaders:
Chosen
Call
Character
Competence
Community
o What areas of your leadership would you like to improve and develop?
o Identify three personal goals for your leadership this year.
o What strategies will you put in place to achieve these goals?
o
What resources, training or assistance would you value to assist you in your
leadership development?
Mavis Payne, 2011