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Becoming an Effective Modern-Day Leader

Every day, we strive to be the best leaders we can be. Leadership is foundational for success in any setting, from business and ministry to personal life. However, being a leader in today's world poses numerous challenges, as we frequently lose sight of what authentic leadership entails.

In this episode, Tim reminds us of what makes good leadership. When we make mistakes or falter as a leader, we must always fall back on the importance of our relationship with God. By reflecting on what God wants us to do, we can see the path toward effective leadership more clearly than before.

Listen to the episode to learn how good leadership is linked to stewardship and seeking God's heart.

3 Reasons to Listen:

Find out how Tim and several other listeners define leadership so that you can draw yours.
Learn how good leadership is inextricably linked to our relationship with God.
Understand modern challenges affecting effective leadership and how to overcome them.

Resources

Spiritual Leadership: Who Needs It? by Chip Brogden
1 Samuel 8: 4-22 from the Holy Bible
Why the Ultimate Leader is a Steward Leader from Season 3 of Seek, Go, Create

Episode Highlights

[02:24] The Issue with Today's Leaders

This episode's topic was ignited by Tim’s disappointment over leaders who no longer lead and represent Christ.
Many people have lost faith in leaders and no longer believe what they see or hear in politics.
He calls both political parties' leaders hypocritical because they advocate for one thing while doing something else, shattering our trust.

[04:12] Leadership and Faith

Chip Brogden's article was about his struggles with organized religion.
Chip's relationship with God was formed through being led by the Lord rather than through churches and religion.
It is challenging to have a genuine relationship with God in modern times because of spiritual leadership's authoritative and dictatorial nature.

[06:24] Leaders from the Old Testament

Tim reflects on the ineffective leadership depicted in the Book of Judges.
It is an example of people disconnecting from their faith and reconnecting with God because of a highly flawed judge, then repeating the cycle after a few years.
This cycle reflects modern times and how we need a push to rekindle our spiritual relationship with God, even though we should have one regardless of circumstance.

[08:37] The Prophet Samuel and Leadership

Tim uses scripture to define good leadership.
The people of Israel begged the prophet Samuel to give them a leader in the Book of Samuel, but it was not God's perfect will.
For wisdom and guidance, Christ's followers must go directly to God.
However, our desire to go to people who act as intermediaries between God and us causes failure and the challenges we face in our faith.

[08:45] "I believe that often what we’re doing with leadership is we’re trying to do something like the nation of Israel was doing in the book of Samuel. We’re begging for something that is not the perfect will of God. It’s God’s permissive will." - Click Here to Tweet This

[11:21] The Ultimate Leader

Tim shared his thoughts on leadership from a Bible school setting in a previous podcast episode and how this example deviated from Christlikeness, which grieved him.
People are torn between creating an organization that appears to care for everyone involved and genuinely showing Christ-like love to others.
We can avoid turning our leaders into idols by being cautious of them. Expecting more from our leaders creates problems in various systems, including political and religious ones.

[12:59] "First of all, I want to put the responsibility on us, as people that attempt to have leaders that we expect more out of than we should. (…) We really make idols out of leaders. When someone becomes an idol, then I think we’re heading for some type of failure or challenge. First of all, that’s on us. We need to be cautious of that." - Click Here to Tweet This

[13:35] What We Should Expect from Our Leaders

We need to recognize that our primary responsibility is to have a relationship with the Lord, not with the leader guiding us.
While we adhere to a spiritual structure and system, the Lord desires to have a personal relationship with each of us.
When we include ego, money, and greed in our spiritual connection, we lose touch with God.

[14:30] Listeners' Definitions of Leadership

On LinkedIn, John Gibson shared that leadership is the ability to take people where they could not or would not go on their own.
From Tim's Facebook page, Mark Salazyn said leadership is realistic optimism.
On Instagram, Jesse Perez noted that leadership is instrumental to change.
From the Seek Go Create's Facebook page, Sabrina Hammonds said leadership is leading from a place of service—to others and the Kingdom of God
Listen to the full episode for more great responses to the question "Leadership is ____."

[24:29] Leading for Others’ Success

Great leaders make their team members feel like real people, not an afterthought.
Using the fruits of the Spirit, lead from a place of patience, kindness, and love.

[25:19] Tim’s Definition of Leadership

Being a leader does not mean you're the owner. Instead, you're a steward and caretaker, which shifts your perspective on how you lead.
When a steward is entrusted with something for a season, they must return it in a better condition than when they first received it.
Stewardship extends to people, places, and things.
Treating everything as a gift from God makes taking care of them easier and more natural.

[26:19] "A leader is a steward or caretaker or trustee over those people, places, and/or things that God has given them." - Click Here to Tweet This

[31:34] Final Thoughts

Tim goes back to the Book of Samuel and the differences between the leaders Saul and David.
One difference between the two leaders is that David chose to seek the Lord and do what God intended for him, whereas Saul decided to do things independently.
Good leadership is not about following in the footsteps of others but about asking yourself what God wants you to do.
Even when we make mistakes, we must seek God's heart at all times.

[34:27] “Leadership is seeking after God’s heart and seeking after what God desires for us to do. It’s that personal relationship.” - Click Here to Tweet This

Wrap-Up

We're all leaders. Good leadership begins with seeking after God's heart. Even when most of the world is conspiring against us, we must rise above every challenge and failure by constantly asking ourselves, "What does God want me to do as His steward?"

Enjoy the Podcast?

Seek Go Create is for anyone seeking excellence, moving towards success, or creating something new. We share topics, stories, and conversations that allow us to rethink how we live, work, and lead.

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To growing and becoming all we are created to be,

Tim