I'm sure you have heard or read the following words before
8 For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— 9 not by works, so that no one can boast. 10 For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do. (Ephesians 2:8-10, NIV)
It's one of my favourite passages, commencing with of course grace and salvation, and then moves into what we are to do as people who are God's handiwork, who are created in Christ Jesus to do good works, and that God has prepared in advance for us to do.
And this means, of course, that he has prepared the work of leadership for us to do as well.
Think about this:
You are God's handiwork.
You are created in Christ Jesus to do the good work of leading people.
God has prepared things in advance so that you can do the good work of leadership.
As you do so, I want you to consider 7 key motivators that help us do our good work of leadership:
Relationships - God has created you to lead in relationship with others, and not to lead alone. Lonely leadership is not God's design.
Autonomy - God has created you in such a way that you are to bring your own unique flavour and style to your leadership. You are not a 'cookie-cutter' leader. You work with God to find your own way to lead.
Purpose - God has created you to lead with purpose, according to the life's purpose he has given you. Knowing your purpose will help you lead on purpose.
Progress - God has created us as people with a desire to see progress. Leadership is often most frustrating when we are going backwards. Damaged leaders damage organisations - but when an organisation is damaged and going backwards, it is also damaging to the leader, unless they can find a way forward and through.
Recognition - This is often shunned amongst Christians, but we need to remember that God sees recognition as so important that we have the promised recognition in heaven "Well done, good and faithful servant." We want those words to be said. Being recognised for doing well is hard-wired into us. Some prefer to be acknowledged publicly - but most of us prefer strong, genuine, heartfelt compliments and gratitude from people we trust.
Mastery - Our motivation grows when we recognise that we are doing better. For me, this looks like handling difficult situations better than what I did in the past - Speaking up when I would have previously been silent, being both kind and firm about a problem when I may have previously shirked the issue, finding a way through a situation that I previously didn't know how to navigate it, improving my daily habits, continual learning, and finding ways to bless more people in a more meaningful way. When we realise that we are maximising the gifts given to us by God, it inspires us to keep going, keep growing, and be grateful to the giver of gifts.
Money - Often Christians and churches ignore this motivator (or see it as sinful to consider it), forgetting that our Christian leaders have often sacrificed a lot financially to be in Christian leadership, are financially generous, and aren't seeking financial wealth. But many Christian leaders, while generous, are not gifted to live in poverty. Most want to take good care of their families, invest in their children, and seek security for their future. They want to stay in ministry because of their love for people, not because they need to pay their bills - yet some keep going when burnt out because they are concerned about their financial capacity to leave. Congregations, schools, and charities do better when they have an awareness of the financial pressures of their leaders - both paid and voluntary - so that their leaders can be free to focus on the good work they are called to do.
Each of the above 7 motivators can help you do your good work as a leader, that God has prepared in advance for you to do.
I have three questions for you to consider today:
Which of the above 7 do you experience the most as a motivator?
Which of the above 7 do you need to lean into to help you be at your best?
What do you need to learn or do as a result, for yourself and for others?
God bless you today,
Chris Mann.
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