They’re watching you. They’re noticing you. They’re evaluating you. They’re mirroring you.
Who are they? They are the people you’re leading.
By Eric Rojas
“They” are your kids, your parishioners, your team and your employees. And while, unfortunately, they might also unwittingly follow your bad attributes, they fully recognize your attributes that point them to Christ.
Here are the six most recognized attributes that should be our goal as Christ-following leaders:
1) Living by and teaching God’s Word. One of the key resources we have as Christian leaders is hearing directly from God on the issues and topics of our life. The Bible speaks to our lives and leadership. Leading with the authority of God’s Word over our own personal authority sets an incredible example for those we lead and gives them even more confidence in our leadership.
2) Being authentic. Fact of life #274 — we all hate fake people. Look at Jesus’ life; He was as real as they come. He didn’t say what people wanted to hear so that He would make them happy. He spoke the truth and was authentic about life.
We need to follow Jesus’ example and speak the truth in love. We need to worry only about our audience of One — God. The reality is that when we try to please others by not being ourselves, our leadership suffers.
3) They care. It’s the difference between “Let me know if there’s anything I can do for you” and “Here, let me help you with that.” Christian leaders are also caring shepherds.
4) They equip and mobilize. Leadership was never meant to be a one-man or one-woman show. The best leaders train those they lead to be leaders themselves. Ephesians 4 tells Christian leaders that their job description is to equip others for the work of the ministry.
5) They are wise. They know how to handle issues appropriately. They know when to talk and when to listen. They know when to seek additional counsel. They do not make knee-jerk decisions or fly off the handle when faced with adversity. They understand the will of God. See what Ephesians 5:15-17 says: “Look carefully then how you walk, not as unwise but as wise, making the best use of the time, because the days are evil. Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is.”
6) They pray. Leadership is tough; while it may or may not take a village, it does take God. Christian leaders know this and pray … a lot. They pray for and with those they lead.
They’re watching. Give them something to see — give them a model to follow.
You’ve got this. God’s got this!
Eric Rojas loves his role as the executive pastor of Christ Community Church in St. Charles, IL, where he oversees a staff of 120 and serves alongside Senior Pastor Jim Nicodem. He has been on staff at CCC since 2000.
During his 20+ years of ministry, Rojas has served in churches as a youth pastor, adult ministries pastor, small groups pastor, associate pastor, worship pastor and men’s pastor. He is a contributing author for Group Publishing’s Men’s Ministry in the 21st Century and has written for various magazines and websites.
Rojas also serves the church-at-large through consulting and seminar presenting.
He has been married to his wife, Rachel, for 22 years. They have 3 children — Luke, 21; Adam, 19; and Chloe, 17. A man of faith, Rojas believes that next year is the year the Cubs will finally win the World Series.
