This year's presidential political campaign has surprised many who follow it. It's even made Black Friday look pale by comparison.
One political party has too many candidates, while the other has few. One grabs headlines, the other spawns yawns. What's happening?
You could tag it with various labels, including the old standbys of populism and grassroots politics. I think it's just one more indicator of what's needed in the world, let alone America.
People need leaders
A good friend told me long ago, "People need leaders." I was a young pastor and he was a young captain of fire fighters.
What he said rang true in my heart. It reminded me of my responsibility in God's kingdom. Not just as a pastor, but as a follower of Jesus.
One seemingly forgotten characteristic of the Jesus People Movement was the importance of life example in leadership.
[bctt tweet="Life example is important for leadership in God's kingdom"]
I'm concerned this is a neglected emphasis today in all aspects of leadership, but especially in God's kingdom.
Grassroots leadership
Look at the leadership of Jesus and what He endeavored to instill in His followers. What was the key?
People were drawn to Him in a natural way. From the first to the last, people saw Him, heard Him, and could not ignore Him.
[bctt tweet="People saw Jesus, and heard Him, but could not ignore Him"]
Even those who opposed Him and later plotted to kill Him, even they couldn't ignore Him.
So what was it about Jesus that drew people to Him? You could call it grassroots leadership.
Humble leadership
There was no fanfare, no clever strategy to draw more people.
This is so backwards to what's most popular today, the prevailing mantra—more is better.
But that's not the way of Jesus. It's also not the way of great leadership, according to Jim Collins in his book, From Good to Great.
What set apart the companies that rose to greatness? One essential was humble leadership.
[bctt tweet="Humility is essential for great leadership and to lead like Jesus"]
In a business model, this means putting the company and your people above your self.
Jesus the Good Shepherd
In God's kingdom, it means following the example of Jesus. It's seen throughout the gospels, but illustrated and explained in John 10 where Jesus refers to Himself as the Good Shepherd.
I am the good shepherd.
The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. (John 10:11)
Several years ago, I was asked what the basics were to pastoring. A young missionary pastor to Thailand to whom I'm a mentor, asked me for a simple explanation.
I came up with three words to summarize the responsibilities of a pastor—love, feed, and lead—based on John 10:1-18.
[bctt tweet="3 words can summarize the responsibilities of a pastor—love, feed, and lead"]
Over the next few weeks I hope to unpack these three words related to the leadership of Jesus.
Hopefully, we'll see how they can apply to leadership at any level.