My blog now has over 5300 posts (and growing!), and I wanted to find a way to make these posts more accessible to busy people. So this blog is now a podcast so you can listen while you’re on the go!
Listen to the podcast of this post by clicking on the player below, and you can also subscribe on Apple, Spotify, or Audible.
When the righteous thrive, the people rejoice… (Proverbs 29:2).
I have read hundreds of leadership books and biographies of history’s most influential leaders. But no book even comes close to the leadership principles I discover on an almost daily basis in my Bible. Without a doubt, my Bible is my go-to leadership Book!
A great place to start mining leadership principles is the book of Proverbs. Take time to study just one of the 31 chapters each day, and you will be astounded at the leadership insights you will have gleaned by the end of the month.
Take Proverbs 29 as an example. Reading through this chapter, I’m reminded that:
righteous leadership causes people to rejoice
a leader builds stability through consistent justice, but bribes or showing favoritism undermines a leader’s foundation
leaders who speak up for those without a voice of their own will continue to exert influence long after their tenure is over
wise leaders energize people when they share a compelling vision
justice comes through a righteous leader, but ultimate justice come from God
I even read an important warning for leaders who make it their goal to lead righteously: Bloodthirsty men hate a man of integrity and seek to kill the upright (v. 10).
But even on the heels of that warning I read this assurance to continue to lead righteously: Fear of man will prove to be a snare, but whoever trusts in the Lord is kept safe (v. 25).
A mark of a godly leader is one who is continually finding new leadership principles in the Bible.
Try it for yourself and see how applying God’s wisdom will increase your influence as a leader.
This is part 58 in my series on godly leadership. You can check out all of my posts in this series by clicking here.
I have five chapters in my book to help ministry leaders get mentally, physically, spiritually, and relationally healthy. In this short clip, from “The Craig And Greg Show” leadership podcast, Greg Heeres and I talk about how important it is for leaders to self-care. To see the full episode, please click here.
Check out this episode and subscribe on YouTube so you can watch all of the upcoming episodes. You can also listen to our podcast on Spotify and Apple.
Greg confesses a leadership mistake he had to correct in himself [9:20]
character is vital in emerging leaders [10:59]
compassion is valuable in emerging leaders [11:44]
consistency helps emerging leaders develop into solid leaders, and it helps the team leader to excel … great insight from Patrick Lencioni about being present [12:15]
teams must embrace diversity and find commonality [13:08]
I elaborate on Greg’s point about a leader’s presence and consistency [14:10]
the team leader has to take the initiative in identifying and raising up new leaders [15:47]
leaders need to continue to replenish themselves [17:22]
Check out this episode and subscribe on YouTube so you can watch all of the upcoming episodes. You can also listen to our podcast on Spotify and Apple.
Listen to the podcast of this post by clicking on the player below, and you can also subscribe on Apple, Spotify, or Audible.
How long will you judge unjustly, and show partiality to the wicked? (Psalm 82:2)
It’s been said that those who attain a position of authority or leadership will make it their sole focus to retain that position of leadership, even to the point of judging unjustly or showing partiality to the wicked.
In my book Shepherd Leadership: The Metrics That Really Matter, I wrote, “When God uses the word ‘Woe!’ we should definitely take that seriously. He uses that very word to warn shepherd leaders who were shirking their responsibility when He said, ‘Woe to those shepherds who only take care of themselves’ (Ezekiel 34:2).”
God is the Ultimate Judge, yet while we are here on earth He chooses to allow men and women to be leaders and judges. We can do this in a God-honoring way only when we lead and judge like God.
In this psalm, God Himself calls out the ungodly practices that self-serving leaders employ to keep themselves popular and in their positions of leadership:
partiality = wickedness
biases = wickedness
apathy = wickedness
injustice = wickedness
ignoring = wickedness
seeking earthly applause = wickedness
taking advantage of others = wickedness
Instead, God calls on leaders to lead according to the principles He both exhibits Himself and lists for us in the Bible. Things like…
defending the poor
serving as a father to the fatherless
dispensing justice to the disempowered
speaking up for the voiceless
standing up to the wicked
and doing all of these things in a way that God is glorified
I must always remember why I am in any position of leadership: God chose me for that position and placed me there to do His justice in the world.
A mark of a godly leader is one who is doing God’s justice in God’s way.
This is part 57 in my series on godly leadership. You can check out all of my posts in this series by clicking here.
David was the gold standard for every king of Israel who followed him. Numerous times throughout the history of Israel, we will see a note that a certain king either followed God like David, or turned from God unlike David. Yet there exists a wart on David’s portrait: an adultrous affair with the wife of a man in his inner circle, and then subsequent lies and a murder to cover up the affair. “The thing David had done displeased the Lord” (see 2 Samuel 11).
But I’d like to turn your attention to when this affair occurred: “In the spring, at the time when kings go off to war … David remained in Jerusalem” (2 Samuel 11:1). He was without his usual comrades. The men who knew David best, who could probably sense if something was amiss, weren’t around to warn him. When David tried to find out the identity of the bathing beauty on the roof next door to his palace, an unnamed attendant tried to remind him, “Isn’t that Bathsheba, the wife of Uriah?” but David dismissed him.
Elijah was arguably the most forceful and fearless prophet in Israel’s history. Not only did he stand up to the evil kings of Israel, but he spoke out against the kings of surrounding nations, too. In answer to Elijah’s prayer, God brought a drought on the land, and again in answer to Elijah’s prayer, God sent rain. Elijah challenged the 450 prophets of the god Baal and the 400 prophets of the goddess Asherah to a duel to the death, which ended up in a decisive victory for Yahweh. Yet, shortly after this massive victory, Elijah was depressed to the point that he wanted to die.
What led to Elijah’s depression? Something very similar to David’s slide into adultery: He was alone. Elijah ran away from Queen Jezebel’s death threat, left his servant behind, and proceeded all by himself into the desert. It was when he was without a comrade that he prayed to God, “I’ve had enough. Take my life” (see 2 Kings 17–19).
And what about Peter? He boldly claimed his loyalty to Jesus, even to the point of wielding a sword at the guards who came to arrest his Master. But when Peter was alone, after the other disciples fled, he denied three times that he knew Jesus (Matthew 26:33, 51, 69–75).
God designed us to be in relationship with others. His statement to Adam in some of the earliest words of the Bible—“It is not good for you to be alone”—are words for us still today.
In a recent episode of “The Craig And Greg Show,” Greg and I discussed one of our favorite verses in the Bible: Wounds from a friend can be trusted, but an enemy multiplies kisses (Proverbs 27:6).
If you want to go far, don’t try to go alone. If you want an accountability partner that can keep warts away from your leadership legacy, don’t go alone. If you want to extend your leadership influence, don’t go alone. If you want to honor God’s investment in you, don’t go alone. Get those friends around you who love you enough to speak the truth!
I have known Greg Heeres for almost 30 years. During that time we have grown as close as brothers, partnering on numerous projects, both personally and professionally. One of our shared passions is developing leaders. Out of this passion we began a video and audio podcast called The Craig And Greg Show.
I was also thrilled to receive an endorsement from another church leadership blogger that I greatly admire:
“In his new book, Shepherd Leadership, Craig T. Owens gets to the heart of pastoral ministry and caring about people with great wisdom. Jesus sets the example for us as the good shepherd, and Craig delivers practical principles for healthy leadership that allows you the opportunity for freedom as God intended, joy in serving, and ultimately experiencing the full blessing of God.” —Dan Reiland, Executive Pastor, 12Stone Church, Lawrenceville, GA
You may listen to the audio-version of Greg’s interview of me on the player below, and I’ve also shared the link to watch the video of this interview.
Greg wonders why leaders get trapped using metrics of success that don’t really matter [4:10]
I talk about why the subtle shift from “servant leadership” to “shepherd leadership” is important [4:50]
Greg and I discuss the tension between a leader’s confidence and a leader’s humility [6:25]
I explain how my wife helped me see my leadership in a better light [8:00]
my favorite definition of humility comes from C.S. Lewis [9:45]
Greg asks how leaders can develop the right kinds of relationships that will help them continue to grow [10:35]
I share the dangers when leaders try to fly solo [11:40]
Greg talks about the vital need for leaders to refresh themselves [14:00]
who will benefit from reading Shepherd Leadership? [14:50]
I share a humorous story of a way I advised a church to grow their numbers overnight [16:54]
Check out this episode and subscribe on YouTube so you can watch all of the upcoming episodes. You can also listen to our podcast on Spotify and Apple.
My blog now has over 5300 posts (and growing!), and I wanted to find a way to make these posts more accessible to busy people. So this blog is now a podcast so you can listen while you’re on the go!
Craig T. Owens 