leadership | Craig T. Owens

April 2026
S	M	T	W	T	F	S
	1	2	3	4
5	6	7	8	9	10	11
12	13	14	15	16	17	18
19	20	21	22	23	24	25
26	27	28	29	30

I Am A Follower (book review)

May 14, 2012 — Craig T. Owens

About a decade ago I was moved into a position of leadership that seemed way too big for me. So to prepare myself, I began to read all of the leadership materials I could find: Bible-based leadership, marketplace leadership, anything I could find that would help me grow as a leader. I thought I was progressing as a leader, until I read I Am A Follower by Leonard Sweet.

Just a few pages into I Am A Follower I read this: “Following is the most underrated form of leadership in existence.” And thus I was confronted by a message that seemed 180-degrees out-of-phase with what I’ve been learning for the past decade.

In pointing time and time and time again to the life of Jesus, Len Sweet makes the case that Jesus is the only Leader, and the rest of us are followers. Jesus showed us perfect leadership by being a perfect Follower. In fact, He is the perfect Follower, as no one has ever followed God as He did. Some of us may follow Christ a little sooner, or a little closer, or a little more persuasively. Those, Dr. Sweet would say, are better called “first followers.”

Dr. Sweet uses phrases like the dance of life, and the transformation of viewpoint. These are not phrases that a leader uses, but they are the paradigm of followers. Check out this quote:

“The cry for leadership is deafening amid our social disintegration, our moral disorientation. We have come to believe that we have a leadership crisis while all along we have been in a drought of discipleship. The Jesus paradox is that only Christians lead by following.” (Leonard Sweet)

This book is a prophetic word: it is calling us back to true biblical-centeredness, true Christ-likeness, true discipleship. This is a book that took me a while to read, and will take me even longer to process. It’s a paradigm-busting game-changer…

…and it’s right on target.

Go get this book today!

I am a Thomas Nelson book reviewer.

Posted in Uncategorized. Tags: book review, discipleship, Jesus Christ, leadership, Leonard Sweet. 1 Comment »

Dealing With Anonymous

April 27, 2012 — Craig T. Owens

Listen to the podcast of this post by clicking on the player below, and you can also subscribe on Apple, Spotify, or Audible.

I have never met Mr. Anonymous, but I sure would like to!

It appears to me that Mr. Anonymous is one of the wisest people in the world. He has an expert opinion about everything. And apparently he’s never wrong and never at fault for anything.

Have you ever received a letter or an email from Mr. or Mrs. Anonymous?

How do you respond when you get one of these letters? Does it make you angry? Defensive? Depressed? Do you feel like you need to defend yourself against this so-called expert?

Personally, I think Mr. Anonymous is a coward, so I choose not to respond to anything that he says. Although that’s easy to say because I don’t even know who he is! So even if I did have something to say I would have no one to say it to.

Anyway you look at it, it’s frustrating!!

Here’s how King Hezekiah in the Bible chose to respond to a letter. Although the letter was not anonymous, the principle is still very good for us today:

Hezekiah received the letter from the messengers and read it. Then he went up to the temple of the Lord and spread it out before the Lord, and Hezekiah prayed to the Lord: “Give ear, O Lord, and hear; open Your eyes, O Lord, and see; listen to the words [he] has sent to insult the living God.” (2 Kings 19:14-16)

God knows who Mr. Anonymous is! And He is the only one who can justify you in Mr. Anonymous’ eyes.

So the next time you receive a letter from Mr. Anonymous, read it and allow God to show you anything in there that may be true. Then lay the letter before the Lord, and let God take it from there!

UPDATE: I discuss the bites of critics and criticism in my book When Sheep Bite.

►► Would you please prayerfully consider supporting this ministry? My Patreon supporters get behind-the-scenes access to exclusive materials. ◀︎◀︎

Posted in Pastoring, Uncategorized. Tags: 2 Kings, criticism, Hezekiah, leadership, pastoring, When Sheep Bite. 1 Comment »

Nurturing The Leader Within Your Child (book review)

March 20, 2012 — Craig T. Owens

I make no attempt to hide my admiration for Dr. Tim Elmore. I read his blog throughout the week, I subscribe to his newsletter, and I find his books right on target. As a parent, I always want to raise my game, and Nurturing The Leader Within Your Child is the perfect resource for me.

Tim’s desire in this book is two-fold: (1) Help parents see the enormous potential in their children, and (2) Help parents see how crucial their role is in releasing that leadership potential. One of his premises is this:

“Children want parents who:

communicate their interest in me;
express appreciation for each member of our family;
structure their lives to spend time together;
welcome my friends into our home;
answer my questions;
are committed to each other;
deal with crisis in a positive way;
are honest;
correct kids when needed, but not in front of friends;
don’t argue in front of me;
concentrate on strengths instead of weaknesses; and
are consistent.”

The concepts Dr. Elmore presents are clear, concise, and simple to implement. But they are not microwaveable concepts; that is to say, you shouldn’t expect an overnight success story. But if you want to see your children discover and tap into the leadership potential resident inside them, you—Mom and Dad—will have to nurture it. If you are ready, this book can help!

Posted in Uncategorized. Tags: book review, Dr. Tim Elmore, leadership, mentoring, parenting. 2 Comments »

Helping People Win At Work (book review)

January 5, 2012 — Craig T. Owens

Ken Blanchard’s books always cause me to ask, “Why didn’t I think of that?!” He writes in such a way that seems so practical and so applicable, that it would seem like common sense practice. But as we all know, common sense is not always that common! In Helping People Win At Work, Ken Blanchard and Garry Ridge do it again.

The sub-title of the book is based on a program Garry instituted in his company: Don’t mark my paper, help me get an A. And the idea is quite simple: Let’s tell our employees/kids/students what we’re looking for right up front, and then help them earn an A. Instead of performance reviews or tests being uncertain in their outcome, let’s make sure everyone knows what’s coming and how they can “pass” the test. This removes the uncertainty and the anxiety, and increases morale and productivity.

Simple! Common sense! And very rare.

It goes back to Ken Blanchard’s great statement, “Let’s catch people doing something right.” Most bosses/parents/teachers try to catch people doing something wrong. But this approach only reinforces the negative, and makes everyone shy away from the one in authority.

I highly recommend this easy-to-read (and even easier-to-apply) book to employers, teachers, and parents. It is well worth your time to apply these principles.

Posted in Uncategorized. Tags: book review, business, Kenneth Blanchard, leadership, parenting, teaching. Leave a Comment »

Book Reviews From 2011

January 1, 2012 — Craig T. Owens

Here is the complete list of books I read in 2011. Click on each title to be taken to my review…

7 Habits Of Highly Effective Teens

A Collection Of Wednesdays

A Treasury Of A.W. Tozer

Bonhoeffer: Pastor, Martyr, Prophet, Spy

Bringing Sons Unto Glory

Chazown

City On Our Knees

Costly Grace

Doing Virtuous Business

Elite Prayer Warriors

Enemies Of The Heart

Experiencing The Spirit

Fasting

For Men Only

From The Library Of A.W. Tozer

Galileo

Generation iY

George Washington Carver

Get Off Your Knees And Pray

How To Read The Bible

How To Win Friends And Influence People

I Knew Jesus Before He Was A Christian

In Visible Fellowship

Leadership Gold

Leadership Is Dead

Leadership Prayers

Lee: A Life Of Virtue

Letters From Leaders

MacArthur: America’s General

Remember Why You Play

Say It With Love

Secure Daughters, Confident Sons

Sherman: The Ruthless Victor

Smith Wigglesworth On Faith

Soul Work

Soulprint

Stuff Christians Life

Sun Stand Still

The Blessing Of Adversity

The Church In Exile

The Heart Of A Great Pastor

The Hour That Matters Most

The Next Christians

The Seed

Toxic Committees & Venomous Boards

untamed

Upside

Wandering In The Wilderness

We Shall See God

Whale Done

What The Bible Says About The Holy Spirit

Why God Won’t Go Away

Why Great Men Fall

You Were Born For This

Looking forward to sharing more great reads with you in 2012! Let me know if there are any books you would like me to review.

Sherman (book review)

December 28, 2011 — Craig T. Owens

I find biographies of leaders fascinating. And few Civil War leaders are a more fascinating study than William Tecumseh Sherman, as portrayed in Sherman: The Ruthless Victor by Agostino Von Hassell and Ed Breslin.

Sherman was a man driven by two forces which almost seem contradictory: (1) the desire to make a name for himself, without the help of other; and (2) the almost debilitating fear of trying to attempt anything that wasn’t guaranteed to be successful. Whereas the first might drive him to be something of an entrepreneur, the second would seem to keep him satisfied with the status quo. Ultimately the entrepreneurial force drove him forward.

In fact, it drove him forward so ruthlessly and mercilessly, that his name is still uttered as a curse word in the South, and one of the most fearsome military machines—the Sherman tank—was so aptly named after him.

As I read this biography, I couldn’t help feeling sorry for General Sherman. For a man who had been given so many advantages and opportunities, he seemed not only ungrateful for them, but almost contemptuous of them. In the end, the only thing that gave him satisfaction was totally annihilating everything in his path; including his marriage, his family, and his friends. Sad!

But Sherman is still an important read for any student of leadership. I can’t help but wondering how history might have been different if a mentor might have come alongside Sherman to help him use his God-given talents in a more judicious and beneficial way.

I am a Thomas Nelson book reviewer.

Posted in Uncategorized. Tags: American history, biography, book review, history, leadership, military, William Sherman. 1 Comment »

A Pastor’s Work

September 28, 2011 — Craig T. Owens

I have blogged before about how heavy I feel the responsibility of being a pastor. When I think of the awesome responsibility God has given me as His under-shepherd to His precious people, I am humbled.

Humility is a good thing.

Since the pastor is “out in front” at every gathering, speaking to the people, leading the church in a particular direction, people tend to view their pastor as their leader. And without humility, the people’s esteem can “puff up” a pastor. Unfortunately, I’ve been around pastors who have gotten a little too, shall I say, “puffy.”

So this dose of godly wisdom from J.C. Ryle is just the preventative medicine I need:

“We should beware of resting our claim to the people’s attention on our outward [pastoral] call only. It will never do to tell our people, ‘We are your ordained ministers, and therefore you must believe and follow whatever we tell you.’ On the contrary, we must tell them to prove our teaching by Scripture, and not to receive it unless it is scriptural. That man has no right to expect the attention of his people, who does not preach the Gospel and live the Gospel. The rule of Paul is clear on this point. He told the Thessalonians to esteem their ministers very highly ‘for their work’s sake’ (1 Thessalonians 5:13). When there is no ‘work’ done, it is vain to expect the people’s esteem.

Pastors, do the work of humbly working as God’s servant to His people. Use your position to serve, not to presume upon others.

Church attendees, make us pastors “prove our teaching by Scripture.” We don’t get to say, “Because I’m the pastor and I say so!”

UPDATE: This post went into my thinking for my book Shepherd Leadership: The Metrics That Really Matter.

Posted in Pastoring. Tags: 1 Thessalonians, humility, J.C. Ryle, leadership, pastoring, pastors, responsibility, servant-leadership. Leave a Comment »

Leadership Prayers (book review)

August 24, 2011 — Craig T. Owens

There are few things that will lead someone to prayer more than being placed in a leadership position! To help leaders pray, Richard Kriegbaum offers some powerful prayers in his book (appropriately titled) Leadership Prayers.

One of the best ways to learn how to pray is to stop talking about prayer and simply start praying. This is one of the things I appreciated about this book. You won’t find sections on why leaders should pray, or even how they should prayer. You will simply find prayers.

Each chapter in Leadership Prayers is devoted to a particular leadership challenge. From leading change in the organization, to dealing with a board of directors, to casting vision, to handling disappointment. Each chapter presents a short verse of Scripture, and then dives right into a prayer. Finally, each chapter is concluded with Mr. Kriegbaum’s reflection on how he learned to pray that particular prayer.

Short. Sweet. Practical. Helpful.

I liked this book a lot!

Posted in Uncategorized. Tags: book review, leadership, prayer. Leave a Comment »

Be A People Person (book review)

August 16, 2011 — Craig T. Owens

John Maxwell’s insights into leading people perpetually astound me. He always finds such simple ways to explain what I know I should already be doing. In one of his earliest books, Be A People Person, I (re)discovered some more great people principles.

Be A People Person perfectly describes this book: It’s all about being a person who is trusted and accepted by other people. This, in turn, puts this people-person in a place to be an effective leader. So Dr. Maxwell talks about confidence, motivation, encouragement, empathy, trustworthiness, mentorship, and so many other people principles.

Because this was one of his earlier books, I see many of the seed thoughts that have become books in their own right later on. But that still didn’t take away from the refreshing insights that I uncovered.

Unless you are a solitary hermit, there is so much to discover in this book to help you grow stronger and more effective relationships with family members, coworkers, and friends.

Posted in Uncategorized. Tags: book review, empathy, influence, John Maxwell, leadership, mentoring, parenting. Leave a Comment »

Whale Done (book review)

August 15, 2011 — Craig T. Owens

I love the business and intra-personal insights that Ken Blanchard shares in all of this books. In Whale Done, I learned from Sea World’s Shamu how I can inspire people to better performance.

Following the story of a frustrated business manager, husband, and father, Ken shows us how catching people doing something right is the key to turning around performance. And in the process, we also create more pleasant work and home environments. Ken’s premise is simple:

“The more attention you pay to a behavior, the more it will be repeated. …If you don’t want to encourage poor behavior, don’t spend a lot of time on it.”

Instead of focusing on what someone is doing wrong, we should be looking for opportunities to say to others, “Whale Done!” In other words, put the bulk of our energy into encouraging people to keep doing the right things, by redirecting our energy away from the mistakes.

It’s revolutionary, but it’s also very exciting. As soon as I finished reading Whale Done, I immediately handed it to my wife and said, “You’ve got to read this!” And I would say the same thing to all parents, pastors, teachers, and business leaders.