Day 35: Leadership Lifestyle

Reading: Psalm 18:25-36

We are all called to be leaders. No matter how introverted you are, just the example and life you live in front of others says a lot about what you believe in. In Psalms, we read how one lifestyle of a leader is to rely on God. David, a great leader, continually cries out to God for protection, strength, and guidance. As leaders, we need to make Christ our leader. He is the one we need to rely on for decisions we make, steps we take, and troubles we face. Follow David's example and make God your control center to your leadership, whether you're leading before crowds, or quietly on the side.


Reading: Matthew 23:1-39

The rant Jesus carries on about the Pharisees and religious leaders is quite a harsh one. This tells us just how much Jesus cares about the "practice what you preach" concept. He carries on about the traits a good leader should have and what these leaders don't carry.

Humility- As leaders, we must approach others with a sense of even ground. The "holier than thou" attitude doesn't cut it. We should never thrive on titles, promotions, awards, or positions. Instead, we need to put Jesus on the pedestal, and share the glory with Him. When we care about what people think of us, that's inward-focused. Humility is caring for others without getting recognition is the key to a good leader.

Integrity- What you do behind closed doors should always reflect what you teach and how you act in public and before the people you lead. When you teach, don't weigh others down with your words. Be sure they are building up. If you're putting words out to people that you can't even attempt to follow, you probably shouldn't. It's one thing to put a challenge out there that you, yourself knows you need to work on and try to, but it's a whole other to call others out on their areas that need work when you're not right there either.

Compassion - As leaders, we need a heart for people. Jesus shows us a huge example of this throughout His ministry. Be available to help people, not hinder them. Care about people.

Vision - The religious leaders attacked the petty problems. Jesus had a vision and mission. The narrow minds of the religious leaders distracted from the big picture. When we get too legalistic, we fail to see the true purpose of the mission. Carrying it out becomes almost impossible.

Generosity - Good leaders don't self-indulge. They give back. We need to let our hearts reflect what we portray on the outside.


Reading: Job 33:1-34:37

A good leader has tough critics. When you have an influence on people, some will take it hard and put in their "two cents" about your leadership. Job certainly had critics in his so called friends. Sometimes the toughest critics come from our friends or from people within our church family. If you are grounded well, you will know what to do with those opinions. Either take them or toss them.
Another perspective on this is to make sure you are being a good critic. Don't judge others superficially, like Job's friends do. Know their whole story, listen to it, take it into consideration, and then offer your advice. Remember that being a critic about something you can't even get right is definitely wrong. It's pretty hard to relate when you don't even know the correct model of something.


Leadership is an honorable and daunting task all in one. We are all leaders in our own way, whether it be up front, leading crowds of people, or subtly off to the side leading by example through your life and actions. Keep yourself in check when you're being that leader and example.