Leaders are Dreamers

Dare to Dream - Have the desire to do something bigger than yourself

Lee Grady has been in Wales as part of the speaking team at Impact The Nations conference organised by my good mate Carl Brettle. On Sunday he ministered in City Temple and last night spoke at Band of Brothers (See earlier Blogs). Speaking on the subject "3 Secret Key to loving you wife more" by announcing his theme the previous day in church, he was guaranteed a good turn out as wives encouraged husbands to attend.

Time

Thousands have books have been written about time management. The truth is we cannot manage time. It is impossible. Everyone on the planet has 24 hours per day. There are 60 minutes within each hour and 60 seconds within each minute. These facts are universal. The thing that we can manage is the how we manage OURSELVES within this time.

Being time efficient is one of the key challenges for the effective leader. There is so many distractions from the tasks in hand. It can be television, the internet, idle conversation, Facebook, Myspace….you fill in the blanks. The reality is that time is a precious resource and should be treated as such. I write this not as an expert but someone who is aware of the battle for this commodity. I need to deliver on the things I have promised, to God, to my family, to my ministry, my co-workers and my friends. All of them deserve quality time.

Recently, I have been very intentional in the time I am giving to the people who are working on projects in Ignite. This appears to be very affective not only in keeping me informed but also in them feeling affirmed and encouraged. Additionally we are developing a deeper connectivity.

Musing on this is encouraging me to use my time even more effectively

Until the next time……

So many of our structures are top down putting us at the top of the pile. In Ignite our structure is presented horizontally. This is intended to make a statement that all are valued in the team. We are all part of one body. In the plans and purposes of God, the guy who designs the website is as important as the chief executive. The challenges for the leader with a desire not only to serve God but also his colleagues (Matt 26: 36-40) are how to be a servant leader? How does one display this servant-hood?  In addition how to one exercise the God given called to lead and not get bogged down in doing jobs that are not his/her calling? These decisions are not easy. If we accept the leaders are similar to the position of Elder then there is presicident for being set aside for specific tasks whilst some of co-workers might be called to other functional roles.

My view is dynamic leadership means that these questions need to be frequently asked and the  answers wrestled with.

I have been considering some of the attributes of a good leader. The postings under the title "musings on Leadership" that I post in the coming weeks will explore my thinking further.

Last night I went along to a men's meeting organised by a bunch of guys from my church. Although numbers were down there was probably still 30 blokes all committed to being real with each other. Believing the best, prepared for the worst with a total commitment to Jesus and the power of the Holy Spirit to change lives. The bible is clear about the value of such a gathering. Psalm 133:1 says "How good it is when bothers live together in unity"

I think the primary message though was recognising where the battlgrounds are in your life. Is it food, alcohol, lust, porn, tv? It could be any weakness that the enemy uses to try to take you out. In John 10:10 it says "The enemy comes only to steel, kill and destroy" Well I don't know about you but I have resolved not to give the enemy anymore foothold in my life. The devious git that he is means that he is unlikely bother to attack me in my areas of strength, rather he will go after my weaknesses. Mark Lyndon Jones, the leaders of Band of Brothers" uses a phrase which is "guys its great to do life together" He is right. As we see high profile Christians fall we need to get hold of the fact that we were born to live in community, in family, in church. Where life can be lived out with accountability.

In response to the spate of suicides in South Wales, we have produced this film. Please watch this and then spread it to as many people as possible!

This a test update using my new iPhone. I'm thinking this is pretty cool!

Yesterday was a good day. In the morning we attended City Temple, Cardiff. The presence of God was awesome as we were lead in worship by Richard Lewis

Pastor Jay Fallon preached a great word on "the disciplined life" A word in season to many, not least me! A nice lunch and a relaxed afternoon reading and drinking coffee then in the evening we went to church again for the ministry of Dr Peter Gammons.