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3rd November 2009 by Linda Bond

A mushy leader?

"The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control", so says the apostle Paul (Galatians 5:22-23). Sounds good, doesn't it, especially if you are thinking about your personal spiritual life? But when it comes to leadership, surely these qualities are far too soft, too mushy, or too weak.

Just think of some of the great leaders we admire. The people who make things happen. The great military leaders who led the troops to victory. The entrepreneurs who caught a vision and were unstoppable in pursuit of it. Patience? Kindness? Gentleness? A bit of a stretch, isn't it?

Patience, love and the others

The boss has to be the boss and get things done; patience is no virtue. The strong, impressive leader must be tough, sort people out, and let them know who really is in charge. And self-control? Leadership is about control, but more about controlling others, circumstances, decisions.

Love, joy and peace sound like the fringe benefits that come with a well-deserved vacation, relaxing in the sun, reading an easy book, enjoying the family. But in the workplace?

Goodness and faithfulness have a certain ring about them. More like a grandfatherly type, nice guy, won't ruffle feathers and is there for the long haul.

Spirit of Jesus

Now you know that the Spirit is the Spirit of Jesus and these are his qualities. And he was the Master Leader! But wasn't he at his best with the whip in the temple or when taking on the religious leaders? And wasn't he great when he lets Peter have it, with "get behind me Satan"? Maybe leadership is a role for a certain period of time. And maybe, just maybe, leadership requires a new set of tools other than these spiritual qualities.

But the fruit of the Spirit is more than spiritual. They describe emotional and social health as well. There are articles and books written on Emotional Intelligence (EI) as the best indicator of the performance of a leader. You can even be tested on your level of EI.

Marks of a Good Leader

I wonder if what we have sometimes understood as leadership qualities are in fact the traits of an emotionally unstable or immature person. In an article on the Marks of a Good Leader, C.P. Davis listed some indicators of these types. They may:

1. Be tactless in their dealings with others.
2. Interfere in the affairs of others.
3. Resist change because of underlying insecurities.
4. Blame others when things go wrong.
5. Be unable to develop a team spirit in the organisation because they find it difficult to be part of the team.
6. Be unable to handle criticism and/or differences of opinion.
7. Be unreasonably critical of others.
8. Be unable to cut through trivia and help a group meet major objectives and goals.

These people may not even recognise such deficiencies. They may see themselves as tough, resolute, right, astute and thorough.

Effective leaders

C.P. David goes on to describe attributes of an effective leader: confidence, enthusiasm, self-discipline, decisiveness, courage, loyalty, trustworthiness, humour, creativity/innovation and unselfishness. Think of Jesus! He had them all.

These qualities are not a world away from the fruit of the Spirit. In fact, a few of them seem like duplicates and others are the overflow. Christian leaders cannot compartmentalise their lives. Or wear a mask. You lead out of who you are.

Leadership shaped by Christ

You need to read another of the Apostle Paul's writings, 1 Thessalonians 2:1-12. There's no disconnect for him. His security and confidence in Christ shaped his leadership. He was no wimp but you may be surprised how he defined his leadership style. Read it. It will blow you away.

Commisioner Linda Bond oversees all of The Salvation Army's work throughout NSW, Qld and ACT as Territorial Commander for the Australia Eastern Territory.

Originally from Canada, she has been a Salvation Army officer for over 35 years and has served in Canada, the UK, the USA and at The Salvation Army's International Headquarters in London prior to being appointed to Australia in May 2008.

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1. 

   Jesse

   November 03, 2009 at 7:29pm

   "Christian leaders cannot compartmentalise their lives. Or wear a mask. You lead out of who you are."
   
   How true is this ? I am certain this theme is picked up in our current officership campaign "what makes you, makes a great officer"...
   
   Of course who we are is entirely resultant of being liberated by Christ - we are freed from the bondage of sin and empowered by His Spirit to be WHO he created us to be. Indeed to be a great leader in His Kingdom means the daily surrender of ourselves to the one who has redeemed us, so that we too may serve many.

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2. 

   Bec

   November 08, 2009 at 9:40pm

   Attributes of an effective leader- humor.
   
   I love that!

   Reply