Leadership Axioms

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Happy New Year!

You made it. Take a deep breath, give thanks to God, and get ready for what God has in store for you in this brand new year!

As I began to plan and prepare for the new year, I took some time to reflect and remember what the Lord did in my life in 2012. It was definitely a year of advancement, uncertainty, lessons, and victory. I learned a lot from my mistakes as well as my successes. I am a strong believer that what we learn in one season can be used as an advantage in the next season. Here are some personal leadership axioms from my own journal writings that I believe can help you as we step into 2013:

1. Go after your calling. Whatever you feel God has called you to do – go after it with passion. Fulfilling your calling with effectiveness benefits and blesses someone somewhere. Just because you don’t see your audience doesn’t negate the fact that they do exist. No one will tell you to be effective until they need you to be effective. A good plumber is not needed nor in the mind of people until the plumbing goes bad. Go after your calling. The world is waiting.

2. Develop your gift. We each have been given a gift from above. Surround yourself with an atmosphere that will help cultivate the gift that God has placed inside of you. You don’t decide your gift, but rather, you discover your gift. And whatever your gift may be, immerse yourself into the development of it and learn all you can. A person desiring to become a great swimmer will not be successful if they do not step into a pool of water.

3. Rehearsal before recital. Moses was in the desert for 40 years. He started a family and took care of his father-in-law’s flock. You may be in a place where no one sees what you are doing and no one appreciates your sacrifice. But God sees you and remembers you. When God is able to trust you in obscurity, then He will trust you with notoriety and platforms. Before Moses performed signs in front of Pharaoh and the Egyptians, he performed signs in the wilderness in front of no one.

4. Work your thoughts. A discipline that I strive to protect is my personal “think time” – a space in my day/week to just think and organize my thoughts. With so much noise, busyness, and things demanding our attention, it is not as easy as it sounds. Thoughts are seeds. Like seeds, thoughts need time to germinate and develop. Our thoughts will eventually become the fruit in our lives that we and others will taste. Work your thoughts, and watch the results.

5. Serve the Lord by serving where you are. You may be thinking, “But I feel like nothing is changing…” Although what you are feeling may seem true, recognize that there are times when God does not send you to places to turn “it” around. Rather, God may have sent you to that place to turn “you” around. Before God builds your ministry, He is focused on building His minister – you.