Checklist For A Godly Leader

"...an elder must be without fault; he must have only one wife, and his children must be believers and not have the reputation of being wild or disobedient.  For since a church leader is in charge of God's work, he should be without fault. He must not be arrogant or quick-tempered, or a drunkard or violent or greedy for money.  He must be hospitable and love what is good. He must be self-controlled, upright, holy, and disciplined.  He must hold firmly to the message which can be trusted and which agrees with the doctrine. In this way he will be able to encourage others with the true teaching and also to show the error of those who are opposed to it. "(Titus 1:6-9 GNT)

We talked about this passage in class this week. Considering we're in a leadership school, you know. So there are some things here that are obviously pretty important to God. They can pretty much be categorized into three areas: character, family life, and ministry skills and knowledge. 

In the church, what do we focus on cultivating in our young people who will inevitably be in leadership roles at some point? 

Just a question. I could give you my opinion, but I won't. Think about it though. 

Ministry skills and knowledge is the easiest category to tackle. It's internal, and it only requires head usage. 

Character is a bit more complex, as it involves the head as well as the heart. Character is internal as well, though, leaving the space between the head and the heart as the only gap to be filled. 

Family is the most complicated of the three. Not only does it involve having upstanding character yourself, but it also involves being able to influence those around you. The influence and gap filling has shifted from internal to external here, making it more difficult to manipulate. 

That said, I think we tend to look at issues and attempt to address them based on level of difficulty. As ministry skills and knowledge is least difficult to transfer from one person to another, we can feel relatively safe in discipling others and being discipled in that area. Family, on the other hand, is the most complex, making it more difficult to trust others for input and yourself for output. 

Right now, God is working in all three areas for me. It's daunting. It's hard. 

We also talked about how being here at YWAM can be great for growth, but it is when we go home that's we truly realize how much has stuck with us and how much was just adaptation to our environment. It's true. And it sucks. Because I'm a lot more myself here than I am back in Portland. So I guess that means I'm not really all that different; I'm just adaptable. 

There's a lot going on in my head these days. God is showing me a lot. And I let it get me down a lot because there is so much work to do. I'm having a really hard time figuring out the line between God's role and my responsibility. It stresses me out. 

Eek.

Personal growth.