Newfrontiers Younger Leaders Conference Part 2

NEWFRONTIERS YOUNGER LEADERS CONFERENCE

SPEAKER: DAVID STROUD, UK TEAM LEADER & CHRISTCHURCH LONDON

These are my notes from this part of the teaching. I like David Stroud. As he is always honest, always personable and down to earth. There is nothing particularly new in here but lots to consider and bear in mind. I think it could be a good litmus test to compare myself to every so often. It is not an exhaustive list but rather a useful “heads” up.

6 QUALITIES OF A LEADER:

1. SPIRITUALLY VIBRANT
a. People need their leaders to be hearing from God
b. Expressing the heart of God
c. Opening, explaining and revealing scripture
d. Sharing spiritual gifts safely and powerfully
e. Helping people see what it could look like in God’s purposes
f. Giving a sense of spiritual vision

2. BIBLICALLY LITERATE
a. This takes time, energy and commitment
b. Not people of fads, gadgets, blogs or ipods, but people of the book

3. CULTURALLY SENSITIVE
a. Taking the word into the world
b. Does not mean being the same as culture
c. Does not mean being out of culture
d. Somehow fusing cultural understanding and relevance with the standards of biblical truth and revelation

4. PRACTICALLY ABLE
a. Not just good teachers, but good leaders
b. Able to set vision
c. Able to build team
d. Able to train
e. Able to motivate
f. Able to recruit
g. Find someone already doing it well and learn from them

5. INTELLECTUALLY COMMITED
a. The mind does matter, and it needs to be submitted to Him
b. Think about it, then think some more!
c. Learn more, in your way
d. Education: get it, and encourage others to get it

6. EMOTIONALLY INTELLIGENT
a. Know how you tick
b. Don’t be too British and stuff emotions down
c. Learn how to grieve
d. Learn to connect to others by listening, showing empathy
i. Learn to feel what they feel
ii. Ensure the pace of leadership is right: don’t steamroller people and don’t take ages over stuff
iii. What to appeal to in order to influence people
iv. What part of the circumstances faced matter to them and why?

The over-arching theme was that you can’t lead others if you can’t lead yourself. That requires knowing yourself very well. Knowing how you act, and how you react, so you can plan and develop yourself. In many ways the growth of your ministry is linked to the growth of you. That means your fears, your sins, your jagged edges need to be worked on now, before any ministry grows.

There is a lot here to ponder, and allow to challenge me.