Healthy Leaders | Issue 29
Fellowship with God is the cornerstone of Christian leadership!
Welcome to Issue 29 of Healthy Leaders. In this issue: more on the cornerstone of all Christian leadership.
Hello friends,
Welcome back to our ongoing conversation1 on healthy Christian leadership and leader development.
We have been focusing our hearts on the fellowship of Jesus with the Father — the source of His life and leadership, and through Jesus, the source of our life and leadership.
If it feels like we’re spending a lot of time on this subject, that’s because this is absolutely essential. Union with Christ is the cornerstone of all Christian leadership, the heart of a healthy leader, the core of any effort to build healthy leaders. It is the essence of the Christian life.
It also satisfies our deepest desire: to live in fellowship with God, to abide in Him.
“God has made you with the faculty of spiritual thirst, because your pre-eminent need is for Him… He alone can satisfy. He alone can fulfill your deepest need, because your deepest and most basic need, whether or not you fully understand it, is for Him — to know Him, to love Him, to obey Him, to fellowship with Him, to enjoy Him, to worship Him.” (To Enjoy Him Forever)
Here’s Malcolm with more on our fellowship with God:
As we look at Him, we are changed into God’s image.
Christian leadership that does not proceed first and only from Christ will be completely worthless in the end. A Christian leader who looks at Jesus, loves Him, trusts Him, abides in Him — this is the leader who is not only healthy, but powerfully effective in bringing about God’s purposes in our world!
I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing. (John 15:5)
What about you?
One of our participants in our programs, a worship leader from Egypt, experienced profound transformation in his relationship with Christ through this fellowship.
“This is a very simple hymn that I wrote when I was spending time alone with God a while ago. It is my prayer, my longing, and my request at this time that I want to enjoy relationship with Jesus, and always be in fellowship and union with Him. I want to be closer to His heart, to fall in love with Him, and to forget anything else other than Him. I want my eyes to be filled only with His presence.
Take me to Your bosom, melt my heart with Your love
Fill me with Your presence, I don't need anyone else but You
I want to unite with You
Who else but You is a mighty God
My refuge and my rock, in You is my strength
I want to unite with You
What is in the heaven, is manifested on earth
We see Your face, we see You all the time
I want to unite with You”
May this be your cry before God today, and forever!
Until next time, we’re with you!
— Chris
Recommended Resources
Book: To Enjoy Him Forever
Audio Teaching: “Leadership and Union with Christ”
For more resources, visit our website.
Thanks to our friends at Fifty-Four Collective for putting together a comprehensive set of video courses for growing healthy organizations, starting with this series of courses on leadership by Malcolm. We’ll be using some of their videos and some of our own. Be sure to check out what they’re doing!