Healthy Leaders | Issue 33
Security in Christ = security in leadership.
Welcome to Issue 33 of Healthy Leaders. In this issue, we learn how security in Christ changes everything.
Hello friends,
Welcome back to our ongoing conversation1 on healthy Christian leadership and leader development.
In our last issue we talked about the heart of the servant leader: seeking what is best for the followers in the purposes of God, and not oneself.
Let’s hear more on how to do this from Malcolm.
The root of abusive leadership is personal insecurity. The fruit is as follows:
Leadership is about proving God’s calling.
The central issue is the person of the leader.
The leader’s vision serves the leader.
The leader sees themselves as above their followers.
The leader promotes identification with themselves.
The leader creates “in” and “out” groups within the organization.
Power is centralized in the leader.
Follower capacities are dependent on the leader.
Leadership succession is undeveloped.
In contrast, for the healthy leader, the root is security in Christ. The fruit is very different:
Leadership is about the simple expression of God’s calling.
The central issue is the purpose of the leader.
The leader’s vision serves God and the organization.
The leader sees themselves as equal to their followers.
The leader promotes identification with values and goals.
The leader creates internal inclusiveness.
Power is given away to others.
Follower capacities are independent of the leader.
Leadership succession is in place.
As you can see, there are vast differences between abusive and servant leadership.
What about you?
Take a moment to reflect on your own leadership. Ask God to root out any areas of abusiveness in it, and to help you to be secure in Christ!
If you struggle with being secure in Christ, we have a design for that.
Until next time, we’re with you!
— Chris
Recommended Resources
Article: Fallen Leaders and Our Current Church Culture by
Audio Teaching: Insecure Leaders and the People Who Follow Them
Book: Abusive Leadership
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!