Leaders Who Last

by Dave Kraft Narrated by Raymond Todd

Overview

If the Christian life is like a race, we must admit that too many Christian leaders stumble, burn out, or veer off the track. Clearly it is not automatic that a leader will finish well.

Based on Dave Kraft's thirty-five years of leading, teaching leadership, and coaching dozens of Christian leaders, Leaders Who Last moves through three stages of leadership: foundations, formation, and fruitfulness. Concise, anecdotal, and packed with wisdom, this book will help you aim your ambitions, refine your character, and position yourself to be an effective leader who endures.

Kraft's brief, down-to-earth guide to Christian leadership will inspire readers to finish the race well-to hit the tape in full stride with an energetic burst of speed and receive their commendation from God.

Product Details

BN ID:	2940171728106
Publisher:	EChristian, Inc.
Publication date:	02/01/2010
Edition description:	Unabridged

Read an Excerpt

CHAPTER 1

The Leader's Power

"Remember that the power comes through you, not from you."

FRED SMITH SR.

As a leader, everything I am and everything I do needs to be anchored in my identity with Christ. Leadership begins and ends with a clear understanding of the gospel and being rooted in the grace of Jesus Christ as a free gift.

Gospel Identity

I am saved and kept by the power of God and am a Christian and a leader by grace and grace alone. I didn't earn it and I don't deserve it. Ephesians 2:8–9 says it well: "For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast." As I lead, I lead out of the reality of being saved by Jesus, and Jesus alone, and empowered by the Holy Spirit for the leadership role and responsibilities to which he calls me. It is too easy for the work and the ministry to be the center instead of Jesus himself.

I had a rude awakening a few years ago. I was asked to speak to a group of pastors at a retreat on the subject of the pastor's personal devotional life. As we launched into the first day, I was shocked to find out that most of the pastors only spent time with the Lord in his Word when preparing for preaching and teaching. I thought this was highly unusual, since I was taught early how important it is to feed myself from Scripture before seeking to give spiritual sustenance to others. Ezra 7:10 has long been my benchmark: "For Ezra had set his heart to study the Law of the LORD, and to do it and to teach his statutes and rules in Israel." First, I study and apply God's Word to my life. Then I teach others.

Since that retreat, I have discovered that many leaders have never established spiritual habits of the heart that include confession and worship, as well as intake of the Word of God. This is vital to staying connected with Jesus, the power source of our life and ministry.

In order to achieve balance in my life as a Christian leader (and yes, I believe it is possible), I start with Jesus Christ in the center. Jesus Christ is my power. I desire to tap into his infinite energy daily and consistently and to not rely on my own finite power supply.

Spiritual Disciplines

I realize that different leaders use different methods and tools to help them accomplish that balance and to stay fresh and vibrant in their walk with God. In many cases, this is accomplished through Christian disciplines.

Some of these disciplines are:

• The study of Scripture

• Spending time in prayer and worship

• Taking time for extended periods of solitude, meditation, and fasting

These disciplines create a state of mind that is receptive to the grace of God that keeps us fresh in our personal relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ.

My Christian life began by experiencing Jesus as my Savior from the penalty of sin, and embracing his death on the cross for myself. I responded to his gracious invitation to come to him. At twenty years of age, I acknowledged that I had sinned, repented of my sin, and accepted Jesus' offer to be part of his family. From that point on I have gradually learned how to walk with him and stay in close contact with him through the practice of some well-tested disciplines (or "holy habits of the heart").

Motorboats, Sailboats, and Rafts

The following thoughts from John Ortberg are insightful: One of the analogies that's been kind of helpful to me is the difference between a motorboat, a raft, and a sailboat. In a motorboat, I'm in charge. I determine how fast we're going to go, and in what direction. Some people approach spiritual disciplines that way. If I'm just aggressive enough, if I have enough quiet times, I can make transformation happen on my own.

Some people have been burned by that kind of approach, so they go to the opposite extreme and will say, "I'm into grace." It's like they're floating on a raft. If you ask them to do anything to further their growth, they'll say, "Hey, no. I'm not into works. I'm into grace. You're getting legalistic with me." So they drift. There are way too many commands in Scripture for anybody to think that we're called to be passive.

On a sailboat, however, I don't move if it's not for the wind. I can't control the wind. I don't manufacture the wind. Jesus talks about the Spirit blowing like the wind. But there is a role for me to play, and part of it has to do with what I need to discern. A good sailor will discern, Where's the wind at work? How should I set the sails? Practicing spiritual disciplines is like sailing.

It is vitally important that each of us discovers his own pathway to deep intimacy with the Lord Jesus Christ. For some, the way is music. For others, it is through thinking and reflection. Others find intimacy by observing and enjoying God's creation, and still others when they experience authentic community. I try to use a combination of things, such as prayer walks, personal retreats, a daily devotional time, worshipful music, genuine community, or accountability with close and honest friends.

My Spiritual Disciplines

Allow me to specifically share some of my holy habits of the heart with you. These practices consistently tap into the power of Jesus to sustain me and flow through my life as a leader. Take these and adapt them in such a way that they nourish you and stretch your soul.

When I awake in the morning, I roll out of bed, fall on my knees, and silently (in my spirit and as a prayer) run through a little song: "Fill me, fill me, fill me through and through. Fill me, fill me. Make me more like you. Fill me up, O Lord, today. Have your will, and have your way."

It is my deepest desire to put God in the driver's seat in my first waking moments; not my agenda but his, not my energy but his, not my will but his. I desperately want that — and need that — if I am going to experience the joy of the Lord.

I then go downstairs to spend time in Scripture reading, study, meditation, and prayer. I am very thankful that when I first became a believer, a few people encouraged me to spend daily time with the Lord by reading Scripture and praying.

My time through the years has varied, changed, and grown, but two ingredients have remained the same: I read and absorb God's Word, and then I pray, seeking to respond to what he has shown me from the Word. I confess, thank, praise, pray for others, and share my heart, my fears, my desires, and my frustrations with "the blessed and only Sovereign" (1 Tim. 6:15).

In my Bible reading, I practice the "Four R's":

1. Read. Reading and marking the words and verses that speak to me.

2. Reflect. Thinking about what I have marked.

3. Respond. Focusing on truths I marked to pray about and obey.

4. Record. Capturing what God has said in writing (a journal).

The "Four R's" set the stage for God to whisper in my ear, tell me he loves me, guide me in important issues and decisions, and confront sin in its various and often subtle manifestations. I still see that my heart is deceitful and desperately sick (Jer. 17:9), and I am an expert at rationalizing and trying to kid myself into believing that my sin is not sin.

During my time alone with the Lord, I am worshipful and contrite in his presence. I genuinely want to hear from him and experience him. I ask him to search my heart to see if there is any sin I need to deal with (Ps. 51:10; 139:23–24). I want to open myself up and exchange who I am for who I can become. I want to exchange my sinfulness for his righteousness. I want to exchange my fears for his confidence.

Over the years I have learned that:

• When my times alone with the Savior are missing or inconsistent, genuine enthusiasm and purpose give way to "grinding out the work of ministry" with an accompanying loss of joy.

• As I experience intimacy with the Lord, I find myself living life from a solid, integrated sense of purpose that taps into the power of God.

• My time with God is about developing a relationship, not about fulfilling obligations or checking items off my to-do list.

• Great men and women of God are great because they enjoy exceptional intimacy with the Lord. The failure to establish intimacy imposes a limit on genuine spiritual development and effectiveness.

Discipline or Legalism

Because I tend to be very disciplined and structured, I need to be careful that these regular holy habits don't degenerate into an empty pharisaical system of earning favor. Author Dallas Willard observed that "grace is not opposed to effort, but to earning." That means that it is not wrong to expend energy and effort to get to know the Lord, but it is unbiblical to do so with the thought of earning God's love, favor, and acceptance through the effort.

My standing with Jesus is not based on what I do, but on what he has done; not on my works, but on his free gift (Eph. 2:8–10). Effort definitely has a place in the Christian experience, but it is a result of salvation, not a means to salvation.

Sometimes it is difficult for me to make the distinction between effort and earning. I can easily fall into the trap of thinking that God loves me more or thinks more highly of me when I am faithful in my holy habits. It can become like school with all its rules and regulations. I want to be disciplined but not legalistic. I want to be grace-based, not rule-based.

I ran across the following that helps me have joy in my spiritual habits and avoid the pitfalls of my structured and systematic nature:

I will delight in your statutes. (Ps. 119:16)

It seems almost too simple, doesn't it? Naïve. At best, it sounds old-fashioned and quaint. Who comes to the Word of God with delight anymore? Aren't we more sophisticated than that today?

We come with determination, diligence, discipline, and a sense of duty.

We bring charts, commentaries, concordances, dictionaries, encyclopedias, guides, graphs, maps, outlines, schedules, summaries, systems, and study helps.

We search for applications, attitudes, comparisons, concepts, contrasts, commands, cross-references, examples, exhortations, illustrations, repetitions, statistics, and warnings.

We discover key words, key verses, key thoughts, key statements, and key chapters.

We develop word studies, topical studies, character studies, and prayer studies.

We use translations, paraphrases, versions, and revisions of versions.

We read and reread until we become well-versed.

We are experts on Bible-study methods.

What could the psalmist have been thinking of when he said, "I will delight in your statutes"? Surely, this approach is too childish for mature Bible students! Still, some of us wonder, "Do you suppose it would be all right with the Father if we were to sort of ditch school once in a while and just curl up with a good book? It really is delightful."

So, the power-tapping idea begins for me on my knees, as I surrender my day to the Lord. It then progresses as I spend time with the Lord in the Word and prayer. With his help, I carry that spirit and attitude throughout the day. I confess when I step out on my own, and rejoice when he gently nudges and reminds me that he wants to be my power supply. He guides me back to the source: himself!

John 15 is a great chapter on abiding in Christ. There is a deep and constant longing in my heart to experience genuine, intimate dependency on God on an ongoing basis. I get so tired so fast and stay tired longer when I fall into the trap of believing it's all up to me.

I have enjoyed Eugene Peterson's interpretive comments on Matthew 11:28–30: "Walk with me and work with me — watch how I do it. Learn the unforced rhythms of grace. I won't lay anything heavy or ill-fitting on you. Keep company with me and you'll learn to live freely and lightly" (MESSAGE). I just love that! For me it creates a mental picture of what it means to walk with the Lord Jesus Christ on a moment-by-moment basis. I especially like his thought, "Learn the unforced rhythms of grace." This encourages me to think that it can be learned, that I personally can learn it, and that the Lord wants me to learn it.

I see in my mind a surfer effortlessly riding a wave as he moves up and down in sync with the powerful surge of the changing waves. I imagine a horseback rider moving in sync with the horse. I sense after my many years of rigidity that this "learning the unforced rhythms of grace" constitutes the starting point for fruitful, joyful living and ministry.

The remaining spokes in the wheel have their roots in Jesus as the source of power. You will not have purpose, passion, priorities, or pacing if you're trying to achieve it on your own. "Not by might, nor by power, but by my Spirit, says the LORD" (Zech. 4:6). Flowing out of a Christ-centered power, you are ready to discover his unique purpose for your life.

CHAPTER 2

The Leader's Purpose

"A leader is a person with a magnet in his heart and a compass in his head."

ROBERT TOWNSEND

My supervisor, Jim Downing, sat across from me in my living room in Stockholm, Sweden, in the late '70s. I was frustrated with both the lack of direction and the lack of fruit in my life. I poured my soul out to him. "So," he asked, "If you could do anything, what would you want to do?"

I thought for a moment and then said, "Jim, this might sound strange, but I'm not sure I have an answer to that question. I should have some clarity on such an important issue. But I don't. I just don't. I am thirty-eight years old, but I can honestly say I have never thought about what I really want to do."

At that point I had been on staff with The Navigators for ten years. For the last several years I had been experiencing a lack of motivation, uncertainty, and no clear direction or joy in my assignment as a missionary to Sweden. Something was missing, but I wasn't sure what it was. "Well," Jim continued, "give it some thought and prayer, and let me know when you have an answer."

Searching for Answers

I felt a keen sense of disappointment. I was a mature Christian involved in fulltime ministry and I didn't have a clue about my purpose, calling, or direction. I didn't even have an answer to Jim's simple question: "What would you like to do?"

After I recovered from the confusion and disappointment with myself, I sensed the need to get away for a few days to pray, fast, and think things through. I really wanted to get a handle on what my life's purpose was. I borrowed the upper floor of a friend's home and hid away for three days to wrestle in prayer with the Lord. I took my Bible, a legal pad, a couple of books, and most importantly, a strong determination not to leave that room until I had some sense of direction.

This was a watershed experience for me. I won't go into all the details except to say that I developed a list of things I should be doing that would truly be an expression of the man the Lord made me to be. This became a launching pad that enabled me to later move into a role that truly matched the person I was. My family and I eventually left Sweden and returned to the United States.

Over time, a strong sense of purpose began to emerge. The crowning moment took place on my old high school campus.

Epiphany

I was in Sue Krenwinkle's office (the high school counselor for my four children) with one of my daughters. As we were discussing an issue, a collage on the wall behind Sue's desk transfixed me. There were dozens of pictures of her students at football games, school outings, proms, etc. Right in the middle of it all was a quote, which is now displayed on my desk at home:

Some people come into our lives and quietly go. Others stay awhile, and leave footprints on our hearts, and we are never the same.

I lost track of the conversation we were having. I lost track of time. I lost track of everything. I was mesmerized by that quote. "What an incredible thought," I whispered under my breath. "Lord," I prayed softly in my heart, "make me a person who leaves footprints in people's lives. I don't want to be a person who comes and goes with no lasting impact. Because of contact with me, may people never be the same again. May I be a person who intentionally and lastingly influences others." As that prayer flooded my heart and mind, the process gave birth to my purpose statement, which I wrote down a short time later:

To leave footprints in the hearts of God-hungry leaders who multiply.

My Purpose

It is clear to me that I was designed to be in the leader-development business. I mentor, coach, and invest in the next generation of leaders. That is my purpose, my unique contribution to the body of Christ and the kingdom of God.

I want to leave footprints in the lives of people — not just any person, but leaders and influencers who are hungry for God. Many leaders I encounter are self-satisfied. They think they know enough. They aren't hungry or thirsty for more of God, more growth, and more fruitfulness.

I will not invest my time in them.

Some are hungry, but just for themselves with no intention of reproducing anything in the lives of others.

I will not invest in them.

(Continues…)

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Excerpted from "Leaders Who Last"
by .
Copyright © 2010 Dave Kraft.
Excerpted by permission of Good News Publishers.
All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
Excerpts are provided by Dial-A-Book Inc. solely for the personal use of visitors to this web site.

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