The gift of leadership is birthed in every believer. Every Christian leader has tremendous contributions to ministry. The success for future generations depends largely on forward thinking pastors taking responsibility to train up successors. In this book, Principles of Effective Leadership, PJ Edmund presents the keys to developing effectiveness in leadership preparation. The Principles of Effective Leadership speaks to the heart of what makes a Christian leader excel in challenging, curious and courageous times. To say the least ministry comes laden with levels of pressure, stress and unpredictability. One of the ways to stay current and ahead of the ever changing leadership challenges is to invest in training and development. You will learn: • How to cultivate the passion to improve your leadership gift • How to develop and work together as a dynamic ministry team • How to understand the benefits of transformational training Take the faith risk and lead! The Principles of Effective Leadership embraces the thinking of what the 21st Century Christian leader must become to stay current in a changing and transforming generation. It begins with understanding vision. Anything to be aspired to must have a vision. The vision describes the end result of what God has already done. To help us make the first steps in ministry and leadership God paints a picture of what you are going to become eventually. It is the eventually picture that motivates each day and each step. No one climbs a mountain without first visualizing or seeing the summit. The summit confirms that there is an end to the journey. Likewise the vision confirms there is a conclusion to what God has promised. David teaches “The steps of a righteous person are ordered by the Lord” (Psalms 37:23). This ordering is God’s way of ensuring that we know there is some logical, pattern and plan to the journey. When I cannot see where I am going, I can trust the steps that He orders me to take confidently. Leadership is constantly reminding yourself that He knows my path and my purpose even when we are in doubt. Effective leaders “see” before they “see”. God’s leader sees in the supernatural what has not arrived in the natural yet. This leader starts the journey towards what we can become, while we are yet becoming it. It is a strange relationship of development, believing I am what I have not yet become, but knowing we are becoming it. The natural order of things is to acquire the skills to become skillful, then operate in that calling. The supernatural order of things is to have what it takes to become while growing the capability to operate in it. Effective leaders must grow into the maturity of “risky faith”. Not knowing the outcome of anything is difficult. Leaders do not always know the outcome but they believe in an outcome through faith. If faith is a risk then it is a good risk because our relationship with God stands as the guarantor. When we trust in His word, it becomes the guarantee that we move towards. So believing God and trusting what He challenges us with is never a risk. What He says and what He prompts in our hearts is conclusion and not conception. The risk has already been taken and the price already paid. Why is faith risky? Risky because the promises of God are sure even when we are not sure! The element of risk surfaces in the mind where we often complicate the promises of God. In concert with the spirit, we must remind ourselves of the safety of His word. If it is a risk, it is a calculated and confident risk. Remember if God is the guarantor then there is a tremendous amount of certainty in His ability to bring to pass what He has spoken. The effective leader that understands the risk factor never waits for everything to be perfect before moving with the vision of God. We are fully persuaded by God towards the vision. It is difficult holding to a clear word from God and still trying to navigate your current situation. We live in the “terrestrial” and God speaks to us from the “celestial”. The risk, if it is indeed a risk, is secured and cemented in our relationship with the guarantor. The commitment to leadership is required in spite of changing environments. Faithfulness does not take into consideration what the elements are affecting the faithfulness. Faithfulness marches on whatever the opposition is to the success of leadership. Changing environments, emotions, directions or instructions does not change the faith. We keep the faith no matter we see. Of course, faith is not what is seen, it is what is believed! Keep the faith and let everything else go. In our attempt to be faithful we often keep the thing that is destroying our faith. So, we let doubt go, and we keep the faith. You keep the faith when you constantly decide to become the leader that He has called you to be no matter what you think of yourself or the progress you are making. You keep the faith when you reaffirm the image and vision in your spirit and not the self image in your mind. Effective leaders sometimes struggle with seasons. The seasons change but what God has planted remains. The seasons come to provide the environment in which the gift and leader is established. It is when we walk through the changing environments and emerges with the same belief system and faith, that the clarity of who we are is affirmed. In other words, the environment changed, but the purpose did not. Effective leaders require developing and grooming. God provides wonderful gifts as people we can all learn from and learn with. Think about how difficult it would be to raise the level of excellence in ministry if there was no Jesus as the perfect example. Mentoring says that God has done it before in others and confirms that when strengthening and motivating others. Mentoring is never duplication. You can never duplicate the creativity and innovation of God. Mentoring says that there are experiences in others that can serve as guide posts to a leader’s destiny. “If the blind lead the blind they will both fall into a ditch” (Matthew 15:14). This principle illustrates how essential “seeing” mentors are to leadership development. We should not seek to repeat the mistakes of the past, even past generations. Mentors understand the “ministry of succession” is vital to the reaching of legacy. Mentors understand that while they have carried the torch of excellence for a time, it must be sustained for future generations. Without a connection with the past (the beginning), the future might be missed. Mentors understand that what they have learned through experience is a gift from God to sow into the future of others. There is an understanding in the code of the teaching gift that the student must exceed the tutor. With this in mind, the teacher or tutor releases all knowledge, withholding nothing, as this is what will propel the next generation. Accountability and responsibility are the foundational pillars of mentoring others. It is this system of parallel understanding that enables wisdom and experience to flow. These values and traditions do not wither with time, but gain history and importance as the leader recognizes how they build character and integrity. Effective leaders have vision because they have received vision. Visionaries exclusively see more than those they lead but most also possess the ability to articulate what they see so vision can be grasped. Without a vision from God, the visionary is limited in scope and insight. The vision that the visionary receives is a complete picture of all that God has made available in terms of preparation, development, achievement and establishment. God, who is both Alpha and Omega, occupies all levels of what He ordains. He knows our end before the beginning, and concludes before conception. The difficulty the leader must deal with is receiving the conclusion of a matter before the instructions for the matter. In the mind of God, we are already complete in Him. There is no error or transition, or problem. Yet vision seldom comes without these. The end of vision is complete in God, yet steps are to be experienced in a variety of ways. No matter what the steps or progression, the vision will be visualized. Vision is what propels us and sustains in the process. It is because of vision that we stay in the fight. This is why God will always shows you what He has promised first. First comes the declaration and then comes the faith that should match what has been declared. Incredibly God’s method is to promise the destiny before showing you the result. In Genesis chapter 12 God instructs Abram to leave his family, his father’s house and his home town and when he accomplishes that, then God will show him a land. This is in reverse to our thinking. In order to move, many times, we require something to observe to convince us of whether or not our choices are right. God’s method is to speak, then we walk, then he shows. Effective leaders are creative. Creativity in a leader is a necessary gift in moving you to a level of leadership excellence. Releasing God through our thinking breaks down limits. As a leader it’s important to understand that God began our entire existence with a “word of creativity”. This is the principle that should drive our thinking and behavior. Genesis is the template for the creative power we should walk in. God spoke, and what He imagined or thought about became real. It began with a thought, a thought that was not limited by possibility. Psalms describes the process as meditation. It is the meditating on the purpose and word that God has placed in us that promotes entrance into a different level of faith and belief. Thoughtfulness is the place of leadership creativity. The destination that God has purposed does not change. His will, will be done. The route or path to that destination can often be unpredictable. The path may change but the purpose is fixed in the mind of God. As a leader this is something to always understand. Just because the path changes, and the decisions are altered does not mean the destiny as moved. The destination called for in the vision that God has spoken in our lives is unalterable. The promise of God is without compromise or corruption. If God has started a work in you, it will be accomplished not matter how non-traditional or unconventional it might appear. Effective leader have a working definition. Defining leadership is always challenging because the needs and requirements change with each challenging situation. Let me offer a definition. Leadership is the work of God through people achieving His will with people. It is the gift of connecting ideas, resources, gifts and unifying people with faith to achieve the plan and purpose predetermined by God. The God leader leads, as he is following the purpose and destiny of God. There are two leaders in the process. The natural leader leads those who God reveals His truth in, and can identify with the move of God and the nature of God in their lives. That leader is also being led by His spiritual leader which is always the spirit of God. We lead as we are led. The direction, destiny and calling originate from heaven. Every leader understands that we “give as we get”. Sometimes there is no time to evaluate what it is that we share related to directives and instructions. In that moment, God stimulates the thinking and the words to speak that enhance truth and bring clarity. Effective leaders operate by both vision and mission statements. Vision and mission statements are powerful tools to the leader who understands that God is intentional about direction and destiny. No one leaves their home to go somewhere without having a plan or a destination in mind. It is this sense of direction that vision and mission brings to the excellence of leadership. It is what reminds us each and every day that what we do has been spoken by God and is being sustained by God. Without having to rethink the process an effective, understandable and recognizable vision and mission keeps the movement of ministry in the direction of success. Every step we take as leaders is a step in the direction of that destiny. If you cannot get there, take a step towards there! The vision says there is a plan for what we are doing. The plan reminds us of the great work that God has entrusted into our hands. It reminds us that the responsibilities we have agreed to and the commitments we have made to ourselves, to the vision and to God. With an effective vision in place it allows everything we do to be confirmed and decided based upon that plan. An effective vision and mission is the foundation upon which everything else is built. When my wife and I were building our first home we spent a considerable amount of time talking with the builder. One of the things that became clear was that the foot print or foundation of the house had to be well thought out because whatever was going to built would have to exist upon that foot print. So, the foundation had to be built with progression and growth in mind because everything that came after would have to exist within that framework. In other words, no foundation to support a future extension such as a sun room, then no sun room! All of the strategies, effort and activities are directed by the prevailing vision and plan. Every decision then will and must line up with the overall plan and vision. This really helps with avoiding strategies and goals that do not marry the vision. When there is no vision then everything looks good to do. We can best choose where to devote our efforts, time and prayer with a clear, articulated vision. This allows ministries to pursue strategies and activities that lead the organization forward and avoid devoting resources to strategies that do not. Effective leaders understand the power of coaching. Just as a successful coach has a vision for putting a team together with a game plan for success, so is the leader who understands the full impact of moving a vision forward. Shepherding and coaching have many similarities which an effective leader can utilize in managing the ministry environment. The idea of coaching suggests that there is a defined objective in mind, a game that must be won. How we win is by developing strategies that achieve that goal. The effective leader must employ different tactics and plans to advance the vision of ministry. Unfortunately we are called to play several roles all at the same time which can be difficult to handle. The vision must be coached and those that God has assigned for us to lead must be shepherded. One of the challenges is managing the gift and the gift carrier all at the same time. God has gifted us all, and the gifts are driven by the power of God and the will of God for our lives. When the gift-carrier does not entirely yield themselves to the governance of God, and the leading of the Holy Spirit, it becomes a battle field. While every leader desires to utilize the gift, the matching of the right gift and the right person remains the challenge. The gift brings effectiveness, organization and advancement. The person can bring selfishness, egotism and attitudinal indifference. When we observe Jesus, the gift and the gift carrier compliment the will of God. The personality and the person aligned to submit to the Father to accomplish the foreordained plan. When the gift matches the personality of the gift giver, this becomes an effective coaching scenario.
Dr. PJ Edmund, Sr., is a graduate of Cornerstone Christian University and Seminary. He has served for the past 8 years as the Senior Pastor of Timbrel Church International in Largo, Maryland, and more recently the Overseer of Pneuma Fellowship of Covenant Churches of the Apostolic Faith, Inc., Through the work of the Centre for Leadership Arete (Excellence) and the Leaders Today Conferences these ministries provide training and development conferences that equip, train, develop and prepare dynamic ministry leaders. PJ has also authored Walk With Him and has inspired thousands of believers to strive for excellence in ministry. Dr. PJ Edmund is a professional trainer, seminar leader, and corporate retreat facilitator. He is a senior executive advisor, consultant, author, and successful businessman and the Founder and Senior Training Consultant/Facilitator for The Centre for Leadership Arete (Excellence). Dr. PJ brings now a wealth of experience and innovation to training in the Kingdom through Leaders Today Conferences, the training organization of the Centre of Leadership Arete (Excellence). He has dedicated his life to developing Ministry Pastoral and Leadership Teams in their work to bring excellence to ministry operations and administration. Leaders Today! Is a ministry that provides leadership development, coaching and consultation to non-profit organizations, and church community leadership by providing relevant training conferences and a high level of practical information resources. Within the field of professional trainers Dr. PJ Edmund is highly regarded for his challenging, high content message as well as practical approach to the training challenges and innovative opportunities organizations face today. Dr. Peter John (PJ) Edmund, is founder and senior pastor of Timbrel Church International, a church “commissioned to renew lives” and the director of PJ Edmund Ministries, a ministry that is “committed to presenting a global gospel.” A native of England, now residing in the United States, Dr. Edmund is a renowned international and national preacher and teacher, who has a gift and passion for training, equipping and developing leaders. His connection of scripture with biblically based innovative principles has been insightfully received by bishops, pastors and church leaders in the faith community.