Lynn Anderson, They Smell Like Sheep, Part 2: Leading with the Heart of a Shepherd. Howard / Simon and Schuster, 2007.
Prequel: Anderson, They Smell Like Sheep, Volume 1
Referenced in:
LifeandLeadership.com Summary
This is a follow-up to Lynn Anderson’s modern classic, They Smell Like Sheep, Volume 1. Here’s my attempt to show the relationship between the two. In Volume 1, Lynn describes spiritual leadership through the chief biblical metaphors of shepherding, mentoring, and equipping. In Volume 2, he describes the kind of person who can do this work, but more importantly who they are from deep within, from the heart. I have often heard Lynn define a spiritual leader as “the kind of person God-hungry people want to be like.” (8) This idea is woven throughout both volumes, but the second volume more thoroughly describes such a person. So at the risk of overgeneralization, the first volume describes the role, and the second volume describes the person.
I agree with Rich Atchley who said that this book, as good as it is, is almost as good as the man. Lynn is indeed the kind of person God-hungry people want to be like. In many respects, the book describes him.
The book has twenty chapters divided into seven sections, each of them looking a different dimension of the heart of leadership:
1. A heart for God – discusses the importance of the heart, commitment to the glory of God, and prayerfulness
2. A heart of integrity – the desire for and pathways to integrity, holiness, and purity
3. A heart for people – focuses on concern for lost and hurting people
4. A heart for the Word of God – emphasizes knowing and teaching the Word
5. A heart of a servant – emphasizes opening one’s life to serving others
6. A heart that moves at a measured pace – addresses the need for comfort with ambiguity and a less anxious posture
7. A heart flooded with hope – discusses the importance of leaders being able to encourage and maintain the expectation of good things ahead
From the Publisher
Above all else, guard your heart, for it is the wellspring of life. — Proverbs 4:23
They Smell like Sheep, Volume 2: Leading with the Heart of a Shepherd is about more than gimmicks and techniques of leadership. It speaks to the character and heart of the leader. After all, heart makes the difference in an effective Sunday-school teacher, youth minister, elder, small-group leader, parent, grandparent, or Christian school teacher.
Spiritual sheep, stray sheep, and searching sheep aren’t nearly as concerned about the knowledge and skill of the shepherd as they are about his heart. When finding their way — at weddings, at funerals, during family crises, and in the hospital — sheep go to a shepherd in whom they discern God’s own heart, like King David of old.
Jesus said sheep would know their shepherd’s voice and be drawn to it. It is the heart behind the voice that soothes and comforts God’s people.
How do you measure the influence of a godly shepherd? Without doubt, it’s the heart of the shepherd that most powerfully shapes lives and souls in our flocks.
If you want your own heart shaped and molded into the likeness of Christ, this book is an excellent place to begin.
Be shepherds of God’s flock under your care… as God wants you to be.
Heeding the call to be a leader is an awesome responsibility. Whether you have been called to serve as a minister or you’re teaching an adult Bible study group or you’re a teen leading the youth group in song, most assuredly from time to time you question your abilities and look for support and example.
Author Lynn Anderson addresses the starting and ending place of true leadership among God’s people: the heart of a shepherd. He presents Jesus, the Head Shepherd, as our only reliable model of godly leadership; he guides us through the Scriptures and gives us practical exercises to strengthen our hearts as we do the difficult yet rewarding work of shepherding people of God with love and grace.
Enter the book’s pages with the confidence that you are being led by someone who has the heart of a shepherd and who sees himself first as a smelly sheep, dearly loved and led by the Good Shepherd.
And when the Chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the crown of glory. — 1 Peter 5:4
Section one: A Heart for God
- The Heart of the Matter
- A Heart Compelled by the Glory of God
- A Heart on its Knees
- A Prayer Path for Shepherds
Section Two: A Heart of Integrity
- A Heart in Search of Integrity
- Pathway of Integrity
- A Heart Shaped by the Holiness of God
- A Path to Purity
Section Three: A Heart for People
- It’s All About People
- A Heart for Lost and Hurting People
Section Four: A Heart for the Word of God
- A Heart for the Word
- A Heart for Teaching the Word
- Keepers of the Forest
Section Five: The Heart of a Servant
- A Heart with Hands
- A Broken Heart
Section Six: A Heart That Moves at a Measured Pace
- A Heart Moving from Warrior to Lamp
- A Heart at Peace with Ambiguity
- A Heart that Doesn’t Wring its Hands
Section Seven: A Heart Flooded With Hope
- A Heart of Encouragement
- A Heart that Expects Good Things Ahead
About the Author
Lynn Anderson has been in the ministry for over thirty-five years and currently serves as president of Hope Network, a ministry dedicated to coaching, mentoring, and equipping spiritual leaders for the twenty-first century. He received his doctorate from Abilene Christian University in 1990.
Anderson’s lifelong career of ministry has involved speaking nationwide to thousands of audiences and authoring eight books — including The Shepherd’s Song; Navigating the Winds of Change; Heaven Came Down; They Smell like Sheep, Volume 1; and If I Really Believe, Why Do I Have These Doubts?
He and his wife, Carolyn, live in San Antonio. They are the parents of four grown children and the grandparents of eight wonderful grandchildren.
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