Christian Leadership Development Through Life Experiences

CHRISTIAN LEADERSHIP DEVELOPMENT THROUGH LIFE EXPERIENCES

Part of the LifeandLeadership.com ministry resources on Christian Leadership.

Leadership development is a universally recognized necessity for all leadership styles and approaches, especially with transformational leadership and empowerment. Ministry resources convey the theme that leaders must develop in at least two ways. First, and most important, is their walk with God through the experiences of life. This concentrates not so much on the “doing” as the “being” of the leader. It stresses the importance of an authentic walk with God and genuine spirituality which manifests itself through an increasingly Christ-like character, and consistently high standards of ethical and moral conduct. The second area of leadership development covers the skill sets necessary for leadership competence, encompassing both relational and task dimensions.

This resource guide focuses on Leadership Development Through Life Experiences.

Reggie McNeal, A Work of Heart: Understanding How God Shapes Spiritual Leaders, Updated Edition — McNeal encourages leaders to be attentive to the way God may be shaping their hearts through life experiences. He illustrates this through the lives of four biblical characters — Moses, David, Jesus, and Paul.
Neil Cole, Journeys to Significance: Charting a Leadership Course from the Life of Paul (Jossey-Bass Leadership Network Series) – Describes Paul as an example of how to lead “throughout a lifetime, increasing significance all along so that one finishes strong and leaves a legacy of leaders to carry on the work.” Makes use of Clinton Leadership Emergence Theory.
Mac Pier, Consequential Leadership: 15 Leaders Fighting for Our Cities, Our Poor, Our Youth and Our Culture – Pier tells the stories of 15 people such as Tim Keller, Richard Stearns, and others who have made a remarkable difference, many of them having made decisions at certain life transition points to “bet the farm” on what they perceived to be God’s divine call for their lives.

**Resources listed in recommended order, unless alphabetical

This is one of several Pathways to Leadership Development that are featured on LifeandLeadership.com:

See also the Leadership Index and the overall Ministry Resource Index for annotated guides on over 100 related issues. LifeandLeadership.com will expand significantly on this resource list in the section on Spiritual Formation which is in development.