Leader After God's Own Heart , livre ebook

Harvest House Publishers, Inc. - Jim George

Découvre YouScribe en t'inscrivant gratuitement

Je m'inscris

Obtenez un accès à la bibliothèque pour le consulter en ligne
En savoir plus

131 pages

English

Vous pourrez modifier la taille du texte de cet ouvrage

Obtenez un accès à la bibliothèque pour le consulter en ligne
En savoir plus

A propos
Informations
Extrait

Description

From the author of the bestseller A Man After God's Own Heart (more than 100,000 copies sold)a survey of God's priorities for leaders as exhibited in the life of Nehemiah.The Bible is filled with amazing people, and Nehemiah stands out prominently among them. What made him so effective, so influential? It starts with knowing what God desires in a leader. From Nehemiah's example, readers will learn 15 ways to lead with purpose. Among them are...giving direction to your leadership by cultivating a vision for the futuresolidifying your leadership by recognizing the value of convictionrefining your leadership by acquiring problem-solving skills validating your leadership by pursuing personal integrityextending your leadership by understanding the power of motivationBecause it is God who enables us, these great qualities are accessible to every believer. Readers will experience real fulfillment as they take steps toward becoming God's kind of leader.

Sujets

Philosophie et théologie

Informations

Publié par	Harvest House Publishers, Inc.
Date de parution	01 avril 2012
Nombre de lectures	0
EAN13	9780736953399
Langue	English

Informations légales : prix de location à la page 0,0646€. Cette information est donnée uniquement à titre indicatif conformément à la législation en vigueur.

Extrait

HARVEST HOUSE PUBLISHERS
EUGENE, OREGON
Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are from the New King James Version. Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Verses marked NIV are taken from The Holy Bible, New International Version NIV . Copyright 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
Verses marked NASB are taken from the New American Standard Bible , 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. ( www.Lockman.org )
Verses marked NLT are taken from the Holy Bible , New Living Translation, copyright 1996, 2004. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, IL 60189 USA. All rights reserved.
Verses marked KJV are taken from the King James Version of the Bible.
Italics in Scripture quotations indicate author s emphasis.
Cover by Garborg Design Works, Savage, Minnesota
A LEADER AFTER GOD S OWN HEART
Copyright 2012 by Jim George
Published by Harvest House Publishers
Eugene, Oregon 97402
www.harvesthousepublishers.com
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
George, Jim, 1943-
A leader after God s own heart /Jim George.
p. cm.
ISBN 978-0-7369-3700-9 (pbk.)
ISBN 978-0-7369-4501-6 (eBook)
1. Leadership-Religious aspects-Christianity. 2. Nehemiah (Governor of Judah) I. Title.
BV4597.53.L43G46 2012
253-dc23
2011038497
All rights reserved . No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means-electronic, mechanical, digital, photocopy, recording, or any other-except for brief quotations in printed reviews, without the prior permission of the publisher.
Printed in the United States of America .
12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 / BP-SK / 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
C ONTENTS
An Invitation to Godly Leadership
P ART l-T HE C ALL TO S TRONG S PIRITUAL L EADERSHIP
1 Strength God s Promise for Your Leadership
P ART 2-T HE T RAITS OF S TRONG S PIRITUAL L EADERSHIP
2 Crisis Management Draws Out Your Leadership
3 Prayer Empowers Your Leadership
4 Courage Solidifies Your Leadership
5 Wisdom Promotes Your Leadership
6 Planning Brings Focus to Your Leadership
7 Motivation Extends Your Leadership
8 Delegation Unleashes Your Leadership
9 Encouragement Supports Your Leadership
10 Problem-Solving Refines Your Leadership
11 Conflict Management Gives Resolve to Your Leadership
12 Vision Gives Direction to Your Leadership
13 Renewal Refreshes Your Leadership
14 Loyalty Affirms Your Leadership
15 Integrity Validates Your Leadership
16 Purity Blesses Your Leadership
Study Guide
Bibliography
Notes
Other Books by Jim George
About the Author
A N I NVITATION TO G ODLY L EADERSHIP
L eadership is a vast and almost impossible subject to capture within the confines of a 200-page book. Just go to your local bookstore, either Christian or secular. In every case, you ll find multiple shelves devoted to this important topic. Every field of endeavor has its secrets for those who aspire to positions of prominence. The business community has its formulas for leadership, as do the political and media communities. And for sure, you and I as Christians also have our instructions-from Scripture-on what s involved in becoming a leader.
For me, learning about leadership had its beginnings in my local church. Sure, I had been to the bookstore and bought scores of books about leadership. Also, as a pharmaceutical salesman, I had personally observed my bosses and their examples of leadership. But all that pales in comparison to the valuable and life-changing principles for leadership that were based on the Bible and taught in the church I attended. This was the launching pad for my leadership development and eventually my becoming a leader in a local body of believers.
In my church, God provided strong and visible models of godly leadership. And as I read my Bible, I was blessed by the examples of great leaders like Abraham, Joseph, Moses, Joshua, and David. The flesh-and-blood examples within the covers of my own Bible provided great insight into the subject of leadership. And one man in particular, Nehemiah, has fascinated me over the decades that I have studied leaders and leadership.
Nehemiah was, in many ways, just an ordinary guy who was going about his business when God reached down and asked him to step up and be a leader for Him. And because you ve taken the initiative to read this book, the same is probably true about you. Either you are already a leader, or perhaps God is reaching down and asking you to step up and become one.
If you are willing to accept God s challenge, then this book will provide guidance on how you can become a strong leader through which God works in other people s lives.
Because the Bible is silent about much of Nehemiah s life, I have included in this book many observations that have been drawn from Bible commentaries, books on manners and customs in Bible times, and other kinds of historical texts.
In addition, I have tried to imagine the problems the leader Nehemiah ran up against, and what he might have thought or felt with each challenge he faced. I tried to envision the Bible scenes describing Nehemiah s situations, and use those texts to paint a portrait of this amazing man and leader. I have tried to get into his mind-and his soul-as he sought to be a leader after God s own heart. I have tried to put you and me right there in Nehemiah s day and in Nehemiah s sandals. I wanted you to hear his heart, experience his problems, and observe-up close and personal-how he successfully resolved his issues and led God s people.
It is my prayer that the 15 Ways to Lead with Strength presented in this book and demonstrated by Nehemiah will provide a model for how you, too, can strengthen your leadership in your sphere of life. May your leadership be based on God s Word and empowered by His Spirit-and may you become A Leader After God s Own Heart .
In Him,
Jim George
P ART 1:
T HE C ALL TO S TRONG S PIRITUAL L EADERSHIP
S TRENGTH G OD S P ROMISE FOR Y OUR L EADERSHIP
I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me
(P HILIPPIANS 4:13).
T he moment of truth had arrived. Nehemiah s career-even his very life-flashed before his eyes. What was I thinking? he wondered as he was forced into a reality check. What made me ever dream I could fool others, especially those I serve and work with so closely?
Nehemiah had prayed for an opportunity like this. But when it came without a warning-or even a hint-he was caught so completely off guard that his heart and mind flooded with fear in an instant. However on the fringe of this emotion, faith began to flicker and kindle and ignited its way into his soul. Faith worked its strengthening miracle, and he began to remember who he was.
Yes! Nehemiah s heart began to remind him. I am the cupbearer to the king. I am one of the most trusted men in the Persian Empire. I am one of a select few the king allows into his presence. I have rank and privilege. I serve the king!
The king s cupbearer felt his strength and confidence gaining momentum. And then he recalled the real reason for this moment. I am answering my God s call to serve Him . And yet, in that instant, he hesitated and wondered, How will my earthly - and highly unpredictable and volatile - king react to what I m about to ask? To what I must ask?
Nehemiah s Backstory
Before we see the king s response to the burning question Nehemiah was forced to ask his sovereign, let s turn back the pages of time some four months. To the Hebrews it is the month Chislev (which translates to November-December on our calendar). The scene is Susa, the winter capital of the immense Persian Empire, which spans all the way from Egypt to India. Our story and the making of a leader after God s own heart begins with what appears to be a biography-or maybe even an autobiography-of a man named Nehemiah , meaning Jehovah comforts.
Nehemiah s story begins without fanfare. There are no trumpets, no crowds, and no pomp and circumstance. There is no introduction, no genealogy, no ta-da. That s why most scholars believe that Ezra, the scribe, a contemporary of Nehemiah, was probably the author of the book that relates Nehemiah s story and reveals the making of a leader. If Nehemiah had written this chronicle himself, he, like most other autobiographers, would have included more background details, and surely more personal information, don t you think?
The opening verse of the book of Nehemiah tells us this man was the son of Hachaliah. We know little to nothing about Hachaliah. And the only other bit of information Ezra shares in chapter 1, verse 1 is that Nehemiah was the king s cupbearer.
Doesn t sound like much, does it? No big deal-at least in today s culture. Are you picturing Nehemiah as a waiter at some fancy restaurant? Or maybe a butler? Well, don t. There s certainly nothing wrong with these professions, but back in 445 BC, holding the title cupbearer was something special- very special.
A cupbearer was much more than a servant. He was more like a personal assistant. He held a position of great privilege and responsibility. And what he did was risky! At each meal, the cupbearer tested the king s wine to make sure it wasn t poisoned.
And there s more. Because this man, the cupbearer, stood close to the king in public, he had to be handsome, cultured, and knowledgeable in court procedures. To top off his job qualifications and requirements, he had to be able to converse with the king and advise him if asked to do so. Because a cupbearer had such access to the king, he was considered an important official of great influence-influence he could use for good or evil.
And there s even more. Nehemiah wasn t just a cupbearer to the greatest ruler of his day. No, he was the cupbearer! This di