Are you serving simply where you’re comfortable, or are you serving where you’ve been called?
Poor leadership can manifest itself in many ways. And there are seasons where good leaders can be poor leaders if they’re not careful to check themselves.
Some examples of poor leadership can be seen in:
- Unclear vision
- Lack of communication
- Indecision
- Complacency
- Pride
The list could go on. And there are integrity gaps in leadership that we all have to work to fix.
Have you served under a poor leader? Are you serving under one now?
Many of us have served under poor leadership, and it’s a difficult place to be in. Because typically when we’re under poor leadership, it inhibits our ministries. Even though many of us try to lead up, it’s difficult when we aren’t heard, seen, or respected.
Serving God Above All Else
Although we’re all here because we want to be everything God made us to be so that our ministries can be what God desires them to be, we can only rise to the level of our leadership. If we’re not seeking God and striving after His will, we can’t make it.
We need God to lead us, because we can’t do it on our own. Poor leadership might tell you otherwise.
Is it important to have personal development and team development? Of course. We want to have teams that work together effectively and efficiently to do the work before us.
However, we cannot believe that we can do this alone. It’s not our ministry after all, it’s God’s.
And many times we think we’re all called to be ‘successful’ (whatever that means). But really, God has called each one of us to be faithful. We’re to be faithful in the big and small.
How to Guard Yourself from Ministry Burnout
How to Guard Yourself from Ministry Burnout
How to Guard Yourself from Ministry Burnout
Leadership Frustrations
So when you find yourself frustrated with your leadership, remember that our frustrations:
- Do not give us the right to complain about or undermine leadership in any way, nor do they give us the right to do anything less than our best.
- Do not mean we should give up trying to cast a vision or stop trying to put forward initiatives that we believe in.
- Do not mean we may abdicate our responsibility for our own personal growth in the area of leadership.
After a while, however, serving under poor leadership gets old … really old! And sometimes it’s unhealthy. So when you’ve done everything you can to communicate, to lead up, to lead your area well, and to live with the leadership you serve under, then maybe it’s time to answer this question:
Am I called to this position, or am I just comfortable?
Take this question to God. Ask Him if this is where He wants you in this time. If the answer is yes, continue being faithful to God in all the things you do. If the answer is no, continue being faithful to God in all the things you do.
Our hope is that you follow so close to God that you find yourself exactly where you are meant to be.
If you feel called to stay:
There is any number of reasons that God may want you in that role:
- He may be doing something in your life. Remember, our lives are not about our ministries or anything else, but rather about being conformed to the image of Christ.
- He may be using your frustrating. circumstances to accomplish something in the life of another.
- He may be using the circumstances to prepare you for something in the future.
If you feel called to leave:
This is usually very difficult to discern, and we encourage you to pray, fast, and seek trusted counsel in coming to this conclusion.
But if the answer is no, then why are you staying?
It might be that you’re just too comfortable.
No, you don’t like the leadership—it’s a pain to serve under. But pursuing other options would be incredibly uncomfortable. From a practical sense—uprooting families, acclimating to new teams, in many ways starting from the ground up—it is all extremely difficult.
But are we willing to place our comfort over the will of God in our lives? We all know that’s not the right thing to do.
It’s not always as simple yes or no. There is an extreme number of complexities and factors that play into this type of situation.
So we just encourage you to sit with God in His presence every day and allow Him to lead you in all that you do. Let Him guide you each step of each day, walking in faith that He has you. Because He does.
And our prayer is that you follow so close to Him that you find yourself exactly where you are meant to be.
