Dr Paul Allen

The foundation of everything about the shape, character, and function of the leadership community of the church of Jesus Christ is this: the model for the community that is the church, and most importantly its leadership, is the gospel of Jesus Christ. Now, I know that this seems both obvious and vague, but I am persuaded that it is neither and that if the primary driving force of leadership in local churches around the world was the gospel of Jesus Christ, many of the sad things we have seen happen in the lives of leaders and their churches would not have happened. The passage comes in Paul’s letter to the Ephesians: I, therefore, a prisoner for the Lord, urge you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling to which you have been called, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, eager to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. —Ephesians 4:1–3 It should be noted that Paul’s first application of the truths of the gospel, which he h...

HOW THE MIGHTY FALL  JIM COLLINS This is not Jim Collin’s best-known book.   How the Mighty Fall is a study of why once great companies collapse. Collins isolates five stages of decline and doom for once-great companies (including some of his Good to Great companies). The five markers are a chilling reminder of how success goes awry. Collin’s insights into the hubris born of success and the undisciplined pursuit of more are haunting and a great window into the soul and ego of everyone who leads anything. For anyone who’s leading anything that’s growing or successful, this is a must-read. Here’s the  link . GOOD TO GREAT  JIM COLLINS This is Collin’s best-known book and for good reason.  From “first who” to ‘confront the brutal facts’ to the ‘flywheel principle’ to ‘level 5 leadership’ and the defining role that humility plays in greatness, Collin’s insights have shaped me and the teams I lead deeply. Here’s the  link . THE ADVANTAGE...

“As I was with Moses, so I will be with you. I will not leave you nor forsake you” (Josh. 1:5b). The events recorded in the book of Joshua mark a new period in Israelite and redemptive history, and the book itself inaugurates a new section of Scripture. The transition is clearly set forth when God declares “ ‘Moses My servant is dead’ ” at the outset of the book.  The man who led the people of Israel out of bondage in Egypt, who mediated as God formed them as a nation and established His covenant with them, who guided them through 40 years of wanderings in the desert as a consequence of their sin, who wrote the first five books of the Bible—this man has passed from the scene and a new leader has been appointed by God.  Joshua will lead the Israelites as they enter and take the land promised to them by God. The book opens the section of Scripture known in the Hebrew canon as the “Former Prophets,” the historical books covering the period from the death of Moses to th...

Leadership is hard. I rank it up there with pain, parenting, and preaching as one of those things in life that we never fully master, but only hope to keep learning over a lifetime. Dan Allender puts it well: “If you’re a leader, you’re in the battle of your life.” Anyone who has navigated the turbulent waters of leadership probably knows what he means. The challenges and complexities are enormous. Making tough decisions, weathering criticism, helping others re-envision the future, taking risks, speaking consistently with tact and wisdom, gathering broad-based support, working shrewdly with different personalities — it can often feel like steering the boat while whitewater rafting . As I’ve led others over the last several years, I’ve gleaned several lessons that might help others (especially in a ministry context). Here are a few I’ve learned, am learning, and probably will have to learn again. 1. Give correctives personally, graciously, and sparingly. My grandfather...

If you've been leading for longer than a week or two, you know what it means to interact with difficult people. A friend of mine called last week to ask advice about how to better lead one of his board members for a small non-profit. My friend, let’s call him Jeremy, is the Director (and Founder) of the non-profit. In the middle of one of the meetings, the board member started a non-agenda discussion regarding his belief that the board members should have more decision-making authority in the day-to-day operations of the non-profit’s endeavors. This was obviously a big surprise and felt like an ambush. Jeremy asked if there was a specific agenda or issue that the board member wanted to talk about, and the response was no, we just need more authority in general. Jeremy asked if he was unhappy with the ministry or his performance. The same response was given: “Everything is fine, we just need to have more say in how things are done.” This went on for over an hour getting nowhere...

Rembrandt's Timothy and his grandmother, 1648. (Photo credit: Wikipedia ) It was an elder meeting I’ll never forget. I’d just returned from a leadership conference where the pastor of one of America ’s largest churches had waxed eloquent about the unique challenges and hardships that come with pastoral ministry. He claimed that leading a ministry is the toughest of jobs. The stakes are eternal. Our enemy is the epitome of evil. He’s cagey, fierce, and the ultimate deceiver. We’re prone to be misunderstood. Our message is unpopular. Most of our rewards come later. And we’re asked to give more than we get. Since I was in the middle of a particularly dark season of ministry, his words resonated with me. Like Asaph in Psalm 73 , I was beginning to wonder if ministry was worth it all. At our next elder meeting, I began to share what he’d said. I couched it as a request for prayer. But in reality, I just wanted some empathy and understanding. But before I could get into my ...

 (Photo credit: Wikipedia ) As believers, we recognize the value of imitating Jesus and His leadership style. But if we really think about it, it’s strange that we try to emulate a leader who never developed an organization , regularly encouraged people to stop following Him, and ultimately saw His death as the pinnacle of His accomplishments. What kind of perspective must a leader have to place high value on these kinds of strategies? Jesus was not a manager. His primary role was to function as a spiritual leader . Not all leaders in Christian organizations are spiritual leaders. This is not a criticism as much as a distinction. Distinguishing spiritual leadership from other forms of leadership can free people from unrealistic expectations of some leaders. At the same time, making this distinction can help identify who the spiritual leaders in your organization are. Here are six characteristics that identify most spiritual leaders: They lead others into their own ...

Stained glass at St John the Baptist's Anglican Church http://www.stjohnsashfield.org.au, Ashfield, New South Wales. Illustrates Jesus' description of himself "I am the Good Shepherd" (from the Gospel of John, chapter 10, verse 11). This version of the image shows a vertical section focusing on Jesus. The memorial window is also captioned: "To the Glory of God and in Loving Memory of William Wright. Died 6th November, 1932. Aged 70 Yrs." (Photo credit: Wikipedia ) Shepherd the flock of God which is among you, serving as overseers, not by compulsion but willingly, not for dishonest gain but eagerly, nor as being lords over those entrusted to you, but being examples to the flock.— 1 Peter 5:2,3 It might be accepted as a fairly reliable rule of thumb that the man who is ambitious to lead is disqualified as a leader. The Church of the Firstborn is no place for the demagogue or the petty religious dictator.  The true leader will have no wish to lord it...

Performance and Efficiency Evaluation and ... efficiency of an experimental Outboard Marine Corporation (OMC) rotary combustion engine (Photo credit: Wikipedia ) Author: Tony Morgan. One of the most frequently asked questions I receive is this: “Do you have any sample performance evaluation forms you can send me?” To be honest, I  do  have samples, but I never send them. Why don’t I send them? Well let me ask you. Have you ever seen a traditional performance evaluation system that actually improves performance? Probably not. To my knowledge, no such form exists. You don’t need a sample form. Instead, you need to lead well. There’s a perpetuating myth in leadership circles that every good leader does annual performance reviews. That’s not true. You can be a great leader without going through the agony of filling out your annual HR evaluation forms. From my previous conversations, it seems performance evaluations are started because leaders know there are one or t...