The following is an excerpt from Tim Peter’s ebook, Start With You: The Best Thing You Can Do for Your Church.
You have what it takes to be a great leader, but…
The health of your family, your team and your church starts with you.
I’m not telling you anything you don’t already know. But after a decade of consulting with churches across the country and now working closely with church leaders through my staffing company, this truth has never been more apparent to me.
Great leaders model what could be and what should be. As church leaders, that is the heavy burden and glad responsibility we bear. Yet taking responsibility for yourself is one of the most difficult and yet most rewarding aspects of being a leader.
Leading by Example
After all, it’s easy to tell someone else what to do, isn’t it?
Often, we can tell when a person’s poor choices will lead them to inevitable and unfortunate outcomes. But when we’re forced to point those accusatory fingers at ourselves, it seems infinitely more challenging to know where we’re failing and what to do about it.
Helping others seek health is easy because it seldom requires any great sacrifice on our part. But making the changes we know we need to make in our own lives can be staggering because of the sacrifices those changes might require.
Yet we must make those changes to become the kinds of healthy leaders God seeks to grow and use.
Think of it this way: if you wanted to get in shape, would you hire an overweight trainer? If you needed help in your marriage, would you choose the thrice-divorced counselor?
Or envision a healthy tree next to a withering tree. The differences are stark. One is vibrant, growing and brimming with life. The other has stopped growing altogether.
In nature, in organizations and in people, it’s far easier to be effective when you’re healthy. When you choose to be healthy, you begin to live into what you were truly created to do.
Your Health Is More Than Your Health
Healthy leaders lead healthy teams and churches—yet how often do people in your life ask you, “Do you feel healthy?” And if they do ask, do you tell them the truth?
I’m not talking just about physical health either. Your spiritual, relational, physical and emotional health are the most important areas of your life and your leadership. Why? Because they’re all areas you have control over.
Yet so many church leaders—myself included—have forsaken our health in the name of so many excuses.
If you want to:
- Enjoy a healthy relationship with Christ,
- Lead a healthy church,
- Create a healthy staff environment,
- Delight in a healthy marriage,
- Be a healthy parent,
- Relish healthy friendships…
then this short ebook ought to help you consider your current state of health. Even better, it’s my hope that this ebook will encourage you to change for the better.
Even though your health is paramount in becoming the best church leader you can be, you shouldn’t strive to be healthier because it will grow your church. Rather, you should work toward being healthy for your own good, the noted change your spouse, children, staff, and church members will see, and God’s good pleasure in seeing you take care of the many gifts he’s given you.
More:
- Read our review of Start With You: The Best Thing You Can Do for Your Church.
- Get more resources to help you take care of yourself and avoid burnout.
