FOLLOW THE LEADERWhen we express this ability in Biblical terms, it is the spiritual gift of
discernment (I Cor. 12:10; I Jn. 4:1). It is because of this spiritual gift that
the Biblical leader has an advantage over the worldly leader. Through the
exercise of this spiritual gift, the Spirit-filled leader is able to be more
perceptive into the human spirit – as well as into the spiritual realm of
angels and demons. In addition to the discernment of the Spirit of God, he
also has the dynamic of the Word of God to help him minister to people.
Only the Word of God used by the Spirit of God can “...divide soul and
spirit...” But it does not stop there; it goes on to “...judge the thoughts
and attitudes of the heart” (Heb. 4:12). No natural leader could ever
be that perceptive! That is only the leadership ministry of the Spirit of
God... through the Word of God...by the man of God...for the people of
God!
Principle:
“ To increase your leadership potential you must
increase your perception of people.”Effective leaders are lifelong students of people. The better they are able to
discern and “size up” people, the better they will be able to lead. Leaders
seek to be perceptive of people for the sole purpose of helping people reach
their full potential. Since leaders are interested in motivating people rather
than manipulating people, their leadership is based upon an unshakable
belief that people can be and do more in life. They can live at a higher
level and achieve more. Effective leaders believe in people – even when
people do not believe in themselves. They are able to call forth the potential
in people that the people did not know that they had. Through the eyes of
faith, they are able to perceive potential in people – and call it forth. They
are able to activate dormant desire in people for meaning and fulfillment in
life. As they rally the people around a noble cause, they help them achieve
the greatest longing of the human spirit - significance in life.
John Maxwell interestingly categorizes people in four groups. Even
though it is always dangerous to summarize the complexity of people by
simplistic reductions, there is a lot of truth in what Maxwell writes. When
it comes to the leadership challenge of activating people, he summarizes
humanity into four types of people: