Is this the right way?

Don’t imagine us leaders to be something we aren’t. We are servants of Christ, not his masters. We are guides into God’s divine secrets, not security guards posted to protect them. The requirements for a good guide are reliability and accurate knowledge. (I Corinthians 4:1-2 MSG)

We have placed our leaders on 'pedestals' of sorts, not realizing that when we elevate them to such a position of power or authority over our lives, making them the 'absolute' we turn to, we are not always keeping God as our 'absolute'. There is but ONE absolute - God. Whenever we elevate a man or woman into that position that God should hold, we are in danger of focusing more on their charisma than on the Spirit of God that dwells within them. God wants us to make wise decisions as to who we allow to be in positions of authority in our churches, being sure they are consistently being the type of leaders we can 'look up to', but not regarding them with more authority than God has over our lives.

A good leader will always serve as more of a guide - guiding us into a deeper knowledge of the Word of God, helping us to rightly divide his Word, and cautioning us away from the trends of the day that would have us believe things that are contrary to the holiness of God's Word. The leader will study to find God's truths - always pointing those he or she leads back to the ultimate authority - God himself. There submissive heart will leave no room for human or personal opinion to overrule God's wisdom. Sometimes it is hard to know if the one leading is giving us accurate knowledge - especially when we believe everything we hear without testing it against the truths in God's Word ourselves. This is how so many can be misled - they neglect to study the Word themselves.

A strong leader will encourage us to have a continual freshness in our own relationship with Jesus, while working to maintain their own 'freshness' with him. A 'stale' relationship with Jesus will eventually become evident in those we have labeled as 'good leaders', won't it? We will begin to see a lackluster approach to their study, what they teach, and even in their personal relationships with others. A strong leader will 'fight' to keep their relationship with Jesus vital and constantly growing. Even when it is hard, they will press on because they know the importance of having that 'freshness' and 'renewal'. 

Be cautious of just 'following the leader' when you don't know where they are headed. A good leader will always paint a clear picture of the destination ahead. If the destination is anything other than Jesus and his ways, we need to be wary of where that leader is taking us. If we want to be increasing in our own understanding of God's ways, we need to be sure we are not following some else the wrong way! Just sayin...