By DAVID EPPS
Pastor

A new government is in place in Washington and in many states and communities. How will the new leadership fare?

John Maxwell, popular seminar speaker, says, "Leadership is influence nothing more and nothing less." Dale Galloway, dean of the Beeson International Center for Biblical Preaching and Church Leadership at Asbury Theological Seminary, states, "You can't buy influence, you can't force it and you can't demand it; you must earn influence."

Galloway, in an article for NetResults, then gives seven ways to gain influence. While Galloway is speaking primarily to church leaders, the list could be applied to most anyone who seeks to have influence with others. Many of the added comments are my own.

1. Clear vision. People will follow a person who has a clear vision and gives clear direction. Robert Schuller has stated that it is easier to raise multiple millions of dollars for a Crystal Cathedral than it is to raise a few hundred dollars for a broken furnace. People can't get excited about a furnace. A bold and clear vision of a better tomorrow and of a great and challenging endeavor will captivate the hopes and dreams of people.

2. Credibility. I once had a person in the church who signed up for nursery ministry duty. The first time she was on the schedule, she called at the last minute and canceled out. The second and third times, she simply failed to show, even though written reminders were sent out. She lost all credibility and, when other leadership positions opened up, she was quite naturally passed over. People who fail to live up to their promises, people who constantly break appointments, and those who are chronically tardy lose credibility and influence. Faithfulness in small things really does matter.

3. Confidence. "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me," said the Apostle Paul in Philippians 4:13. People who have a well-placed confidence are likely to have influence with others. People have come to know that, "I'll try," means, in reality, "I'll fail." As Yoda said, "There is only do or do not. There is no try."

4. Character. Dwight L. Moody said, "Character is what you do in the dark." The history books, both secular and religious, are full of people whose character (that which they did in the dark) damaged their influence. Bill Clinton, Newt Gingrich, Jessie Jackson, Jimmy Swaggart, Jim Bakker, and many more will all wonder what they could have accomplished had they heeded Moody's words. A man (or woman) who will break his wedding vows will sacrifice other principles as well.

5. Courage. The Star Trek mission was to "boldly go where no one has gone before." In the Book of Joshua, God constantly reminds Joshua to have courage. Leaders will be tested. People who do something worthwhile will come under fire. Churchill, Truman, Kennedy, Lincoln, all came under heavy criticism for decisions they made. History has proved them right in most instances. Courage is sometimes defined as "doing the right thing when everyone else says to do the opposite."

6. Commitment. "To succeed as a leader, you must be more committed than anyone else," Galloway says. A Christian song of years back says, "I have decided to follow Jesus, no turning back, no turning back. Though none go with me, still I will follow, no turning back, no turning back." When we needed to raise money for our land purchase at the church I serve, I took a second job. On Commitment Day, I put eight paychecks from that job into the offering and continued to put in every check for the next six months. The people knew I was committed. We raised all the money we needed and then some for the down payment.

7. Care. People want to know that leaders care about them. One of former President Bill Clinton's strengths was that he had the ability to communicate to people, "I feel your pain." Dale Carnegie once said, "You influence people more by listening than by talking." One of the reasons that crowds flocked to Jesus is that he moved among them, touched them, ate with them, and loved them.

The world is always in need of people with positive influence. Whether leadership is needed globally, nationally, local, in the government, in the clubs, on athletic teams, in the church, or in the neighborhood, people who possess these seven qualities will likely be men and women of profound influence.

[David Epps is rector at Christ the King Church in the south metro area of Atlanta. He may be contacted at FatherDavidEpps@aol.com or at www.ChristTheKingCEC.com.]

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