Fall 2014
The theme for Fall 2014 is “Spiritual Leadership.”
Leading by boldly depending on God
Back in the mid-90s, my husband Steve and I prayed that God would use us in some way. We had busy and satisfying careers, but were restless. We didn’t want to waste the rest of our lives. Looking back I can see God was changing our hearts.
Over time it became clear that he was leading us to adopt a child, an idea that terrified me, but not Steve! I wasn’t ready to fearlessly move ahead, but God spoke:
...Joni Eareckson Tada on leading through our weaknesses
CLA president and CEO Tami Heim recently spoke with Joni Eareckson Tada, an international advocate for people with disabilities, and founder and CEO of the Joni and Friends International Disability Center.
A diving accident in 1967 left Joni Eareckson, then 17, a quadriplegic in a wheelchair. After two years of rehabilitation, she emerged with new skills and a fresh determination to help othe...
Spiritual leadership as modeled by Jesus
During the 2014 Christian Leadership Alliance (CLA) National Conference The Choice: The Christ-Centered Pursuit of Kingdom Outcomes (ECFAPress, 2014) by Dr. Gary G. Hoag, Dr. R. Scott Rodin and Dr. Wesley K. Willmer was named as CLA’s featured book selection. It includes a chapter entitled “Following Christ: Ten Marks of Christ-Centered Ministry” and the first mark “Submission to the Father” ...
Prioritizing communion with Christ
Overwhelmed with the pressures and demands of the preceding months, I turned to my husband in desperation and asked, “How am I going to make it through this day?” Knowing what the day held, he answered, “Just put your hand in Christ’s hand and together walk through every hour.”
God’s call to every leader is first and foremost to himself.
“God is faithful, who h...
Let's get to the root of it.
As leaders, do you ever find yourself afraid, abused, broken, fearful or feeling hopeless and insignificant? Do you at times feel lonely or rejected? Have you been in a place where the enemy has whispered a lie into your spirit? Did you believe the lie as truth? Let’s get to the root of it. Jeremiah 8:22 asks the rhetorical question, “Is there no balm in Gilead? Is there no physician there?” The answer, of cours...
Introducing the new CLATV!
This edition of Outcomes magazine focuses on spiritual leadership. Nothing can impact a ministry more than the spiritual walk of its leaders. With all the noise in today’s world, it is critical that ministry leaders know how to focus their time and attention before God. Those called to lead in such a time as this must discern how to embrace what God is making possible for leadership development and his service.
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Dr. Leighton Ford on the importance of spiritual leadership
Dr. Leighton Ford has preached the gospel worldwide as an evangelist with the Billy Graham Crusades and as chairman of the Lausanne Committee for World Evangelization. Now, as president of Leighton Ford Ministries, he trains young leaders in their spiritual leadership, teaching them how to lead more like Jesus as they lead people to Jesus. He spoke with Laura Leonard about what spiritual leadership has ...
Humble availability to God
In a world where social media enables individuals to selectively polish and present the narratives of their lives as a sequence of successes, it is easy to forget the innumerable failures that must be buffed out of sight. Human memory is revisionist by nature, and never more so than when it comes to commemorating the lives of the greatest among us.
As we look back at the life and career of the evangelist Billy Graham, who wi...
Prayer, fasting and spiritual wisdom for the Ivy League
Few things are more urgently needed today than dynamic spiritual, Christian leadership in our churches, various Christian agencies and the wider culture. My own convictions on the essential elements of Christian leadership developed in my early years of ministry while working for Campus Crusade for Christ (Cru) at Princeton University in the early 1990s. I noticed two things that profoundly shaped God&rsquo...
Facing the truth as leaders
“If ‘the joy of the Lord is your presence,’then please inform your face!”
Ellie Lofaro’s words resonated deeply with me as I listened to her keynote speech at the 2013 Christian Leadership Alliance national conference. It raises a question for me and for you: Do we lead with joy?
Leadership is hard work. Long hours, disappointing results, difficult decisions and unseen obstacles are ...