Leadership Training

The following was suggested by a sermon given by Doug LaPlante of the Wilmington Baptit Church on April 22, 2007.

You therefore must endure hardship
as a good soldier of Jesus Christ.
No one engaged in warfare entangles himself
with the affairs of this life,
that he may please him who enlisted him as a soldier.
And also if anyone competes in athletics,
he is not crowned unless he competes according to the rules.
The hardworking farmer
must be first to partake of the crops. II Timothy 2:4-7

The two letters to Timothy are written by Paul to instruct a younger man in leadership in the Church. People today who desire to be leaders can also learn from the instructions given to Timothy. Paul describes the standard of endurance and steadfastness that a leader must possess:

A Christian leader is like a soldier; he endures hardship, he puts his attention fully on the task at hand without entangling himself with civilian life, and he is in obedience to a single authority, who is God.

The leader is also like an athlete who competes. If he competes, then he knows the value of consistent training and practice. At the competition, he obeys the rules, so that the victory is honestly achieved.

And he is like a farmer, who plants seeds, tends the field, and waits until the proper time for the harvest. The leader must remember that the purpose of this work is to produce fruit.

It is not necessary for every Christian to be a leader, but it is often a desire that grows as the Christian matures. Anyone who desires greater growth may be instructed by God; His instructions are in His Word.

Consider what I say;
and the Lord give thee understanding in all things. II Timothy 2:7