When we hear the word “leader” we tend to think about a leader of a small group. But this year, God has renewed my mind in regards to leadership. Being honest, in the beginning of the year I felt stuck, without growth, in my ministry. I did a lot of things, but saw very little results. I prayed and said, “God, I don’t know what to do, please guide me. I feel like I’m just going around and around the same circle”. One of the things I used to do was focus on my disciples´ mistakes and not my own. I thought, “people are always late, they must be very busy so I shouldn’t ask for too much, they have kids, etc”. I realized I was the one creating the obstacles in my mind.    

The first thing God allowed me to see is that change starts with me. Psalms 133:2 says, “It is like the precious oil upon the head, running down the beard…”. My leadership was the one to blame for the mediocre results I was seeing in my ministry. God says that the oil, or the anointing, first falls on the leader (the head) and then runs down the beard. Until we, as leaders, don’t decide to continually evaluate ourselves, nothing will happen. It’s been 10 years since I finished school, so even though it’s not something I was thrilled about at first, one of the things I did was go back to school (University). But honestly, it’s been such a blessing! I also started listening to podcasts and read books about leadership that began to renew my mind. John Maxwell teaches about the Law of the Lid. He says, “I need to recognize that my organization and/or ministry has a lid, and the lid is most likely me”.

The other thing I learned is that leadership is a decision. No one is born a leader. Leadership is something that is learned after making the decision. People want to be oriented in the right direction. People need to listen to someone who inspires and motivates them to know Jesus and to have big goals they can work towards.

The third thing a leader must do is serve. A true leader is the one who serves others. Traditional leadership is about the leader being on top and the disciples below them. Leadership that serves is the opposite: the disciples are above and the leaders are serving them. This concept of leadership can be hard to understand a lot of the time because most people want to get to the top for others to serve them. “People don’t care how much you know, until they know how much you care” (John Maxwell). Acts 4:34-35 says, “There were no needy people among them, because those who owned land or houses would sell them and bring the money to the apostles to give to those in need”. The early church was born with the spirit of service. They served each other with all their hearts, but why? One cause: to extend the Gospel. They were so passionate about doing the work of God that they were even willing to give their lives for the Gospel. They had amazing leaders, such as The Apostles, to guide them through their teachings and their service.

Today, I want to emphasize and make sure you know that you are the leader for right now. The world needs leaders with the fear of God who will dare to believe what He’s said.

If you are a cell group leader, here are a few tips to help you grow as a leader:

• Dedicate time and effort to prepare the message you will share.
• Prepare the spiritual atmosphere and overall environment for your cell group by focusing on the details.
• Make clear evaluation reports of your ministry (how many new people came to the cell group, total number of people who attended the cell group, etc).
• Speak to them about your vision for this year.