#1 "Leaders"

1) How would you define a "leader"?

 I would define a leader as someone who has followers and guides them towards goals or objectives.  You could have people who follow you but you aren't planning towards or moving in a direction.  I don't believe that would be the quality of a leader.  You also could have a goal or an objective but no one is following you.  I don't think that would be a leader either.  You would need both in order to lead.

2) What people or experiences in your life have influenced your view (either positively or negatively) of what a leader is? Give details.

A big positive influence on my life on how to lead are my parents.  They have shown me a very effective way, and I believe a biblical way, to lead.  They are not pastors or missionaries.  In fact they didn't have a strong personal relationship with Christ most of their lives.  But they did teach me to lead by example and by serving others.  They lived lives of integrity, honesty, and servanthood. They ran a rotating homeless shelter for one week every year, for the past 4 years.  They way they lead others was by being involved with the men who stayed there, themselves.  This would open up opportunities for people to do it as well.  It really showed me how to inspire others to do things that may be uncomfortable for them. 
A negative influence on my view of leadership were my high school football captains.  They did the complete opposite of what my parents taught me.  They way they treated their opportunity as leaders did not show fruit from their followers.  They lived lives of dishonesty to their teammates and this cause dissension amongst our team.  They often would take the glory of good things and throw critiques on the team.  But on the field, they focused on the team and were very encouraging.  It got confusing at times to figure out who our leaders were personally.  If there was integrity in the leadership, there would have been integrity in the team.

3) To what extent do you view yourself as a leader?
- How do you want to grow or develop in your leadership skills this year?
- What people or experiences around you will provide you with opportunities to develop your skills? Be specific.

I see myself as a leader in several ways, but I do often find myself wanting to go more towards the follower side.  I have been raise to be a follower before being a leader and that is what I am most comfortable with.  I know I have the gifts to be a leader, I just have to develop them.  I am in several leadership positions now and I love what I do. I want to develop my leadership skills this year by stepping up in places where I can make a decision about things.  I need to get out of the comfort zone of being a follower and use those skills to lead.  I have a lot of foundation, I just need to grow from there. I am a Discipleship Leader at North Central University and this position naturally puts me in a place where people look up to you.  This will give me an opportunity to practice investing, personally, into these guys' lives. I am also a leader in a youth group at the Inner City Church of Minneapolis.  The youth group is just getting off the ground and I am in a spot where I can help design and plan a structure for how the youth group will operate on a weekly basis.  I also get to invest into these students lives.  This is a perfect opportunity for me to gain skills and learn lessons in my future ministry as a youth pastor.