Prayer is essential to the longevity of Christian leadership.  A Christian leader must have a personal prayer life in order to lead. Many times the personal time of prayer is neglected in leaders for being too busy. The key to showing Christ-character is by living it, but also by being with the Lord. If a leader spends all their time doing and never stopping to spend time with the Lord, then their ministry will be shallow.

Prayer draws the focus back on the Lord and not on problems or people. James 5:16 says, “The effective fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much.” God always blesses a Christian leader who relies solely on Him for every need. Many times that I have neglected focused prayer with God, the blessing of God’s power is not evident.

When prayer is placed first, then God can move freely and work to change lives. A relationship with Jesus Christ can not be complete without a priority of prayer. Prayer reveals the intimacy that God wants to have with us. Without going to God in prayer, there is no fuel to fulfill Christian leadership.

We unveiled our new name as a student ministry last night! The students were excited about the meaning and direction of “Refuge!”

Here is a snapshot of our vision!

“On God rests my salvation and my glory; my mighty rock, my refuge is in God.” Psalm 62:7

Refuge means…a safe place, act of turning to for assistance or security, a shelter from danger or hardship

The Refuge mission is to…Lead students into a growing relationship with Jesus Christ

Our Strategy:

1. Believe – Students surrendering their lives to Jesus alone for salvation (Love God)

Environment of…

- Gospel – Students learning how to live and share the gospel
- Love – Motivated by God’s love to SHOW love to everyone

Luke 19:10 “For the Son of Man came to seek and save the lost.”

2. Belong – Students finding community and encouragement through Christ-like relationships. (Love Each Other)

Environment of…

- Acceptance – Every student is be accepted
- Hope – Relationships built on hope

“Therefore encourage one another and build one another up.” 1 Thessalonians 5:11

“I will say to the Lord, “My refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust.”  Psalm 91:2

3. Become – Students becoming like Christ through serving (Serve the World)

Environment of…

- Leaders – Students leading students to find refuge in God
- Obedience – Students obeying God’s authority

“For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.” Ephesians 2:10

Three questions to continually ask:

1. Have you SURRENDERED your life to Christ?
2. Are you building Christ-like RELATIONSHIPS with others?
3. What are you doing to become like Christ through serving?

The third aspect of being a leader with character is to be authentic. Authenticity is essential with relationships in ministry as a leader. As a leader in Christian ministry, being authentic to people is the only way to successfully show Christ’s character. A Christian leader must build relationships by being real to understand and minister to people. In Webster’s dictionary it describes authenticity as, “the quality or state of being authentic; reliability; genuineness.”

Jeremiah exemplified the heart of authenticity. Jeremiah was authentic to God with his struggles and hard times, and God in turn was authentic to him. In Lamentations 3:22b-24 he wrote, “For your compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.” When things are not going the way we expect in ministry, it is good to follow Jeremiah’s example and realize that we are human and to learn to let God heal the hurt in your life.

The key to understanding authenticity is to learn to stick with the calling God has placed on your life, and not waver from following Christ. Leaders at times do not want to show any signs of weakness, but Paul explains the attitude we must have in 2 Corinthians 12:10, “therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in needs, in persecutions, in distresses, for Christ’s sake. For when I am weak, then I am strong.”

When we are authentic with God, then it frees us up to be real with people.

The second character trait that is essential to leadership is having a servant’s heart.

If leaders do not set an example for their ministry by serving, then many times the ministry will mirror their example. Whether it is helping clean up after a church event or preaching to a congregation, a servant’s heart must be exemplified in leadership. When it comes to serving, actions speak louder than words.

Jesus was the prime example of having a servant’s heart by washing the disciples’ feet. Jesus explains the importance of following his example in John 13:15, “For I have given you an example, that you should do as I have done to you.” Jesus was willing to humble himself from the cultural norm as a Rabbi and set an example for the disciples. Jesus’ heart is service, and when a Christian leader realizes that, then he will reap the benefits of placing others first and himself last.

If leaders serve others first, the people will follow right behind with a visual example of Christ-likeness.

The first character trait that a Christian leader should possess is integrity. Integrity is the most important aspect of leadership. Without integrity the ministry will eventually crumble and hurt the Lord’s work. There are many good examples in the Bible, but Daniel was a man that stood strong in his convictions.

In Daniel 6:10, He prayed three times a day and continued in that openly knowing that it could cost him his life. Daniel’s integrity was the foremost key to his ministry. Daniel’s life showed integrity even when he was a young man in the king’s palace. He abstained from the delicacies and showed that his integrity was making the small choices. The only way integrity can be upheld is making small decisions each day to surrender fully to God.

Integrity is not built up overnight, and many times the person has to grow and learn what it takes to be a leader. Daniel later on in life, continued following the Lord even when a law was made to worship only the king. King Darius knew of Daniel’s faith and that when Daniel was cast to the lion’s, God would protect him through it all. The end result of Daniel’s integrity is that God was glorified. At times a leader will have to take a stand on a controversial subject, and with the Bible as the basis, that leader can effectively stand strong. The importance of integrity is monumental to a lifelong passion to love God, love others, and serve the world.