fruit-of-the-spirit

Fruitful Leadership #6: Goodness

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When God created the world, Genesis tells us he made this statement five times: “And God saw that it was good.” On the last day, he looked at all he had made and the Bible declares: “God saw all that he had made, and it was very good.” The word declaring the absolute best or the perfection of what God created was “good.” Today, good seems like it’s not enough. We use words like amazing, excellent, incredible, and on and on.

As we continue to work our way through the list of Spiritual gifts found in Galatians 5: 22 and 23 we come to the fruit of “goodness”. Again, in today’s thinking, at least in mine, “goodness” seems like a bland word compared to what one might use. So, let’s look at the word before we look at how we would invite the Holy Spirit to make it a fruit we are producing in our life.

“Goodness” or “good,” according to Strong’s concordance, is meant to convey something intrinsically good, or something which “originates from God and is empowered by Him in their life, through faith.” (https://biblehub.com/greek/19b.htm)  This is not a bland statement but one that is intended to show the goodness of God, all the good of the creator being lived out in his creation. Really, it is reflecting the goodness of God in our life.

If we want to lead with the Spirit’s fruit of goodness in our leadership, we look to lead like God would in the situations we find ourselves in. We ask the Spirit to make us good like God in how we act toward other people and how we live our lives before them. As we lead, we do so from the goodness of God already in us through the Holy Spirit’s presence in our lives.

To lead with the fruit of goodness in our lives is impossible unless we have come into fellowship with God through faith in Christ. Then, as his Spirit takes up residence in our lives, we can invite him to express himself through us in our words and actions.

While kindness is focused on others and how we care for them, goodness is a focus on God that allows his Spirit to work through us as we put God first in all of our lives. As we focus on God, he works through us.

The development of this fruit then begins with a continued desire to know God better. Goodness, that intrinsic, God-empowered fruit, depends on how well we get to know God and allow him to fill us with his goodness. A leader who desires to produce the fruit of goodness cannot just try harder or look at ways to be good and nice to people. It will not happen by our own efforts. It cannot be the result of a seminar or training exercise. It is only the result of spending time with God in his Word and in prayer.

As you are filling yourself with goodness in your relationship with God, you can then produce goodness in your interactions with your team and others you serve. It can only be an overflow of spending time in God’s goodness first.

Leading with goodness is a great desire. Spend time with God regularly so the Holy Spirit will produce goodness in you and your leadership.

Keep looking up,

Andy Wiebe

Fruitful Leadership #5: Kindness

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The spiritual fruit of kindness in a leader is different than how we often think of kindness.

We tend to think of kindness as “being kind” or “being nice” to someone. It is the opposite of being mean or rude. It is the sense of treating each other as we would like to be treated. This is recognizing each other as humans who need to respect and care for each other as such.

The spiritual fruit of kindness, though, is not so much about holding back our anger and frustration and being nice to those around us. Kindness, as presented in Galatians 5: 22 in the list of spiritual fruit evident in those who are filled with the Spirit, is about practical care for others.

While the word portrays goodness and gentleness, it could be thought of as “useful kindness.” This is about practically being kind by doing something nice for another person that is useful to them.

A simple example would be to show up with coffee and donuts for your team at coffee time. Not only are you doing something nice, but it could also be useful to them, especially if they need a little energy.

So how can we be kind in this way as a Christian leader? How can we meet real needs of those we are leading?

Why not begin by finding out what the real needs are?

Instead of assuming, take time to talk with people and get to know them and what is going on in their lives. If your team is too big to talk personally with everyone, talk with a few. Or send out a brief survey or questionnaire inviting your people to let you know how you can be of help.

Here are a few thoughts on how you could extend useful kindness to the people you work with.

  • Have an open-door policy – even for certain hours if it doesn’t work all the time.
  • Offer financial help to those who might benefit from counselling.
  • Make lunchtime easier. Provide a small kitchen for staff to use. One employer I had brought in a catered lunch occasionally.
  • A businessman offered free childcare in a facility connected to his business for his staff.  If you are not able to do this, can you offer some help?
  • Provide appropriate training regularly.
  • Ensure your team has the tools and resources they need to do their job well.
  • Keep organizational structure and communication clear.

The spiritual gift of kindness can be a powerful tool in a leader’s pouch to build loyalty and camaraderie with the people you lead. As you extend mercy and grace in practical ways, people will respond with respect and loyalty. As you reach out with benevolence and generosity, they will respond with a desire to do their best for the team.

We should be nice to those we lead, but we can go beyond that and provide useful and practical help as well.

Keep looking up,

Andy Wiebe

Fruitful Leadership #1: Love

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There has been much study done on the character and personality of good leaders. In the book of Galatians, the Apostle Paul introduces what he refers to as the “fruit of the Spirit”, describing what Christians are to live like, to be like. As believers in Jesus, we have His Spirit living in us when we surrender our lives to Him. Just like al healthy apple tree produces apples, a healthy Spirit-filled person will produce the “fruit” of the Spirit.

Paul gives a list of nine fruits, or characteristics, that people surrendered to Jesus and filled with his Spirit will be like. It makes sense, then, that a Christian leader will be a Spirit-filled person who will ideally be producing the fruit Paul lists.

The first fruit listed is love. If you are a Christian leader, you should be exhibiting the characteristic of love to those you lead and serve. Jesus, in Matthew 22: 39, defines the second greatest commandment as: “Love your neighbor as yourself.” One of the most important characteristics of a follower of Jesus is then, to love. And to love our neighbour. If we are unsure who our neighbour is, we can read Jesus’ story of the Good Samaritan in Luke 10. While others noticed a beaten and robbed man, the Samaritan cared for his wounds and took him to a place to heal up, even paying all the costs this might incur. The neighbour was the one who loved the less fortunate one in practical ways that made a difference in his life. As we daily surrender our selves to the Holy Spirit, he will continue to help us become more loving in our leadership. While it is our responsibility to love, it is the Holy Spirit who helps us to love better and who fills us with a desire to love when we may not really want to.

So how might the fruit of the Spirit of love be evident in a Christian leader?

It would begin with a genuine caring for the others one connects with. These could be your boss, or co-worker, or employees. They could be your church staff and volunteers. Sometimes, people like me who like to focus on the project and getting things done, can see those around me as people who help me get my stuff done, rather than seeing them as people who need to be noticed and cared for. To love is to notice people and to care for them. And to look for ways to help them. A leader who is producing love in their relationships at work will recognize when someone needs to be cared for and not just used to accomplish the leader’s vision.

Love includes communicating well with those you work with and serve. It means that we create an environment where direction is given clearly, and feedback is welcomed. Rather than being threatened by the ideas of others, a leader who loves will see each person as a contributing member of the team. By creating an environment where exchange of ideas is welcomed, the leader makes it clear that everyone is valued.

A leader who loves will want to make sure that their team has healthy relationships with each other. The leader will not hesitate to apologize for hurting someone. He will take ownership of his own mistakes and not dwell on those of others. Love means finding solutions to relationship breakdowns. Rather than just demanding blind loyalty, a leader who loves will create an environment where all on the team enjoy serving together.

Christian leaders display the fruit of love when they are willing to serve rather than lord their authority over others. Jesus pointed this out in Matthew 10: 44, “For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” Some leaders love being the boss and want to make sure everyone knows they are the one in charge and they are the one to be obeyed. Yet even Jesus showed that he came to serve. For him it even meant giving his life to pay for the sins of all people. Love means being willing to serve others, even if you are the leader. Maybe you get coffee for someone rather than expecting they need to get you one. Or you listen rather than direct. You still need to give direction and guidance and set standards that need to be met, but you do so in a way that shows you care about the people you are leading. Love them by serving them.

Christian leader, allow the Spirit to flow through you, displaying love to those you work with.

Keep looking up,

Andy Wiebe