{"id":28394,"date":"2022-03-17T10:43:47","date_gmt":"2022-03-17T17:43:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/?p=28394"},"modified":"2022-03-17T10:43:47","modified_gmt":"2022-03-17T17:43:47","slug":"authentic-leadership-is-a-treasure-waiting-to-be-found","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/authentic-leadership-is-a-treasure-waiting-to-be-found\/","title":{"rendered":"Authentic leadership is a treasure waiting to be found"},"content":{"rendered":"

Leadership: Theory and Practice<\/em>, 8th<\/sup> edition by Peter G. Northhouse presents many different leadership theories and models to offer leaders and organizations to practically apply different theoretical leadership models. Each chapter summarizes and discusses different leadership theories by presenting a \u201cdefinition, a model, and the latest research and applications of emerging approach to leadership.\u201d[1]<\/a> In this book which can be classified under communication and social science, published its 1st<\/sup> edition 20 years ago, Northhouse brings 30 years of his ample experience in teaching and writing about leadership to communicate strengths and criticisms of different theoretical leadership models. In such a globally evolving and complex world, organizations and communities are always searching for a qualified and self-differentiated leader to lead. Why are there such need for a qualified and self-differentiated leader? Leadership in any family, organizations, and countries are crucial because leadership is directly connected to power and management. Northhouse writes, \u201cIt is common for people to view leaders (both good and bad) and people in positions of leadership as individuals who wield power over others, and as a result, power is often thought of as synonymous with leadership.\u201d[2]<\/a> Also, he explains, \u201cLeadership involves influence, as does management\u2026many of the functions of management are activities that are consistent with the definition of leadership.\u201d[3]<\/a> The book presents wide range of leadership theories and the readers can gain a lot from case studies and application sections in each chapter.<\/p>\n

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One of the chapters that drew my attention this time was Authentic leadership in chapter 9. He defined authentic leadership as being about \u201cthe authenticity of leaders and their leadership.\u201d[4]<\/a> There is a growing need for an authentic leadership these days in our churches and in our organizations because \u201cpeople feel apprehensive and insecure about what is going on around them, and as a result, they long for bona fide leadership they can trust and for leaders who are honest and good.\u201d[5]<\/a> I am not sure if it happens in every generation, but I feel I have heard too many moral and relational failures in many of the Christian leaders who represented authentic leadership in the past five years. These kinds of heartbreaking and shocking news of failure in trusted leadership sparks off many to be lost on the pathways of spiritual nomads and disheartened prodigals. David Kinnaman, the author of You Lost Me<\/em>, estimated that about \u201ctwo-fifths of young adults who have a Christian background will go through a period of spiritual nomadism \u2013 disengagement from attending church or significantly distance themselves from the Christian community.\u201d[6]<\/a> And there are prodigals who are completely hurt from the church to not only disengage, but completely reject Christian faith. Although these recent church drop-out statistics and findings are alarming, I have witnessed many spiritual nomads and prodigals finding a way back to Christ again in their life journey and settle back into the right place in a church community. The key players of faith God uses to bring back the nomads and prodigals are authentic leaders. The repentance and restoration takes place under the mercy and guidance of an authentic leaders who reaches out to give care to the lost nomads and prodigals.<\/p>\n

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For the years to come, development in authentic leadership in Christian leaders and disciples will be vital to the issue of reviving the Church. Bill George, one who developed the authentic leadership approach, found that \u201cauthentic leaders have a genuine desire to serve others, they know themselves, and they feel free to lead from their core values. Specifically, authentic leaders demonstrate five basic characteristics: (1) they have a strong sense of purpose, (2) they have strong values about the right thing to do, (3) they establish trusting relationships with others, (4) they demonstrate self-discipline and act on their values, and (5) they are sensitive and empathetic to the plight of others.\u201d[7]<\/a> That seems to fit the description of what people desire as their pastor and as their Christian leader. What helps in developing authentic leadership in a person? What brings development of those five basic characteristics of an authentic leaders? I believe authentic leadership is molded and built over lifetime through the weight and pressures that God places upon on our shoulders. I am reminded of apostle Paul\u2019s experience of building his authentic leadership. \u00a0The newly spiritually forming identity within oneself that is built over time through living and struggling with faith in the real world. 2 Corinthians 4:7-12. Authentic leadership is a treasure to be found in all of our coming future.<\/p>\n

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7\u00a0<\/sup><\/strong>But we have this treasure in jars of clay\u00a0to show that this all-surpassing power is from God\u00a0and not from us.\u00a08\u00a0<\/sup><\/strong>We are hard pressed on every side,\u00a0but not crushed; perplexed,\u00a0but not in despair;\u00a09\u00a0<\/sup><\/strong>persecuted,\u00a0but not abandoned;\u00a0struck down, but not destroyed.\u00a010\u00a0<\/sup><\/strong>We always carry around in our body the death of Jesus,\u00a0so that the life of Jesus may also be revealed in our body.\u00a011\u00a0<\/sup><\/strong>For we who are alive are always being given over to death for Jesus\u2019 sake,\u00a0so that his life may also be revealed in our mortal body.\u00a012\u00a0<\/sup><\/strong>So then, death is at work in us, but life is at work in you.<\/p>\n

[1]<\/a> Peter G. Northouse, Leadership: Theory and Practice<\/em>. 8th edition (Los Angeles: SAGE Publications, Inc, 2018), xix.<\/p>\n

[2]<\/a> Northouse, Leadership: Theory and Practice<\/em>, 9.<\/p>\n

[3]<\/a> Northouse, Leadership: Theory and Practice<\/em>, 12.<\/p>\n

[4]<\/a> Northouse, Leadership: Theory and Practice<\/em>, 197.<\/p>\n

[5]<\/a> Northouse, Leadership: Theory and Practice<\/em>, 197.<\/p>\n

[6]<\/a> David. Kinnaman, You Lost Me: Why Young Christians Are Leaving Church . . . and Rethinking Faith <\/em>(Grand Rapids, MI, Baker Books, 2016), 63.<\/p>\n

[7]<\/a> Northouse, Leadership: Theory and Practice<\/em>, 199.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Leadership: Theory and Practice, 8th edition by Peter G. Northhouse presents many different leadership theories and models to offer leaders and organizations to practically apply different theoretical leadership models. Each chapter summarizes and discusses different leadership theories by presenting a \u201cdefinition, a model, and the latest research and applications of emerging approach to leadership.\u201d[1] In […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":145,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[2262],"class_list":["post-28394","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-northhouse","cohort-lgp11"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/28394","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/145"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=28394"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/28394\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":28395,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/28394\/revisions\/28395"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=28394"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=28394"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=28394"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}