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Spiritual Leadership: Moving People to God's Agenda | 
| Authors: Henry T. Blackaby, Richard Blackaby Publisher: B&H Publishing Group Category: Book
List Price: $19.99 Buy Used: $5.92 You Save: $14.07 (70%)
New (26) Used (28) Collectible (2) from $5.92
Rating: 20 reviews Sales Rank: 17101
Media: Hardcover Pages: 306 Number Of Items: 1 Shipping Weight (lbs): 1.3 Dimensions (in): 8.9 x 6.2 x 1.1
ISBN: 0805418458 Dewey Decimal Number: 253 EAN: 9780805418453 ASIN: 0805418458
Publication Date: May 2001 Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days Shipping: Expedited shipping available Shipping: International shipping available Condition: Overall below average used book. May have highlighting, underlining, notes, price sticker on cover, or be an ex-library book. BUY WITH CONFIDENCE: 100% Positive feedback. 100% Satisfaction Guaranteed!!
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Product Description Instructing those who hold leadership positionsnot only in religious capacities but also including CEOs and teachersbest-selling authors Henry and Richard Blackaby teach on approaching leadership from a biblical perspective. The twenty-first century is the most advanced age in history, but effective biblical leadership has never been more needed. Spiritual Leadership will equip those called to lead with the tools to move Gods people on to His agenda.
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| Customer Reviews: Read 15 more reviews...
Outstanding August 16, 2008 Bruce C. Burdick (Mt Jewett, PA) Have read many books on leadership. This one tops them all. Useful at home as well as at work. Focuses on who's vision we are really following.
Christian Leadership June 25, 2008 Charles Watts (Louisiana) This is one of the best books on leadership today. It teaches leaders at every level how to get Christians from focusing on a personal agenda to getting on God's agenda. One of the best books on leadership ever written. I use it for small group leadership training.
Paradigm-shifting leadership book, showing the centrality of prayer May 23, 2008 Matthew Gunia (Justice, Illinois) Henry and Richard Blackaby (father and son) are leaders the Southern Baptist denomination, with leadership demonstrated in the business and academic realms respectively. "Spiritual Leadership" is an attempt to tempter the current crop of leadership books, which focus on the American concept of rugged individualism and creating vision. Blackaby and Blackaby, in "Spiritual Leadership" recognize the practical wisdom contained in such books, yet seek to ground their arguments in the foundational concepts of service to Christ and fervent prayer.
Indeed, prayer and submission to God are the central elements around with the rest of the book turns. The authors argue that "creating a vision" and reliance upon human wisdom are foreign concepts Biblical teachings on leadership. They argue that man does not determine his own paths, but rather God prepares activities for his servants, works through them to accomplish these tasks, and then follows up to produce the success (defined by God himself) of the endeavor. To determine what this pre-determined activity is, Blackaby and Blackaby argue that prayer is essential.
The message is simple--seek God's will in strengthening your faith, in your major life decisions, and even in your day-to-day activities through prayer, then (once God's will is determined) humble yourself and faithfully carry out that will. Yet, the message is not simplistic. The authors present the concept thoroughly, addressing growing prayer life and leadership style; showing what spiritual leadership is and is not; addressing short-term issues and long-term ones; showing how this style of leadership plays out in a variety of settings; and providing pastoral encouragement. Although the simple message is consistent, the book never becomes repetitive or boring; rather the prose is fresh and stimulating throughout.
Now, I must admit skepticism based on certain doctrinal and practical principles. On the doctrinal side, I confess my belief that God communicates and communes with man through means--Scripture and Sacraments. On the practical side, I fear that people will simply imagine that God is "telling" them what they want to hear anyway--that is, that people will ascribe to God their man-centered ideas.
Although I still believe both hold water, I decided to follow Blackaby and Blackaby's advice and pray more fervently in the way they recommend to see if any change comes about. Indeed it had. Consistently praying (both prayers common to the church like the Lord's Prayer, Luther's Morning Prayer, and the weekly collects as well as idiosyncratic prayers), I found that my perceived connection to God strengthened, stress reduced, major decisions made with a strong sense of peace as I acknowledged God's direction, and even new, exciting opportunities presented.
While I would have liked to see this book focus a little more on holistic spirituality (e.g. the role of worship, daily Bible reading, Sacraments, etc) in the thorough way they presented holistic leadership, the fact remains that "Spiritual Leadership" is a positive, paradigm-changing book. This is true on the intellectual level (faithful servant versus rugged individual paradigms) and the spirituality level (my spirituality has deepened as a result of following the advice of the book).
How the arguments of "Spiritual Leadership" will play out in my life beyond the month trial or how my opinion of the book will shift as I increase in my understanding of prayer remains to be seen. Nevertheless, the command of our Lord to pray fervently remains, and Blackaby and Blackaby do a great service in showing how this command can be practically lived in a variety of situations.
Excellent resource for Christian leaders in the corporate world April 6, 2008 Thomas Looy 2 out of 2 found this review helpful
The Blackablys have done a thorough job in researching and summarizing today's secular leadership teaching then contrasting it with spiritual leadership. They point out that many of the principles of secular leadership are of value but the underlying principle of spiritual leadership that differs from secular leadership is that we are to seek God's agenda and not our own. To make their point, early in the book they discuss Jesus as the model for spiritual leadership. Jesus, the very Son of God, did not seek His own agenda, but rather spent hours in prayer to align himself with God's agenda.
The Blackabys also do a great job teaching that spritual leadership is not just for leaders in the church. Spiritual leadership is also required of Christians that are in secular leadership roles. They give us many examples of US Presidents as well as military and corporate leaders that have aligned themselves to God's agenda and have been effective.
We are living in a world that is growing in complexity and the demands on leadership are ever increasing. The Blackabys have shown what an advantage spiritual leaders have in being able to align ourselves to the agenda of a wise and loving God rather than attempting to create our own agenda.
Excellent easy to read leadership book February 1, 2008 Tom Carpenter (Marysville, OH) 34 out of 34 found this review helpful
I found this book very engaging and was able to read through it without multiple pickups. By this I mean, that I didn't put it down for a few weeks and then pick it up again. Instead, I read through it in about four days. Overall, the book was very good. The only area I would have liked to have seen greater depth was in the decision making process. This was one of the shorter chapters and I felt the authors could have gone a little deeper here.
From a Christian perspective on leadership, this book would definitely be in my top five choices along with The Revolutionary Communicator, The Book on Leadership, Lead Like Jesus, and Christian Reflections on the Leadership Challenge. These other four are fine reads as well.
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