It is possible for a leader to have most areas of their leadership life squared away, be successful in virtually everything they touch and still have one area continually out of control. Wise leaders understand that even allowing one area to be out of control will influence their legacy. Read 2 Chronicles 17-20.

King Jehoshaphat was 35 years old when he became king of Judah and reigned in Jerusalem for 25 years. For the most part Jehoshaphat was an outstanding godly leader. Second Chronicles tells us that Jehoshaphat sought the Lord in virtually all areas of his life, had great wealth and honor, became more and more powerful and even the arch enemy of Judah, the Philistines, brought Jehoshaphat gifts and were at peace with him. Read more »

A Christian leader’s life is evaluated not only by how they start but by how they finish. Read 2 Kings 9:1-10:36.

Jehu was a man with a mission. Jehu led brilliantly in fulfilling God’s commands. No sooner was he anointed king than he gathered his troops and set out to obey God’s command (9:7). Quickly and efficiently he embraced divine instructions to destroy the house of Ahab and the worship of Baal. He even laid waste to Baal’s temple and everything in it. The Bible tells us that God commended Jehu for carrying out His mission. Read more »

Effective leaders are always on the lookout for good people. Virtually every leader carries around a mental list of what kind of people they would like on their team. It would surprise some leaders to discover that the teammate they get has less to do with what the leader wants and more to do with who the leader is. In most situations a leader draws people to them who possess the same qualities that the leader has. Read 2 Kings 2:1-15.

Elijah had a charismatic personality that affected all those around him on every level. Remember the lessons from 1 Kings 18 when Elijah defeated the prophets of Baal, he connected with the people of Israel. He didn’t just sit idly by while the prophets of Baal did their incantations to call down fire on the sacrifice; he taunted them and made sarcastic remarks concerning Baal napping. When the time came for Elijah to implore God to bring the fire to ignite the wood on the sacrifice he poured water on the wood and made a display that won the people’s hearts. And, when he called for the execution of the false prophets, the people were captivated and on his team. Read more »

Effective leadership flows from commitment to the right things. As followers of Christ, the single most important commitment of our lives is to God. Any true (and eternal) success we experience as leaders will flow from that commitment. Read 1 Kings 15:9-24.

During the reigns of Kings David and Solomon the nation of Israel was united. The 12 tribes that descended from one of Israel’s great leaders, Jacob, united as one people very similar to the United States. Each tribe retained governing leaders for their “state” but united under one central leader. After the death of Solomon the nation split into two groups, the 10 northern tribes united in a nation called Israel and the 2 southern tribes in a nation called Judah. Each nation had separate kings starting with Solomon’s son Rehoboam over Judah and Jeroboam over Israel. Read more »

Professional athletes and coaches are committed to excellence because they want to win championships. Corporate executives are committed to excellence because they want to please customers and increase profits. These can be good motives. But as followers of Christ the motive that drives a leader to excellence should be a desire to please the One who will give us our final reward. Everything we do should be done with a conscious awareness of His presence, a realization that He is watching. Read 1 Kings 10:1-13.

Solomon had been king of Israel about 20 years. He had completed the construction of several magnificent buildings including the Temple of God and his personal palace. His fame for wisdom and understanding had spread throughout the known world. As with any account that seems too amazing to be true, some of the leaders of other nations determined to pay Israel a visit to meet Solomon for themselves. One such visitor was the queen of Sheba. Read more »