A leader’s attitude is determined by their perspective. Read Matthew 20:1-16.

In His public ministry, Jesus’ primary method of teaching was through parables (short case studies). His parable always fit the situation and His audience could transfer the principles if they gave careful thought to the situation and Jesus’ story. In today’s verses Jesus’ direct point deals with God’s grace to give the same reward to a person who serves their whole life in His service and to someone who comes to believe and serve later in life. However, within the parable there is a second truth about attitude toward any given circumstance that leaders can apply to their personal growth.

Leaders effectively communicate vision when they use terms, examples, and word pictures that their audience can understand. Read Matthew 13:1-52.

Jesus was a master teacher. In His public ministry He often had crowds with varied backgrounds; some educated, some illiterate, some leaders, some laborers, some religious, some agnostic, some who preferred to work with their hands, some who worked with their mind, some honest, and some who did not know what an honest day’s work was. In chapter 13, Jesus uses a style of communication that effectively cast a vision for the Kingdom of Heaven which created a longing in the heart of virtually everyone in the crowd. Jesus’ use of parables and word pictures did not trivialize the profound truths about heaven but captured the imagination and heart and riveted His hearers’ attention on the kingdom He proclaimed.

I heard once that if the communication is fuzzy from the leader it will be foggy for the team. Effective leaders work hard at communication skills. Read Ezekiel 1:1-28.

Ezekiel was a prophet appointed by God to serve the Jewish people in exile in Babylon. He was taken into exile approximately 10 years before the fall of Jerusalem. God used Ezekiel as a watchman. He called Ezekiel to warn the exiled Jews in Babylon that their exile was not a fluke but in the plan of God and that the city of Jerusalem would still fall to the Babylonian army. God had Ezekiel communicate the future through extraordinary mysteries, visions, symbolism, parables, and allegories that were meant to stretch the minds of the listener. The book of Ezekiel is a complex collection of prophetic messages offering significant ways to grasp God’s future plan for salvation and righteousness on the earth.