Eleven years ago my family, along with a number of dedicated families, started a new church in Minnesota. And like most first time planters, we had no idea of what we were up against (I think that actually played into our favor - or I may have backed out). Just prior to starting the church I had the privilege to attend a church planters gathering at Saddleback Church. Pastor Rick Warren spoke on the importance of leadership. And as only Pastor Rick can do, he kept the cookies of Biblical leadership easily reachable and digestible for us hungry church planters. And the one thing that I really devoured during the conference was a particular statement in which he said, "leaders are readers." I quickly admitted to myself that this might be my Achilles heal. Reading is not my strong suite. I'm such an "experiential" type of guy. I'm such a visual learner. Besides, with my ADHD, reading was a mental chore. And who likes doing chores? And yet, I stuck with his advice. I would suggest that 60 percent of my week is now made up of reading. However, I must confess that it still a discipline for me. And yet, reading has produced some very strong nutrients for my knowledge of God's truth.
What are you reading today? Are you like me, fighting the notion of sitting down to read, when your feet would rather race to the fire? I just want to encourage you to slow down and glean the value of reading - whatever your interest is when it comes to leadership. I know for me, reading has become a surprised treasure in my life. Go for it - start reading.
