So far through the Kaleo program I have learnt a lot about leadership and how to become a great leader. Through, this program I have had the opportunity to learn about the characteristics of a great leader, been able to practice leadership skills,and always remembering I must first learn to serve before I can lead. " It is not so among you, but whoever wishes to become great among you shall be your servant,"(Matt 20:26)
I think that I learnt the most about leadership in the Camp and Youth ministry class. One of the characteristics of becoming a great leader that stood out to me, is in order to become a leader you must become a servant first. This is something that I had never really thought about before. When you are aiming to become a leader, you are constantly thinking about leading and how you can better lead. The truth I found is you must first learn how to serve. Often serving is hard when it is leading that you want to do. Though, in the end serving will be what makes you a better leader. Another, characteristic that stood out to me is being able and willing to be faithful with the small things. When you start out as a leader your are most likely going to start out with the small things. If you cant handle or are unwilling to handle what is small, then how are people supposed to expect you to handle something big. I think that John Piper has a true definition on what makes a great leader. "Spiritual leadership is knowing where God wants people to be and taking the initiative to use God's methods to get them there in reliance on God's power." -John Piper
When learning about leadership it is very important to practice what you are learning. The Kaleo program allows me to practice my leadership skills in many ways such as church ministry, youth ministry and camp ministry. This past weekend I had the privilege to be a camp counsellor at the Qwanoes junior retreat. I have never been a counsellor before so I was a bit nervous at the start, but it ended up being a very full and great weekend. Since this was my first time as a counsellor I had someone with counselling experience help me. Having another counsellor there with me gave me the opportunity to be able to serve. We were able to work together and we were able to serve each other with what was needed. I also had the opportunity to practice dealing with the small things before I deal with the big. Now that I have had help counselling dealing with the smaller stuff, I will be able to deal with the bigger stuff, such as counselling on my own. I think that a characteristic of leadership that I could of worked on would be communication. There were times this weekend that I was not able to locate my co-counsellor or I didn't know what she had planned, I think that could of easily been cleared up through stronger communication.
Overall, I am really enjoying being able to not just learn about leadership but also to be able to put what I have learnt into practice. I am really looking forward to learning more about leadership and taking on whatever leadership roles God throws my way.
