The Institute for Spiritual Leadership Training is committed to equipping leaders in ministry to be influential in the lives of those they touch and the communities in which they live.

Members Area
Username:  
Password:  
Register | Forgot your password?

Handbook for Spiritual Leaders

OVERVIEW

The basic engine of the Institute for Spiritual Leadership Training is the Handbook for Spiritual Leaders. Organized into Units and Parts, the Handbook explores the topics you need to know in order to be a good steward of spiritual leadership.

Volumes, Units and Parts

Volumes - The Handbook is divided into three Volumes. 

  • Volume I - Implementing Vision-Steward of the Process,

  • Volume II - External Influence-Servant to All, and

  • Volume III - Internal Credibility-Slave to Righteousness. 

Units - Each volume is then organized into Units each addressing a major role of leadership such as Understanding Ministry Culture, Serving Power, Who Leaders Are, What Leaders Do and Forming Spiritual Root.

Parts - Each Unit is made up of Parts that focus on a specific topic.  For example, in Volume I – Implementing Vision, the title of Unit 1 is Focusing Growth. Within Focusing Growth are three Parts made up of:

  • Part 1 – Accountability, Disclosure and Feedback,

  • Part 2 – Correcting Ministry Performance and

  • Part 3 – Alignment – Assuring a Spiritually Centered Ministry. 

Sections - Finally, each Part is broken into Sections.  These are bite-sizes pieces of information usually accompanied by a Training Module to facilitate training others.

INTEGRATED NON-LINEAR APPROACH

Our plan is to utilize the non-linear potential of a website to its fullest. Normally books are organized in a linear format beginning with a Preface and Introduction and proceeding through a logical format to a conclusion and an Index.  The problem is that its hard to see the integration of ideas and concepts from one chapter to another. 

A handbook is designed differently. This Handbook is designed to be used in a non linear fashion – to get to what you want as quickly as possible. It would be good to read the Handbook from beginning to end because there is a logical plan to it, but you don’t need to to get the information you need to address a leadership issue now. Through the extensive use of hyper linking and a SQL platform our intention is to design a web page meeting your information and skill needs when you need them and delivered in a format more usable for you.  And through extensive hyper-linking, and SQL searches you will be able to experience how topics are interrelated.  By following the hyper-links you can go as deep as you have time as you explore a leadership topic.

A WEB SITE IN PROCESS

We are an evolving web and rather than wait until all the material is complete for the Handbook or other tools and features are fully developed we want to share material and features as they are created and edited so you can put it to work. in your own leadership development and as you disciple others.

A DETAILED LOOK AT THE HANDBOOK FOR SPIRITUAL LEADERS

Volume I, Implementing Vision: Steward of the Process is the heart of the leadership process. There is a dynamic relationship between each of the units. Volume I has an overview and five units.

  • Overview of Volume I

  • Focusing Growth

  • Empowering Leaders

  • Defining Mission

  • Navigating Relationships

  • Understanding Ministry Culture

Focusing Growth of Volume I is complete and has an overview and three Parts:

  • Overview of Focusing Growth

  • Part 1 - Communicating Excellence Through Accountability, Disclosure and Feedback

  • Part 2 - Communicating Excellence Through Correcting Ministry Performance

  • Part 3 - Centering Ministry Through Alignment

Empowering Leaders is in development with two of the five parts complete (Parts 1 and 3).

  • Overview of Empowering Leaders

  • Part 1 - Serving Power (posted)

  • Part 2 - Trust

  • Part 3 - Change, Risk & Decision Making:
    Finding Excellence in Opportunities & Options (posted)

  • Part 4 - Embracing Conflict (posted)

  • Part 5 - Communicating Vision

Each Part is broken into Sections which make up a major piece of understanding for the topic of the Part.  Each Section will have a Training Module so the topics can be taught to others during a staff meeting, leadership training session or some other training venue.

The Training Module consists of:

  • Trainers Guide - Suggestions and an outline for conducting training on the Section

  • Participants Handouts - Designed to supplement and reinforce the trainers presentation

  • Power Point © slides to reinforce the trainer's presentation

The completed Training Modules are now posted on this web. When a new part is through the editing process and posted to the web we will inform you if you are on the newsletter e-mailing list.

The next unit, Empowering Leaders, is in development.  The core concept behind Unit 2 is that I believe there are certain key behaviors that are most influential in determining leader effectiveness.  They are how are leader deals with Power, Trust, Change, Risk, Makes Decisions, Communicates Vision and Addresses Conflict.


Volume II, External Influence-Servant to All answers two fundamental questions about successful leaders: Who are they? and, What do they do? Jesus said if we want to influence others we must be willing to serve others. There is an extensive amount of research and practical experiences that can answer those two questions and give definition to the DOING aspect of effective leadership.

A third question rarely asked is What Are the Characteristics of Successful Followers? Leadership is a one person parade without willing followers. Without disciplined followers you have nothing more than a crowd moving in the same direction as the head follower. Successful leadership does not occur without disciplined, experienced and committed followers. That is the leaders role. The three Critical Units of Volume II are

  • Who Leaders Are

  • What Leaders Do and

  • Characteristics of Followers

Volume III, Internal Credibility-Slave of Righteousness
In Romans 6:13 Paul reminds us that we are no longer slaves to sin and wickedness but rather slaves to righteousness. As a Christian a miraculous transformation has taken place inside of us. The Spirit of Christ is now present and we are now empowered by the Holy Spirit. We are now spiritual beings draped in a human covering. The extent of our effectiveness as spiritually empowered leaders is directly related to our capacity to allow the mind of Christ, empowered by the Holy Spirit to work through us without resistance from our old self. Foundation to effective spiritual leadership is the process of spiritual transformation – BEING.

Volume III contains three Critical Units.

  • Forming Spiritual Root. This Critical Unit is intended to be a discipleship tool to take the Christian believer from “milk to meat” and create understanding of how having spiritual integrity is the foundation of spiritual leadership.

  • The Dark Side of Ministry. Jesus, when confronted by Satan in the wilderness was presented with three temptations and these temptations are common to all humans and can be devastating when manifested in spiritual leaders. They are the self sins of Gratification, Preservation and Control.

  • The Covenant of Ministry. 

©2007 The Institute for Spiritual Leadership Training