Leadership & Power

Leadership can be defined as a social and conscious process of inspiring people: using the right kind of influence, devoid of manipulation, and through effective communication. It requires a team with a combined effort, single minded dedication, and unity of purpose; in order to realize a common objective.

Otherwise, an individual person may accomplish little, or nothing at all. That is to say, it isn’t necessarily confined to one person. However, there can never be leadership, if there is no that individual person; who on a particular period of time and in a particular organizational context, ‘‘influences’’ the other group members.

In the context of God’s kingdom, those who come on board are servants. That’s why even though Moses was a renowned leader, but after His death; God identified him as His Servant. The group and its leader are all servants. Still, there’s one outstanding servant among them; who has to set a clear vision that should be followed by the rest-willingly.

Leadership is also defined as the act of motivating a group of people; to act towards achieving a common goal. It’s the sole responsibility of the visionary leader: to motivate and guide the followers. This makes it easy to define each one’s role based on what should be accomplished by the whole team.

Leaders also offer guidance by laying down goals and objectives. Please remember goal is as important as objective and it’s typically broad and long-term. Goals offer direction to followers. Objective defines the specific, measurable, attainable, realistic, and time bound measures to achieve the defined goal.

Thirdly, we define leadership, ‘‘as a type of influence exercised in a situation and directed by the communication process toward goal accomplishment.''1 According to this definition, where there is leadership, set of circumstances are affected or altered: either by indirect, or intangible means through effective communication.?You are not a great leader, if you don’t know how to communicate effectively.

In his book, "The Spirit of Leadership", the late Dr. Myles Munroe wrote: ‘Leadership is the capacity to influence others through inspiration motivated by passion, generated by a vision, produced by a conviction, ignited by a purpose." 2

According to Dr. Munroe, influence comes through inspiration, but that capacity to have a sudden effect on the character, development, or behavior of someone or something depends on communication. It also depends on any activity that stimulates, activates, or enriches the mind. Myles states that: ‘‘true leadership is a product of inspiration, not manipulation’’?

We all long to be influenced so that no one should become a victim of an identity crisis. The motivation we encounter, should make us restless and yearn to take the next move. A move to bring us closer to our purpose and destiny. Great leaders therefore don’t manipulate their followers. Instead, they influence them through inspiration: in order to fulfil purpose for their life. As Rick Warren writes, ‘‘People who don’t know their purpose try to do too much- and that causes stress, fatigue, and conflict.’’

Leaders provide clarity of purpose. One may not achieve a lot, because your output also largely depends to some extent; on the talents or gifts you have. You need someone to inspire and motivate you in order to maximize those gifts. Regardless of your current position, understanding the importance of leadership can help you to move to a higher dimension. By getting inspired, you become a channel of knowledge, and you can also inspire others to become either like you, or better than you.

Importance of Leadership

Leadership is essential to your life and organization. You need a leader who can inspire you to realize your full potential. People that are inspired towards achievement of a common objective requires a sense of direction. It’s therefore, the prerogative of any leader: to offer support, and show his followers which way to go. He must therefore trust his followers and be patient with them: in order to inspire their confidence.

Please remember that leadership focuses on people and the wider world. These are people with various strengths and weaknesses. With the help of their leader, it enables them to see far and wide, and go beyond those limitations they’ve set for themselves.

Leadership should also help in mobilization and use of the available resources, in a manner that is efficient and effective. Resources may be limited, but as long as the team and its leader are focused, a lot may be achieved. How resources are used largely depends on the direction the leader takes his institution.

Power & Influence

In most cases, power is discussed along with leadership because each involves an Influence process:

“Power and Leadership are not identical concepts, but it is reasonable to contend that if leadership is viewed as an influence process, some degree of power is required on the part of leaders.''3

As secular leaders focus more on influence in order to inspire a group to achieve the desired goals and objectives. In Christian leadership, power becomes vital and is given preeminence during the influence process. The relationship between power and influence is therefore crucial to good leadership. There is no variable among these two sets that’s better or more important than the other. Both are equally crucial and applicable in leadership; depending on what a leader aspires to achieve, and within which time frame.

The word Power comes from the Latin word ''Potere'', which means: ‘‘to be able’’, and from a Greek word ‘‘dunamis’’, meaning: ‘‘force or ability’’. Power is fundamental to doing anything.?The ability of a leader to influence others is enabled by power. It’s the same power that enables a group, or the followers to change how someone develops, behave, or think. The ‘‘dunamis’’ that operates within you is a catalyst for behavior change. Therefore, power can also be defined as: the force that causes an effect on a behavior, which does not embrace or accept change.

From psychological point of view, when people come into an organization; their emotions, beliefs and behaviors toward tasks, can easily be influenced by their background. This could be anything related to the result of experience or upbringing. Their attitude is as a result of the aspects of their environment, and power can affect that environment and cause behavior change.

Power should be a force to reckon with, and it influences attitudes that make one behave in a certain way. It’s a force that makes things happen and lifts resistance. A force that may be used to motivate and stir up an employee. Power can also influence the character of a follower, command a thought, behavior or opinion that may contradict any order issued by an authority.

Where there’s power resistance is inevitable, and therefore authority becomes vital, since it enables one to stand against any form of resistance. This could be a form of behavior that may affect the character of a follower. The thing is you can't separate behavior from a character; unless, you make use of power to subdue it.

For example, those Christians who are usually delivered from certain behaviors. Unless, they allow the power of God to influence their thoughts and actions fully; their character doesn't change.??It’s power that influences thoughts of a follower and causes an effect on behavior of a group, in order to achieve the desired result.

Although leaders should never coerce anyone to follow them.?How one persuades or convinces a follower to follow a vision, also largely depends on the power he has over him. John F. Kennedy, Barack Obama, and Fidel Castro: are some of the former USA Presidents, who were considered to be Charismatic Leaders. Please, let us not forget other leaders such as: Adolf Hitler, the blood-thirsty dictator, Idi-Amin, Mao Tse-tung, Winston Church hill, Alexander the Great, Thomas Watson, and Steve jobs- just to mention a few.

There was something ‘‘special’’ about these men, and they used their magnetic personalities and charm to gather followers. They were men who commanded respect, and were idealized heroes who are today remembered either for good or evil. They were followed, loved, and hated in equal measure.

Today, we don’t remember them all because of their good deeds. Some are harshly judged by history, and what we recall is that they all had a charismatic power. This element contributed to the diverse types of influence each had possessed over his followers. Power that enabled them to influence behavior, thoughts and imaginations of their followers.

Nothing can ever stand against power. It has either to give way or be stopped and crumbled into pieces. Power is like a dunamis or dynamis which is the philosophical concept of potentiality and actuality. A weak businessman may not excel in his business because he doesn’t see the importance of “dunamis". No wonder some people must consult other gods before they make a serious decision. This is wrong and ungodly!

There are even some ethnic groups in Africa which must consult their ancestors or even grandmothers; in order to have money, power, and fame. Most people in this category die miserably poor, because they don’t know how to differentiate between the true God and false gods.

Anything that seems to have the ability to satisfy our need becomes a god, and false gods are consulted due to selfishness. One of the gods that was largely consulted in the Bible days is Baal-Zebub, the god of Ekron. A story is written in the old testament of King Ahaziah of the northern Kingdom of Israel. After suffering a major injury, he consulted that god, rather than the true God of heaven. That costed his life.

There is even a period during His days on earth, when Jesus was accused of casting demons under the influence of Ekron. He disputed about that accusation, because Jesus used the same power that raised Him from the dead; to heal the sick, cast out devils, and raise the dead.

This is the same divine power anyone who profess to know God should possess and use; rather than, consulting people with familiar spirits. Jesus had come from God, and anyone who comes from God, must treat Him as his source. Anything that you need should emanate from God. This is why King Ahaziah died because he couldn’t see God as his source.

And Elijah said to the King, ‘‘This is what the LORD says: why did you send messengers to Baal-zebub, the god of Ekron, to ask whether you will recover? Is there no God in Israel to answer your question? Therefore, because you have done this, you will never leave the bed you are lying on; you will surely die.’’ 4?

The Role of Power in Leadership

In secular leadership, influence precedes power and power succeeds influence. Managers often look at power as an element that should not come first: since it subjects employees into fear and coercion. Still, successful management has been considered as a combination of positional power and personal power.

In Christian leadership; for instance, grace is considered as an enabling power of God. What a Christian can’t do by his own mean, grace enables him to do it. It’s grace that precedes any activity that can cause a divine impact. So in this context, power becomes an enabling factor or the ability one may apply to influence others.

Grace seems to work and thrive better especially where there’s resistance. The same enabling power plays a vital role: to help you do what you couldn’t because of resistance. Besides, it can even be in form of a certain specific knowledge, skill or a supernatural power given by God. This is what Christians usually refer to as the power of the Holy Ghost.

Leaders in the early church were not permitted to do anything, before they were filled with the Holy Spirit. Running a food program or serving tables, as recorded in Acts 6:2; may appear to be a lesser task compared to preaching. Still, those who were given that responsibility in the early church; were respected Men, full of the Holy Ghost and wisdom.

Nothing a leader could do without power. The difference between Apostle Paul and the seven sons of Sceva lies here. Paul was filled with the Power of the Holy Ghost but the sons of Sceva were empty. Paul didn’t struggle to cast out demons. His gifts were displayed and became effective, because he was operating under the same power. One man who’s demon possessed overpowered seven men.

Paul was one man casting many demons-through the help of a supernatural power. He prayed over the sick and through prayer; God worked unusual miracles by the hands of Paul. Prayer is a form of power that can heal the sick: it becomes more powerful, if backed up by the Holy Ghost. Knowing how to pray isn’t enough, but having power that backs up your prayer is of essence.

A Christian counselor may also use the knowledge in him to change thoughts of another person. The knowledge he applies is a form of power. That knowledge becomes more powerful if backed up, by the power of the Holy Ghost. Please, have you ever gone to a professional doctor to be diagnosed of a certain problem?

The doctor uses his knowledge as a form of power: to medically examine you and identify the disease that’s affecting you. Worse still, he can easily use what he knows against you. The knowledge he uses if not well taken care of, may leave you sicker than you were before. That knowledge is a form of power that can influence the way you behave or think.

Power is also an important approach to leadership, because it enables a leader to complete a task easily. When the responsibility ahead is huge and bigger than your ability, that is when power becomes vital, and of great help to you as a leader.

Therefore, we shouldn’t just look at power as a force that coerces people to complete a task. Please, don’t just look at power as a force; that subdues your enemies, a tool for punishment, and application of threat, at the workplace. Rather, see it as an ability that influences behavior and organizational change.

?Power is more effective in Teamwork

Teamwork should be an attitude developed by great leaders, and a lot may be accomplished; as long as it doesn’t matter who gets the credit. This is the attitude that we are talking about, and which was in the mind of God when He created man.

God created both male and female and brought them together; into the Garden of Eden, in order to achieve a common goal. When power is released upon team members, and the spirit of teamwork is embraced. It makes work done by the team easier.

When the disciples were endued with power from on high according to the book of Acts. They were charged to go and fulfill the task of bringing others into the kingdom of God. It wasn’t an easy task until such a period of time. When the disciples decided to promote teamwork. We see Paul, Barnabas, and John Mark, joining hands together as a team to set out on their first missionary journey.

There are organizations that believe in teamwork, so much so that they would rather close than operate without it. Such organizations have identified teamwork as one of their core values, and as an important foundational principle in their operations.

Teamwork allows group members to; share their experience, knowledge, skills, and combined effort to accomplish goals. Organizations that value teamwork, are different from the rest by far, and especially in terms of productivity.They always have tangible results, and this demonstrates effective leadership in those firms.

Teamwork also hides weaknesses of individual members. It encourages weak members to stay in course, and succeed in those areas which they’d have otherwise not succeeded alone. It’s through teamwork that leaders; set their personal ambitions aside, their sense of insecurity, and fear. Things that can slow productivity in an organization, and affect the achievement of goals should be discouraged. This is how the spirit of teamwork operates.

Resources should also be mobilized in order to realize a common goal, but power should be applied where necessary. Otherwise, it will cause delay and lower productivity; through some of the team members, who are dissatisfied because of one reason or another.

We have heard several times about the story of the children of Israel. How did they leave the land of bondage towards the Promised Land? They came up from Egypt as a big number, but teamwork was essential, if God had to display His power throughout their journey.

What happened to the Egyptians, when their first born sons were killed by the angel of death, was an indication of God’s power at work. God knows how important it is; to avail His power where there is resistance. He displayed His power through the rod of Moses that turned to be a serpent.Then it swallowed all other serpents that had been introduced by the wizards living in Egypt.

God’s power brought a cloud of darkness between the Israelites and Egyptians.The divine power made a way in the midst of the Red sea, and by the same power their enemies were destroyed - by the same sea.?If God knows how important power is, and there’s nothing He could do to save or deliver the Israelites without applying ‘‘dunamis’’. How much more should human beings yearn for and embrace power?

Please things don’t just happen, they are caused to- a statement I’ve borrowed from my mentor! You won’t just sleep, wake up in the morning, and find your organization has shifted into a new level without your input. You won’t just sleep, and after waking up you find yourself on the space.

You have to work and plan for your success in leadership. Let ‘‘dunamis’’ pave the way for it, and obtain power from the right source. Never get discouraged when you see things behave abnormally. There is a way out, and as long as you possess the right qualities, you’re going to become effective as a leader.

Work together or rather join hands with people whom you share similar opinions or preferences, toward achieving a common objective. Lead people with knowledge, and help them to fulfil their purpose. Possess the right form of power that does not coerce people to follow you.

Leadership doesn’t subject people into coercion, but it influences people towards achievement of goals. Above all, let the presence of the Most High God, be with you together with your team. That presence is God’s power, and those who despise His power, they despise success.

References:

1.Qouted by W.Jack Duncan in management(New York:MC Graw-Hill,1961);p.24

2. Qouted by Dr.Myles Munroe," The Spirit of Leadership:Cultivating the Attitudes that influence Human Action" (New Kenisington. PA,USA:Whitaker house,2005) p.34

3. Qouted by W.Jack Duncan in management(New York:MC Graw-Hill,1961);p.228

4. 2 Kings 1:16 (NLT)

Murathe,(2022) Leaders Plucked from the Right Brand.Nairobi, Kenya