When I graduated from university in 1980, I had only one purpose in life: To find a job and climb the corporate ladder to the top, so that I can get out of poverty and give my family a better life. I found a job as a reporter in a daily business newspaper, The Business Times. I worked long hours and was in the office almost every day, so often that some of my colleagues called me a ‘fixed furniture’ in the office.
I did climb the corporate ladder, from a cub reporter to be the editor in 2002. But ironically, it came at a great expense to my family. My family was falling apart. And I was getting burnt-out. It affected my marriage so much that my wife, Wendy, suggested that I signed up for DISCIPLE 1, a Bible Study course she had completed earlier. In fact, she signed me up for the course in 2011. During D1, I read the whole Bible for the first time. And Proverbs 3:5-6 spoke to me:
“Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him and he will make your paths straight.”
TRUST THE LORD WITH ALL YOUR HEART
I decided to submit my ways to God. God became my co-driver at first and slowly He became the main driver in several aspects of my life. I was in D1 class on Monday evenings, from 7.30pm to 9.30pm. Those are my peak hours as key decisions had to be made before the newspaper went to print. In fact, Wendy was worried that I would be a D1 dropout. But as Rev Fred Tan, the then pastor overseeing Discipleship & Nurture (D&N) at Wesley, told me: “If you honour God with your time, God will honour you with His time.” Rev Tan was right.
Despite being in class every Monday evenings for 34 weeks at a stretch, first as a participant for a year and then as a facilitator for two years, my newspaper performed much better. Strangely, I was spending less time in the office but achieving more. And I was less stressed because I now have God to turn to for my workplace or family issues. I began to look up to God for vision and guidance, rather than relying totally on my own strength. In the process, God also humbled me and dealt with my pride.
I began to put Philippians 2:3-4 into practice:
“Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others.”
NOT SELF-SERVING BUT A SERVING LEADER
During D1, I also came across Matthew 20:25-28, which to me is the most counter-cultural instruction from Jesus regarding leadership.
Jesus called them together and said, “You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them and their high officials exercise authority over them. Not so with you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant and whoever wants to be first must be your slave— just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve and to give his life as a ransom for many.” (Matthew 20:25-28)
“Not so with you”, Jesus said. So I am not to boss my subordinates around. The boss is not one who is self-serving but a serving leader. Jesus even washed the feet of his disciples. That went totally against what I had been practising. For me then, the boss must take responsibility for every decision and project. It is about respect, control and self-glory.
In Jesus’ model of servant leadership, however, leaders seek to serve others and not self. In their book, Lead like Jesus, the authors wrote: “Leading like Jesus involves the alignment of four leadership domains: heart, head, hands and habits. The internal domains – the motivations of your heart and the leadership perspectives of your head – are things you keep inside or even disguise if it suits your purpose. The external domains – your public leadership behaviour or hands and your habits as experienced by others – will determine whether people will follow you.
“When your heart, head, hands and habits are aligned, extraordinary levels of loyalty, trust and productivity will result. When these areas are out of alignment, frustration, mistrust and diminished long-term productivity will result.”1
HEAD, HEART, HANDS, HABITS
When I participated in Companions in Christ (CIC) spiritual formation course in 2015 and later as CIC chair and facilitator, I started to embrace the 4Hs – Head, Heart, Hands and Habits – in my leadership posture. Most participants in CIC would have a sound knowledge of God’s word. That’s Head knowledge. In CIC, I seek to learn more about the word of God. But more importantly, I also seek to know the God of the word in a more personal way.2
CIC is a Journey in Spiritual Formation. It is a continuing Journey involving both the Being (an informed Head and a reformed Heart) and the Doing (transformed Hands that do the works of mercy). We seek to emulate the Mind of Christ by feeding on God’s word and the Heart of Christ through deepening our prayer. And we respond to God’s call to do the Work of Christ.
At the end of the course, we also developed our own Rule of Life, which is a pattern of spiritual disciplines that provide a structure for our growth in holiness. These are the formed Habits that enable us to discern spiritual guidance and walk humbly with God.
SEVEN LESSONS ON CHURCH LEADERSHIP
It has been 10 years since I serve in the Local Church Executive Committee (LCEC), the first three years while still holding a full-time job. In 2018, God called me into early retirement to serve Him fully in church. It has been a joyful retirement so far. Allow me to share seven lessons on church leadership which I have learned to embrace over the years. For me, it is still a work in progress.
- In humility serve others, just as Jesus did
Not self-serving but serving others in love. Not looking to my own interests but to the interests of the others. In this way, relationships are formed. - It is about your availability, not your ability
When God calls, He just need my ‘yes’, regardless of whether I think I can do the task. I used to tell my wife, Wendy, that when a project is within my ability to do, it is probably not God’s call. Over the years, I noted that several projects were beyond my abilities, like chairing DISCIPLE or CIC Committees. I just had to step up in faith and trust that God would carry me through. And He did. I had no doubt that it was God at work in and through me. His power was made perfect in my weakness. - Do your best and leave the rest to God
God deserves our best. I also trust that God knows my limitations and will equip me and call others to come alongside me to complete the task. I witnessed that when I chaired the organising committees for Ministry Fair and Journey to the Cross and now LCEC. Through these committees, I got to know several brothers- and sisters-in-Christ whom I do not know. And they helped me to complete what I was called to do. - Gain respect for who you are as a person, not what your ministry title is
In my secular job, I was sometime called by my title rather than my name. My job title precedes me. In church leadership, I would rather gain respect or support for who I am as a person and how I treat and relate to others, not what my ministry title is. Ministry titles come and go. - You will never walk alone. But we must stay united
Whether you are a pastor, a paid full-time staff or a pro bono volunteer, we are all co-workers in God’s Kingdom, working for God’s purposes and glory. We will never walk alone. But God desires unity amidst our diversity. - The 3 Great Cs: Commission, Commandments and Community
As church leaders, we reach out to build God’s Kingdom, to bring more people to Christ. I look forward to partnering God in Vision 2035 as we seek to be a Welcoming Church, a Missional Church and a Caring Church. This is to fulfill the Great Commission to go and make disciples; and to obey the Great Commandments to love God and love one another. In the process, I pray that we will have a Great Community in church that worships God and care for one another. - For God, by God and with God
God’s glory is the reason we serve. Whatever you do, lead heartily and joyfully, as for God and not for men. It is God who will begin a good work in us and He will bring it on to completion. And the best of all, God will be with us, always!
To God be the Glory!
1 Ken Blanchard and Phil Hodges, Lead Like Jesus (Nashville, Tennessee, 2005) p31.
2 Companions in Christ, Participant’s Book (Upper Room Books, 2006), p79.
Read also: Perseverance in Christian Service
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