Weak Enough To Lead

The Bible’s version of leadership is pretty different from – and, more often than not, alien to – that of the business world. It is also different from our usual assumptions about what makes a great leader in the church, where we tend to focus on preaching ability, strategic hutzpah, and managerial savvy. But what if the Bible actually points toward a different set of characteristics necessary for leadership? What if our weakness is an essential qualification? Do we know our limitations, our inabilities? Do we see clearly our vulnerable, broken selves? Do we really believe that God’s strength is perfected in our weakness, and do we lead with that as a core belief? James Howell’s Weak Enough to Lead is not a list of ‘leadership principles’ from the Bible. This book is an examination of stories about leaders from the Old Testament, followed by a consideration of the spiritual dispositions of those leaders. What dispositions do we see in these women and men? Which ones are helpful to us? Which are problematic? Which might me imitate or avoid, not only so that we might lead well, but that we might honor God and be faithful or even holy? Howell identifies eight distinct dispositions of Old Testament leaders, men and women, and shows how we can adopt them in our own lives and ministries. He roots this unique exploration of leadership in a prayer of Jehoshaphat: “We do not know what to do, but our eyes are on you.”