Some books you read once, set aside, and never think about again. This is not the case with "Spiritual Leadership" by J. Oswald Sanders. I get the distinct impression that I will be visiting it again and again over the course of whatever time God has determined for me on this earth.

The chapters are full of practical wisdom, spiritual insights, and profound quotes about the requirements, challenges, dangers, and rewards of spiritual leadership. I found myself underlining large sections.

Three chapters really stood out to me: "The Leader and Time", "The Leader and Reading", and "The Perils of Leadership".

Whether you are a pastor, a missionary, a Bible college student, or a Sunday school superintendent, this book is a must-read.

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In the book, Spiritual Leadership, Oswald Sanders attempts to define a leadership style, which is often contrary to the natural definition of leadership. The author proposes many of the characteristics and qualities of today’s spiritual leader and then illustrates these principles of leadership through the lives of Godly men and women and throughout the Word of God. At the outset of the reading, the reader is encouraged to understand the paradoxical truth of leadership that will be in focus, which is that true greatness is found in giving oneself in service to others and not through selfish promotion of one’s self (13).
From the beginning of the book, Sanders sets the tone for the rest of the text as he states that leaders have the need to be “authoritative, spiritual, and sacrificial” (18). The author then moves into a side-by-side comparison of natural and spiritual leadership to show the sharp contrast in leadership style expected of a believer in a leadership role. A poignant remark that expounds this truth is that “spiritual leadership requires superior spiritual power, which can never be generated by the self” (28). Next, there is a transition to the qualifications for spiritual leadership, which include: social qualification (reputation above reproach), moral qualification (unchallengeable morality), mental qualification (one of sound judgment), personality qualification (gentle and hospitable), domestic qualification (ability to manage family and home), and maturity (40-45). Sanders uses the lives of Paul and Peter to illustrate many of these principles and to display that these principles of leadership are applicable not just for the apostles, but also for the reader in today’s generation.
After viewing multiple aspects of the qualifications of leaders, Sanders then illustrates essential qualities of a leadership, such as discipline, courage, humility, etc. Surprisingly, the author includes “humor” within one of the essential qualities of leadership. He stated “humor is a great asset and an invaluable lubricant in missionary life” (66). Far surpassing many of the qualities discussed, the author believes that a man who is filled with the Spirit is paramount. The disciples indeed needed supernatural power in order to fight against the powers of evil (80). This power was an indispensable aspect of being a Spirit-filled leader and it is an aspect that cannot be learned or created from within. In the final closing chapters of the text, the author proposes spiritual disciplines pertinent for the spiritual leader that are reminiscent of Richard Foster’s Celebration of Discipline. These disciplines include prayer, time management, reading, improving one’s leadership style, delegation and replacing/reproducing leaders. ( )

not a personal favorite