Courageous Leadership

I have lived an hour south of Willow Creek most of my life. My father, a pastor, goes there almost weekly to get refreshed and then drives the hour home with new ideas from the Holy Spirit. We are both saddened by the vast numbers of people who criticize Hybels and Willow Creek without knowing their heartbeat or, suprisingly, even stepping foot on the churches main campus. Courageous Leadership is a book that will act as a portrait of the heartbeat of Pastor Hybels and what makes him tick. It is also a book that acts as a tremendous source for church leaders of all shades and descripitions, even if you are not a pastor. Covered in this 252 page book are the following.... * Finding leaders who have chemistry and who fit with your current team. * Establishing clear goals for everyone, and making them tangible. * Excellence in church is a must. He discusses how people will use excellence in their worldly jobs, but have a hard time using those same critical methods for the kingdom of God. * The vitality of vision and recasting that vision. * The importance of celebration and giving honor to church workers, especially volunteers. Hybels tells of a story on page 175 in which all the volunteers were honored in a quasi-parade in which they all marched onto the stage as the church cheered them on. One of Willow's pastors, John Ortberg and drama leader Nancy Beach, acted the parts of Regis and Kathy Lee as they described each ministry group as they marched by. * Praying to become like Biblical warriors and adopting the best attributes of people like Esther, Joshua, and David. * Emulating the tenacity of Christ and the Apostle Paul. * The importance of saying no to certain things and ideas in order to use your energy on what God really wants in your life. * The importance of staying focused and cleaning up our own secret, inner problems first and foremost. * The crucial importance of finding a team that is big on character, competence, and chemistry. I found it interesting that nowhere in this book does Hybels ask leaders to emulate Willow Creek's worship style or vision methodology. He does, however, ask leaders to emulate his own dependence on the living God through different forms of prayer and team-building, accountability, as well as seeking out what our own gifts are while utilizing them where we're at. Hybels also discusses the importance of getting away from the church at times to be alone with his family and the Lord. I thought this part of the book was probably the best because he talks about how it has revolutionized his own life and turned his children, instead of turning on the faith, into dynamic lovers of the Lord. The summer break, as he calls it, is something that all leaders need in some form or another. All-in-all, Courageous Leadership is a great book for Christian leaders of any sort, not just pastors.

This book appears to be written to provide direction to church leaders. Although I do not play a role of a pastor or leader within my own church, I learned soooo much from this book! It helps you identify how different personalities build their own spirituality. It gave me great insight to some of my brothers and sisters in the church and why they respond differently to new ideas. Bill also addresses several areas that are not often taught in the church but need to be and are completely scriptural. I found the book to be very inspiring and motivating and a must read for all church leaders!!

IF you want make a difference... then read this book! Bill Hybels is a mentor of mentors. He has and is paying his dues. The thousands of lives who have been eternally changed because of his commitment to the Body of Christ is reason enough to give him your undivided attention. But Hybels has also written other books to recommend his expertise in building into the lives of others. Hybels does not sugar coat anything. If you are looking for an easy job as a leader, especially as a church leader then Courageous Leadership might not be what you are looking for in a book on leadership. If on the other hand you are willing to think outside of the box, gladly give of yourself, not care who you empower to see success in a common goal then you will want this book in your personal library!

Many younger and older pastors alike have stood in awe at the way God has used Bill Hybels at the Willow Creek Community Church outside of Chicago. Willow is currently the largest church in North America. Hybels is a dynamic speaker and author, in addition to being an extremely successful pastor. Now, he has gathered his leadership thoughts together in this volume, which is sure to be a great help to all Christian leaders.Throughout this book, Hybels emphasizes the importance of possessing a Divine vision for God's people, then pursuing that vision relentlessly and casting it consistently. The author offers various thoughts and insights into what makes a great leader. Many of these lessons he has learned through his own "school of hard knocks" at Willow.I recommend this book very highly to all pastors, regardless of church size or denomination. I always enjoy Hybels' writings, and this volume is undoubtedly one of his best. Don't pass on this one!

Bill Hybels is a Christian leader who has known the elation of leadership success while also having experienced the agony of near fatal leadership disasters. He writes "Courageous Leadership" with conviction, passion, and empathy that could only be gained through his own leadership journey. This book is vintage Hybels, as his words paint compelling images of what effective Christian leadership looks like. He examines such subjects as vision, raising resources, developing the leaders around you, developing your own leadership style, decision-making, self-leadership, endurance, and the "God-factors" in leadership. If you have been a student of Bill Hybels, you won't find too much new material but rather a collection of his best leadership teachings. The two chapters on vision are easily worth the price of the book. If you've never read or heard Hybels you owe it to yourself to listen to what this proven leader has to say about this subject. I highly recommend "Courageous Leadership."