Integrity. Integrity is about genuineness and truth. It is about wholeness of character. As spiritual leaders you and I must be the first to display integrity. We cannot teach it if we don’t live it. Our ministry must show it. We must “walk the talk”. God can do much for an unholy person – but for a hypocrite He can do nothing. Our services must be genuine. Our lives must be genuine. Believers may fail in many ways, but when integrity is compromised, nothing can make up for it.
Relationships. Strongly attached to integrity are relationships – deep genuine relationships. We have emerged from a racially segregated past and, given the racial tensions which are again coming to the fore in our country, it is essential that we should strengthen and nurture our God-given unity. Our relationships with family members, colleagues and church members, is of the utmost importance. It is not possible to build a healthy church without in-depth relationships. Please demonstrate this and teach it to your people.
Accountability. I am sure you would like to see this quality in your members. But again, it starts with our leaders. We are not isolated individuals with no responsibility toward one another. As believers we are firstly responsible to God, but the fact is that the Bible also clearly spells out our responsibility to one another. In a time when individualism is highly prized, in the church accountability is not negotiable. Ignoring this, leads to self-destruction. We must rightly understand authority. God has placed authority structures in marriage, family, church and the state. Everyone must be held accountable by someone somewhere. Also, you cannot have authority if you are not under authority.
Excellence. Do we believe that everything we do we must do as unto the Lord? Do our personal lives and our ministry testify to this? As leaders we are ultimately responsible for excellence in our church and our services. It is a value that we need to teach and to demonstrate to our people. Poverty is no excuse for the absence of excellence. Excellence must be our intention and our attitude. Mediocrity is not good enough.
1 AFM VALUES