Rating: 
Summary: Substantive treatment of a much abused topic
Review: J Oswald Sanders presents this trenchant work on the essence of spiritual leadership. He leaps over the peripheral "how to's" and gets to the bloodstream of what it means to be a leader. Leadership, for Sanders, is not measured by mere prudence in decision making or the ability to win friends and influence people. He re-emphasizes the oft repeated but scarcely exemplified axiom, "character counts." His penetrating insights probe the readers' strengths and weaknesses, providing sound principles for effective future ministry. This book should be a prerequisite reading for all who aspire to be leaders regardless of their particular context.
Rating:
Summary: The best book on leadership...and it is written by a leader!
Review: Many Christian books on leadership draw heavily from secular influences. They are also written by leaders without heavy responsibility in their positions, or worse yet, psuedo-leaders who are mainly theorists. Not this one. The author, the leader of Overseas Missionary Fellowship till his death, was emminently qualified to write this book, and it is helping me like no other leadership book to become qualified to lead my own Fellowship. If you can obtain the non-"Completly Updated" edition it would be good to read it along side the new version.
Rating:
Summary: A Timeless Classic
Review: Mr Oswald is a powerful voice on leadership. His principles and teaching is clear and to the point. In this day and age, we can not afford to have any fluff in our reading. This book is highly recommended...And not just for one time read and back on your shelf. This book should be read over and over again. As a avid reader the section on... The Leader and Reading was on target for me. For example, Oswald ask this question... Why Read... and he provides five reasons why. These reasons are solid. Another thing he suggest is this, " Today the practice of reading spiritual classics is on the wane. We have more leisure time today than ever before in history, but many people claim to have no time for reading. A spiritual leader cannot use that as an excuse." This is defintely a true statement which make us look at our own reading habits.
Invest in this book, because this is one you should not pass up. Spiritual Leadership will encourage you to place your talents and powers at the Lord's disposal so you can become a leader used for His glory.
Another Great Read with Principles
Tripp
Rating:
Summary: An essential book for anyone preparing for ministry.
Review: No one can read this book and remain the same afterwards. It doesn't simply 'Christianize' the principles of leadership and administration from the world of business. Rather it treats spiritual leadership as dependent upon the leader's spiritual character and reliance on spiritual principles. It encourages a man or woman in ministry into a deeper dependency on Christ, and a greater sense of obligation to God's revealed word. It's filled with quotable quotes. It's one of those rare books that truly rewards the reader every time he or she reads it.
Rating:
Summary: A Leadership Classic
Review: Often copied and quoted, J. Oswald Sanders has left us a treasure he entitled "Spiritual Leadership." The early chapters are a bit slow as they lay the groundwork for a book that gains momentum and leaves your thinking transformed. The twenty-two concise chapters focus on God's purpose and pattern for those serving as leaders. Throughout the book skills and techniques take a backseat to integrity and character. You will be challenged to leave the romantic and self-seeking notions of leadership behind to embrace the towel and basin mindset of the true spiritual leader.
Rating:
Summary: The Holocaust of Spiritual Wisdom
Review: Oswald Sanders was a missionary in Far East Asia, and field director of the Overseas Missionary Fellowship for many years. This book, Spiritual Leadership, is one in a series of three on serious discipleship. The other two are Spiritual Discipleship, and Spiritual Maturity. Chuck Colson called Spiritual Leadership the best book on Christian leadership that he has read. For Christians who have been demoralized by the shallow and superfluous popular "fluff" that abounds on the topic of discipleship, this series will come as cool water in a desert. Sanders deals with the brutal struggles in discipleship, and makes it clear there is no spiritual growth without a price. If we are not willing to pay the price--we will not grow towards maturity. As Oswald Sanders said during a series on dispcipleship at Gull Lake Bible Conference, "There are spiritual Christians, and there are unspiritual Christians. And most are unspiritual." This kind of brutal language needs to be revived, in an age in which most Americans confuse Christian discipleship with self-help or self-optimization. In reality, the gate is still narrow, and the path hard, which leads to life (Matthew 7:14).
Rating:
Summary: Incredible!
Review: Over five years ago a friend gave me a copy of Spiritual Leadership and it sat unread in my bookcase until I was compelled to read it for a graduate class. Too bad, it is an excellent book that presents the biblical basis for strong pastoral leadership. I especially appreciated the emphasis he puts on the role of the Holy Spirit in the life of the Christian leader. True spiritual leadership is not the result of natural charisma, but results from one giving his or her life totally to God. As I read though it, I was constantly amazed at the amount of Scripture containing leadership principles which I had overlooked in my studies of the Bible. The style, however, was difficult for me to get use to. Although I do not recall any specific place where his nationality is mentioned, he seems to be British, perhaps explaining his style. Being converted, trained and preaching within the Christian Churches/churches of Christ, this book has given me great biblical insight into the subject of anointed leadership. Traditionally, Christian Church pastors have been very weak, serving at the discretion of the board in a chaplain role with every pastoral decisions, no matter how small, needing board approval. Woe to the pastor who showed the slightest sense of godly independence. This weak role has doomed many of our churches to a mediocre stagnation. The emphasis on anointed leadership is just what I needed to head. Spiritual leaders are appointed by our sovereign God. We can truly say, "I am here neither by selection of an individual nor election of a group, but by the appointment of Almighty God."
Rating:
Summary: An Oldie, but a goodie
Review: Over five years ago a friend gave me a copy of Spiritual Leadership and it sat unread in my bookcase until I was compelled to read it for a graduate class. Too bad, it is an excellent book that presents the biblical basis for strong pastoral leadership. I especially appreciated the emphasis he puts on the role of the Holy Spirit in the life of the Christian leader. True spiritual leadership is not the result of natural charisma, but results from one giving his or her life totally to God. As I read though it, I was constantly amazed at the amount of Scripture containing leadership principles which I had overlooked in my studies of the Bible. The style, however, was difficult for me to get use to. Although I do not recall any specific place where his nationality is mentioned, he seems to be British, perhaps explaining his style. Being converted, trained and preaching within the Christian Churches/churches of Christ, this book has given me great biblical insight into the subject of anointed leadership. Traditionally, Christian Church pastors have been very weak, serving at the discretion of the board in a chaplain role with every pastoral decisions, no matter how small, needing board approval. Woe to the pastor who showed the slightest sense of godly independence. This weak role has doomed many of our churches to a mediocre stagnation. The emphasis on anointed leadership is just what I needed to head. Spiritual leaders are appointed by our sovereign God. We can truly say, "I am here neither by selection of an individual nor election of a group, but by the appointment of Almighty God."
Rating:
Summary: Scripture based intropective lessons on leader
Review: Spiritual Leadership focuses more on introspection and being a leader than on how to get things done. It is divided into 22 chapters, and it isn't a long book. Each chapter covers one aspect of what a leader should be, including relevant scriptures and examples from the lives of more modern spiritual leaders. Each section is packed with info and it is better to read each separately and study it. Just reading the book straight through is not likely to result in you getting as much information.
As I said above, the emphasis here is on being a leader. The first chapter is a discussion on ambition and why one might want to be a leader. The introspective and God centered view runs through the book. Even in dealing with leading a group the emphasis is on keeping an open prayer relationship with God and on aspects of how to do that. Every chapter is based on scripture.
I recommend this book to christians only, since the entire basis for what Sanders is saying is biblical. This is a book you will want to refer back to periodically so it is better to buy than borrow. Read the first chapter on amazon to see if the book will be helpful to you.
Rating:
Summary: Best book on Spiritual Leadership ever written!
Review: This an awesome book. The chapters are short and easy to read, but the content is thought provoking and requires time to sink in. John Maxwell attributes this book as a life changer for him in the area of leadership. It's obvious why after reading the book myself. Anyone aspiring to ministry positions should be required to read this book. It will revolutionize your approach to leadership.
| 
