Following the Spirit
But the time is coming-indeed it’s here now — when true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and in truth. The Father is looking for those who will worship him that way. (John 4:23)
There are so many different awesome qualities that a leader can have, many of them being strengths that we have that Christ has given us. We are able to discern right and wrong. We are able to do powerful things such as heal or cast out demons. These strengths have been given to us, but none of this is possible without the Holy Spirit. I believe that one of the most powerful leadership qualities that a worship leader can have is being in tune with the Holy Spirit. I have found that knowing where the Spirit is leading me is so important and I am able to lead others well if I am walking in the spirit. Sometimes it is hard to understand the role and function of the Holy Spirit, so it is better to fully look at the Scriptures to understand. The Bible tells that the giving of the Holy Spirit is as if the Spirit is living in a brand new heart of a person (Ezekiel 36:25–27) .
26 And I will give you a new heart, and a new spirit I will put within you. And I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. 27 And I will put my Spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes and be careful to obey my rules.
In John 15, Jesus said that the Holy Spirit would enable a person to remember who He was and obey Him. The only reason that we can receive the Spirit is because we have been forgiven, cleansed, and brought into God’s family through the person of Jesus Christ (Titus 3:4–7). One baptized in the Spirit is a new creation, in Christ, and a dwelling place or house for the Holy Spirit (2 Timothy 1:4, 2 Corinthians 5:1–5, 17, Romans 8:9).
One of the scriptures that I have found to hold onto in my leadership is in Galatians:
5:16 But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh.
Walking by the Spirit
The best expression of leading a Gospel community by the Spirit is through prayer walking in the spirit. Prayers of petition and listening are one of the strongest ways to begin leading by the Spirit. Leaders who regularly go to God and ask him to do something in the lives of the people they are leading are walking by the Spirit. Those same leaders who have difficult leadership problems who turn to prayer are turning to the Spirit. Spirit-led men and women are those who, when there is conflict or troubles that arise, turn to God in quiet prayer pleading the Lord to come in the middle of their circumstances. These leaders will listen to hear what the Lord has to say so that they can know what their next step looks like. They want desperately to understand who God is and what His will is. This is what it looks like to lead in the power of the Spirit. Someone who is a leader is consistently turning to prayer for those around him and therefore will be walking in the Spirit.
“Praying at all times in the Spirit, with all prayer and supplication. To that end keep alert with all perseverance, making supplication for all the saints” Ephesians 6:18
I have found that as I pray and walk in the Spirit, I am only then able to lead others well because I know where I am going. I was once told by someone very wise in my life, that if you are going to lead someone somewhere, you must first know where you are going. Leading others through the Spirit means going there with the Spirit on your own first. A tour guide of a national park cannot take you somewhere that he has not gone, those that are following him would get lost as well and some even hurt. This is why as leaders we must always walk in the spirit first before we are able to lead others.
25 Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit. Galatians 5:25
