The Emotionally Healthy Leader: How Transforming Your Inner Life Will Deeply Transform Your Church, Team, and the World

by Peter Scazzero

In order to really understand how we exercise power and influence others, we need to be clear about where that power comes from. Every leader needs to be aware of the six primary sources of power.3 Positional power. This is the easiest type of power to recognize because it’s the power that comes with a position or a title. We are chosen for a specific role, such as pastor, director, board member, small group leader, chief financial officer, or worship pastor. This position provides a platform for influencing others. Personal power. Personal power is anchored in what we do with the unique person God made us to be. It comes from such things as our gifts, personality, knowledge, education, and competencies. We acquire some of these assets at birth and others as a result of either privilege (such as advanced education) or through unique opportunities (having mentors, new experiences, open doors to learn, etc.). “God factor” power. This refers to the sacred weight we carry when our role formally places us in a position to represent God. When we represent God and the church, people look differently at what we say and do. We symbolize something that goes far beyond us as individuals. In this sense, Christian leaders have greater power than politicians or Fortune-500 CEOs, more power than social workers and teachers, more power than any number of other helping professions. We represent God’s presence, even if we feel inadequate to the task. We serve people in the name of Jesus.4 P...