Legacy Leadership: Wisdom Of The Apostle PaulSample

A New Definition of Leadership – Part 3

We are examining a new approach to leadership that I call Legacy Leadership. The use of the word legacy is deliberate. A legacy is not just something we leave behind when we leave this life. Rather, a legacy is something we live now. We should live in such a way that we will bless others now and for generations to come. In the context of leadership, a Legacy Leader is one whose leadership has an impact now and for generations to come.  

Here’s an image that will help unpack this idea: when we throw a rock into a lake there is a big, initial splash. This represents the immediate impact that a leader has. But that initial splash continues to ripple out from that initial point. This represents the ongoing impact that a leader has – for generations to come. 

We can see this ripple effect in Paul’s relationship with the Thessalonians. Paul and his leadership team impacted the Thessalonians, who turned from idol worship to the living and true God. They then became imitators of Paul and his team. That was the direct impact, the initial splash. But the impact didn’t end there. 

Not only did the Thessalonians become imitators, they also became examples for others – “to all believers in Macedonia and Achaia.” A ripple begins, but it doesn’t stop there: “for the word of the Lord has sounded forth from you, not only in Macedonia and Achaia, but also in every place your faith toward God has gone forth, so that we have no need to say anything.” 

This ripple effect demonstrates the main idea of legacy leadership. I call this process Legacy Logic:  Legacy leaders are intentionally influencing others, and understand that by doing so, they are developing leaders, who will then imitate them. The initial wave of followers then become examples for others who they are intentionally influencing. Through this ongoing process, legacy leaders have an impact now – an initial splash that ripples out and continues to have impact for generations to come. 

Legacy leadership is process of intentional influence – it is leading with a purpose. As we have seen, the purpose of Paul’s leadership was to change people’s lives by leading them to “walk worthy of the Lord,” and to please God, “bearing fruit in every good work.” 

Legacy leaders lead with this clear purpose in mind. It is the guiding framework for all they do and the criteria for measuring the effectiveness of their leadership. In fact, as we will see in this study, the real measure of a legacy leader’s effectiveness is the changed lives of their followers. 

Reflect and Act on these questions: 

• In the first lesson in this plan, you identified the various spheres of influence that have been entrusted to you. 
• How is the effectiveness of your leadership measured in each of these areas?
• Who will you intentionally invest in? 
• To put it another way: How’s your ripple?