“Do not lie to each other, since you have taken off your old self with its practices and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge in the image of its Creator.” — Colossians 3.9,10
For too long, the concept of “self” has been relinquished by redemptive leaders to the realms of psychology and self-help analysis. This is regrettable because as St Paul states above in his letter to the church in Colosse, the concept of “self” should be a primary way we approach who we are as a person and as a leader. Many Christian leaders have been told their “self” is their problem, that to embrace and pursue deeper awareness of self is to become selfish or egotistical. St Paul begs to differ.
The core of a leader is not self-actualized but it is self-realized. A redemptive leader’s core is gifted through a new identity from God, the “new self”, the true self. Deepening this concept further, St Paul paints a continuum of knowing who the true self is as an image-bearer of God. Our knowledge of who we are is meant to be “being renewed in knowing”, an ever-deepening journey of awareness and realization of the nature and reality of our true self in Christ.
The depths of walking in this true self is commensurate with the work invested by the leader in learning of God, through community, who the leader truly is and then building a practice of life to see those realities realized in every dimension of their existence. Leaders who embrace and engage this journey often describe their experience as hard, difficult, challenging, or dark. They also describe their experience as profound, joyful, empowering, and rich.
Regardless, the journey of discovery and alignment with one’s “new self” is the core to success as a redemptive leader. It is the starting and the ending point. Leaders willing to lean into the hard work of being ever-renewed in the knowledge of who they are in Christ will lead teams filled with the confidence of knowing their leader is in it with them, and they will figure it out together. Leaders unwilling to embrace this journey become stagnant and dry. Their teams suffer to embrace purpose or walk in unity toward mission fulfillment. These leaders have vision that is distorted because their view of self is distorted.
Who you are at your core is not something you create, it is something you are given. How, or even if, you become that…well, that is up to you.