Your Spiritual Dashboard: Keeping Your Eyes on the Road Ahead

As Christian women in leadership, we're no strangers to dashboards. From the vital signs in our cars to the analytical tools we use professionally, dashboards provide crucial information, helping us navigate and make informed decisions. But what about a spiritual dashboard? What essential indicators should we, as leaders, be monitoring to ensure we're not just surviving but thriving in our faith journey?

Sister, just like a car's dashboard keeps us on course and helps us avoid breakdowns, a spiritual dashboard helps us stay deeply connected to God and lead lives that truly honor Him. I would like to share a few  with you how the word of God, obedience , love , prayer, repentance and the Holy Spirit are part of our spiritual dashboard and how these indicators are illuminate through the lens of our  leadership roles.

1. Fuel Gauge: The Word of God

Indicator: How consistently are you filling up on God's Word, especially when your leadership demands so much from you?

Scripture: "Your word is a lamp for my feet, a light on my path." (Psalm 119:105)

Your Leadership & This Indicator: As leaders, we're constantly pouring out. God's Word is our essential fuel, providing the wisdom, discernment, and strength you need to lead effectively. When you're facing a tough decision about a team member, a challenging budget, or a strategic direction, do you find yourself instinctively turning to Scripture for wisdom, or are you relying solely on your own intellect? Are you running on empty, relying on past reserves, or are you consistently immersed in God's truth, allowing it to nourish and guide your every leadership step?

2. Speedometer: Obedience

Indicator: How closely are you following God's commands, even when the pressure is on to compromise or take shortcuts?

Scripture: "If you love me, you will keep my commandments." (John 14:15)

Reflecting on Your Pace: Your obedience to God is a powerful testament to your love for Him, especially in leadership. Perhaps you're tempted to take a shortcut on a project, to bend a rule for expediency, or to compromise on a value to gain approval. How does your spiritual speedometer react? Does it push you to align with God's commands, even if it's the harder path, demonstrating integrity and a disciplined pace for those you lead?

3. Temperature Gauge: Love

Indicator: How warm is your heart towards God and those you lead, especially amidst the demands and potential frustrations of leadership?

Scripture: "Above all, keep loving one another earnestly, since love covers a multitude of sins." (1 Peter 4:8)

What This Means for Your Heart: Love is the true temperature gauge of our spiritual health, crucial for any Christian leader. Think about that challenging team member, the difficult stakeholder, or the frustrating project that tests your patience. Is your heart still warm with God's love for them, seeking their good and praying for their well-being, or has bitterness or weariness started to cool your compassion? A warm, loving heart reflects a deep relationship with God and a genuine concern for your team and community.

4. Oil Pressure: Prayer

Indicator: How consistent is your communication with God, particularly as you navigate complex decisions and challenges in your leadership?

Scripture: "Pray without ceasing." (1 Thessalonians 5:17)

Nourishing Your Connection: Prayer is the essential lubricant for our spiritual engine, ensuring it runs smoothly even under pressure. Consistent communication with God maintains healthy spiritual pressure, providing clarity, peace, and divine intervention. When a major crisis hits, or you're wrestling with a strategic vision for your organization, is your first instinct to drop to your knees in prayer, or do you try to solve it all in your own strength, allowing your prayer life to sputter when you need it most?

5. Check Engine Light: Repentance

Indicator: Are you acknowledging and addressing sin in your life, especially when it impacts your leadership or influence?

Scripture: "If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness." (1 John 1:9)

An Invitation to Restoration: The "check engine" light of our spiritual dashboard is repentance. As leaders, we're not immune to making mistakes or falling short. Perhaps you've spoken too harshly to a colleague under pressure, allowed pride to cloud your judgment in a meeting, or taken credit for something that wasn't solely yours. When that "check engine" light flickers, do you quickly acknowledge your sin, confess it to God, and turn away, or do you try to ignore it, letting it fester and diminish your integrity? This light is God's invitation to forgiveness and renewed leadership.

6. Compass: The Holy Spirit

Indicator: Are you actively allowing the Holy Spirit to guide your decisions, particularly in pivotal leadership moments?

Scripture: "But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you." (John 14:26)

Your Divine Guide: The Holy Spirit is our infallible compass, guiding us in the right direction, especially when our path as leaders seems unclear. When faced with two good but challenging options for your team's direction, or a complex ethical dilemma, are you leaning on your own expertise and experience alone, or are you pausing to discern the Holy Spirit's whisper, trusting Him to point you to the best path, even if it defies conventional wisdom? A properly functioning compass indicates a life and leadership surrendered to the Spirit's divine guidance, leading to greater impact and peace.

Regular Maintenance for the Leader's Dashboard

Sister, just like our physical dashboards, our spiritual dashboards as leaders require regular, intentional maintenance. Take dedicated time to reflect on these indicators. Ask God to reveal any areas that need immediate attention, particularly concerning your leadership responsibilities. Through consistent prayer, deep Bible study, and meaningful fellowship with other believers and mentors, we can keep our spiritual dashboards in optimal working order. This ensures not just a safe but also a profoundly fulfilling and impactful journey with Christ.

Let's strive to maintain a healthy spiritual dashboard, keeping our eyes fixed on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, as we lead with purpose and grace. 

How will you check your spiritual dashboard this week, and what specific action will you take based on what you find?

Let’s take time and look at our dashboard!!!

Blessings, 

Glenda