5 Common Temptations for Leaders and
Their Devotional Life That We Need to Avoid
By Dan Reiland
Forty years of ministry has taught me that only Jesus brings real power and the life-changing authority that makes it possible for any church to reach its potential.
Yet we often lead with less than that full power.
It’s never intentional, but it’s surprisingly easy to slide into leading on your own ability, or at least partially on your own, especially when the pressure is on and God doesn’t seem to be moving as fast as you hope and pray.
I have prayed and pursued God for all these years, but I have not always fully leaned into the significance of how my relationship with Him impacts my leadership.
Intellectually I’ve known from day one that God is my source, but only decades of experience have revealed the depth of that truth. He is truly the foundation and strength of my soul, and my leadership would never reach its potential without Him.
It’s too often that leaders who love God can become so consumed with the work of God that their walk with God isn’t always what it could be.
The result is that their leadership suffers.
However, instead of running to God, they work harder. Sound familiar?
Please don’t misunderstand; your leadership in the local church is critical to the advancement of the Great Commission.
We need good leaders and good leadership!
However, leadership alone isn’t enough.
5 Common Temptations for Leaders and Their Devotional Life That We Need to Avoid
1) The Temptation to Suffer from guilt
I love to pray, but it’s taken me years to develop true consistency. I have a really cool prayer room in my basement that’s like a sanctuary to me; it’s holy ground where God and I meet. I find joy, peace, and power there; thankfully no longer duty or performance.
But I remember times when I struggled to be consistent, and I felt guilty. Guilt robs you of joy! And a duty-like, performance-oriented prayer life is the last thing you need to allow into your devotional life with God.
This is not an excuse for any of us, we desperately need daily time with God, but guilt is a tactic of the Devil, not a punishment from God.
God may bring conviction, but He doesn’t bring guilt. The trouble is they often feel the same. The difference is that conviction pulls you back to God, and guilt drives you away from God.
Don’t let the Devil fool you; communion with God is a gift; it’s an invitation from your Heavenly Father who loves you. Prayer is a safe place that restores your soul, provides wisdom and insight, and brings you peace.
2) The Temptation to Miss the joy
When you make prayer a task with seven steps to complete and mountains of commentaries to read, that can result in the loss of joy.
Sometimes you can just sit with God, enjoy His presence, and soak in His Word. If you only read a verse and meditate, great. It’s not a competition.
I deeply appreciate devotional apps, like reading through the Bible in a year, but empathize when leaders lament to me that they missed a day or two and now “it’s a project to keep up” rather than a relationship to enjoy.
I can see the joy drain from their expression.
You might be tempted to return more slowly to your devotional practice because you feel you must “catch up” rather than simply be still in communion with God.
You don’t have to keep up; the purpose is to draw close, worship, and hear from God. The joy is to know Him, love Him, and want to obey Him. Not check the boxes.
Never lose grace in search of truth, and never surrender joy in obedience.
3) The Temptation to Function without power
It’s rarely intentional but easy to slide into leading from your own ability rather than with God’s power. Leading on your own talent is often a result of ministry demands, problems to solve, and pressure in general. The pressure can be so great that we think there is no time to pray, but the opposite is true; we need to pray all the more.
God doesn’t withhold His promises, favor, or blessing when we lack in our devotional life; we just fail to step into them. He’s always with us, but we must also move toward Him.
God gave us access to His Spirit within us, but that power isn’t automatic. Instead, it functions on a relationship of dependence, worship, prayer, and quietly waiting upon His guidance and timing.
It’s not a legalistic transaction, but like communion with God, it just can’t be rushed. With that communion, God’s power is not only available; it’s abundant.
4) The Temptation to Give in to doubt
In a business deal, when you don’t have the numbers or are missing information, you have major questions.
In a relationship, when you don’t talk much, aren’t close, or even become disconnected, you can doubt the real status of the relationship. Distance from God can shrink your faith and cause you to doubt. Intellectually you believe, but experientially you aren’t entirely convinced because of the distance.
Drift from God causes doubt in God. So, the beginning of the remedy is a renewed and deeper connection.
About now, you might be wondering, “are you just saying the answer to everything is to pray more?” No, I’m not, but it’s a big part.
Of course, we must step out of the prayer closet and put our devotional life to work, but that starts with a devotional life.
It’s amazing how faith in action shuts down doubt.
5) The Temptation to Avoid the quiet
Over recent years, I’ve learned that I can’t have my smartphone with me in my prayer room.
When I do take it with me because an important call is coming, but I don’t know when, like from a doctor, for example, I think I can’t miss that call! But I can miss that call; I just don’t want to. It’s just part of the noise we’ve become accustomed to, and eventually, we think we can’t live without it.
Have you ever noticed that still and quiet can be uncomfortable? Yet, scripture, for example, Psalm 46:10, instructs us to be still and know that He is God.
We can make our devotional life busy and complicated. But keep it simple. Find the tools you need that help you enjoy the consistency you desire.
© 2022 Dan Reiland | The Pastor’s Coach – Developing Church Leaders
