What are you reading?

What are you reading?

JENNIFER DAVIS RASH

The Alabama Baptist, rashionalthoughts.com

“What Makes A Leader Great” by Russ Crosson

I love reading books on leadership, management and organizational skills. While I always learn at least a few tips from each book, some books are better than others. There are those that leave you longing for and imagining a world in which what was described in the book could be true, but we all know it is totally unrealistic. And then there are some that are realistic but too complicated and complex to embrace. When you find one that combines a realistic view with manageable concepts, then you know you have a winner.

“What Makes A Leader Great” is one of those winners. It not only is realistic about what is possible but also has the most clearly articulated concept of the importance of the “why” of leadership that I’ve read to this point.

Russ Crosson says, “We lead in order to replace ourselves.”

And he is speaking to all forms of leaders, not specifically to business leaders. 

“At some point all of us will have opportunities to make decisions that can potentially change the course of a situation or the life of another person. Men and women from all walks of life are asked to lead but few have the tools or the motivation needed to teach others to do the same.

“Great leadership isn’t about the leader at all — it’s about the mission of the organization, church, business or even family where the leader serves. And it is about who will replace the leader when he or she is gone.”

With only 153 pages, the book is a relatively quick read and is packed with rich nuggets and challenging concepts I plan to implement.

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CAROL BLAKELY SCOTT

Member of First Baptist Church, Gallant

“The Insanity Of God” by Nik Ripken

Christians in other parts of the world who are being persecuted for their faith in Christ just view that as a necessary part of being a Christian, whereas we here in the United States fear persecution and even go so far at times as to avoid persecution. 

This book is a gripping personal narrative of the author’s life in missions — the best one I’ve read in a long time.