The conviction of a leader is what makes him focused and steadfast! Without strong convictions, you cannot do much for God.
Convictions are beliefs and strong persuasions.
Apostle Paul was a great leader and a man of conviction. He was a man with a strong belief in God.
He was even ready to die for what he believed. At one point, he said openly, “I am ready to die.”
For I am now ready to be offered… 2 Timothy 4:6
How to become a man of conviction
• Speak from your heart: A man of conviction usually speaks to people out of his heart.
A leader without convictions is a lifeless, speech-reading and emotionless puppet. Nobody takes any notice of him.
Nobody believes his words. Nobody follows him.
Do you sometimes wonder why people are not following you? It may be because you are not a man of conviction.
• Make sacrifices for what you believe: A man of conviction makes sacrifices for what he believes.
A man of conviction is prepared to sacrifice many things for his conviction.
When you see people who claim to be called by God but are not prepared to sacrifice anything for their calling, you will wonder if they are really called.
A calling is a conviction to work for the Lord. In the political world, the masses will follow someone who seems to have a conviction, who speaks from his heart and is prepared to die for his beliefs.
They will follow someone who is sold out to convictions, no matter what!
• Have a judgment mentality: As a person, think about judgment!
I believe in Heaven and Hell! I have a conviction that one day Christ will reward us for all our labour on this earth.
I believe that Jesus is the Son of God and that He rose from the dead. I believe that life does not end when we die.
I believe that after this life, there is life. I believe that Jesus is the only way to Heaven. I believe that the blood of Jesus, which He shed for us at Calvary, is available to anyone who will believe.
I believe that if you believe in Jesus with your heart and confess with your mouth that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved (Romans 10:9-10).
I believe that as many who receive Jesus as their Lord and Saviour become His children (John 1:12).
I believe in the last words of Jesus to us, that we should go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature.
I do not just give mental assent to these truths and facts. I believe them with all my heart!
That is the driving force behind the things I do every day.
My conviction about the Great Commission is what drives me to have Healing Jesus campaigns.
• Think deeply: A man of conviction thinks deeply about everything.
Have a conviction about the things God has called you to do.
Have a conviction about the things you are supposed to accomplish in your lifetime.
Have a conviction about the things that God has told you specifically.
Live by these convictions!
Be prepared to go all-out for your convictions!
• Show emotion: Jesus showed emotion.
People will follow you because they see what is in your heart displayed in your actions.
That gives them a glimpse into your convictions.
The Bible says that Jesus loved Martha, her sister Mary and their brother Lazarus.
Jesus’ love for this family was displayed. Jesus showed this emotion of love. Jesus arrived when Lazarus had been dead for four days.
The sisters of Lazarus, as well as family and friends, were mourning.
Jesus wept too. The response that Jesus’ action invoked in the people was “See how He loved him.”
Dear leader, do your followers sense emotions from you? Emotions are a message. Show emotion when necessary!
Jesus wept. John 11:35
• Be zealously affected always in a good thing.
When a person maintains his zeal for something, it shows that he is a man of convictions.
Are you able to sustain your zeal in the face of things that deflate your zeal?
Most people are emotionally excited about something for a short while.
But to maintain zeal and to be zealously affected always reveals that you are a man of great conviction.
But it is good to be zealously affected always in a good thing, and not only when I am present with you. Galatians 4:18
A leader without conviction is like a lifeless personality.
Men of conviction are difficult to contain! You cannot put them in a box! You cannot tie them down!
You cannot keep them still! You cannot de-motivate them!
They seek to accomplish what they have convictions about – at all cost!
The writer is the founder of the Lighthouse Group of churches.
E-mail: theaol@ymail.com
