12 Leadership Defining Moments

“He went a little farther and fell on His face, and prayed saying, ‘O My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from Me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as You will’” – Matthew 26:39

How well do you handle tough times? Do you mask fear and doubt by burying yourself in work? Do you get so busy that you forget to take time to pause and read your bible or continue your daily devotionals? Did Jesus face tough times? How did He handle them? Wouldn’t you like to be more like Christ in the way he handed the hardest times?

As a leader, your journey is full of moments when you will feel personally challenged by life’s circumstances. In those moments, you can either experience the greatest growth of character or compromise the very values you stand for. These are your defining moments as a leader, moments that set you apart from everyone else. These moments are when your values speak the loudest.

As a Biblical Entrepreneur, you must recognize your leadership position and you must pay attention to the moments that are designed to test your character. To learn how to deal with those defining moments, let’s look at 12 defining moments that Jesus faced and how He dealt with them:

1. Moments of temptation: Luke 4:1-13 – When the lust of your eyes, the lust of your flesh and the pride of life entices you to action.
2. Moments of rejection: Luke 4:23-30 – When you feel dismissed or unaccepted.
3. Moments of limited resources: Matthew 14:15-21– When your needs are greater than what you have available to accomplish your objectives.
4. Moments of isolation: Matthew 27:46 – When you feel separated from those you love most.
5. Moments of disappointment: John 6:66-67– When others have let you down.
6. Moments of personal loss: John 11:35 – When you lose someone or something dear to your heart.
7. Moments of betrayal: Luke 22:47-62 – When those you trust most turn against you.
8. Moments of abuse: Matthew 27:32-44 – When you feel misused and mistreated.
9. Moments of accusation: John 18:28-40 – When you are charged with doing something wrong or illegal.
10. Moments of inadequacy: Matthew 26:38-39 – When you feel unable to carry out the task.
11. Moments of anger: Matthew 21:12-13 – When you feel strongly annoyed or displeased.
12. Moments of great accomplishments: Luke 10:20 – When you rely on your own abilities, resources or personal successes.

All leaders will face most, if not all, of these moments in their leadership journey. For the entrepreneur, the challenges may come during the early phases of the business when you are trying to prove your concept. Or, challenges may occur during the growth phase when you are overwhelmed by demands on your time. Perhaps these moments will appear in the late phase when you have achieved some level of financial success but wonder why you still face these challenges.

When Jesus faced these moments, He deployed the same strategy every time: He always turned to His Father. He trusted Him for protection and provision. Christ never took it upon Himself to fix the challenges; He only drew Himself closer to the Father. Defining moments of leadership are opportunities for spiritual growth and renewal. These are the moments when God humbles us and we learn to rely completely on Him. They can be moments of great opportunity to grow and demonstrate our integrity. When was the last time you had a leadership-defining moment? How did you handle it?

My prayer for you is that God will give you the wisdom to identify leadership defining moments in your life. May God also give you the grace to see and use these moments as growth opportunities as you allow Him to work in your life, transforming you into His image and likeness.