We don’t have a leadership shortage in the Church. We have a spiritual formation crisis. While leadership books fill shelves and conferences sell out, the real question remains unanswered: Who are you becoming in the quiet?

It’s possible to lead teams, preach sermons, and grow platforms while your soul quietly withers. And eventually, that withering shows. In the tone of your voice. In the way you handle pressure. In the absence of joy.

Let’s be clear. You don’t just lead from your gift; you lead from your life. And your life flows from your heart: “Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it” (Proverbs 4:23).

If we want stronger leaders, we need deeper wells.

Leadership Is Always Discipleship

Leadership is not first about strategy. It’s about surrender.

Jesus didn’t launch into ministry with a five-year plan. He began with intimacy — with the Father in the wilderness. Before the crowds, before the miracles, before the sermons, Jesus withdrew to pray.

The leadership of Jesus flowed from His private communion. Too many leaders skip that step. The pressure to perform is real. But when we neglect the hidden place, our influence becomes hollow. We may still lead people, but we stop leading them toward Jesus.

What You Don’t Cultivate, You Will Compromise

We don’t have a leadership shortage in the Church. We have a spiritual formation crisis.

Every leader is carrying something. Peace or anxiety. Clarity or confusion. Faith or fear. And what’s in you will come out of you, especially under pressure.

That is why the inner life matters. Neglect it, and your leadership becomes reactive instead of rooted. Performative instead of pastoral. You begin to draw from shallow places, hoping gifting will carry what character can’t sustain.

It’s not always public failure that reveals a dry soul. Sometimes it’s apathy. Cynicism. A lack of compassion. A loss of vision. These are signs the well is running dry.

You don’t just need a break. You need to return to the secret place.

Fan the Flame, Don’t Fake the Fire

Paul’s words to Timothy echo through time: “Fan into flame the gift of God, which is in you” (2 Timothy 1:6).

Paul doesn’t say, “Manufacture the flame.” He says, “Fan it.” In other words, God has already placed something in you. Your job is to keep it burning.

That doesn’t happen through hype. It happens through habits. Through prayer. Through Scripture. Through honest community. Through silence. Through staying close to the Shepherd, not just producing for the sheep. Too many leaders are living off old sparks. It’s time to return to the fire.

Real Leaders Let Their Faith Lead

You don’t need more influence. You need more intimacy.

Leadership isn’t about looking strong. It’s about being formed. It’s about letting God shape your soul in the quiet so that when you speak, move, or make decisions, they’re not just strategic, they’re Spirit-led.

You don’t need to be impressive. You need to be anchored. The most powerful thing you bring into any room is not your plan. It’s His presence. But you cannot lead others into a presence you no longer value yourself.

This Is Our Leadership Test

The crisis isn’t only out there. It’s here. In us.

We’ve built systems that reward charisma but overlook character. That develops communicators but neglects disciples. But if we want revival in our churches, it must begin in the hearts of our leaders. We don’t need more stage-ready leaders. We need altar-formed ones.

So come back. Return to the secret place. Let God do the deep work. Allow your leadership to be the overflow of a hidden, holy life with Him.

Because the world doesn’t need more impressive leaders. It needs more surrendered ones.