I have visited New Spring Church in South Carolina and sat under the preaching of Pastor Perry Noble. His preaching is engaging, real, unconventional and shocking at times. I found myself laughing and deeply challenged in the same message. With nearly 30,000 attending this multi-site church each week, Pastor Noble’s leadership is seasoned and significant.
His style as an author is very similar to his preaching. If you can get past some fairly crude adolescent humor, in The Most Excellent Way to Lead, you will find yourself smiling and laughing out loud as you read some of the amazing stories the author shares frequently throughout the book. Although it is nearly 300 pages, it was an easy read and difficult to put down. Similar to my experience listening to Pastor Noble preach, I finished the book deeply challenged to move beyond leadership skills into the heart of who I am as a leader. The failure of most Christian leaders has less to do with skillset issues and more to do with character issues. This book focuses on the latter.
The Most Excellent Way to Lead is basically a rehearsal of 1 Corinthians 13. However, to help readers understand the heart of great leadership, the author uses the word leader to make the point. Leaders are patient. Leaders are kind. Leaders are not proud. Leaders always protect. Leaders do not envy, and so on. If you like lists, this book will scratch that itch. Included are 10 signs of an insecure leader, nine leadership filters, four hope-busters, three myths about leadership and—my personal favorite—four warnings about the Internet. Each chapter begins with an engaging anecdote and closes with questions to ask yourself, as well as discussion questions to ask your leadership team. This format makes this book a wonderful 15-week study for any leadership team that pursues excellence in character.