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Today we are going to discuss the traits needed to be used by God. Psalm 78:72(NIV) says: “And David shepherded them with integrity of heart; with skillful hands he led them.”
Every leader has an obligation to make a positive difference in society but many times a leader does not rise to face the challenge. When this happens everyone loses. It is usually because they  have not prepared their hearts to serve.
Leadership skills are essential and must be learned and developed. It’s important for you to learn and develop into a leader before actually leading anyone. The first step in this process is to examine your heart with the guidance of the Holy Spirit. This is important because a leader with a wrong heart can be dangerous and destructive. A quick look at our society should be evidence of the damage that can be done by a leader with wrong motives.
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A heart committed to God is essential to Christian leadership but a good heart does not automatically produce an effective leader.  You can have a Christ-like heart and still not be an effective leader. I know many people in my own life who love God but are not effective leaders at their jobs or in their homes. In fact our churches are filled with these people every Sunday. There must be a desire to make a difference.
So here are the traits you must learn and develop in order to grow into the leader that God intended you to be:
You must understand your purpose.
1 Corinthians 12:4–7 (NIV): There are different kinds of gifts, but the same Spirit. There are different kinds of service, but the same Lord. There are different kinds of working, but the same God works all of them in all men. Now to each one the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good. 
1 Corinthians 12:27 (NIV): Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it. 
Leaders who are used by God discover their purpose in life. I like to refer to that as your life vision. It’s the job God gave you to do while here on Earth. It’s your assignment. Think of an airplane flying from New York to LA, it is off course most of the time. This doesn’t prevent it from reaching its destination though. Throughout the flight, the pilot continues to make small adjustments and eventually they land at their destination. Think of your life the same way. You have to be constantly making small changes and adjustments in your own life to keep yourself on the course God has planned for you.
Learning to do this will help you to grow toward your maximum potential. It will help you to sow seeds that will benefit others. Remember your God-given vision is not about you at all but about those you can help. This can be a painful lesson to some who have always thought that life was just about them.
Knowing your purpose is essential to effective leadership because God works differently in everybody’s life to make His will known. Be aware that He will use both brokenness and an awareness of your own spiritual gifts:to reveal your purpose.
Many people don’t realize that God will use your biggest failures, greatest defeats, biggest pain as a way to reach other people. This will cause you to fully surrender to the love and care of Jesus. You will begin to see the world through His eyes and see others the way God sees them, allowing a burden to develop to lead the broken of the world.
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Don’t fear brokenness, it shows your relationship with God is growing. With it, you will develop urgency about needs in the lives of people. God doesn’t allow brokenness in your life to cause you harm but He knows that it is necessary in a broken world in order to develop a vision to make an eternal difference. 
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