Rick Warren: 3 Pillars That Lead to Success in Ministry And Life

Justin Blaney, the founder of Innovate 4 Jesus, asked Rick Warren to think back to when he was first starting a church at age 25. “What is something that other 25 or 30 year olds can learn from what you knew back then that set you up to become what you are today?”
Warren doesn’t miss a beat as he responds, “Don’t focus on building the church; focus on building people.”
At the end of the first year as a pastor, Warren faced burnout, even fainting in the middle of a service. The second year of Saddleback church, he battled with depression. But in that second year, Warren says God taught him the lessons he needed to build the church into what it is today.
From that second year, Warren learned that great leadership is “all about character, not charisma.” If you want God’s anointing on your life, Warren says, it has nothing to do with strategy, marketing, systems, etc. Instead, “it has everything to do with who you are.”

Finally, Warren offers three pillars on which to build your life and ministry: “You must build your life on integrity, on humility, and on generosity.” Those three things, he says, are the antidote to the three great traps of leadership.