Leadership Interview :: Philip Brenizer

Leadership Interview Questions with Philip Brenizer.

Philip is the pastor of the Newport God’s Missionary Church in Newport Pennsylvania. He is married to Michelle and they have two daughters. I count it a honor to have Philip participate in this leadership q & a.

What gives you the greatest joy as a leader?

The greatest joy for me is found in challenging others to follow Christ and become leaders themselves.

What is your greatest frustration as a leader?

Christians who are unwilling to grow and always pointing back to experiences which happen years ago.

Who made the biggest influence in your life as a leader?

There have been several individuals who great influenced my life. The first begins with my family which would include my parents and my grandfather who was a minister himself. The other leaders who have greatly influenced my life have been Rev. John Zechman and Rev. Timothy Cooley Sr.

What books have changed your life?

Here are a few:

The Pursuit of God by A. W. Tozer

Let God Guide You Daily by Wesley Duewel

More God More Power by Wesley Duewel

Ablaze for God by Wesley Duewel

Life in the Spirit by Richard S. Taylor

The Celebration of Discipline by Richard Foster

The Heart of a Great Pastor by H. B. London

Fresh Wind, Fresh Fire by Jim Cymbala

The Management of the Non-Profit Organization by Peter Drucker

The Founding Fathers On Leadership by Donald L. Phillips

21 Irrefutable Law of Leadership by John Maxwell

What is your biggest challenge as a leader?

The biggest challenge I face is keeping the four top priorities of my life in proper perspective. They are the following from most important to least important.
1. Spiritual Relationship with God.
2. Marriage
3. Children
4. Ministry.
Each one of those included some form of leadership. My relationship with God strongly affects my leadership in each of the other areas.

What goals do you have as a leader?

Short term goals are to finish my graduate work. Long term plans would be to further develop leadership within my church, write a book, and do more teaching in our Bible College as well as become a leader who mentors other leaders.

What is the Holiness movement’s greatest need?

The Holiness movement is a wonderful group with tremendous strengths. I have no desire to be with any other group. I love our people. As with any group of humans, however, they are not perfect. Therefore, there are areas which need some adjustments. The greatest need which I’ve observed is for leaders at every level to understand the importance of spiritual as well as organizational leadership. Each of these is extremely important for mission organizations, churches, schools, denominations and our homes. Without these, any organization or institution begins to unravel.

How important is self leadership?

Self leadership is extremely important. I’ve discovered recently that developing a personal leadership growth plan assist a leader in continually expanding their horizons. Without it, a leader begins to stagnate which eventually trickles down to other leaders within the church. Moreover, this can be prevented by a leader finding someone to hold them accountable to their leadership plan.

What do you do to improve your self leadership?

There are a variety of things which are part of expanding my leadership. The first one which I participated in recently was to pursue a degree in ministerial leadership from Indiana Wesleyan University. The probably one of the best decisions I’ve made next to becoming a Christian, answering the call to the ministry, and choosing my mate. It has allowed me to expand both my spiritual leadership and as well as my organizational leadership abilities.

In addition to the above, I am continually reading books on leadership. These books usually are written from a Christian author or some author from the business community. I’ve discovered leadership in business as well as the church world is similar. The major difference as Peter Drucker states in his book, Managing the Non- Profit Organization, is the bottom line. The churches bottom line entails upholding and working to accomplish the values which God has establishes in His word.

Along with reading, I surround myself with individuals who challenge my leadership abilities. I have friends which are leaders in both the church and business community. I interact with them periodically exchanging books as well as articles which we’ve read. Invariably we discuss the ideas we’ve currently gleaned from leadership sources.

Lastly and most important, I work at planning time alone with God. This I find is extremely important if I am going to be in tune with the Spirit’s leadership in my life. Without it, my leadership becomes self-centered. I personally believe the greatest leader ever to lead was Jesus and His servant-hood model is my example as well as my goal.

[Here is the link to the other leadership interviews that I have done]