Conviction to Lead: The Leader and Time

I've been reading a very good book by Albert Mohler that has surpassed my expectations: Conviction to Lead. To be honest, I expected to find it helpful and instructive only here and there, but every chapter is chock-full of useful instruction. I would not be surprised if this book turns out to be Mohler's most significant and enduring.

Here's a sample from a chapter I just finished called "The Leader and Time":

I fear that many Christian leaders (including many pastors) have made themselves too unavailable. Leaders must protect time against constant interruption and distraction, but the people placed within their care and influence are not, in themselves, interruptions or distractions. No one said striking the right balance would be easy. The most effective leaders, however, learn to negotiate this balance by both insight and intuition (187).

From another section a little further on:

Long ago, I developed a habit of wearing a watch with an old-fashioned sweep second hand. I like to hear it tick, knowing that every tick marks the passing of time. I like noisy clocks in my study—clocks I can hear marking the time. I can feel the passing of time in my bones, and that knowledge makes me want to be a more faithful steward of time tomorrow than I was today. Time will tell (189). 

—Albert Mohler, The Conviction to Lead: Twenty-five Principles for Leadership that Matters (Minneapolis: Bethany House, 2012).