Habits or Heresy? A Book Review
by Mike Miller Vol. XII, No. 9, October 1999
Over the last decade, as training and books on leadership have become almost faddish in the American corporate scene as well as in the church, there has been one particular book, developed into its own curriculum, that has made unparalleled inroads into almost every type of organizational structure concerned about the quality of its leaders. Its praises have been sung by CEO's, directors of government agencies, politicians, professional athletes, pastors, and denominational leaders. All across America tens of thousands of people have adopted its tenets, swearing by its principles. I even had a seminary professor who admonished his students to either buy the book or be failures in ministry. The name of the book? 7 Habits of Highly Effective People by Stephen R. Covey.
Since so many churches and Christian organizations (including my own state denominational agency) are using 7 Habits leadership materials, I have been compelled to research it for myself to see if it is biblically based-or at the very least, compatible with sound doctrine. What I found was disturbing. Not only is Covey a Mormon (even authoring religious works), but 7 Habits is blatantly full of heresy.
Now it is crucial for me to note that everything in 7 Habits is not "bad" or "evil'. In fact, many of the things, Covey says are noble and worthy of consideration. Such is the way of much of the false doctrine found in the "Christian" cults, such as Mormonism. Heresy that finds its way into the church is usually quite attractive on the surface, sounding much like orthodoxy. For the purposes of this review, I will only touch on the highlights of each habit.
Habit 1: Be Proactive. On the positive side, a person is to take responsibility for his behavior -- not blaming it on environment. Covey teaches initiative -- getting things done. "Act or be acted upon" is one of his catchphrases. Each habit relates to this one.
Is this a Christ-like attitude, however? Did Jesus teach us to be proactive -- or to be submissive (Eph. 5:21)? Are we to make our own decisions-or die to self (Gal. 2:20)? Is there really room for this type of an attitude in a servant leader?
Covey also admonishes us to only focus our energies on the things over which we have control and not on "the weaknesses of other people, the problems in the environment, and circumstances over which [we] have no control." (p. 83) He allows no room for prayer (Mt. 9:38) and faith (Heb. 11 -6). Where would we be without great prayer warriors beseeching God on behalf of people and things they could not change themselves?
Habit 2: Begin with the End in Mind. We are instructed to "take charge of our own first creation, to write our own script. Put another way, Habit 1 says, ‘You are the creator.’ Habit 2 is the first creation." (p. 100). We are then told that "leadership is the first creation." (p. 101)
The Bible teaches that it is God and God alone who has the authority to write the "script" for the Christian. Philippians 2:13 says, "for it is God who works in you to will and to act according to His good purpose." We are constantly commanded to lay down our lives and follow Jesus -- not to determine our own destinies. Shouldn't we be teaching leaders in the church to develop such a personal relationship with the Savior that we submit to His leadership in everything? (See Acts 16:6-10, where Paul's script was not God's script.)
Habit 3: Put First Things First. Covey extols the virtues of an "independent will" which takes charge of the "second creation, the physical creation." (p. 147) The object is to move from dependence to independence, not being "dependent on any other person or thing for the effective management of our life." (p. 179).
An independent will!? Whatever happened to "Thy will be done"? Is not the Christian, whether a leader or not, to be completely surrendered to the will of God? If this is not enough in itself to send up a red flag for any Christian, then what is?
Habit 4: Think Win/Win. Described as a "frame of mind and heart that constantly seeks mutual benefit in all human interactions" (p.207), this habit flies in the face of everything Jesus taught us about servant leadership. Where would we be if Jesus had thought win/win? Would He have gone to the cross? (See Mark 9:35, Luke 9:23, John 13:14-15, 15:13, and Philippians 3:7-11).
Habit 5: Seek First to Understand, Then to Be Understood. This habit is predominantly sound in that it teaches that we need to understand a person's frame of reference before attempting to communicate effectively to that person. Covey speaks of empathy and understanding -- certainly biblical themes. However, his instruction falls short at its most fundamental level: The basis for understanding ("diagnosing", p.243) is not the Bible. Furthermore, his basis for communicating ("prescribing", p.243) is not the Bible.
Much emphasis is placed on feelings and emotionalism, which, by the way, are distinctively Mormon approaches to understanding truth and reality. The Christian leader can only truly understand and communicate truth in light of God's word (2 Timothy 3:16-17). It must be the basis of our understanding of the people to whom we minister.
Habit 6: Synergize. While building on the concepts of natural integration and interdependence, this habit is described as "the true test and manifestation of all of the other habits put together", and defined as a "miracle". "It catalyzes, unifies, and unleashes the greatest powers within people." (p. 262) Again, Covey removes God from the picture, proclaiming miraculous inner powers totally apart from the biblically supernatural.
Furthermore, in an effort to promote unity, he crosses the line from teaching a respect for other beliefs and opinions, to an outright affirmation of them (pp. 274-275, 284). Here we see an open door for ecumenism, valuing and affirming beliefs that we might see as "wrong" (p. 284). This "don't rock the boat" mentality was never promoted in the Scripture, as we are called to proclaim the truth fearlessly, without regard to whom we might offend (Luke 12:51-53; Galatians 1:10).
Habit 7: Sharpen the Saw. Here, the combined "principles of balanced self-renewal" give us the most blatantly unbiblical habit of all. The Bible clearly teaches that it is God alone who renews (Titus 3:5), and that, left to our own devices, we are bound for destruction.
Even when he breaches the idea of spirituality, Covey places "immersion in great literature or great music" and "communicat[ing] with nature" on the same level as "daily prayerful meditation on the scriptures" (p. 292).
I have herein only scratched the surface of 7 Habits. Again, let me state that there are some good and noble principles within the book, but that is not the point. The point lies with the questions, "is this the kind of material by which the leaders of Christ's church should be trained? Or should the Bible be the primary textbook and the standard for all others?" Only you can decide for yourself about 7 Habits. I pray that your decision is a biblically informed one (see Colossians 2:8).
[Rev. Mike Miller is pastor of First Baptist Church, Easton, MD.]