A man who joined our fellowship came out of the Jehovah's Witnesses. Three months after his conversion, his daughter died. Then the woman he had been dating broke off their relationship.

If that weren't enough, his business collapsed; it's now half of what it used to be.

Today, this man comes to three weekend services. He can't seem to get enough of God. He's not ready for significant leadership right now. But he's on the way toward the healing that could one day make him a powerful servant leader.

When will that be?

I don't know for sure. The goal is not to get him well enough so he can get on with the real business of the church. He is the real business of the church. But as his brokenness heals, his potential for leadership rises.

Knowing when a broken person is ready to lead can be difficult to determine. Here are five tests I use to measure whether someone is ready.

1. Are they honest with themselves?

Recently, a former Navy pilot stood in a meeting and said that his ...