Through Colored Glasses

Tom R. Harper

Fearing this would be the final time he’d address his management team and board as CEO, Leo Perkins prepared to give the presentation of his life.

“So, tell us your new plan,” the chairman said, “and explain why it’s better than your last one.”

In Through Colored Glasses, author Tom Harper addresses a leadership challenge identified in Proverbs 16:2: “All a person’s ways seem pure to them, but motives are weighed by the Lord” (NIV).

Leo Perkins wants to save the company, but his real motivation is to prevent a blow to his ego. His colleagues are dominated by their own ambitions and fears. It’s as if they all wear colored glasses, blinding them to reality.

In a story full of twists and confrontations, one executive boldly speaks truth to Leo. Her persistence – and the Word of God – lead to an outcome no one expects.

In the afterword, the author presents Scripture-based lessons helping leaders unlock reality in their own organizations:

  • How to reveal people’s hidden ambitions
  • Encouragement for fighting sin as a leader
  • Developing the skill of discernment

Interview on Solid Steps Radio – “On this week’s show author Tom Harper talks about leadership and the role that your worldview plays. Whether it’s in a company or in your home, how you see people (and how they see you) matters – to those you care for, and to those you are leading.”    Click to listen

Endorsements

  • Leaders lead people, not organizations. Tom Harper brings this out brilliantly in his new book, Through Colored Glasses. This engaging, contextual leadership parable will enlighten you about what happens behind the scenes, when people attempt to lead others.

    Dr. Richard Blackaby
    Dr. Richard Blackaby President of Blackaby Ministries International, and author of Spiritual Leadership and Living Out of the Overflow
  • Understanding and defining reality requires leaders to be truth seekers and tellers. This book illustrates the power of truth and the spiritual insight that the Bible provides to guide leadership.

    David Novak
    David Novak Co-founder of Yum! Brands, and author of Taking People with You and O Great One
  • Infusing Patrick Lencioni’s leadership fable motif with marketplace discipleship, Tom Harper’s Through Colored Glasses encourages business leaders who follow Christ to realize their impact at work. A weary CEO, a mutinous CFO, a consultant, and a praying manager meet at the intersection of faith and corporate America, demonstrating how biblical witness is effective even in difficult places.

    Thom S. Rainer
    Thom S. Rainer President and CEO of LifeWay Christian Resources; best-selling author of I Am a Church Member and Simple Church
  • In his intriguing book, Through Colored Glasses: How Great Leaders Reveal Reality, Tom Harper presents a fable that is sure to capture your imagination while prompting serious thoughts about your effectiveness as a leader.  Your philosophy and practice of leadership will never be the same.

    Bob Russell
    Bob Russell Retired senior pastor, Southeast Christian Church, and author of After 50 Years of Ministry: 7 Things I'd Do Differently and 7 Things I'd Do the Same
  • In Tom Harper's latest book, Through Colored Glasses, his fast-paced parable takes you into the leadership struggles men and women face every day. You witness the strongholds of pride and fear and how the sin of both distorts thinking and doing. But God knows the motivation of the heart and always presents a way home. Truly a perfect book for anyone in leadership as it has the power to both encourage and convict.

    Tami Heim
    Tami Heim President & CEO of Christian Leadership Alliance
  • Tom Harper has taken an easy-to-read leadership fable and not only helped us with leadership, he turned it into a powerful teaching about life.

    Ron Edmondson
    Ron Edmondson Pastor and author of The Mythical Leader
  • Leading people can be tough work, especially when we don’t know their motives, beliefs, and biases. Tom’s book is a clever tale that delivers a profound lesson. You’ll not only be engaged by the easy-to-read story, but you’ll gain new insights on how to understand the people you’re called to lead.

    Kent Evans
    Kent Evans Author of Wise Guys: Unlocking Hidden Wisdom From the Men Around You
  • If our leaders are not passionately driven by the right beliefs, we are headed for disaster. At the same time, if believers cannot lead, we are headed nowhere. In his book, Through Colored Glasses, Tom Harper mixes right beliefs and leadership skill. His thoughtful, engaging presentation of biblical leadership is a sorely needed message for Christians in leadership positions both in the workplace and in the church.

    R. Albert Mohler, Jr.
    R. Albert Mohler, Jr. President of the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary
  • Tom Harper combines story, time-tested principles, and innovative ideas to help leaders see and conquer tomorrow’s challenges. You will be absorbed by the fast-paced story and biblical insights that can transform your leadership.

    Bob Whitesel
    Bob Whitesel PhD, award-winning author, consultant, and founding professor of Wesley Seminary at Indiana Wesleyan University
  • The Holy Scriptures provide timeless principles on leadership. In his book Through Colored Glasses, Tom Harper brings those biblical principles to life in a moving parable that illustrates the power of humility in leadership and the impact of turning your business over to God.

    Mark Deterding
    Mark Deterding Author of Leading Jesus’ Way
  • Story is a powerful way to convey deep spiritual truths that we can relate to on a personal level. In this book, you will find yourself identifying with the struggles of Leo and those in his life as he wrestles with decisions we’ve all faced. A great read with important spiritual principles to glean. Well done, Tom! I highly recommend every leader read this book!

    Os Hillman
    Os Hillman Author of TGIF Today God Is First and president of Marketplace Leaders
  • Tom Harper has written a brilliant modern-day parable. Through Colored Glasses will take you on an adventure of virtue and vice, morality and manipulation. This intriguing fable masterfully yields up the truth gradually and gently until your heart hungers for more of God’s ways. At the end of the book, discussion starters, poignant questions and scriptural context assist you in finding biblical answers for your own leadership challenges.

    Dr. Wayne Cordeiro
    Dr. Wayne Cordeiro President, New Hope Christian College and author of Leading on Empty: Refilling Your Tank and Renewing Your Passion

Reviews

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Chapter Excerpts

About the Author

Tom Harper is CEO of Networld Media Group and publisher of BiblicalLeadership.com, a free online source of encouragement, tips and how-to for leaders seeking to apply biblical principles in their daily lives. He is the author of Inner Threat: Combatting Christian Leadership’s Natural Enemy (DeepWater Books, 2022), Servant Leader Strong: Uniting Biblical Wisdom and High-Performance Leadership (DeepWater, 2019) and Through Colored Glasses: How Great Leaders Reveal Reality (DeepWater, 2018). Tom attends Southeast Christian Church in Louisville, Ky. with his wife and three children.

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