That’s because leadership is primarily a combination of opportunity and
attitude. Anyone can lead who has passion for a cause and can inspire others to
rally to it. Good leadership is not about power so much as influence – ideally
influencing people to serve others and do good.
Gen. Lord told the campers: “God has a plan for you. You don’t know what
it will be, but you have to prepare yourself for it.” That, of course, falls right in
line with the guiding philosophy of New Church schooling: education for use.
God, of course, should be the ultimate leader in our lives, and He leads not
from power but from love. He leads by influx, flowing unseen into our lives as
a positive influence.
There are all kinds of leaders – authoritarian, charismatic, those just put in
the role, and those who lead by example. They can be good or bad. And anyone
can be a leader.
When Jesus taught His disciples about leadership, He set the example. He
told them that the princes of the Gentiles exercised dominion over them, “but
it shall not be so among you: whosoever will be great among you, let him be
your servant. Even as the Son of Man came not to be ministered unto, but to
minister, and to give His life a ransom for many.” (Matthew 20:25-28)
The servant leader is the ultimate model of leadership because it is based
on how the Lord leads. Whether in business or politics, education or a family,
this is a person – and any and all of us can aspire to this – who is humble and
dedicated to a cause that is larger than him or herself. Such a leader looks first
to serve, and then to lead others in common cause toward a goal. And the
more such a person leads with morality, integrity, charity and faith – a “certain
trumpet” sounding a clear call toward a goal – the better the leader, and the
surer the followers.
“For if the trumpet makes an uncertain sound, who will prepare himself
for the battle?” (I Corinthians 14:8)
Leadership is knowing where you need to go and why, and leading others
to a goal they all believe in. It is all about the call of that certain trumpet.
(BMH)
follow the leader
A recent Wall Street Journal cartoon spoke volumes without saying a word.
It simply showed Moses coming down the mountain with the two tablets of
the Ten Commandments. Shuffling up the other way was a modern corporate
dweeb bent over a cell phone, listening for the ubiquitous Siri to tell him where
to go.
Write your own caption: Who are you following? Who is your God?
(BMH)
501