Lead Like a
Shepherd
By Larry Osborne
In one sense, every leader leads by
example, even those who don’t realize
it. That’s because at the end of the day,
every follower is a boss watcher. They
take their cues from what we do, not
what we say. It doesn’t matter if they’re
a volunteer, a member of a congregation,
a part of a small group, or one of our
kids.
As a former youth pastor, I learned
this the hard way. I had the privilege
of leading two youth ministries that
appeared on the surface to be very
successful. They were dynamic, filled
with lots of kids, and life changing. At
the time, I thought we were making a
huge long-term impact for the kingdom.
But ten years later I realized the impact
of my ministry was a lot less than I
had thought. The majority of the kids
who had been in my youth groups had
grown up to become far more like their
parents than the students they were in
high school or college. They adopted
the values, standards, and priorities of
their parents. Fortunately there were
many cases where the biblical values,
standards, and priorities I’d taught
them as high schoolers and collegians
aligned with what was modeled in their
10 • Solutions
homes. There were also some outliers
who permanently broke free of the
family mold. But in most cases, it was
the gravitational pull of their parents’
example that won the day.
While I was thrilled that a large number
continued to walk with God, I came to
realize my role was a lot smaller than
I’d thought. My example and teaching
nudged them along the way. But it was
the example set by the authority figures
and leaders they spent the majority
of their time with that had the most
influence upon the kind of men and
women they would become. I shouldn’t
have been surprised.
JESUS SAID IT WOULD BE THIS WAY
Jesus said, “Everyone who is fully trained
will be like their teacher” (Luke 6:40).
Notice what he didn’t say. He didn’t say
that a fully trained disciple will become
like what his teacher teaches. He said
a fully trained disciple will become like
his teacher. One of the most important
lessons every leader needs to learn is
summed up in the old saying, “What you
are is what you’ll get.” It’s not what we
say. It’s not what we teach. It’s who we