From Your District Lay Leader …
We begin each day with a degree of certainty and consistency – the sun will rise in the east and set in the west; the ocean’s tide will ebb and flow throughout the day, and the earth will circumnavigate the sun. We long for this same level of certainty and consistency in all aspects of our lives, but if we honestly reflect on the past eighteen months, nothing is certain or consistent! So how about leadership? We tend to lose focus on consistently modeling the way … and start to focus not on what things should be done but how they should be done and what others should believe or do. Sound familiar? So, what can we do about it and how do we focus on our consistency?
Jesus was effective as a leader, especially with His disciples, because He not only modeled behaviors but created rituals of the qualities and behaviors of prayer, faith, forgiveness, compassion, serving others, and humility. He didn’t have to change His behaviors to match a situation. He was able to consistently model these behaviors and rituals because they were a part of His nature.
Jesus saw the sick and compassion led to healing. He saw sin and offered forgiveness. He prayed and gave thanks in all things, always. On the evening He was betrayed, Jesus rose from the table and washed the disciples’ feet. Jesus knew that His words were enough, but His actions spoke louder. Jesus practiced leadership through consistently living His life and purpose. His credibility was well established and reinforced by His consistency. Hebrews 13:8 (NLT) tells us that:
“Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.”
As we seek to emulate Jesus’ leadership, we should remember that consistency speaks to our credibility, our credibility speaks to our character, and our character speaks to our effectiveness. Leadership isn’t just about what we say, know or do; it’s about who we are. We can become better leaders by increasing our consistency. Titus 2:7-8 (CEV) offers good advice on where to begin:
“Always set a good example for others. Be sincere and serious when
you teach. Use clean language that no one can criticize. Do this, and
your enemies will be too ashamed to say anything against you.”
Adapted from a “Lead Like Jesus” devotional article
Blessings,
John Meeuwissen