Leadership…
This has been a rough few months in the life of Brad. However, recently, I have been able to step back and find some highlights that I haven’t seen before. I’m finding that I’m learning, which is weird because this whole time I’ve felt that I have just been sitting here waiting for the next thing to come along and I was so locked in on the wait that I didn’t see that in that waiting I was being formed by some things that were happening around me.
I’ve found that I’m learning a lot about leadership right now by looking at both good and bad examples being displayed around me. I’m beginning to see a some leadership traits from ‘leaders’ that are around me that are pretty disturbing. I’m observing leaders that lead from a distance, from their offices, that are hiding behind their fancy name plates, distinguished titles, and walls and walls of books. Leaders that keep their followers at an arms distance instead of allowing them into their whole life. Leaders who are more willing to stand and command rather than to jump in and develop. Leaders who have more inclination to attempt to impress you what they’ve learned instead of genuinely asking what you’re learning.
This all seems opposite as to what a leader in my mind should be. To me leaders shouldn’t be leading from a desk chair, to me leaders are to be in the trenches with the people they’re leading. Leaders should be working along side of the people they’re leading, walking with them, getting to know what they’re experiencing or what they’re learning and pushing their development forward, and encouraging them to become more than they think they’re capable of being.
I’ve also heard leadership explained in a story about a man that fell into a hole and had a hard time getting out of it until another man jumped in that same hole with him. When the first guy asked what he was doing, the second man said, “I’ve been in this hole before, I know the way out.” To me, that’s the definition of leadership. Someone who is willing to jump in holes and show people the way out, not leading from a distance. Instead I keep running into so called “leaders” who have no clue as to what is going on in the lives of the people they are supposedly, ‘leading’.
I don’t know of any part of Jesus’ ministry where he wasn’t sharing his life with his disciples. I don’t know if Jesus built boundaries in which his disciples weren’t allowed to ask certain questions. I don’t see Jesus leading from his office chair comfortably hiding behind degrees and titles (though he could have). I don’t see Jesus using his disciples to get a personal gain. However, I do see Jesus giving himself away to his followers. I do see Jesus in the bow of the boat in the middle of the storm, with his followers in the times of their greatest needs. I do see Jesus getting his hands dirty in the lives of the disciples, not leading from an office. I see Jesus grappling with the questions of his followers and answering them with grace, love, and humility and not pontificating about a theological argument.
So in this season of ‘learning’ I’m thankful for the leaders who model what it means to be a real leader. I’m thankful for their example, and I’m earnestly praying that I can in some ways be like them.
