How to Handle the Long Haul of Leadership
As of today, I’ve officially been a paid leader of people for a year. While this seems great at first glance, I never would have said I was cut out for the long haul of leadership until this past weekend during my 32nd birthday gathering.My wife had invited several friends to our home for a Friendsgiving / birthday party. During this party, a dear friend of ours joked that we should all take an assessment to determine which Hogwarts boarding house we belong to.For those unfamiliar with Hogwarts, it’s an academic wizarding institution described in detail by author J.K. Rowling in her bestselling Harry Potter book series. At Hogwarts, students are selected for their boarding house based on several explicit and implicit personality traits. According to the official Pottermore assessment, my gravitation towards leadership is no fluke. I was selected for Gryffindor's house.
What's Gryffindor?
Again, if you’re unfamiliar, Gryffindors exhibit courage, honor, courtesy, justice, and a readiness to help the weak. Not too shabby, right?While the wizarding stuff is quite silly overall, those leadership qualities align with what friends and family have told me over the years—even if I can’t readily see those qualities myself.
Related Post: A Leader Is One Who Knows the Way Goes the Way and Shows the Way
For example, my church seems to believe I am ready for leadership as well. This time, more seriously, an elder determined my readiness for leadership based on the qualities listed out in scripture:
Titus 1:6-9 - If anyone is above reproach, the husband of one wife, and his children are believers and not open to the charge of debauchery or insubordination. For an overseer, as God's steward, must be above reproach. He must not be arrogant or quick-tempered or a drunkard or violent or greedy for gain, but hospitable, a lover of good, self-controlled, upright, holy, and disciplined. He must hold firm to the trustworthy word as taught, so that he may be able to give instruction in sound doctrine and also to rebuke those who contradict it. (ESV)
Again, I don’t necessarily see it. However, the more I read that passage, the more I’m starting to think I’m not supposed to believe I’m ready. If I were certain of my leadership prowess, that would make me “arrogant,” which is not a quality of a leader, secular or spiritual.
Leadership Prayer
Since I can’t escape the responsibility of caring for the people God has put into my life, I pray the following prayer as often as I can remember:
Dear heavenly father, please minimize my screw-ups. I have a lot of them, and I don’t want the people who depend on me to suffer because of me. Wherever I fall short (and there are plenty of places where I fall short), please fill in the gaps. Dear lord, please make me into the leader people think I am. Please make me into the leader you’ve called me to be. Give me the strength to endure and the wherewithal to improve. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
Feel free to borrow my prayer for your regular conversations with God. I hope my words can help give you the push to step into your God-given leadership.