A child shall lead them...

We were sitting around our dinner table after a meal. It was December—that time of year when everything starts getting dark around 4 pm where we live. It's not my favorite time of the year. 

My 12-year-old daughter said, "I need to read a chapter from the Bible today."

I said, "All good." And as she walked away from the kitchen toward our living room, she said to me and my wife, 
"Will you join me tonight?"

How could we resist?

I said, "Sure, we'd love to join you." And we did.

The next day, I thought about how our daughter initiated reading the Bible together with a simple but compelling question: "Will you join me tonight?" 

The more I thought about how all this happened, I began to see what a beautiful moment it was for all of us. 

Think with me here for a moment.

What if real spiritual leadership is initiating? In this case, my 12-year-old daughter initiated reading the Bible together with her mom and dad. 

Could it be this simple? 
Whoever initiates is the real leader.

Lots of people have leadership roles and titles. Many have attended leadership conferences and can talk a good leadership game—complete with the latest leadership lingo. However, they may not be real leaders. Why? Real leadership is initiating—and whoever initiates in any given situation is the real leader. In this case, my wife and I were led beautifully by a 12-year-old girl who asked a simple but very inviting question.

Did you get that? She led with a question. Not a statement. 

Breaking news: 
The person who talks the most or loudest isn't necessarily the leader. 

Why? Because leadership isn't essentially about...
* talking
* big ideas
* making statements
* casting vision
* organizing teams
* leadership language
* or the next cool leadership thing.

Whoever initiates IS the leader.

There. I said it again.

Perhaps great leadership happens in small but powerful moments—spontaneously by the Holy Spirit—from just about anyone who dares to initiate.

The next time you see someone initiate with others in a positive way, I encourage you to let that person know what you saw—and how beautiful it was.

Why?

Here's why: What gets celebrated gets replicated. 

And we could sure use some more real spiritual leadership.

Can you finish this sentence: Whoever initiates....

I dare you to think a little deeper about leadership...

We'd love to connect with you.
   Instagram      Facebook        Twitter     

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Two fun opportunities for encouragement & equipping in 2024!

Image
Opportunity #1 The Peoria Area Leadership Community  i nvites  you  to invest  a morning together... *  Encouraging  each other in the spirit of Romans 1:12 *  Exploring   the teaching genius of Jesus *  Equipping  pastors, volunteer teachers, and small group leaders Save the Date... (every 2nd Thursday, Jan-April 2024) * Thursday, January 11, 2024 * 8:30 AM to 12 Noon * All invited. Men and women. Volunteers and paid ministry leaders. Where? White Rose Fellowship Church 505 S.Main St Bellevue, IL 61604 Tuition * $15 for training materials. * If you, your church/ministry, or anyone you bring can’t afford the tuition, no problem. Join us! Just let me know ahead of time. *  RSVP This is how we do training! Opportunity #2 The Rantoul Area Disciplemaking Leadership Commuinty  i nvites  you  to invest  a morning together... *  Encouraging  each other in the spirit of Romans 1:12 *  Exploring   the teaching genius of Jesus *  Equipping  pastors, volunteer teachers, and small group leaders S
Read more

So many people trying to find friendship and community...

Image
If video above doesn't appear, go here . So many people trying to find friendship and community. Here's a thought. Instead of trying to "find" community, what if instead you sought to "build" community right where you live , work , play , and church ? But how does one "build" community? As a general rule, I try to take all of my questions to Jesus and the Bible.  So, how did Jesus "build" community?   This is where I invite you to do your own study on how Jesus used meals to connect with people. At a minimum, you could quickly search " Jesus eating. " What can we say with certainty about Jesus and eating in the Bible? It seems that Jesus enjoyed eating meals with all sorts of people—and the meal wasn't about the food—it was how Jesus connected with people. Can you think of a better way to connect with people? Perhaps this is why Paul lists "hospitality" as a requirement for all leaders in the church (1 Timothy 3:
Read more

You are invited to a community of encouragement and equipping...

Image
"Always valuable spending time with you and the others in our disciplemaking learning community."   —Pastor Tracey Pfeiffer Encounter Church, East Peoria, IL Rantoul, IL The Rantoul Area Disciplemaking Leadership Community  i nvites  you  to invest  a morning together... *  Encouraging  each other in the spirit of Romans 1:12 *  Exploring   the teaching genius of Jesus *  Equipping  pastors, volunteer teachers, and small group leaders Save the Date...  (every 4th Thursday, Jan-April 2024) * Thursday, March 28th, 2024 * 8:30 AM to 12 Noon * All invited. Men and women. Volunteers and paid ministry leaders. Where? Jesus Is the Way Ministries 602 Liberty Ave Rantoul, IL 61866 Tuition * $15 for  The Teaching Genius of Jesus  book * If you, your church/ministry, or anyone you bring can’t afford the tuition, no problem. Join us! Just let me know ahead of time. *  RSVP For more info on the content of the book, go here . Video Above: This is  how  we do training! The Peoria Area Disci
Read more