Follow the Leaders?
Do you ever try to do everything yourself?
How is that working for you?
Moses' father-in-law said to him, "What you are doing is not good. 18 You will surely wear yourself out, both you and these people with you. For the task is too heavy for you; you cannot do it alone. - Exodus 18:17-18
There is an expression I heard way too many times in my youth. If you want something done right, do it yourself.
Really?
These days, it is more like this. If you want something done, solicit as much help as you can before you start.
This is the advice Moses' father-in-law was giving him. You will burn yourself out, he said. You can't do it all yourself.
Each time we volunteer to be on a Kairos team, we relearn this message. There is no way to get everything done alone.
Having spent the bulk of my career, and now my life, as a manager of people, someone who is entrusted with the development of others to the advantage of the company in achieving specific goals, the idea of letting God handle the details and leaving it in His hands is anathema.
That's my job, I would say, and that is how I usually feel. Like Moses, I would take on the task of taking on the tasks myself, so that I could be more effective in training others in how I wanted it done.
But his father-in-law is not just telling Moses to instruct others in what to do. He is saying that Moses should trust others to be the judges based on the guidelines he gives them.
There is a balance to be achieved. Effective delegation means trusting the people one delegates to. Without the key elements of trust and clarity of purpose and function, chaos reigns.
It would be great if it was as simple as saying, you do this and you do that. But it doesn't work that way.
Things go wrong and people need to know they can make a decision without having to track down the boss for every little thing.
This past weekend, we shared God's love with twenty-six women, some of whom had planned to be on weekends before but life got in the way. Some of these women will be leaders on future weekends and that will help us grow this ministry.
What they will learn is that working together, with God at the helm, we can reign in the chaos, trust each other to use our best judgment, and show that all can be true leaders, guided by the Spirit, and doing God's work.
I too, continue to learn that it isn't about playing follow the leader. It is about being leaders for God.
More to come...
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