There’s usually not much time for me to watch much T.V. during the week, so my primary way of catching up on the news is by logging onto Yahoo and reading the news updates. If you’re at all like me, you’ll scroll through to the updates that are most appealing and spend time reading up on what’s new, often losing track of time. But it doesn’t seem like many weeks go by before I come across another article about a leader who has failed, usually in a moral or ethical way. Their stardom mixed with the notoriety brings them a lot of scrutiny from others and more importantly shows us just how hard it is to be a leader.
Whether it was the lessons from your parent(s) or a public figure in your life, we have all been influenced by others to some degree, some greater than others. It doesn’t matter if you live or work in a secular or non-secular environment, there is leaders, people with the ability to have an influence on others’ lives.
As Christians, followers of Jesus, we have all been called to bring positive influence to others around us and in the world, and through this influence we are to lead others to a life and faith in Jesus. So, plainly stated then, leadership translates into influencing others. We are to be an influence for Jesus and the kingdom.
What ends up becoming difficult and a challenge for most of us then is mimicking the actions of Jesus in our pursuit to be “like” Him. We’ve all seen those wristbands with “WWJD” on them, standing for What Would Jesus Do. They are a good reminder to live as Christ would and to be a positive influence to others. The problem with the concept of simply mimicking what we think Jesus would do is that we often miss the deeper side to Jesus out of which His behaviors flow. If we mimic only behaviors then we will never get it right because we will do what we think Jesus would do and possibly mix it with our own rationalizations based off our desired outcome of the situation. Thus, running the risk of not doing what Jesus would do at all.
What we have to understand is that our actions flow out of our identity. If we strive to mimic actions, we will always end up failing. That is why Paul writes in Romans 12:2 “And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.” By transforming and renewing our mind we change our nature. So what we need is not improvement of our behavior or to imitate actions, but replacement of our nature and a transformed mind. Out of this we will form our identity in Christ and from our identity our actions will flow. As we put on the mind of Christ as Paul states in Colossians 3:10, and as we allow His will to be ours, then our Christ-like actions will come naturally.
Kevin Mannoia, author of Integrity Factor, was one the professors of my Masters program in Leadership at APU. While expanding on this topic, he used the analogy of an iceberg to demonstrate this point. When looking at the surface of an iceberg, you only see one-tenth of the entire mound of ice. Nine-tenths of the iceberg is under water. But it is the top portion that takes on the storms and extreme challenges of weather. Similar to our life, the top portion of the iceberg is what people see of us; our actions, performance, etc. The bottom portion of the iceberg is what keeps the top portion grounded during storms and allows the top to stay sturdy. In our life, the bottom of the iceberg is our identity. It is out of our identity in Christ that our actions flow. It is out of our identity that we are able to perform under pressure, overcome the storms in our lives, and lead others without failing. It is when we forget about our core, our identity, and begin basing success and leadership off the sole actions and performance of ourselves that we begin to lose our foundation. When the iceberg gets too top heavy it’s bound to crash, crumble or fall apart. The buoyancy level and the core beneath have to be strong enough to support the top during the storms. This is why many leaders end up failing because they base their success primarily off their actions and performance (the top of the iceberg) and neglect the wellspring of life (the bottom of the iceberg) from which their actions flow.
So we have to tend to our core, tend to our relationship with Jesus from which our identity is built and made solid. Instead of strictly looking at the outward performance, actions, and characteristics of leaders in your life and trying to mimic them, strive to seek God and work on your foundation. Spend time in the word and in prayer, and allow God to take you through the crucibles of life, those shaping moments. Out of this strong core, your actions and behaviors will be built, and being Christ-like to others will come naturally.
