We Lead for God’s Change in Our Community


Cats do what they want. So do people. Have you ever tried to lead people? People are challenging. People are difficult to lead. They make you wish for a herd of cats. For example, if I asked you to do something out of the ordinary right now, like stand up, many of you would stand up. Because many of you are very cooperative and willing. You’re team players. I appreciate you. I appreciate you all the more because much of the time I’m not like you. I resist instructions from others. I’m a “why” person. I always have to know why I am being asked to do something. It has to make perfect sense to me. If it doesn’t immediately seem compelling, I resist and get cranky. I mention this because some of you here I like me. If I tell you to stand up, your initial impulse is to resist. You don’t want anyone telling you what to do. You may do it, but you’ll show your protest by being slow about it. By your slowness in getting up, you will show what an independent thinker you are. I understand. That’s me, too. I understand it. Though that doesn’t make it necessarily much easier to lead people.

Sometimes I feel like Kevin Bacon in Animal House, shouting “All is well!” while people run over me. Have you ever felt like that?

People are difficult to lead in a single direction with a common purpose.. Any leader has to learn lessons of leadership to accomplish that awesome task. Moses had to learn his lessons. Moses, of course, is recognized in the Jewish faith as the greatest leader and prophet ever in their history. But Moses wasn’t born a great leader. He learned some leadership along the way.

In our Exodus reading we find Moses surrounded by people who have come to him with their problems. He is their judge and arbiter over all their problems. You are fighting with your uncle? Go see Moses. Your neighbor has encroached on your tent? Go see Moses. You don’t have enough food? Go see Moses. Moses was the leader and the only leader for easily, thousands of people. There may have been a half million Israelites at this time. Moses is trying to lead this many people by himself. And Moses is exhausted. How do I know this? You can tell by reading the story. Earlier in the story (chapter 17) the people are grumbling about lack of water. Guess who they come to? Moses answers them, “Why do you come to me? How about complaining to the Lord?”
Moses was so frustrated he named the place, “Testing and Quarreling.” (17.7)

I think I’ve been on vacation at that place.


But Moses keeps on leading the people, doing things the same way and hoping for a different result – which one wag has said is the definition of insanity. Moses is probably feeling a little bit crazy when his father-in-law, Jethro, pulls him aside:


“Moses, what’s going on here? Why are you doing all this, and all by yourself, letting everybody line up before you from morning to night?”

Moses answers, “The people have problems. I try fix them. I’m doing it for God.”

Jethro responds, “You are going about it the wrong way. What you are doing is not good. You can’t do it alone. You need to get some help.” (18.13-18)

Moses couldn’t do it all himself. He needed other leaders to manage and organize and supervise and do the tasks that needed to be done both large and small. Listen to what else Jethro said to Moses:

“You need to keep a sharp eye out for competent men – men who fear God, men of integrity, men who are incorruptible – and appoint them as leaders over groups organized by the thousand, by the hundred, by fifty, and by ten. . .If you handle the work this way, you’ll have the strength to carry out whatever God commands you, and the people in their settings will flourish also.” 18.21-23 Eugene Peterson’s The Message


Perhaps the greatest task of a leader -besides casting vision - is identifying and raising up other leaders. This is true in business. And it is especially true in an organic, volunteer organization like the church. A few weeks ago I met with my confirmation class. There were fourteen students. I knew that I couldn’t lead fourteen students on my own. I needed help. So I recruited an adult for every student in the group to serve as mentors to these students. These adults are helping me teach the curriculum, develop relationship with the students, and most importantly model the Christian life. They are doing what would have been impossible for me to do alone.


How do I choose them? I looked for spiritual growth. I looked for evidence of living the life. I look for men and women who fear God and have integrity. There are many others who I could have chosen as well.

Jim Collins, in his book Good to Great for the Social Sectors says that getting “the right people on the bus” is always the precursor to fulfilling a great vision. Vision proceeds from people who care about the cause and are ready to do what it takes to pursue excellence.

Raising up other leaders is a leadership lesson that I am learning. It doesn’t come naturally to me. For one thing, I’ve never like asking people to do anything. I never liked the phone. Dating, or at least starting to date, was always torture, because well, you have to first ask. As a pastor, I have always been afraid of asking too much of my church folks. I always made excuses and reasons to for people to say no before they have said no to me. But I have come around to the conclusion that when I ask people to step up and serve, step up and lead, I am not giving them a burden, I am giving them an opportunity. When I see potential in someone and I invite them to develop that potential, well, I’m doing what God wants me to do so they can do what God wants them to do. I am giving them the gift of leadership. The yeses and nos can be sorted out between them and God.

The church needs leaders. Because in a very real sense, becoming a leader is another way of saying becoming a disciple. Disciples are never bystanders. A disciple is always going and doing what the Master is doing. Disciples very soon become leaders through which the Kingdom’s power is mightily displayed. Disciples teach. Disciples counsel. Disciples pray. Disciples witness. Disciples organize. Disciples give. Disciples serve. These are the tasks of a good leader. We can’t have too much of that.

New leadership results in new energy and rekindled passion. Moses was “wearing the people out” with the way he leading. Raising up new leaders is a gift and sign of what God is doing among all of us.

You have heard it said, “Too many chiefs, not enough Indians.” Good leadership finds a way of involving more people and getting more accomplished, not less. Good leaders understand they are serving something bigger than themselves. Good leaders know, “This isn’t about me.” The church needs leaders who are humble, unselfish, and fiercely passionate about the mission of making disciples and creating community.

And our community needs great leaders. As I interact with our community I know good leadership when I see it and I know it when it is lacking. I see the effects of poor leadership, the costs in dollars and cents, and the cost in people and relationships. Those costs are hard to measure but that doesn’t make them less costly and dearly missed. We have in our midst some real leaders in our community.

“Leadership is influence,” its been said. And by that standard we have people who are positively influencing our community for God’s purposes and God’s change. Some ways are obvious, some are more subtle. But this is the witness of the church. If these leaders and this church were not here, what great a loss it would be to our community!