The Rewards of Leadership
Fred Smith Sr.
The Rewards of Leadership
In every significant event, there has been a bold leader, an object or purpose, and an adversary. Leadership is most often the means God chooses to fulfill his purpose. When God wants something done, he turns to an individual—Moses, Paul, Luther, Wilberforce, Moody, Mother Teresa—name them. Great things rarely get done by consensus. According to the organizational axiom, "Power is always personal." Interestingly, the persons God picks as leaders aren't always the ones we would have picked. His leaders would not always have been elected. In a democracy, I doubt the apostle Paul would have made it. Leaders must be willing to be lonely. Albert Schweitzer, for instance, gave up a prosperous musical, medical, and academic career in an affluent society to obey the verse of Scripture "If any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his." He went to the Congo and spent the rest of his life developing a hospital at Lambaréné. Norman Cousins tells the story of visiting him, and as the canoe neared shore, Schweitzer waded out to meet him. Then he grabbed Cousins's luggage and started carrying it up the hill. Cousins, much younger than Schweitzer, protested that he could carry his own bag. Schweitzer turned and said, "Young man, in Lambaréné I am the leader, and I hope I will not find you difficult." Schweitzer, no doubt, faced days of loneliness. But leaders are sustained by knowing that they are part of something greater than themselves. God works through leaders who accept the responsibility. Often leading is hard work, but it also awards some profound benefits. I often say, "If the president and the janitor drew the same pay, I'd still want to be the president." What are some of these substantial benefits ...
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