“I am not a leader, I’m a follower!” “I’m more of a worker bee.” “Just tell me what to do and I’ll do it, but don’t ask me to lead anything.” I hear these comments, and more, when we invite people to take more of a leadership role at Cross. These responses don’t bother me; I completely understand that most people don’t “feel” like a Leader. The challenge I see is that God tells us something different.
Life isn’t directed by how we feel. Ok, that isn’t true for most people; most of us do make many decisions by how we feel about a product to purchase or what activities we enjoy. But, God calls us to use our feelings for truth, not be controlled by them. Leadership is a great example of this reality. It doesn’t matter if I feel like a Leader, God tells us that as a Christian we ARE Leaders. The question isn’t if we are Leaders or not; the question is how do we grow in courage and skill to embrace our leadership roles.
There are many places in life we don’t feel like we are living up to our status. It could be you don’t feel like a good friend or family member. Maybe you think you are a bad parent or spouse. God reminds us that our feelings often deceive us and we need to measure those feelings against God’s Holy Word. Matthew 28: Go and make disciples (followers). How can we do this if we aren’t Leaders? Matthew 5: Love your neighbors and your enemies! Love is defined by being the first to forgive and the first to sacrifice for the benefit of others. There is no denying it that we, followers of Jesus, are in fact Leaders in this world.
The sermon series that begins at the Fall Kick-Off on September 8-9 will attempt to address this reality. The reality that each and every follower of Jesus, is in fact, a Leader and our greatest leadership skill we can develop is following where our Lord leads.
God does not need an army of independent, self-directed Leaders, Christ needs an army of people who will point others to Him and lead others in the path of righteousness and faithfulness. The greatest leadership we can offer is to set an example in truth and love. This type of leadership is not a cop out, instead it is the most powerful and influential type of leadership there is–teaching others by doing, leading through loving and leading by following.
Join us this Fall to embrace our identity, role and calling as followers of Jesus and Leaders of others. Join together as we spur one another on in love and good deeds for the Glory of God and in the process, be encouraged in your own journey of faith! Don’t forget to get connected in Christ in a community this Fall by stopping by the kiosk on Sunday or checking things out online or on our app!
In Christ,
Erik Gauss
