Hebrews 13:7 ESV
“Remember your leaders, those who spoke to you the word of God. Consider the outcome of their way of life, and imitate their faith.”
It’s hard to imitate what you can not see……
1). Consider the outcome of their way of life
2). Imitate their faith
If I don’t know what obstacles you’ve faced and the areas of your life that you’ve had to stand in faith on…. how can I imitate you? If all I see is your cold exterior and how welcoming you are on a platform yet in person very indifferent…. how can I imitate you? I know nothing about you… your lifestyle… your Godly convictions….furthermore……you know nothing about me.
The question to be asked at this point would be; How can an exchange be made to promote better communication & understanding? (How can a leader be trusted when those under them do not recognize who they are apart from the position they hold……..their title. Truth be told, you can have a title and still not be known.)
There is a lot of pressure to being a “Leader”….. a lot of responsibility…. a lot of people watching every little thing you do but yet they somehow miss the very things that make you who you are. They miss “your” part of the story. Which leaves them to fill in the blanks with what their eyes can only see, which leads to misinterpreting your intentions.
A story untold can not be imitated or better understood.
Those who are under you need examples of how you had to trust in God, how you survived the hard times, moments when you struggled but were delivered by the hand of God. This stems into so many topics
….. how you survived marriage
…… how you pressed forward to having a successful business
….. the journey you faced in raising your children
….. how you struggled with various temptations and how you over came them
…… how you dealt with ideas of suicide
…… how you dealt with anxiety & depression and low self esteem
….. how you were able to endure while going without, until you ultimately received the things in which you had faith for, etc.
When we can finally touch on topics such as these, then “Leaders”, you can provide deeper insight on how “We” God’s people can better “Imitate your faith”
Leaders,
•You don’t belong sitting silently in the crowd, you have words that are left unspoken, with a people desperately waiting to hear you speak…. Don’t Keep Them Waiting
•Don’t devalue yourselves because you matter. Your experience matters and God created you to be a voice in the earth. Your voice could be the very answer to a question someone has been struggling with for decades but had no relief from the torment because you chose not to release your testimony & your gift.
•Don’t deny yourselves from being fully used as instruments/ tools towards promoting God’s goodness & His faithfulness. Push fear aside and go forth!
Psalm 71:15-16 ISV
“I will declare your righteousness and your salvation every day, though I do not fully understand what the outcome will be. Lord God, I will come in the power of your mighty acts, remembering your righteousness—yours alone.”