Leadership 101

Of course, leader development is something we can be doing now even as new initiatives and possibilities roll out. So don’t quit your day dream. But also remember that most of us visionaries can have the tendency to live in our dreams rather than live out our dreams. Then we end up dreaming instead of living. Anybody can be great there. So how can we make what was once nonexistent a reality?

It is to remember that it’s not the idea. It’s the execution. It’s not the idea. It’s the people involved. It’s not just the idea it’s the context. It’s not even about the resources. It’s about resourcefulness. Any one can say I don’t have the time, or the financial backing, but leaders somehow find a way.

This ultimately means we have to give, sacrifice, and die to give life to something worth fighting for. It also means we’ve got to have intentioned consumption. We must consume to create.

We were programmed to consume. Two ways we are programmed to consume more is planned obsolescence and perceived obsolescence. With that in mind, look at this text: Acts 20:35

“In everything I did, I showed you that by this kind of hard work we must help the weak, remembering the words the Lord Jesus himself said: ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.’ ”

“It’s better to give than to receive.” Lets take a closer look at that particular sentence. Let me rephrase this and perhaps it will take on a more full meaning. I’ll say it again, “It’s better to give than to receive.” Now let’s try it this way: It’s better to create than consume. Interesting right? As you know, American culture is all about consuming. So what is consumption?

Consumption is the using up of a resource for your energy, enrichment, or amusement. Creation by the way must consume. Humanity, animals, plants; any living thing has to have energy. There’s physical energy such as food and calories. And then there’s emotional energy through kinship, friendship, affinity. Animals live in groups; flocks, herds, prides. Plants cluster together. We have gardens and forests. People do the same. We have cities, towns, and families. And generally the laws of nature demonstrate that something has to die or be converted to give life to something else. From sunlight to your salad, from making a fire with wood to eating some meat, something must die for more life to sustain. To quote The Lion King: “It’s circle life!”

Ok so lets go back to this again. “It’s better to give than receive.” Well you’ve got to have something to give it don’t you? You’ve got to have a gift.

By giving something, you make use of time, energy or a resource such as money in a way that produces more life than it would if sold or retained. In this way to give is to create. Producing something, especially something original that is given away is powerful. So powerful that people who discover it, often change the course of human history. Just one example would be open source software… Platforming is something we all can do. This by the way is part of the sharing of the gospel. The Great Commission is good news through giftedness. Giving is how you can make a difference. In all of Scripture God is never depicted as the taker, Instead He is seen as the great giver!

We are never more like God than when we give. God so loved the world that He gave. And when we give we are acting in the line of God’s creativity and potential. You were created to create. And creativity is fundamentally giving away out of ourselves, it’s actually moving the present toward the future, by giving away our thoughts, passions and resources to others. You actually have a hand in the future by what you do in the present.

I’ll close with this question I often ask myself, maybe it will help you: What investment, what contribution, what sacrifice will most produce good through my life?