Day 86 – The greatest leaders lead by example, serving instead of being served.
Today’s Reading: 1 Kings 12 – 16
1 Kings 12:7 “And they said to him, “If you will be a servant to this people today and serve them, and speak good words to them when you answer them, then they will be your servants forever.”
Today’s reading is the beginning of the Changing of King’s and the split of the Kingdom’s. (There will now be Judah and Israel, so try and not get lost, I’ve written out a table of all the Kings before. It helped me keep them in order.)
Jesus said, those who want to be first must be last.
Solomon’s son, Rehoboam, had the chance to be a great King. In seeking wisdom for how to reign, he went to the elders, but they told him to serve the people and loosen their yoke. Rehoboam didn’t like what they said so he sought the advice of his unwise friends. They told him to make the people’s yoke even heavier, and he went further off the path of the Lord.
Sadly, Many leaders are like this. They want to be the best and feel like they are on top of the world. They make everyone else do all of the work as they sit in their glass castles and watch. However, great leaders that are beloved and followed faithfully, resemble the greatest example of the greatest Servant Leader ever. These leaders can delegate to others, but they are also willing to get their hands dirty and do the work themselves. They never sit idol, they encourage work by words and actions.
As I think of Christ’s last walk to Golgotha, carrying the heavy cross, being nailed and hung, dying a horrific death for me….and you, I know that I want to pick up my cross too and follow Him. Carrying the cross daily, making Jesus example matter all year, no matter the cost, no matter what I still must go through in the future. It is my desire to always serve others and not myself, to live out the example of the greatest leader ever.
We can all lead, but are you willing to lead like Jesus?
Running 2 Fly 