Resident Reluctance

Now to Him who is able to establish you according to my gospel and the preaching of Jesus Christ   Romans 16:25

Is Able – God is the power.  If I am in His will, then He directs that power through me, not to me.  God is in the power distribution business.  He gives in order that it might be given.  God does not create batteries.  There is no such thing as stored up divine energy.  The power that I receive is always intended to flow out of me to others.  When I stop the flow, I stand opposed to God’s design.

By the way, this principle applies to all of God’s creation.  The dynamic (remember dynamai?) of creation is the constant flow from one thing to another.  Batteries are human inventions, not divine ones.

Consider this principle in leadership.  God provides the power, not me.  When a leader begins to think that it is his ability and his vision that makes the difference, all the followers are in trouble.  The mark of a godly leader is his reluctance to accept the job in the first place and his continuing discomfort with the call.  Godly leaders know that the job is bigger than they are.  They often feel overwhelmed and inadequate.  They should!  After all, if I feel up to the task, I don’t need that total, voluntary reliance of God’s power to get me through.  The day a leader starts to think his position is perfect for him is the day he should leave.  Godly leadership always stretches us beyond ourselves because it is all about being poured out every day.  The godly leader has no reserves.  He must come to God every morning for that day’s abilities. 

Everywhere we see a different view of leadership, even inside the circle of Christianity.  We see people who aspire to be leaders, who grasp at the opportunity and pursue the prestige.  They are seeking to be batteries – storehouses of accumulated power.  God never endorses such clamoring.  You will find God’s leaders among those who know their jobs are too much for them, who would prefer to be somewhere else, who are obedient to a call not of their own choosing.  You will find God’s men and women among those who cry out to Him for help, who have nothing left of their own reserves and who know the heartache of obedience.  Those are the ones worth following. 

God is able.  I am not.  That is the motto of a leader.  Leave the battery people behind.  Follow the reluctant ones who are emptied each day.