07/04/2026
As we celebrate Independence Day, I've found myself reflecting on leadership.
A little over two years ago, while attending a leadership conference, I heard a statement that hit me right in the gut:
โจ "๐๐ฒ๐ฎ๐ฑ๐ฒ๐ฟ๐ ๐๐ต๐ผ ๐ฐ๐ฎ๐ป'๐ ๐ฏ๐ฒ ๐พ๐๐ฒ๐๐๐ถ๐ผ๐ป๐ฒ๐ฑ ๐ฒ๐ป๐ฑ ๐๐ฝ ๐ฑ๐ผ๐ถ๐ป๐ด ๐พ๐๐ฒ๐๐๐ถ๐ผ๐ป๐ฎ๐ฏ๐น๐ฒ ๐๐ต๐ถ๐ป๐ด๐."
I knew immediately why it struck me so deeply.
At the time, I was wrestling with situations that felt confusing or contradictory. It wasn't a resistance to authority. It wasn't an unwillingness to follow.
What I longed for was ๐๐ป๐ฑ๐ฒ๐ฟ๐๐๐ฎ๐ป๐ฑ๐ถ๐ป๐ด.
Instead, many conversations felt more like debates than dialogue. I often felt talked at rather than listened to. The focus seemed to be on proving who was right rather than seeking understanding together.
With my strong sense of responsibility, justice, truth, and yes, my own woundedness and sin, it created a lot of interior turmoil.
That simple statement brought clarity.
๐ค Over the years, I've come to believe that healthy leaders welcome questions.
Not because they have all the answers.
But because they understand they don't.
The secure leader is not threatened by honest questions. They listen.
They seek to understand. They engage in dialogue with humility and respect.
They know they are not responsible ๐ณ๐ผ๐ฟ other adults.
They are responsible ๐๐ผ them.
That is a very different posture.
It means:
โข Caring enough to listen
โข Caring enough to explain
โข Caring enough to learn
โข Caring enough to admit when you might have missed something
The goal is not agreement on everything.
The goal is a sincere pursuit of truth ๐๐ผ๐ด๐ฒ๐๐ต๐ฒ๐ฟ.
๐ The leaders who have left the deepest impact on my life, both in the Church and beyond it, have not been those who demanded unquestioning obedience.
They have been those who listened deeply, served humbly, cared genuinely, and helped others grow.
They understood that leadership is not about position.
It is about ๐๐๐ฒ๐๐ฎ๐ฟ๐ฑ๐๐ต๐ถ๐ฝ.
As Christians, none of us arrive fully formed. None of us are without fault, blind spots, or sin. We are all being transformed by God's grace.
The best leaders understand this.
They do not place themselves above others.
They walk with others.
They listen deeply to ๐ฎ๐น๐น ๐ฝ๐ฒ๐ผ๐ฝ๐น๐ฒ, not only those who share their opinions or perspectives. They are generous with kindness. They genuinely desire to understand. They encourage growth and help create the conditions where others can become more fully who God created them to be.
And they understand that they, too, are still growing.
โจ Perhaps that is the higher standard we are all called to.
Not perfection.
Not control.
Not having all the answers.
But the humility to love, to listen, and to keep seeking the truth together.
After a season of relative silence, listening, continued learning, and allowing some ideas and frameworks to mature, I find myself with a much clearer conviction about the path the Lord is inviting me to walk.
More and more, I am convinced that:
โค๏ธโ๐ฅ ๐๐ฒ๐ฎ๐ฑ๐ฒ๐ฟ๐๐ต๐ถ๐ฝ ๐ถ๐ ๐ฎ๐ป ๐ผ๐๐๐๐ฎ๐ฟ๐ฑ ๐ฒ๐
๐ฝ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐๐๐ถ๐ผ๐ป ๐ผ๐ณ ๐ผ๐๐ฟ ๐ถ๐ป๐๐ฒ๐ฟ๐ถ๐ผ๐ฟ ๐ฑ๐ถ๐๐ฝ๐ผ๐๐ถ๐๐ถ๐ผ๐ป.
The deeper work is not merely teaching people what to do.
It is helping them become who they are created to be.
Helping leaders integrate their human growth, spiritual maturity, and daily lives so that they can become more fully alive and help others do the same.
More to come on that.
For now, I remain grateful for the lessons that come through both the clarity and the struggle. ๐ค๐
