Leadership: a Message to Men

I've seen a lot of bad managers and only a handful of good ones. Most people mistake management for leadership and those in charge for those who must be good leaders. Leadership is a component of what makes a good manager, but someone is not a good leader simply by virtue of being put in a leadership position, nor is one necessarily cut out for leadership because one has their heart in the right place.

But that is where leadership begins: in the heart. And that heart has to beat for something other than the leader's own gain. There are many components of leadership and many roles that a leader must take on, but it all begins with having a heart that yearns for the best for those he leads. Leadership is not just forging ahead and letting others follow, but being behind them and giving a little push when necessary. It's correcting them and getting them back on the right path. It's leaving a path that would lead to the leader's own gain in favor of one that would lead to the people's gain. It is self-sacrificial, not self-indulgent. It is service more than pride. It is a burden more than a privilege.

Too many men have forgotten what leadership is supposed to look like, particularly in their homes. Nearly every sitcom and dozens of commercials portray the chubby middle-aged moron of a man who's over-confident and completely clueless with an attractive, intelligent wife who's always right and has all the real authority in the house. When did this happen? When did we men become so self-centered that we either forgot what leadership was about or decided it was too much work to even attempt? When did we start putting ourselves above our wives and children by letting them lead us? When did we stop loving them enough to take on this burden?

I believe that at the core, every man has a little bit of a lion in him. This lion yearns to protect his pride and would rather die in a fight than see anything happen to them. If your lion has fallen asleep, awaken it. Ask God to give you the courage to take the reins of leadership in your household and anywhere else He has called you to lead. And remember that this is the way you can best serve them. If you truly love your family, you cannot let them lead you. You listen to God, let Him lead you, and then you lead them where He directs.