“Fear God, dear child—respect your leaders; don’t be defiant or mutinous. Without warning your life can turn upside down, and who knows how or when it might happen?” Proverbs 24:21-22
I’m of the belief there’s a leader in all of us.
I don’t buy into all that personality profiling that labels some people leaders and others followers.
I truly believe that at any given moment in life we are all either leading or following. It’s not a one-way thing. It’s both. All the time. On-going. Ever-changing. Continuously rotating.
To my kids, I’m a leader.
But in discerning what’s really going on in their hearts, I’m a follower.
To the grocery clerk, I’m a follower.
But to smile and show her the love of Jesus, I’m a leader.
To my husband, I’m both a follower and a leader.
When one is weak the other is strong.
As a driver behind the wheel of a vehicle, I’m a leader.
But as a law-abiding citizen, I’m a follower to the rules of the road.
To my team, I’m a leader.
But as a team player choosing to see my teammates as equally capable contributors, I’m a follower.
Leadership is back-and-forth. It’s an ebb-and-flow that carries responsibility to wisely discern the roles we live from moment-to-moment.
So when Proverbs 24:21-22 comes along to say, “respect your leaders,” I don’t think of it as a position thing… or a personality thing… I think of it as a humanity thing.
Fear God: so you see everything He has made as valuable.
Dear Child: so you are keenly aware of the importance to always be learning.
Respect your leaders: submit to everyone in the same way He submitted His life to us.
