The loudest and most quiet cry of our generation today is effective leadership across the various spheres of our living. From Politics to Education to Religion and to Economy; there is a shortage of effective leaders. In my short voyage through the study of effective leadership, I have found ages books that basically loud this realities with there very identities: "So Many Leaders, So Litte Leadership"; "Too Many Bosses, But Too Few Leaders" among other books on our bookshelves.
It has been stressed that leadership is not about title; neither is leadership about position – For the world has witnessed countless men and women of titles and positions make a mess of themselves and their opportunities to make any mean full difference in their time and space.
In my article, How To Secure Your Best Job Appointment; I shared a few thoughts on what separates some men from other men. Some of us could quickly call such separation the fate; but. With a close observation of realities, we would realizes that a people were and are more prepared for the tasks ahead than the other people. It is been said that the surest way to show your faith to God is by what you do after you have prayed. A couple trusting God for the fruit of the womb could rise up from prayer to purchase some baby items in expectation of the new arrival into their family – while you may call such action FAITH, I will call here PREPARATION.
Preparation for the future is man's best expression of faith to God. If you are so sure to become a big stand up comedian in the future; I believe that your preparation today will affirm it. What you do not prepare for is what happens suddenly – in fact, preparation puts you above situations and circumstances. Moving on from that, we must discover the secret that God has decided to open our eyes to now as such a time as this in our national and global history.
I must say, every big thing begins small; and every small thing has a prospect for growth in the future. The problem of most men is not ignorance of the imminent growth of a small thing (project, idea, business, organization, family, economy); but there unwillingness to workout the expected growth.
Sometime ago, while listening to a marriage counselor, I got an instruction, she said, "there is a difference between a hunter man and a Gardner man"; while a hunter man looks for a ready made wife-material, who has a job and no problems; a Gardner man looks out for a woman with wife prospects, takes her to himself, nurtures her, prunes her, cares for her and feeds until she becomes the wife-material. That while the hunter man looks for a woman to plunder, a Gardner man looks for a woman to nurture".
After God had seen the failure of the new king, which the children of Israel desired, He decided to replace him with another. While searching for a reliable, effective and efficient replacement for the going king, He found a young boy of 17 at the backside of the desert, shepherding a "few sheep". But the size of the flock was not what called God's attention to the boy; it was the heart he had for the sheep. In the book of John, Jesus made a distinction with a shepherd and a hireling. While the shepherd has the interest of the sheep at heart, the hireling works for the reward of labour.
David was a shepherd over a "few sheep"; however, he was a good shepherd, who was ready to die for the "few sheep".
"David was the youngest. And the three oldest followed Saul. But David occasionally went and returned from Saul "to feed his father's sheep at Bethlehem………So David rose early in the morning, LEFT THE SHEEP WITH A KEEPER, and took the things and went as Jesse had commanded him…..Then David spoke to the men who stood by him, saying, " What shall be done for the man who kills this Philistine and takes away reproach from Israel? For who is this uncircumcised Philistine, that he should defy the armies of the living God?"………… Now Eliab his oldest brother heard when he spoke to the men; and Eliab's anger was aroused against David, and he said, "Why did you come down here? And with whom have you left THOSE FEW SHEEP IN THE WILDERNESS?….."
1 Samuel 17:14-28
One thing is sure, David's elder brother knew where he had been – "THOSE FEW SHEEP IN THE WILDERNESS". The truth is, no man can bold appear on the stage of life with testimonies to share without having being at the wilderness. In leadership emergence, wilderness experience is inevitable. We all love the cool and quiet moments of life, but the best leaders are not made or raised there, instead, they are raised up from the back side of the deserts of life.
Before David came up, for 40 days, the children of Israel with there king have been mesmerized by Goliath. He challenged them daily without any Royal or Peasant response from the whole army of Israel. In fact, the older brother of David were there, without any clue on how to end this national shame. Then, David was called from the wilderness while shepherding the "few sheep" diligently by his father to take a few battle supplies for his brothers and their captain. When he got there, the thing that others considered to be a normal shame became an unusual occasion for him to show his preparedness for national prominence as a mighty man that he had been in the wilderness.
While at the wilderness, shepherding the "few sheep"; the animals were attacked by lion, he could run away and call for help, but he chose to put his life on the line for the safety of the "few sheep". In another instance, a bear came over the fold, he decided to fight the bear, just as he fought and defeated the lion. In short, while at the backside of the desert, shepherding the "few sheep"; he horned the skills that are required for national relevance, which none of his contemporaries had.
The size or nature of your own sheep notwithstanding, if you would commit your life to their safety, satisfaction and success; you would have decided to become a member of the effective leaders club. You would have decided to leave legacies behind you and you would have decided to become truly great. Great leader don't just appear, they are raised up overtime. And your decision to be a shepherd over what some people may consider "few sheep" could be the biggest decision you will ever make on your way to influence on bigger levels of life.
