Years ago, a seasoned pastor was faced with a tough decision. This pastor knew whatever choice he made there would be members of his church congregation who disagreed and who would vocally oppose the choice this pastor made. So the pastor prayed, he studied biblical examples, he sought wise counsel, and he waited for the best choice to become clear. He was sure of one thing: there would be no easy answer.
Have you ever been faced with making a difficult decision; a decision with which someone was sure to disagree?
In I Corinthians 4, Paul spoke of a similar situation, and his words resonate through the ages to those of us tasked with making difficult decisions. We want to make the best choice possible while doing the least amount of damage to others, to the organization (or family or community), and to our integrity.
In these instances, what’s at stake is something even more important than the consequences of the choice. While we may never know if the choice we’ve made was the best one possible, what matters most is faithfulness: faithfulness to God and to those entrusted to our care.
In tough situations, it’s easy to take the path of least resistance, and it’s tempting to make the popular choice. But faithful leadership often requires a more difficult path.
Questions for you: When you have a tough decision to make, what strategies do you use to help you find your way? What have you learned about faithful leadership? When people disagree with your leadership, how do you respond to them?
Deidra, This reminds me about the tough job of exercising faithful leadership as a parent. I always pray, check my motives, read the Bible, and seek wise counsel. And when I read the Bible, I see that being faithful to God isn’t always easy and won’t often win you a popularity contest. But it does ultimately bring peace. Don’t know if this helps at all. You probably knew all this so sorry for not being much help 🙂
I thought about parenting, too. It could be that parenting is the most challenging leadership job out there. And, there are no wrong or bad answers, here. Just some words to get us thinking. Together. Thanks so much for your input!
I think this issue is especially charged for women in our generation who have heard every possible message on the spectrum about our role in the church and our freedom to lead. I’m still working to trust my experience and competency when it runs into resistance from male leadership. When I can, I try to give myself some space so that my response can be measured and thoughtful rather than from the hip, to respond out of truth rather than emotion, and to let my ideas die graciously and without drama if that’s what has to happen.
I was just talking about this with my daughter. We were talking about women and church roles and how our own history in our families has impacted our expectations. Your policy of stepping back to give space for your response is wise. And oh, letting ideas die graciously. My goodness! Sounds like a seminar someone should lead! 😉
Deidra,
What you say about our “own history” in our families of origin is so significant. But God, our heavenly Father, can always change things up 🙂
Michele,
Such wisdom in giving yourself some space so your response can be measured…yes 🙂