Moving out of insecurity by raising leaders.

In the Book of Mathew is an interesting story about Jesus and his disciples whom he has raised.

Math 14: 15 “When evening had come, the disciples went to him and said, “This is a deserted place, and it’s already late. Send the crowds away so that they can go into the villages and buy food for themselves.”

16 But Jesus told them, “They don’t need to go away. You give them something to eat.”
17 They told him, “We don’t have anything here except five loaves of bread and two fish.” (Compare)
18 He said, “Bring them to me.”
19 Then he ordered the crowds to sit down on the grass. Taking the five loaves and the two fish, he looked up to heaven and blessed them. Then he broke the loaves in pieces and gave them to his disciples, and the disciples gave them to the crowds.
20 All of them ate and were filled. Then the disciples picked up what was left of the broken pieces, twelve baskets full”.

Look at this story. Can you picture something significance happened here?

Firstly, the disciples have been so trained by Jesus that they could spot the problem in the ministry right there. The people that have been with them listening to Jesus’ teachings needs to eat. That was compassion!

The same spirit that marked the ministry of Jesus. They have bought into his spirit and the power that drove his ministry. They have as it were, now owned the ministry. They were one with him concerning the project.

See how owning the vision played out in the ministry of Paul when he was called to Macedonia.

Acts.16: 9 And a vision appeared to Paul in the night; There stood a man of Macedonia, and prayed him, saying, come over into Macedonia, and help us.
10 And after he had seen the vision, immediately we endeavoured to go into Macedonia, assuredly gathering that the Lord had called us for to preach the gospel unto them.

Did you notice the “HE”, “WE” and “US” in their language? 

That describes ownership. Now they own the same vision giving to Paul.

Friends, that is leadership. Have you been able to sell the vision completely to your people such that what drives you is what drives them? Have they seen the goal, why you have embarked on what you are doing in ministry, establishment or family goals to your children?

Can your children relate to your vision or goals in life?

Again, when they told Jesus that the people should go and buy food to eat.

Look at Jesus’ reply.

“Math.14:16 But Jesus told them, “They don’t need to go away. You give them something to eat.”

Meaning, they have what it takes to feed them people. He had confident in them that they can do what he would do. He was not intimidated. He never made them feel he alone can and maybe have answer or solution to the problem.

This is the issue; a secure leader should be able to trust his subordinate to do things without fear of taking the centre stage from him. If the disciples have performed the miracle or supplied the provision for the people when he asked to do so, would the attention of the people not have turned to the disciples as some great ones? Would they not have rated them very highly? But that wouldn’t have affected Jesus because he was secured in his leadership role. He knew he owns the project; his disciples are his supporters who have come to own the vision with him.

Can you relate to the above facts as a leader?

On the other hand, as someone employed in a company, how much of the solution do you have in your hand to offer.

Have you even noticed if there is a problem in the place of work that needs solution?

Do you always want from your boss to raise issues or see problems that needs to be tackled?

Then you have not owned the vision with the management. You are just there for the wages you collect and not minding what’s going on. That is not how to be an employee or a disciple in a ministry.

I hear someone say, David, you can’t trust anybody today to handle your business for you. No one is reliable to that extent. Well, could it be I am writing on the ideal situation?

“We don’t have anything here except five loaves of bread and two fish”

Their reply when Jesus asked them to provide for the people.

In John’s account, it was a Lad, a young man that had the five loaves ad two fishes

Joh 6:9 “There is a lad here, which hath five barley loaves, and two small fishes: but what are they among so many”?

The question is, how could the disciples be able to locate and noticed a young man with the five loaves and two fishes in the midst of such a great crowd.

What a level of diligence people! This shows you, how careful they were in the ministry of Jesus. They had details and knew exactly what was going on in such a large crusade that took place, to have been able to notice that a young man had the provision they needed for the problem at hand.

This is the impact of a secured leadership on them. It shows how much they truly have come to owned the vision. Meaning a secured leader must raise his people to the point where they also can see the solution to the problem besetting the industry or ministry.

Vs,18 He said, “Bring them to me.”

Means, let me see what you have as a solution to the problem. Here the leader examines or talks over the problem or the solution they have. He approved their ideas and suggestion to the problem; he never discarded their thought because it was too small a solution compared to the multitude of the people that needs to be fed. He rather raised their solution from the level of insignificants to the ultimate solution needed by multiplying the bread and fishes miraculously.

What this teaches us is that, whenever your subordinates proffer a solution to a problem, you don’t run them down if it doesn’t seem to measure up as a solution to the problem at hand. You raise and inspire their idea and graces. That ought to be the role of a secure leader.

“Then he broke the loaves in pieces and gave them to his disciples, and the disciples gave them to the crowds”.

He broke the bread and gave it to the disciples to share with the people. This is a man who does not have any form of insecurity within him as a leader. He did delegate responsibly, but never mind the fact that the people will see the disciples as the one feeding them, looking like the miracles is coming from them. He was able to impact them to be sable to impact others.

True secure leadership doesn’t mean you must be at the centre stage all the time. Most times you take the back seat and watch them perform.

The idea of building and developing your people into embracing the culture of the house or ministry with the mind to causing a growth and influence on the work as a secure leader cannot be overemphasized.

Excerpt from my Book. ‘Insecure Leadership’.

…to be continued…