23 Oct 2010
What leadership means
Setting an example
I have been in leadership, of some sort or another, for most of the last 18 years, and for most of that time I have battled with feelings of being inadequate for the task.
I think it is because of those feelings that I read the Epistles of Timothy over and over again since starting with Fusion in 1992.
One verse in particular has been a touchstone for me, and as I read it again this morning it’s still speaking to me.
The verse is 1 Timothy 4:12:
Don’t let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in life, in love, in faith and in purity.
In the past it was the not letting people look down on you because you are young and setting an example that were the main things that stood out.
As I read it this morning it was the words speech, life, love, faith and purity that stood out to me. Those words capture different aspects of what it means to be a leader, and are helpful to reflect on.
Over the next few days I will reflect on each one. Each one is something I have wrestled with over my lifetime, and each one matters profoundly.
Tomorrow I will start by looking at speech, which is an interesting thing for Paul to focus on first.