Leaders are...Understanding

What is better than a perfect leader?

An understanding leader.

Working definition of this leadership concept:
To be understanding is to comprehend God’s will in a way that challenges your natural way of thinking and your practices. (Which is really what this whole series is about!) It is the opposite of being foolish. (See Ephesians 5:15-21 and explanation below.)

Benefits for leaders who are understanding:
1. It is a relief that leaders are not required to be perfect or to know all the answers. Leaders are directed to be understanding.
2. Understanding might be a way of staying open to God’s correction. And God’s correction is always an invitation to a better way. A friend shared, “It is so natural to become defensive of your own way instead of having a heart ready to learn and truly understand.” And, “…staying open to God’s correction does lead to a better way…if you are humble and willing to see something new.”
3. This kind of understanding, this expertise, does not puff one up with pride, but results in “the meekness of wisdom” (James 3:13 ESV).

Benefits for the community with understanding leaders:
1. Keeping God’s will as the priority ensures the well-being of the community will not be sacrificed for production or efficiency goals.
2. Understanding leaders are open to other points of view and to correction as they look for God’s will in every situation.
 
Biblical inspiration and support:
In Ephesians Paul directs Christians to be wise, to make the best use of the time they are given and to be understanding:
“15 Look carefully then how you walk, not as unwise but as wise, 16 making the best use of the time, because the days are evil. 17 Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is. 18 And do not get drunk with wine, for that is debauchery, but be filled with the Spirit, 19 addressing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody to the Lord with your heart, 20 giving thanks always and for everything to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, 21 submitting to one another out of reverence for Christ.” (Ephesians 5:15–21, ESV, emphasis mine)
 
Here Paul is drawing a contrast between being foolish and understanding the will of God.
The foolish in the Bible are not those who dream, or who fail, or who don’t know all the answers… the foolish are those who “say there is no God” (Psalm 14:1, 53:1), are ignorant of God’s will (Ephesians 5:17) and who reject God (Romans 1:21-23).
 
What is it to be understanding? A Greek lexicon defines the word in Ephesians 5:17 as: “to have an intelligent grasp of [something] that challenges one’s thinking or practice, understand, comprehend.” [1] It is intriguing that the idea of understanding includes comprehending something that would not be in line with your usual way thinking, something that even challenges your natural way of thinking about something. This sounds like correction. And this concept extends not just to our thoughts, but to what we do, to how we live our life. All of which makes sense in the context of Ephesians, as Paul is giving direction for living.
 
Applying all this I might restate verse 17 like this: Do not reject God or be ignorant of what He wills but instead become informed of God’s will – especially where it challenges your usual pattern of thinking – and live your life in submission, agreement and alignment with God’s will.
 
Applying this passage to leadership, we can acknowledge that although no leader can be perfect, all leaders can grow in understanding. As we acknowledge God and seek to understand His will and His ways by studying His Word, we gain an “intelligent grasp”[2] of them, allowing them to change our ways of thinking and leading. As a result, though we are not without flaw, we are growing. As we near the end of our Leadership A to Z journey, this has been the goal. That we would grow in our understanding as leaders.
 
Illustration/Example:
Years ago I had thought that the leader was the most opinionated and dominating person in the group. I equated that with wisdom. The result was that I feared leaders and did not want to be one. Reading James 3:13-18 challenged my way of thinking and revealed that God’s idea of wisdom was different than mine. It defines heavenly wisdom in relational terms like: submissive, sincere and peace-loving (see James 3:17, NIV). These concepts ran contrary to my picture of wisdom and leadership. Embracing this correction has resulted not only in a change of thinking, but in how I conduct myself as a Christian leader. Really, I think the ripple effects in my life and leadership continue as I keeping growing in understanding of the Lord’s will and ways corresponding to leadership.
 
As a friend of mine considered what it means to be understanding they related it not only to being humble towards God and open to His correction, but also to other people. In their words: “What great steps forward are missed, what opportunities not taken because a leader does not stop to listen or dismisses another's thoughts and ideas.”  
 
Practical applications:
What makes you feel foolish?
Spend some time reading Psalm 14:1, 53:1, Romans 1:18-32, Ephesians 5:15-21. How does the Bible define foolishness? How does that differ from how you have thought about foolishness in the past?
 
Read the Bible.
So, as we kick off a new year, perhaps it is time to adopt a habit of being in God’s Word regularly. If we are going to grow in our understanding of God’s will, there is no better place than in His Word. If you are struggling, consider trying something new like:

• Getting an app on your phone with Bible reading plans (I have the YouVersion app and they just sent me these 4 tips to starting a Bible reading habit).
• Listening to the Bible on audio.
• Asking a friend to read through a book of the Bible with you and check in with a text once a week with reflections.

 
If you struggle with perfectionism, it may help to tell yourself that reading some is better than reading none. If you have not been reading much, reading every day might be unrealistic… so if you miss a few days, shake it off and read again. God’s Word is crucial to spiritual growth. And He will help us as we seek to know Him better through His Word.
If you need suggestions where to start try Psalms, John, Ephesians and/or Genesis.
 
Where do you need to get an “intelligent grasp”[3] of God’s will? What issues are you facing that you have not sought the Lord about?
Take some time to seek out assistance in finding the Lord’s will as it relates to your issues. I hope that past Leadership A to Z blog articles may be helpful, and please email me ([email protected]) if you struggle to find how the Bible applies to your issue, and I will do my best to help. You might also try something like www.biblegateway.com, which has a search feature.
 
A final word:
Leaders do not need to be perfect…
But they do need to be understanding.

Comment: 
How have you seen leaders show they are understanding?


[1] Arndt, W., Danker, F. W., Bauer, W., & Gingrich, F. W. (2000). A Greek-English lexicon of the New Testament and other early Christian literature (3rd ed., p. 972). Chicago: University of Chicago Press, συνίημι.

[2] Arndt, W., Danker, F. W., Bauer, W., & Gingrich, F. W. (2000). A Greek-English lexicon of the New Testament and other early Christian literature (3rd ed., p. 972). Chicago: University of Chicago Press, συνίημι.

[3] Arndt, W., Danker, F. W., Bauer, W., & Gingrich, F. W. (2000). A Greek-English lexicon of the New Testament and other early Christian literature (3rd ed., p. 972). Chicago: University of Chicago Press, συνίημι.