There are two critically important aspects to leadership fruitfulness. One gives birth to the other.
In my morning Bible reading a while back, I came across 2 Corinthians 1:1 in the New Living Translation,
“This letter is from Paul, appointed by God to be an apostle of Christ Jesus, and from our dear brother Timothy.”
As soon as I read the word “appointed,” the word “anointed” popped into my head and heart. I thought this could be fodder for a post.
I am reminded of what King David understood,
“And David knew that the Lord had established him king over Israel, and that he had exalted his kingdom for the sake of his people Israel.” 2 Samuel 5:12 (ESV)
I think a first step in any leadership role is to have a strong sense of calling. God has appointed me to this role, responsibility. There are a lot of reasons why this is important and one in particular (and the only one I will mention at this time) is that when you are tempted to quit/give up/throw in the towel, your sense of being appointed/called/selected will mitigate against your caving in and giving up. Here are two other verses where Paul expresses a strong sense of being “appointed.”
“Paul, an apostle–not from men nor through man, but through Jesus Christ and God the Father, who raised him from the dead–…” Galatians 1:1 (ESV)
“Of this gospel I was made a minister according to the gift of God’s grace, which was given me by the working of his power.” Ephesians 3:7 (ESV)
When you look at all that happened to David and Paul and, given the fact that they did not quit, this deep sense of call seems to me to be a key factor
I’m not about to give you some step-by-step formula to obtain a call. I believe it is received, not achieved. Pray that the Holy Spirit seals in your spirit a strong sense of calling, of being appointed–whether you are in leadership or thinking of stepping into leadership at some point.
Wrestle with God in prayer as Jacob did (Genesis 32:22-32), no matter how long it takes.
Secondly, I believe that “appointing” needs to be coupled with a sense of “anointing”–having God’s hand obviously on your life and on his work through you.
“They all realized they were in a place of holy mystery, that God was at work among them. They were quietly worshipful—and then noisily grateful…” Luke 7:16 (The Message)
A number of years ago, I was at a Billy Graham crusade in San Diego and listened to Grady Wilson ( a Graham assoicate evangelism) speak at a local church there.
During a Q&A session he was asked how Billy Graham stayed humble for all those years. I’ll never forget Grady’s reponse when he said that when the team formed they made a deal with Billy that if God would keep him anointed, they would keep him humble. God’s anointing and a few good friends to keep me humble.
Oh to experience God’s obvious anointing on my life. I believe there is a big difference between me being at work and Jesus being at work. I long to see his fingerprints all over what he is leading and empowering me to do…otherwise, what’s the point!
I want, and desperately need, a strong sense of both being appointed and being anointed!
“We can only keep on going, after all, by the power of God, who first saved us and then called us to this holy work. We had nothing to do with it. It was all his idea, a gift prepared for us in Jesus long before we knew anything about it. But we know it now.” 2 Timothy 1:8, 9 (The Message)
Interact with me on this! Please leave a comment.
+What does appointed and anointed look like for you? In what way do you long for this as well?
Recent Comments