They’re given to us by God to encourage us slow down and pay attention to something. However, instead of really paying attention we tend to employ other creative strategies:

Critics are those who want to give you an earful, to tell you what’s what, but won’t get their hands dirty to help you improve anything. They only shout from the sidelines and write emails from a safe, detached distance. Their goal is ultimately to shame you in front of anyone else who might be within earshot, to boldly display your faults to yourself and the world while declaring themselves the winners. 

It’s left out of most of the big lists. The Seven Deadly Sins don’t include it. The Ten Commandments don’t address it. Unless I’m missing something, Paul in his several lists of sins never mentions it. The only thing I can think of in the Bible is the reference to “the cowardly” in Revelation 21.

But maybe it should be in our lists.

But Samuel replied: “Does the Lord delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices as much as in obeying the Lord ? To obey is better than sacrifice, and to heed is better than the fat of rams.”

1 Samuel 15:22 NIV

It’s tempting to do a lot for God. Which is not always the same as doing with God. 

If you’re like me, your working definition of prayer for most of your life was pretty simple: Asking God for something. 

To do this well, it helped to have a list. In more “spiritual” seasons it was a mental list, or even an ad hoc “Spirit-led” list. In more practical seasons it was a physical list. A list of people’s names and needs, maybe places or organizations and situations. Prayer consisted of speaking these people and these needs aloud to God for his provision. 

That crazy inkling of an idea you have might be worth pursuing. That seed of a dream that is in your heart might be worth nurturing. That magnetic pull you feel towards something might just be worth leaning in to. 

As the eyes of slaves look to the hand of their master,

as the eyes of a female slave look to the hand of her mistress,

so our eyes look to the Lord our God,

till he shows us his mercy.

Psalm 123:2

Why do the eyes of servants look to the hands of their masters? Why do the eyes of a maid look to the hand of her mistress? 

For signals.

Because no one can win all the time.

So leaders paint a picture of what failure looks like. They set the tone for what failure sounds like. They give expression to what failure feels like. 

They give others permission to fail. They make failure the common rather than rare. They learn from failure as the teacher of wisdom and humility. They welcome failure as a form of success.

If the leader fails well, then anyone can fail. If the leader refuses failure as a valid option, then no one can fail. 

And the entire project is dead in the water because no one really tries anything at all.

But I will also lead with my mind. 

The Apostle Paul said this in relation to worship and prayer. (See 1 Corinthians 14:15) If that’s a pretty good m.o. for worship and prayer, why not for leadership as well? 

Sometimes I need to go with what my heart is telling me — regardless of whether or not it makes rational sense. 

Sometimes I need to go with what I know needs to be done — regardless of how I might be feeling at the moment. 

If they both match up? Bonus points!

I am a feeling-thinking being. Wisdom is knowing when to give either my heart or head the reins. 

So hold it loosely. 

Even in the best-case scenarios, even when someone is doing a fantastic job, there is often a term. You know going in that there’s an end date. Most of the time that’s a pretty helpful detail to know.

Most of the time we don’t know.