Mark Sayers on "Leadership as Avenue to Stardom"
Saw this post by Mark Sayers this morning on his views that the culture of today is raising people to be stars and not servants. While I agree, I think the church has been in the habit of raising servants to be stars - that is we serve to draw others, to open doors, to be seen, etc. Serving PROVIDES benefit for others, but it is not FOR the benefit of others.
When I spent some time researching the lives of young leaders in ministry I saw this phenomenon in action. The idea of servant leadership seemed so passe to them. The aim was to get on stage and to get known, to them that was success in ministry. Those of you training young leaders need to be aware of this dynamic, we need to again promote the idea of servant leadership, not as a vehicle for becoming known but rather as a tonic for the soul.
Mark is absolutely correct. We "serve" as a tonic for our own soul. We serve because it is ultimately of benefit to ourselves.
But we have to be careful that we don't make "stars" out of serving.
That's why some people get burnt out serving. They do it for others -- and "others" always want more. And in their own way, they create the image that they are a "star" at serving. Even as we teach, we become the "star" at teaching how to serve.
We need to examine our reasons for serving, and how (and why) we teach others to serve. Rather than wear us out, serving should invigorate and draw us closer to God.
Jesus never did everything others expected. He didn't serve them at their leisure. He only did what He saw the Father do, and served at the Father's leisure.
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