(Prov 25:3 NIrV) The heavens are high and the earth is deep. In the same way, the minds of kings are hard to figure out.
This morning we continue our series, “Unlocking the Power of Proverbs – Walking in the Wisdom of God.” Yesterday with dealt with the mystery of God and how His ways are truly above our ways. While we are urged, and rightly so, to search out the knowledge of God, in some ways His knowledge is unsearchable. In the very next verse, King Hezekiah juxtaposes one of Solomon’s proverbs that deal with the knowledge of king to that of God. To a commoner the knowledge of a king may seem unsearchable. As God hides some of His knowledge from kings, kings hide some of their knowledge from their subjects. This boils down to a matter of perspective. Just like God’s perspective of a matter is often much different than ours, because we often look at the issue through a limited lens, so it is with the perspective of good leaders. The Message Bible paraphrase of this verse reads: “Like the horizons for breadth and the ocean for depth, the understanding of a good leader is broad and deep.” So a good leader is able to provide a perspective of a situation that is often far different from that of the led.
Let’s think about modern-day leaders for example. A CEO might have to deal with Board of Directors, vice-presidents, the Chief Financial Officer, Chief Information Officer, department heads, and the media. Every leader internal to the organization will rightly lobby for resources for their respective divisions, but the when doing so, the overall leader (the CEO in this case) will have to take into account the ultimate vision of the organization, along with balancing both long and short term goals. This gives the CEO a perspective the subordinate leader often does not have; much less that of a common worker within the organization.
If this can be said of a CEO, we must magnify it to a much larger scale when dealing with kings, prime ministers, and presidents. Those of us who have neither the responsibility or the information required to make massive decisions will always be puzzled by those who do. Our text suggests that we should humbly appreciative of the magnitude of the tasks that wise leaders perform. It’s easy to play ‘Monday morning quarterback,’ while standing at the water cooler, talking about the president, a CEO, a General in the military, or your direct boss for that matter, but most of the time we simply don’t understand what they are doing because we don’t have their perspective and it is not their responsibility to always go through the painstaking process of painting the picture for us.
So what does this mean to you today? It means that we ought to appreciate the magnitude and importance of the decisions our leaders have to make on a daily basis and we should pray for them. Paul said, “I urge you, first of all, to pray for all people. Ask God to help them; intercede on their behalf, and give thanks for them. Pray this way for kings and all who are in authority so that we can live peaceful and quiet lives marked by godliness and dignity” (1 Tim 2:1,2). Instead of talking about your leaders, especially because of decisions they made that you simply don’t understand, pray for them with all sincerity, so that God may grant them the insight, wisdom, understanding to lead with courage and peace.
Closing Confession: Father, I thank You for blessing me to be a good leader by learning how to be a good follower. You have blessed me to be in a position of authority, because I have humbled myself to follow the authority You have placed me under. I pray for my leaders with all sincerity, I intercede for them with energies of prayer, and I support them as best I can daily. I will refrain from openly criticizing or undermining what I do not understand. I will manage my affairs in excellence daily. My leaders have enough to do, they will not have to do my job. Everything they put under my charge will be done right, on time, and with a spirit of excellence. I make my organization better every day. I am here to build up and never to tear down. I declare this by faith. In Jesus’ name. Amen!
This is Today’s Word! Apply it and Prosper!
