“And He has said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness.” Most gladly, therefore, I will rather boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may dwell in me. Therefore I am well content with weaknesses, with insults, with distresses, with persecutions, with difficulties, for Christ’s sake; for when I am weak, then I am strong.”
2 Corinthians 12:9-10
Over the last two weeks, the GAP ministry experienced a leadership retreat and completed its coed self-defense training. The retreat engaged the students in an experience built around a story of resilience, and the self-defense put them to the task of demonstrating resilience.
Active or Passive?
Active leaders are often viewed as true or gifted leaders. It goes like this, “That person looks excited or zealous. Let’s promote them to a leadership position.” Other times, passive leaders are put in place because there seems to be an absence of leaders from which to choose, and that person “happens” to be there at the right time. In both instances, a leader is advanced because they were loud or because they were just around. While these approaches aren’t necessarily wrong, they are at least naive. Leadership requires a more thoughtful approach.
An Environment.
One of the goals of preparing leaders is to cultivate an environment where leaders are forged and also can process and appropriate the forging God has already wrought in their lives. This type of molding produces resilience in leaders or exposes them.
The Risk.
On the other hand, when we remove the trials, the challenges, and the mountains to climb, we’re cultivating weak leaders around us and within ourselves. The net effect is so-called leaders without resilience. Moreover, as these so-called leaders are advanced, the workplace, the church, the home, and the culture are in for difficulties of their own making.
The Reward.
Therefore, the leader must be forged. They must endure and embrace the furnace of trial, where resilience has a place to grow. This doesn’t imply self-created trials. But, on the other hand, it’s the seasoning of life where one finds the mettle within himself and others and is the process whereby God shapes the person to honor Him and serve others.
