“Leaders should ask themselves, is my heart for God increasing? Is my capacity for loving God deepening?” Bill Hybels
It has been nearly two decades ago but I can still hear his prayer. As a young youth pastor full of energy and passion I was so ignorant about the things of God that I did not know what I did not know. Hearing his prayer was a pivotal moment in my life. He was nearing the end of his life-gray, slow, and withered. But when he prayed I almost opened my eyes to see his Savior standing somewhere in the room. His prayer was deep, personal and naturally flowed out of the most intimate of relationships with his God.
In that moment I knew that no pastoral title I possessed could match the depth of his knowledge of the King. With eyes closed pretending to agree in prayer I realized that those who have gone ahead of me have so much to offer.
I am often embarrassed and ashamed at how we have dishonored the elderly in our churches. It will be interesting to witness how the “Baby Boomers” respond in the coming years as they enter senior adulthood. Will they demand the same respect from the generation below them that they stripped from the generation above them? I guess only time will tell.
We do not have the answers to life’s many questions but whom else to help us to sort out some of the answers but those who have lived ahead of us. Another statement of Bill Hybels is, “Leaders are Learners”, which implies a life committed to personal growth. Since every man is a leader he must look to his spiritual elders as a necessary tool to help guide him on his journey through life. In 1 John 2:12-14 (and others) a spiritual distinction is made between “little children” (spiritually immature), “young men” (spiritually sound but lacking experience), and “fathers” (seasoned men of God).
Understanding the distinction between spiritual maturity and chronological age, I recently formed an all male group of more than a dozen men ranging in age from the early twenties to late sixties. I have strategically chosen representatives from most of the decades of life because I believe that all men have something to offer to those who have gone ahead of them as well as those who follow. For example, the spiritual “fathers” of our group have their wisdom to offer, the “young men” will bring their passion, and the “little children” will ignite us with their ignorant enthusiasm.
One question I have answered about life is that it is not whether I can lead others, but am I increasing my faith capacity, my capacity to love others, and my capacity to live in total victory over my daily fight against sin? If a man is not different in five years than he is today, that man is in danger of falling into faith that is nothing more than religious habits and routines instead of a faith that is dynamic and ever expanding organism within the heart. Maybe this is exactly what the apostle Paul was thinking when he penned the words, “I am confident of this very thing; that He who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion. (Philippians 1:6)”
