He that wants to be first
Must first become the
last,
For most leaders today
This has long passed.
We see a bit of it
Around election time
But almost immediately
after
It goes into decline.
Humility is so obvious
When we are pulling a
string
But not so useable
afterwards
When we get that thing.
Some must be servants
That is all they get to
do,
A few will get to be
leaders
And that is a relative
few.
It makes abundant sense
That the “to be led are
more”,
We all understand logistics
When politicians go door
to door.
It is then that they are
servants
But with leadership in
mind,
However, when they succeed
Servant is left behind.
Hence a call for servant
leaders
There are very few if any,
Even in the church these
days
There really aren’t many.
Yes, I am knocking the
church
That is where it should
begin,
Jesus is the primary
example
Let us take a look at him.
A dozen misdirected men
Full of selfish desire,
That proclivity of human
nature
Through which we all
aspire.
Let us take a look at
Peter
A sample study of the
rest,
His understanding of this
issue
Was one misguided mess.
The Master was washing
feet
But Simon Peter declined,
“You could wash the rest
But you are not washing
mine.
We should be washing your
feet
Not the other way around,”
And I could see him turn
away
The idea weighing him
down.
What a stupid
recommendation!
A leader washing feet,
That’s like the certain
vanquisher
Admitting to defeat.
I am not so sure he got it
Even when Jesus had
explained
Since he saw his feet and
body
In the very same vein.
It was not about human
hygiene
But really about human
service,
Peter was seeing servitude
And the intended point he
missed.
Under the yoke of Roman
bondage
This was difficult to
perceive
And it became even more
obscured
By the pretentious
Pharisees.
And so, by now you see
The problem we still have
today,
We can be servants for a
brief while
But only until we get our
way.
To serve is a noble
objective
And it is that facade we
present
But on actually acquiring
the position,
It is what we
misrepresent.
The facade is quickly torn
down
Feet and body are exposed
And the idea of a servant
leader
Will then become comatose.
No wonder we are starved
For servant leadership,
Most of those who present
themselves
Do in essence quit.
Stewart Russell © November
2019
