Part 5: Values in Action

Perhaps you have heard this intriguing account…

In the middle of the Great Depression, New York City mayor, Fiorello LaGuardia, strived to live with the people. It was not unusual for him to ride with the firefighters, raid with the police, or take field trips with orphans. On a bitterly cold night in 1935, the mayor turned up at a night court that served the poorest ward of the city. LaGuardia dismissed the judge for the evening and took over the bench himself. Within a few minutes, a tattered old woman was brought before him, charged with stealing a loaf of bread. She told the mayor that her daughter's husband had left, her daughter was sick, and her two grandchildren were starving.

However, the shopkeeper, from whom the bread was stolen, refused to drop the charges. "It's a real bad neighborhood, your Honor," the man told the mayor. "She's got to be punished to teach other people around here a lesson."

LaGuardia sighed. He turned to the woman and said, "I've got to punish you. The law makes no exceptions. $10 or ten days in jail." But even as he pronounced the sentence, the mayor was already reaching into his pocket. He extracted a bill and tossed it into his famous hat, saying, "Here is the $10 fine which I now remit; and furthermore, I am going to fine everyone in this courtroom fifty cents for living in a town where a person has to steal bread so that her grandchildren can eat. Mr. Bailiff, collect the fines and give them to the defendant." That night, $47.50 was turned over to a bewildered woman who had stolen a loaf of bread to feed her starving grandchildren.

I’d like to talk with you about six powerful values of spiritual leadership. Whether you are a spiritual person or not, people in organizations still must care for their staff and customers and these principles are helpful to those in all leadership capacities. These are non-negotiables that I believe you will have to commit to if you’re going to be the kind of leader God wants you to be in your organization, church, and family. Leaders are always defined by the standards they set for themselves, not standards set by other people, but self-imposed standards. Great leaders always expect more from themselves than they do from their followers, and they willingly put forth more effort. That’s a powerful leadership value, one that Mayor LaGuardia may not have fully understood, yet exemplified beautifully in his efforts to lead well.

If you were to look for the phrase “Make every effort” in the New Testament, you would find it used six different times. When you look at those six usages in the New Testament, you observe what I call the six commitments for spiritual leadership. 

• 2 Peter 3:14 - “Make every effort to become spotless, blameless and at peace with Him.”

• Hebrews 12:15 - “Make every effort to live at peace with all men.  See to it that no one misses the grace of God and that no bitter root grows up to cause trouble and defile many.”

• Hebrews 4:11 - “Anyone who enters God’s rest also rests from his own work just as God did.  Let us therefore make every effort to enter God’s rest.”

• Romans 14:19 - “Let us make every effort to do what leads to peace and to mutual edification.”

• Ephesians 4:3 - “Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace.”

• 2 Peter 1:5-8 - “Make every effort to add to your faith goodness; to goodness, knowledge; to knowledge, self-control; to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; and to godliness, brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness, love.  For if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive.”

It has been observed for centuries how successful leaders are in their private lives determines how successful they are in public life. This leader can climb the success ladder for a while without wholesome values, but after a while the inside will collapse, and they’ll hit a wall. I believe if you take these six “Make every effort” statements and make them personal commitments in your life, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive, while helping you mentally and emotionally endure as a leader. You will find that these qualities will also increase your effectiveness as a leader.

1.  AS A LEADER I WILL MAINTAIN MY INTEGRITY.
2.  AS A LEADER I WILL FORGIVE THOSE WHO HURT ME.
3.  AS A LEADER I WILL RELAX AND TRUST GOD.
4.  AS A LEADER I WILL BE AN ENCOURAGER.
5.  AS A LEADER I WILL BE A PEACEMAKER.
6.  AS A LEADER I WILL NEVER STOP GROWING.

Which “Make every effort” statement do you need to give more attention to in your life?