Stewarding My Power and Influence: A Kingdom Perspective
Growing up, I loved to watch He-Man (stop trying to guess my age), and of course, my favour part was when He lifted His sword into the air and cried, “I have the power”, and lightening would hit the sword, him and his timid tiger and they would transform to do great exploits. The truth is that we all have and exert power and influence in the context of our relationships and responsibilities. Whether we are siblings, parents, married couples, or members of groups and clubs. However, in the workplace, these dynamics are more acute and noticeable.
As I grew up from the dream of being He—Man with ultimate power, I heard and learned a famous proverb: “Power corrupts, and absolute power corrupts absolutely.” As believers in the workplace and leaders in particular, we have to deal with the issue of power dynamics and how to handle power in a Godly way. The world’s way of viewing and using power is typically self-serving—power is used to benefit the one who has it or the few around them.
However, God’s ways are higher than our ways, and His thoughts are higher than our thoughts. As new creations in Christ, we must follow God’s ways and thoughts in everything, including how we handle power.
Let’s dive into the Scriptures to gain insight into God’s mindset on power and power dynamics:
- Deuteronomy 32:8-9 – “When the Most High gave to the nations their inheritance, when he divided mankind, he fixed the borders of the peoples according to the number of the sons of God. But the Lord’s portion is his people, Jacob his allotted heritage.”
- This passage reveals that God has scattered the nations and allotted them under the jurisdiction of angelic “sons of God” or princes. Yet, God’s own portion is His people, Israel.
- This begs the question – can God not run the world by Himself? Does He need these 70 other “sons of God” to work with Him? No, God is self-sufficient and does not need anyone or anything. Yet, He chooses to share His power and authority with others.
God`s Model of Shared Leadership
We see this pattern of shared leadership even with Christ Jesus, God in the flesh. When Jesus came to earth, He chose 12 men to work with and shared power with them. He then expanded that to 70 others and even 500 at one point.
This reveals God’s view of power – it is to be shared and distributed among as many as possible, not hoarded by a single leader. Let’s look at how God worked to instil this mindset in one of His key leaders, Moses:
Lesson 1: Delegation
- In Exodus 18:17-21, Moses’ father-in-law Jethro observes Moses trying to single-handedly judge all the people’s disputes from morning to night.
- Jethro advises Moses, “What you are doing is not good. You and these people who come to you will only wear yourselves out. The work is too heavy for you; you cannot handle it alone.”
- Jethro counsels Moses to “select capable men from all the people—men who fear God, trustworthy men who hate dishonest gain—and appoint them as officials over thousands, hundreds, fifties and tens. Have them serve as judges for the people at all times, but have them bring every difficult case to you; the simple cases they can decide themselves. That will make your load lighter because they will share it with you.”
- This is God’s first lesson to Moses on leadership – the importance of delegation to capable, character-driven individuals who can share the burden.
Lesson 2: Empowerment and Validation
- We see this lesson reinforced in Numbers 11:16-17 when the Israelites are complaining about the lack of meat.
- God tells Moses, “Bring me seventy of Israel’s elders known to you as leaders and officials among the people. Have them come to the tent of the meeting so that they may stand there with you. I will come down and speak with you there. I will take some of the power of the Spirit on you and put it on them. They will share the burden of the people with you so that you will not have to carry it alone.”
- This time, God not only instructs Moses to delegate but also empowers those he delegates to by giving them the Spirit’s power. Furthermore, God publicly validates them by having them prophesy in front of the camp.
- As leaders, we must not only delegate to capable individuals but also empower them with the necessary resources and publicly validate their authority.
Applying God’s Model of Leadership
God’s way of leading is to constantly push power downwards and outwards, not upwards to a few. This is in contrast to the world’s model of leadership, which tends to consolidate power at the top.
Just as Moses had to be “unschooled” from the Egyptian model of top-down, autocratic leadership, we too must be retrained to think differently about power:
- Power is not to be hoarded but shared.
- Power is a means of facilitating and empowering others, not self-serving.
- Decentralized, networked leadership models are God’s design, not the world’s recent “discovery.”
Questions for Self-Reflection
- Do you sometimes feel hesitant to share power with others?
- Have you identified capable individuals around you to whom you can delegate?
- Have you assessed their skills and abilities to determine how much responsibility they can handle?
- Have you provided them with the necessary resources and public validation to succeed in their roles?
Practical Steps
- Prayerfully examine your leadership style. Are you operating in an “Egyptian” model of solo, autocratic leadership or a “Kingdom” model of shared, empowering leadership?
- Identify key team members or emerging leaders to whom you can delegate more responsibility.
- Schedule time to meet with them individually and discuss ways you can empower them – provide training, resources, and public affirmation of their abilities.
- Evaluate your delegation and empowerment efforts regularly and make adjustments as needed to continue developing a culture of shared leadership.
The world may view power as something to be hoarded and used for personal gain. But God’s design is for power to be shared, distributed, and used to facilitate the growth and success of others. As leaders in the workplace and beyond, may we embrace this higher, Godly perspective on power and leadership.
