As people who lead in the name of Jesus, we are not to enter every open door or seize every new opportunity. Why? Doing so prematurely, i.e. outside of God’s timetable, damages both ourselves and his long-term kingdom mission in the world.
We see this in biblical examples such as Jesus’ limits on the authority of the Twelve as he discipled them as well and the seven sons of Sceva’s premature attempt to drive out evil spirits for Jesus without a life with Jesus.
The ancient church talked about this saying of no to leadership opportunities a lot more than we do today. In this podcast I tell the story of Theodore of Pherme (a 4th century desert teacher) who said no to pastoral leadership in his day:
Time after time, the old men brought him back to Scetis saying, “Do not abandon your role as a deacon.” Abba Theodore said to them,“Let me pray to God so he may tell me for sure whether I ought to function publicly as a deacon.” This is how he prayed to God: “If it is your will that I should stand in this place, make me sure of it.” A pillar of fire appeared to him, stretching from earth to heaven, and a voice said, “If you can become like this pillar of fire, go and be a deacon.” So he decided against it.
This story should make us uncomfortable as exercising a role of leadership for Jesus is weighty. To what extent is my life like fire, uniting heaven and earth? In this podcast I talk about three reasons we ought to consider pausing to pray before saying yes to new leadership opportunities before us:
- Our Inner Life or Maturity is Not Ready
- The Limits God has Given Us
- God’s Voice and Timing
Enjoy!
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