The Inspired Leader: 101 Biblical Reflections for Becoming a Person of Influence (12 page)

In 1900, Milton Hershey sold his caramel business to his chief rival for one million dollars. It was a premium price. Yet it appeared that an aggressive competitor had pushed Hershey out of the market. The fact was that Hershey believed milk chocolate was the candy of the future and he wanted to be at the forefront of the new trend. Hershey built a factory to produce the chocolate and developed an entire city (Hershey, PA) in which his plant and its employees were located. His major problem was that he did not have a workable recipe for milk chocolate! His teams of inventors worked day and night, conducting numerous experiments to master its production, but to no avail. In 1903, after suffering repeated failure, Hershey invited John Schmalbach from his Lancaster plant to come to his home and help him solve the puzzle. That night, Schmalbach managed to “break the code” and Hershey’s milk chocolate was birthed. The good news quickly spread throughout Hershey’s employees. Everyone realized they once again had hope, and a future.

On a clear night in the Judean countryside, shepherds were on duty through the night, caring for their flocks of sheep. Shepherds were hardened, working people. Few people trusted them. They labored long hours for a meager reward. Life never changed for shepherds. The great decisions made in the major cities of Jerusalem, Caesarea, and Rome meant little to them.

Suddenly the sky lit up with fiery, heavenly messengers. An angel cried out, “
Do not be afraid, for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy which will be to all people”
(Luke 2:10). The good news of the Gospel brings great joy. Significantly, the first time it was shared, it was presented to people working the night shift! God loves working people and He delights in bringing them good news.

“Angel” means “messenger.” It describes someone who delivers a message. Rather than always dispatching winged emissaries from heaven, God may assign us that task. The news of Christ
is
good news and it brings great
joy.
The marketplace is filled with joyless people who desperately need good news. You can be God’s ambassador to your workplace with a message that changes peoples’ lives and infuses them with hope. The Gospel can bring people the “breakthrough” they are looking for that forever changes their lives. You could be God’s dispenser of good news to your colleagues. Who might you share that message with today?

REFLECT FOR A MOMENT

1. List three of your colleagues whose lives could be dramatically changed for the better if they learned a truth about God. Begin praying (and looking) for an opportunity share those truths with them.
   

2. Have you lost your sense of wonder at the Good News of the Gospel? How faithful have you been to share it with your colleagues and clients?
   

3. Do you view the Gospel as a set of beliefs, a moral standard, or good news of great joy? How has the good news of Christ been bringing you joy?
   

“MEN ARE GOD'S method. The Church is looking for better methods; God is looking for better men” (E.M. Bounds,
Power through Prayer).
Throughout history, when society was in crisis, God called upon ordinary people through whom He would bring deliverance. When the Egyptians were oppressing the Israelites, God sent Moses. When the Midianites were abusing God’s people, God called Gideon. When the Philistines were bullying the Hebrews God raised up Samson, Samuel, and David to defend His people. When Haman plotted to massacre the Jewish people in Persia, God moved Esther to speak out on behalf of her countrymen. When the poor were being exploited, God summoned Amos to plead for justice. When God launched the greatest work of redemption in history, He entrusted the Savior to a teenage, peasant girl named Mary. God could have commissioned a legion of angels every time His people were in need, but He has generally chosen to work through ordinary people.

In 1994, South Africa elected Nelson Mandela as its president. Everyone is familiar with how he promoted reconciliation in a country rife with alienation and successfully led a peaceful transition from minority to majority rule. In the years following his presidency however, South Africa experienced widespread turmoil as housing and job shortages increased. People from all over the continent began pouring in to South Africa, many of them having never heard the Gospel message. As unemployment skyrocketed, so did the crime rate. Clearly a political solution was not enough. The nation also needed to turn to God. In this turbulent time, God raised up an ordinary, unknown farmer named Angus Buchan.

Buchan’s life had been challenging. He was a maize and cattle farmer in Zambia until political unrest forced him to relocate to Greytown, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. He was an ambitious, hot-tempered man who occasionally neglected his wife and children in his desperate attempts to make his farm successful. Local residents nicknamed him “Nikosaan Italiaan” because they claimed he acted like a mad Italian. In 1979, Angus had a personal encounter with Jesus Christ, and it completely changed his life. He began speaking to groups of men and challenging them to turn their focus away from political unrest and economic uncertainty. Instead, he urged them to trust Christ and to live for Him, regardless of what was happening in their country. Buchan eventually opened his farm to men from across South Africa, inviting them to spend a weekend. He spoke to those who came and challenged them to act and think like mighty men of God. In April 2009, over 200,000 men arrived at his farm. In 2010, over 300,000 came. Buchan took his message throughout the country. Gigantic soccer stadiums overflowed with over 60,000 men in attendance as Buchan challenged people to commit their lives to Christ. His story was told in a book and a later movie entitled
Faith Like Potatoes
. Buchan is an ordinary working man with a meager eighth grade education, yet he is drawing more people to hear him preach than world famous celebrities. Lives are being dramatically transformed at a time when his nation is longing for healing and change.

When society desperately needs to be reformed, God typically raises up someone through whom He will work. Could it be that in these turbulent times in our country, God is calling you? What are the limits to what He could do through your life to dramatically impact your nation and world, for good?

REFLECT FOR A MOMENT

1. Has God raised you up to accomplish His purposes in some way? If so, what do you think God intends to do through your life?
   

2. Do you tend to look for others to change situations or to solve problems, or do you assume God will use your life? What adjustments might you need to make so you are prepared for God to use your life more powerfully in the future?
   

3. God used Angus Buchan, not because of his education, position, or finances, but because of his heart and passion for God. Do you ever feel that you are too ordinary or untrained or lacking in financial resources to make much difference in God’s kingdom? In reality, what are the limits to what almighty God could do with your life, if He chose to? Do you truly believe God can use you life to impact your world? If so, are you living as if you believe it?
   

T.E. LAWRENCE WAS the illegitimate son of Thomas Chapman and Sarah Junner. He stood just over five feet five inches tall and, as a young man, was variously described as “an odd gnome, half cad—with a touch of genius” and “this extraordinary pip-squeak” (Michael Korda,
Hero, 6
). He graduated from Jesus College in Oxford and devoted his early years to archeological digs in the Middle East. When World War One erupted, he was assigned as a liaison to the Arabs, due to his familiarity with their land and culture. Palestine, as well as the Arabian Peninsula, and modern Syria and Lebanon were under the longstanding subjugation of the Ottoman Empire. The Arab peoples, consisting largely of Bedouins, were disorganized with antiquated weapons and inadequate leadership to free themselves from the vicelike grip of the Turks. In one of the most celebrated stories of World War One, Lieutenant Lawrence, an archeology major, gained the trust of the Arab leaders and helped them unite in the common cause of liberating themselves from their oppressors. Nations exist today that were forged from his efforts. Made famous around the world as “Lawrence of Arabia,” he risked his life to liberate people who were entirely different from himself. Lawrence devoted himself to others’ freedom.

Jesus claimed, “
And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free”
(John 8:32). Jesus, Himself, is the Truth (John 14:6). He came to earth to set people free. Sin and death held humanity in an inescapable vicelike grip that propelled people toward eternal destruction. Yet when Jesus came, many people rejected Him (John 1:5). Throughout human history, sin has worked its evil to blind people and to keep them in bondage. Nevertheless, the light of Christ continues to shine, dispelling the darkness and setting people free (John 1:9-12).

Jesus told His disciples that they were to be lights in a darkened world (Matthew 5:14-16). Rather than keeping His followers at a safe and comfortable distance from spiritual darkness, Christ strategically positions His disciples where their light can dispel the darkness around them and set people free.

At times you may wonder why a colleague seems captivated by money or promotions or earning bonuses. You may be shocked to learn of colleagues who are addicted to alcohol, drugs, or pornography. It can be bewildering to see intelligent people forfeit their marriage or family or reputations for momentary pleasures and foolish choices. But the reason is simple: they are in bondage. They need to be set free. Why do people waste their life? Why do they harm other people? Why do they pursue fleeting pleasures and accumulate guilt and regret? They are captives to sin and deception.

Every time you encounter someone who is in bondage to something, ask yourself, What truth of God could set this person free? For every form of human bondage, God has a remedy. There is a truth in God’s word that, if believed and embraced, would set every enslaved person free. The great privilege of Jesus’ disciples is to be entrusted with His truth. Every time we encounter people in bondage, we can share divine truth with them that has the power to free them from their servitude. Of course, you cannot force truth on anyone. Neither can you believe on someone else’s behalf. But you can share what you know. (Conversely, you can’t share what you don’t know!)