TRUE LEADERSHIP IS FOLLOWERSHIP

“Be ye followers of me, even as I also am of Christ.” (1 Corinthians 11:1 KJV)

This statement from Paul is crucial to the concept of leadership, whether spiritual or secular. Leadership principles hold true in every sphere of human endeavor.

A true leader is a follower. The identifying mark of authentic leadership is having someone you too follow as much as others follow you. That is why I would advise you to never follow a man/woman that is following no one else. The root of a tree determines the sustainability of its fruits, not otherwise. (I say this because a lot of young leaders go off pursuing shadows while leaving the substance. Before you follow that person, check to see who they are following.)

A lot of leaders, both veteran and emerging, need to have a rethink where this subject matter is concerned; most especially in this part of the world where I live – Nigeria, to be precise. Followership is not a thing to be ashamed of. Rather, arrogance, the inability and unwillingness to acknowledge your source is the companion of pride, which is the Achilles’, heel of many a leader.

Napoleon Hill, author of the classic, Think and Grow Rich, wrote in the same about where leadership begins. In effect, he said, “It is no disgrace to be a follower…Most great leaders began in the capacity of followers. They became great leaders because they were intelligent followers. With few exceptions, the man who cannot follow a leader intelligently cannot become an efficient leader. The man, who can follow a leader most efficiently, is usually the man who develops into leadership most rapidly. An intelligent follower has many advantages, among them the opportunity to acquire knowledge from his leader.”

True leadership begins with following. From the Garden of Eden, man’s authority to rule and lead had been contingent upon his ability to follow instructions (see Genesis 1:26). If you have never learnt well to follow, you won’t be able to lead. It is in learning to follow someone that you gain the experience, the authority and the grace to lead another person.

Leadership does not start with leading, it starts with following. Joshua started out in leadership by following Moses. Timothy learnt from Paul. Elisha followed Elijah. The twelve apostles followed Jesus. Samuel followed Eli, the prophet.

And that last example is very instructive. No leader is perfect. He/she is still human. And as such is bound to have flaws. But following a bad leader is better than following no one at all. If the fellow can’t teach you or model for you how to lead properly, at least you will learn how not to lead! Some folks need to consider that before bailing out of their divinely-orchestrated training program.

Your authority to lead is derived from your submission to another leader. As leaders, we are not laws unto ourselves, we are under-shepherds; following Jesus, the great Shepherd of the sheep.

To keep leading, keep following. Think about this and the Lord will give you deeper understanding. YOU WILL SUCCEED!

WHAT WILL BE YOUR LEGACY? – THE S. G. ELTON EXAMPLE

The picture above is of Miss Ruth Elton, 77, the only daughter of Pa S. G. Elton, a missionary statesman who discipled a lot of the men who led and still lead the Pentecostal revival in Nigeria. She’s standing on behalf of her father for the Lifetime Achievement Award at the ECU Reunion Conference 2011.

The ECU is an acronym for the Evangelical Christian Union, one of the foremost and oldest campus fellowships at the Obafemi Awolowo University in Ile-Ife, Nigeria. It is a fellowship reputed in it’s almost fifty (50) years of existence to have produced leaders in almost every sphere of human endeavor – ministry, business, education, corporate and public governance, technology, ICT etc. I know because I am privileged to have passed through the same place and have served (and still serve) in leadership at both student and alumni levels.

S. G. Elton influenced those who shaped that fellowship in her early years. He lived a few kilometers away in Ilesha from the Ile-Ife campus where the fellowship is located. And now, he is being honored even in death, because his legacy endures!

Indeed, “The memory of the just is blessed: but the name of the wicked shall rot.” (Proverbs 10:7) I have said before and now again I say; FAME without a NAME is LAME. It does not endure! Solomon, ancient king of Israel put it this way, “A good name is to be chosen rather than great riches, loving favor rather than silver and gold.” (Proverbs 22:1)

I’m saying this because as leaders, we must not get it wrong! Our mandate is to build an enduring legacy. And the surest way to do that is by pouring our lives in service into other men. Monuments will fall and crumble, wealth and riches will fade but he that lives on in the hearts of other men truly lives! I agree with Edwin Markham, American clergyman of the 19th Century who in effect said that nothing really is worth the making if it does not make the man.

Investing in people is a costly and risky business; in fact it’s plain hard work. But as I have come to know that’s where the real joy and fulfillment in leadership comes from. In the long run, no one will remember you for the number of cars you had or the kind of automobile you drove. They will care less how many countries you visited or the size of your business organization or ministry. Only your deposit in people’s lives is what will endure after all is said and done.

See, “One of the outstanding ironies of history is the utter disregard of ranks and titles in the final judgment men pass on each other,” Samuel Logan Brengle (1860 – 1939) said. “The final estimate of men shows that history cares not an iota for the rank or title a man has borne, or the office he has held, but only the quality of his deeds and the character of his mind and heart,” he concluded.

S. G. Elton had followed in the footsteps of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, Paul, the Apostle from Tarsus and many others like them who though may be dead yet their legacies live on through the lives they have touched. They are my heroes and I say, “Let me die the death of the righteous, and let my last end be like his!” (Numbers 23:10) Selah!

THOUGHTS TO CHEW ON

One of the common mistakes and one of the costliest is thinking that success is due to some genius, some magic something or other which we do not possess. Success is generally due to holding on and failure to let go. You decide to learn a language, study music, take a course in reading, and train yourself physically. Will it be a success or failure? It depends upon how much pluck and perseverance that word “decide” contains. The decision that nothing will overrule, the grip that nothing can detach will bring success. – Mattie D. Babcock (clergyman & author)

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