(Yes, these are out of order. Sorry)
NOTE: Scouting is about, among other things, Leadership Development. My Eagle Scout blogs are not about my time in Boy Scouts, but about how they have affected me as an adult. Considering most of my life has been spent serving in ministry, it is not unusual that much of the content of this blog falls within that context, and junk.
In my journeys I have been blessed and overwhelmed by the people and personalities I've encountered that have engendered true trustworthy-ness. By definition this is, in theory, an easy concept - a person is worthy and deserving of trust.
One of my favorite stories is of Darrell, a man who simply wanted to serve our Student Ministry and every week would give his time setting up and tearing down over 200 chairs, hauling them out across a gym, then putting them back after the service was over. He had no desire to be noticed, nor did he have time in his life to be a "leader." But I knew I could depend on him, no matter what. If he was going to be out of town, he always let me know at least two weeks in advance. He was more than worthy of my trust.
A bad example would be the church I worked for while in Seminary. The Sr. Pastor asked me to create and have made a large sign that pointed to our church, to be placed on a roadway near the church. I called the highway department and discovered the road was a scenic / historic highway and no signs were allowed. Any signs placed there regardless of the size, would result in a $1,000 fine. When I told the Sr. Pastor this, he said to do it anyway. "All they'll do is make us take it down." (hello? Authority?). I respectfully declined and after a few more oddities such as this I offered my resignation. I didn't want to be associated with that type of behavior and I certainly didn't want to assimilate it into my ministry heart. When he asked why I was resigning I told him flatly "because I don't trust you.
Friends I've met I have come to trust with my deepest hurts, longings and joys, knowing that what I shared was safe with them. But I also learned that these people loved me enough to tell me the truth no matter how painful it might be. As such, I knew their words were for my own good, not to hurt me, but to protect me.
"Dear brothers and sisters,[a] not many of you should become teachers in the church, for we who teach will be judged more strictly. 2 Indeed, we all make many mistakes. For if we could control our tongues, we would be perfect and could also control ourselves in every other way." James: 3: 1-2
Trustworthy is (in leadership)
- Leading by example (if you want praying people, you SHOW them how to pray by praying with them regularly.) Leading by example produces trust.
- Seeing the best in people and giving them opportunities to grow, not simply critiquing them when they fail. This makes the people we lead KNOW they can trust us and they have out best interest in mind. The opposite only causes people to be fearful, scared of being themselves and being "cut off."
- Not forcing others into a situation where they must "lie" in order to protect the leader.
- A Trustworthy person invests their time and energy in the people they lead. This is in a personal context, not just a business "meeting" context, where you simply check up on people. Relationship builds trust. The absence of relationship builds uncertainty and fear.
One thing I've noticed in 20+ years of ministry is that the best leaders have real, structured accountability; people (a group) to whom a leader willingly and humbly submits. This type of accountability is not just a couple of casual "buddies" who talk with him/her, nor is it a group of "yes men" who simply rubber stamp what the leader says without investigating all aspects of a situation.
No, these are trained, mentored, and, wise people who are able to look at the leader and say "no, you were wrong to do that." They are also able to say "you hit that out of the park!" Likely more frustrating is when they say "I don't think this is the time to do that" because leaders always want to move.
Accountability is not to hinder a leader, like a committee might. No, accountability is the first line of defense for a leader. Their stated job is to protect the leader, to watch his/her back, to confirm or "veto" an idea or an action. A leader's protection and encouragement is the goal. Without this manner of protection a leader, with the purist of heart, and the strongest calling of God, can slip into questionable attitudes and behaviors, and there is no one to say "that was wrong!" In such a situation he / she probably would likely not listen even if they did. It becomes easy to imagine, without that safety net, that followers who have questions or disagree with you, are against you. Or, it can be thought they "just don't get it." Without accountability, arrogance is free to flourish. Some leaders will be upset at my writing this, angry at the suggestion that they need, or perhaps don't have, real accountability.
Accountability equals Trustworthiness. Whatever my future, I won't take a position in a church without an organized system of leadership accountability. I won't even attend one for long. It is that important. Always ask your leader "who do you submit to, locally, here in the church?" It is my prayer that churches are led by Godly people who have Godly accountability. People worthy of trust. If one searches within churches, government or any institutions, one will find leaders of character who are worthy of trust. They are out there!
But this is just my experience, and my viewpoint. I'm open to being wrong.
But this is just my experience, and my viewpoint. I'm open to being wrong.
Like most points of the Scout Law, I long to be someone worthy of TRUST.
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