Things Necessary for Leaders, part 2

Self-examination is the key to all action. We all have the gift of a critical eye. The word "critic" is rooted in the word "judge." Judgment is the key to intelligent decision making. Such decision making begins best at home. It's not the other people in my home, either, it's me. If I don't like something about the world (or any specific arena within the world), I can only change it if I find the reason for it in myself. This is what Jesus was teaching in Matthew 7. This is what so many people seem to miss. It's a shame too, because this teaching of Christ's is among His most powerful and liberating. I'm not limited to cursing the evil in the world when I can find its source within myself and submit it to the cross of Christ. If I don't like how something is or isn't done, I first have to figure out my own role in it. We return to football. Notice the coaches. They yell. They criticize. They encourage. They discuss and dispute. The difference between them and people sitting 100 feet higher in the stadium is that they have taken responsibility for the outcome of the game. I know many people who have yet to take responsibility for their own lives, yet have much to say about others. Jesus teaches that this is backwards. If you want to change the world, or anything in the world, now, thanks to Jesus, you know where to start. It can be a pretty exciting adventure. And notice that the one who starts judgment at home, then has a voice in this world as well. Jesus was teaching us how to judge, not that we shouldn't judge. And, yes, leadership is certainly about judgment and having judgment.