Mary Kate Morse on Leadership as a Stewardship of Power

Photo Credit: pedrosimoes7

From Mary Kate Morse's book, Making Room for Leadership: Power, Space and Influence:

"When we walk into a room, the visuals and viscerals of our presence are quickly calculated by the members of the group as they figure the amount of influence they will give us. The process of addition and subtraction are continually active.

We all do this in social settings. We make snap decisions about whether newcomers are safe and can be trusted with who we are and what we're about. These decisions have sticking power; once they're made, they're hard to change.

Each of us is given a measure of power. There is a steady exchange of power potential negotiated within groups. Like dance partners, we move in social space exchanging meaning in a quiet rhythm of relational cues and discernment. Some people are given more power and some less, but everyone is involved. Power doesn't belong to any one person -- it belongs to the group that constitutes it. The exception is when force is used to make the group follow the will of the leader. 

So the use of power is not just a moral issue...it's also a stewardship issue. God called us to steward the resources of his creation, and I suggest that power is one of those resources. The acquisition, management, consumption and distribution of resources are economic issues. So also are the acquisition, management, use and distribution of power for equipping people to do the work of God's kingdom. Anyone who has an interest can learn to understand the economics of the forestry industry or small business. But how can we understand and manage the economics of power?

Even though we value servant leadership, which has a lot to do with the use of power, we usually aren't mindful of the stewardship of power. We tend to equate servant leadership with spiritual, internal character qualities manifested in a leader's public behaviors. However, authentic servant leadership involves stewardship of power, power used thoughtfully for God's purposes as an exchange with a group. It is a kind of bean-counting that acknowledges gestures, invitations and "time attended to" all add up and matter. What a leader brings into a social space plus what happens between people in that space results in influence. Everything about the leader, from the first hello to the final decision, is a reflection of his or her stewardship of power - either for service of for personal gain."

Weekly Web Roundup (2/18/17)

Photo Credit: Moody Man

Here is a collection of items from around the web that caught my attention this past week:

When Ministry is Unglamorous by Tara Sing (GoThereFor.com)

"What is an unglamorous ministry? It’s a ministry where nobody sees you serving. It includes faithfully walking besides someone through years of grief or pain. It’s the ministry that cuts into your personal time, for which the reward seems little and almost not worth it. It’s the faithful and quiet service of driving someone to and from church weekly, knowing they may never repay the favor or buy you a tank of fuel. It is being an ear for those whose burdens are great—and a patient one when they refuse to address problems that they could solve themselves. It is washing the feet of weary travelers or, in our modern context, putting fresh sheets on the bed and providing a hot supper when they arrive. It is cleaning toilets and sweeping empty halls when everyone else has gone. It is spending time with the person at church who is awkward and avoided. It is praying with all your might for those who are lost. Sometimes it is simply devoting yourself to caring for family members or friends who are enduring one season of hardship after another. It’s the ministry that we think is hard, that we can’t be bothered with, or that we struggle to do joyfully."

5 Things That Can Make You Feel Like You’re Leading When You Aren’t by Carey Nieuwhof

"Sometimes people think they’re leaders because they have ideas. Ideas help leaders, but in and of themselves ideas are not leadership. Life is filled with people who say things like “I had that idea 8 years ago.” To which I always ask myself “And what did you DO about it?” Often the answer is nothing. And that’s the problem. Thinking is not leading. Creativity is not leadership. Generating incredible ideas is one thing. Acting on them is quite another. A B+ strategy, well-executed, trumps an A+ idea every time."

My Home Has ‘Murder’ in Its Name: How Russell Jeung met Jesus among the Southeast Asian gangs of Oakland. Interview by Morgan Lee (Christianity Today)

"Meanwhile, as a sociologist, Jeung has devoted himself to learning about California’s Asian American population, a topic with deeply personal resonance. His great-great-grandfather arrived in the United States in the 1800s. “Since my family has been in California so long,” he says, “we sort of reflect Asian American history. All the injustices and issues that Asian Americans faced throughout their time in the US, my family has personally gone through them.”"

Mike Ilitch was famous for his fortune. But his surprising connection to Rosa Parks reveals something more. by Sarah Larimer (The Washington Post)

Mike Ilitch, Little Caesar's Pizza founder and long-time owner of the Red Wings and Tigers, passed away recently at the age of 87. A well-known champion for the city of Detroit, Mr. I's connection with civil rights pioneer Rosa Parks was not as widely known. This article shares about the role that Ilitch played in helping to pay for Mrs. Parks apartment near the end of her life.

40% of foreign students in the US have no close friends on campus: The culture shock of loneliness. by Andrea van Niekerk (Quartz)

"Many international students respond to the “adjustment fatigue” by sticking to their own. An Indonesian student at the University of Florida laments that, “Their [American students’] conversations revolve around things I am not familiar with. As a result, international students tend to stick closely with each other. Even until today, I still always sit down together with other international students in the dining hall and hesitate to mingle with American students.” Many, however, find themselves even without the solace of their countrymen. The Journal of International and Intercultural Communication reports that 40% of international students had no close friends amongst their American classmates, a rate that was especially high amongst East Asian students (and incidentally slightly lower for those attending universities in the South). So despite actual numbers of foreign students on the rise, this casts one of the sadder lights on the true internationalization of American campuses."

Baseball Star Kris Bryant Gets Pranked by Hall of Famer Greg Maddux

What A Coffee Purchase Teaches Us About Humility & Leadership

Photo Credit: Center for American Progress

It is doubtful that Ambassador Gary Locke, U.S. Ambassador to China, anticipated the news that would be generated by his purchase of an airport Starbucks coffee but it has caught the attention of those he serves.

Locke, the first Chinese American governor in U.S. history when he held that office for the state of Washington from 1997-2005, caught the media's attention when he was recently photographed at the Seattle-Tacoma airport carrying his own backpack and attempting to purchase a coffee through the use of a coupon. You can see the photo here.

For those of us that are Americans, we may not understand what the fuss is all about but for the citizens of China, the country that he relates to as a representative of the United States, it has caused a stir. Look at what Chen Weihua, a writer for the China Daily, has to say on the matter:

"To many Americans, there was probably nothing unusual about this. But to most Chinese people, the scene was so unusual it almost defied belief.

How could someone who holds the rank of an ambassador to a big country not have someone to carry his luggage, and not use a chauffeured limousine. In China even a township chief, which is not really that high up in the hierarchy, will have a chauffeur and a secretary to carry his bag.

Watching this episode, many Chinese people might start to wonder if the people at the US embassy in Beijing in charge of arranging Locke's reception would keep their jobs.

I am sure they did given another photo of Locke that was circulated by netizens [active members of online communities]. It features Locke, with the same backpack he was carrying at the airport, apparently trying to buy a cup of Starbucks coffee with a coupon at the Seattle airport. When the coupon wasn't accepted, he paid with his credit card.

"Why was there no one to buy a coffee for the boss?" many Chinese netizens asked."

Ambassador Locke demonstrates an important lesson for us in humility and in leadership. When appointed to a position of public service, the expectation is that we would serve our constituents. All too often, however, the roles get reversed and those of us in leadership positions ask others to serve us.

As great as the example that Ambassador Locke has shown us, Jesus Christ is the ultimate example of what it means to be a servant leader. From John 13:

"It was just before the Passover Feast. Jesus knew that the time had come for him to leave this world and go to the Father. Having loved his own who were in the world, he now showed them the full extent of his love. The evening meal was being served, and the devil had already prompted Judas Iscariot, son of Simon, to betray Jesus. Jesus knew that the Father had put all things under his power, and that he had come from God and was returning to God; so he got up from the meal, took off his outer clothing, and wrapped a towel around his waist. After that, he poured water into a basin and began to wash his disciples' feet, drying them with the towel that was wrapped around him. When he had finished washing their feet, he put on his clothes and returned to his place. "Do you understand what I have done for you?" he asked them. ..."You call me 'Teacher' and 'Lord,' and rightly so, for that is what I am. Now that I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also should wash one another's feet. I have set you an example that you should do as I have done for you. I tell you the truth, no servant is greater than his master, nor is a messenger greater than the one who sent him. Now that you know these things, you will be blessed if you do them."

There are many ways that a leader can be described but one of the best ways is as one who serves others.

Oswald Chambers on Knowing Christ

Photo Credit: Chiceaux

From Oswald Chambers' classic, My Utmost For His Highest:

"A saint is not to take the initiative toward self-realization, but toward knowing Jesus Christ. A spiritually vigorous saint never believes that his circumstances simply happen at random, nor does he ever think of his life as being divided into the secular and the sacred. He sees every situation in which he finds himself as the means of obtaining a greater knowledge of Jesus Christ, and he has an attitude of unrestrained abandon and total surrender about him.

The Holy Spirit is determined that we will have the realization of Jesus Christ in every area of our lives, and He will bring us back to the same point over and over again until we do. Self-realization only leads to the glorification of good works, whereas a saint of God glorifies Jesus Christ through his good works. Whatever we may be doing— even eating, drinking, or washing disciples’ feet— we have to take the initiative of realizing and recognizing Jesus Christ in it. Every phase of our life has its counterpart in the life of Jesus. Our Lord realized His relationship to the Father even in the most menial task. “Jesus, knowing ... that He had come from God and was going to God, ... took a towel ... and began to wash the disciples’ feet ...” (John 13:3-5).

The aim of a spiritually vigorous saint is “that I may know Him ...” Do I know Him where I am today? If not, I am failing Him. I am not here for self-realization, but to know Jesus Christ. In Christian work our initiative and motivation are too often simply the result of realizing that there is work to be done and that we must do it. Yet that is never the attitude of a spiritually vigorous saint. His aim is to achieve the realization of Jesus Christ in every set of circumstances."

The Missionary as a Servant

I just finished reading an excellent book by Duane Elmer called Cross-Cultural Servanthood: Serving the World in Christlike Humility. For all those that are cross-cultural missionaries, I highly recommend you read this. And thanks to my good friend, Greg, for introducing me to it.

In the book Elmer tells the following story:

"One young missionary, Chuck, found the first couple years on the mission field challenging but adventurous and delightful. As he got more and more into the culture he found himself spending increasing time with the local people. The enjoyment seemed mutual, and the local people began to share deeply from their hearts, just as he did. Chuck shared what he was learning with his missionary colleagues. The colleagues wondered why they had not had a similar response since they had been there much longer.

After a couple years Chuck and his wife began inviting the local people into their home. They invited the older pastors first, knowing this was how to show respect. Eventually the younger people were included. He knew that many missionaries didn't invite the local people into their homes, but he wasn't sure why. So he kept on. Furthermore, in this culture, the local people usually came in the back door of the missionary's house - the door that servants used. They would wait there or sometimes be invited in to sit for a few moments until business could be transacted. Chuck failed to understand why the back door should be required for the pastors and other local people. So he brought his local guests in through his front door, seating them in his living room. At the appropriate time they would gather around and all would eat together.

Relationships broadened and grew stronger. However, the young missionary didn't realize he was violating an unwritten rule among his missionary colleagues - "It's best not to get too familiar with them." Missionaries were to evangelize, disciple, and build the church. If someone got too close to the local people, they surmised, he or she could not be objective in accomplishing the task. Their reasoning seemed feeble.

Chuck believed he was there to serve the people, which certainly included getting to know them, understanding their culture and fitting in. That required time together, not just in business or strategy meetings but in the flow of life and leisure. While the relationships with local people prospered, the opposite was true with his missionary colleagues. He was increasingly left out of events, overlooked in various ways and effectively marginalized. He increasingly thought about quitting before completing the term. Clouds of discouragement settled in, and life held little joy. The fog was dense - the mystery nearly crushing. At the end of his term of service Chuck returned to the U.S., pursued some additional education and became involved in ministry. While the days were bright and exciting, the fog still hung over that earlier period of his life.

Ten years later Chuck returned to the country and began looking up old acquaintances. One pastor, part of the circle of relationships the missionary had enjoyed, asked him to preach at his church. Visitors are often extended this honor. Early in the service the pastor made some reference to a special person in the congregation who "changed the history of missions in this country." Chuck scanned the 350 or so people but saw no one from his previous years that he recognized who might have earned such recognition.

Later, the local pastor repeated the statement as he was introducing Chuck to speak. Puzzlement came over the missionary, thinking he was being confused with someone else. His legacy had been a few relationships and a lot of fog. The pastor continued,

"This man invited many of us into his home. Not only that, he brought us through the front door. Then we sat in his living room and ate at his table. No other missionaries did that in those days. Now nearly all the missionaries invite us into their homes through the front door and treat us as honored guests - as equals. In this way, he changed the history of missions in our country."

After ten years of fog, it all lifted in less than one minute. The mystery was explained."