Leading by God's Example

Scripture: There on the stones, Joshua copied the law of Moses, which he had written in the presence of the Israelites. Joshua 8:32

Observation: One of the laws from Moses was that, when Israel had a king, the king is to write out his own copy of the law. With the defeat of Jericho and Ai, Joshua does exactly this.

Joshua is never the king of Israel. He is the next leader after Moses, commanding the military efforts, and aiding all the people in judging their actions and discerning right from wrong according to the law, but he is not 'king'. However, he is fulfilling that role, and in performing the commanded tasks he is publicly assuming that mantle. From now until the land is opened and the tribes granted their portions, Joshua is the indisputable leader of the country in every possible way. Yet he never really has a title ... Joshua is not king, or judge, or prophet, or general, or priest.

Joshua is the consummate leader. He may have been granted authority by God and visibly handed that authority by Moses' conference and God's miracles, but he retains that authority simply by exercising leadership. He follows the law, establishes goals, defines strategy, communicates vision, orders tactics. In all of this, he does the right things when he confers with God, and fails when he fails to do so.

Application: While I have leadership by both position and gifting, I am better at it when I confer with God. I don't do that enough. I may do it on some individual matters, and in a very general way in seeking overall guidance, but I do not bring daily decisions to God. This would be an interesting practice, asking God about ... application strategy, project recovery issues, and service quality standards. It would be interesting, and it would also be ... helpful. Perhaps God doesn't care about all those things, and perhaps I wouldn't always hear answers. Or I might get amazing instructions, visible ways to proceed, and tremendous success.

Running an IT department is not like conquering the promised land or settling God's chosen people. But I don't need to worry about a grand title to lead like Joshua.

Prayer: Lord, I will try to remember to bring my daily work to you more often. I do have decisions to make, issues to address, and challenges to overcome. I have people who need vision and direction. May I consult you more and more. Amen.