Courage and Leadership

My friend Phka sharing the gospel to a group in a village home

Life was going nowhere. Everywhere he looked Josh saw a bleak future for his community, businesses, his faith family, and his personal family. That is, if things continued to follow the status quo. They had been operating the same way for 40 years and it had worked, but the outlook for staying with the current model was pretty bleak. To top it all off the community’s primary leader was now out of the picture.

Then came the appointment Josh had been waiting for!

“Josh, it’s time.” “I want you to be the lead on taking everyone in the direction I set for them 40 years ago.”

Josh knew exactly what he was being told. Years before he and one other man had encouraged the group to move into a new region. Back then his advice was quickly thwarted. The vast majority of those making decisions only saw the risks and potential costs. Josh had seen the benefits with his own eyes and hadn’t been afraid to voice his opinion.

“You are the man for the job. It’s going to require courage and there will be obstacles, but the opportunity is there for the taking!” “I’ll give you everything you need to get the job done.”

Josh went away from today’s meeting excited and making plans. However, in the back of his mind he wondered how people would respond. He knew some would oppose him because they were comfortable with the way things were, while others would be afraid of the risk or the unknown. But that didn’t slow him down, he headed straight for his friend Caleb’s house to tell him the great news. Like any great leader Joshua knew it was time for change.

I’ve been encouraged lately to spend some time with great leaders. Leaders who aren’t afraid to ask the tough questions.  Leaders who aren’t afraid to personally act based on the tough answers to those questions.  Leaders with great depth of character who possess courage.

When God spoke to Joshua and told him to take the Israelites into the Promised Land He told Joshua: “Be strong and of good courage.” There were giants in the land where Joshua was about to lead 2.5 million people. In the past there had been many who were afraid and it was likely that hadn’t changed. Yet God was calling Joshua to lead in that direction anyway. This is a good picture of the way author Richard Daft defines courage. He says “the defining characteristic of courage is the ability to step forward through fear.” Courage doesn’t mean the absence of doubt or fear, but the ability to act in spite of them.

Students in a village school

It seems every week in Cambodia I face a new unknown. God continues to challenge me to push past any personal fears, press past identity and self-esteem issues, to attempt new things and take greater risks. I’ve been reminded in God the possibilities are endless for our lives. However, this is only if we welcome God to be everything He desires to be in our lives. The problem with that is sometimes who He is or what He wants us to do in us can be scary. God is often just plain confrontational with us and sometimes requires us to be confrontational in our approach to life with others.

I wanted to share an answer from one of my favorite textbooks, The Leadership Experience, to a question I’ve been asking, “What does it mean as a leader to possess courage? 

“As a leader courage means to develop the backbone to accept personal responsibility for achieving desired outcomes, go against the status quo, and stand up for what you believe. Push beyond your comfort zone and break through the wall of fear that limits you.”