Leading with a light touch
The young newly qualified doctor phoned home in a mild panic. Too soon for comfort she found herself in charge of several wards at night, scared and out of her depth. The newly appointed manager struggled to control the people and systems for which he had been made responsible. His line manager seemed to have made himself scarce. Work can be very uncomfortable when we are pitched into situations that test our nerve and our abilities to the limit.
The disciples had come to Jesus with a problem. Most of the day had been spent teaching and healing. It was late afternoon in the desert and there were now 5000 hungry people. The disciples told Jesus that he should send them away to find food and lodging where ever they could. He replied, 'You give them something to eat'.
He was their leader, their teacher - he was the one who had authority, who would always know what to do. Were they puzzled or panicked by such an impossible task, so far beyond them? At that point Jesus demonstrated his kind of leadership by encouraging but not demoralising. He did what they could not do, but not in any high-handed demonstration of superiority, and left plenty of scope for them to take part.
He gave them the task of organising the crowd into groups. He worked the quiet miracle with five loaves and two fish and gave the disciples the food for distribution. How many of the thousands knew what had really happened? Was it the disciples who earned the crowd's gratitude? Perhaps it was only as they cleared up the leftovers that they discovered just how big a miracle it had been.
If we have any position of authority over others, we too need to learn how to encourage without pushing people beyond their limits. And we need to watch that we do not use our abilities to diminish others.
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