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Leadership without accountability is leadership without credibility.
Almost everywhere we turn, in any profession, the trust of leadership is on the decline. Research shows that only 49% of employees trust senior management and only 28% believe CEOs are a credible source of information. Nursing was the most trusted profession as rated by 82% of people as highly trustworthy whereas Congressmen were at the bottom of the list; only 8% of Americans believed their leaders in Washington are trustworthy. The Gallup survey also found that Americans’ rating of the honesty and ethics of the clergy has fallen below 50 percent for the first time since 1977. This speaks to the most alarming place where corruption is seen today: church and religious institutions. This is especially predominant in Charismatic and Pentecostal circles that are often driven by flamboyant, charismatic personalities. When such individuals achieve a certain level of fame marked by large crowds and big offerings, their “spiritual authority” turns into celebrity fame and they use their influence, not to serve the faithful but to enrich themselves. Ephesians 4:11 teaches that the offices of apostle, prophet, evangelist and teacher are positions of spiritual authority. Leaders in these positions, who use that authority to manipulate followers for the purpose of enriching themselves have violated their trust and are corrupt. It could be a pastor in New York, an evangelist in the United Kingdom or a prophet in East Africa, any leader who enriches himself from the suffering or sacrifice of those he is supposed to be serving is a wolf in sheep’s clothing. He’s not there to empower, he’s there to devour, and that is corrupt. Too often, we’ve seen these preachers take advantage of crowds of people ranging from poor and illiterate to powerful and successful by promising God’s blessings of wealth in return for generous offerings. Many of these spiritual leaders have little or no formal religious training, except for what they see on “Church TV,” and are known to resort to tricks, gimmicks and outright deception to demonstrate their “special anointing” and touch from God. Sadly, because of this many church leaders are at a disadvantage. They are assumed to lack integrity and seek for personal gain. What is a leader to do? The answer, although not always easy or comfortable, is quite simple. Any leader who wants credibility needs to have accountability. To learn more click here Authority is God’s idea. He created it as an equitable means of maintaining order and stability throughout His creation. It is the right to govern, to lead, to initiate action, and command others.
The ancient Romans had a tradition. When an engineer constructed an arch; as the capstone was hoisted over the structure and lowered into place, the engineer would stand under the arch demonstrating his complete confidence in his design. It was a profound expression of accountability. Rather than expecting others to become victims of his failure, he personally and publicly bore the consequence of whether or not he had fulfilled his duty. Even more important, and because of the accountability it provides, this tradition enabled trust. Having witnessed the architect being held accountable for his design, pedestrians would have complete trust in the arch and freely pass under, or over it without concern. In a sense, the duty of leadership is like building an arch. Every decision, action, and policy a leader implements must serve the interests of the people and the organization he is called to lead. Like building an arch, the leader is developing infrastructure to cover and protect or providing passageways to improve the society he leads. When the leader is accountable for his actions, when the integrity of his decisions are open to examination and he is made to answer for his policies; his credibility is demonstrated and people will trust both him and what he builds. Saying that “leadership is a trust” is to say that a leader’s authority exists to serve the public’s interests, not the personal interests of the leader. People submit themselves to leaders, they support leaders because they trust that the leaders will have their best interests, and the interests of the organization at heart—not the leaders’ own interests. This means that a leader’s actions and decisions or exercise of authority should never be intended to give that leader some personal benefits or to advance their own interests. When that trust of leadership is violated, we call it corruption. To learn more click here |
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It was concerning King Saul that David said, “How the mighty have fallen, and the weapons of war perished.” His was a life that began with great promise and celebration, but ended in miserable failure and humiliation. His life is an example of how the mightiest of leaders fail.
Why do great men and women fall? How do leaders, quick to ascend with such promise of unparalleled success, find themselves awash in disastrous failure and disgrace? More importantly, can the path toward one’s downfall be discerned before it’s too late and be avoided? It is the premise of my newest book, How The Mighty Have Fallen that such a decline can be detected and reversed. The life and leadership career of King Saul, Israel's first king, provides us with a treasury of examples of "what not to do." The below blog post is the first in series of excerpts from the book to examine and avoid Saul's mistakes and find a successful path through leadership. READ AN EXCERPT |
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