Month: September 2020

Parks and Providence

~ brandon ~ Leave a comment

Driving through town, we arrived at Broad and Hwy 1. At that corner a left turn takes you to Walmart, while a right turn takes you toward the park. Engrossed in the ‘80s hits playing on the radio, the daughter didn’t notice anything amiss until the car began to turn.

“Dad, you turned the wrong way!” she said, with typical teenage derision.

“Did I?” I asked, as she realized something was up.

“Wait, where are we going?”

“To the park!”

Not exactly the height of excitement for a 13-year-old, her only response was a muttered, “Oh.”

For the next few blocks, she continued singing along with the radio, no doubt now wishing she’d stayed at home instead of tagging along. After a couple of turns, the park loomed in front of us. Being late afternoon on a weekday, I was somewhat surprised to see only one car at the park. On Sundays the parking lot is usually full of park goers. Apparently, this was not a midweek destination.

After maneuvering into a park space, we alit from the vehicle and moved toward the park entrance. As we did, our eyes fell upon a solitary figure, lying face down next to a path. ‘Huh, I wonder what she’s looking at,’ I thought. It didn’t take long to realize she wasn’t looking at anything. Quickly we began to hear a faint, ‘help.’ We hastened our pace, and soon discovered the prostrate park goer to be an elderly woman.

“Ma’am, are you okay?” I clumsily asked. Of course, she wasn’t okay.

“No, I’ve fallen,” came her soft response, “Can you please help me up?”

Over the next few minutes, we tried to make sure she wasn’t injured, then helped her roll over and sit up. She leaned back against me as she used the daughter’s phone to get ahold of a family member. Finally successful, her son dropped what he was doing and drove to the park. As we awaited his arrival, the daughter and I helped this stranger on to her feet and walked her back to the parking lot. When her son arrived, we helped her into the car and wished them both well. Then we began to talk about providence.

Every Sunday we pass a small park just a couple of blocks away from church. Most Sundays I observe to the carload of worshippers, “We should stop by and check that park out some time.” Weather, work, school, and myriad other mundane realities conspired to keep this idea from fruition. As we left for Walmart that day, something inside me said, “Now is the time to visit that park.” Sure, it was out of the way. Sure, the wife needed key ingredients for dinner and stopping at the park would delay the evening meal. Of course, 13-year-olds aren’t too keen to visit a city park with dad. Yet, I just knew this was the time to visit.

Had our visit happened on an earlier date, we would not have gone to the park that day. Who knows how long this elderly woman would have laid there, face down, until someone else happened along. Instead, weeks of busyness paved the way for the daughter and I to arrive at the park on the right day at the right time to lend a hand.

That is a clear sign of providence at work. God providentially caring for people, not through signs and wonders, but through something as mundane as a hectic schedule. Unbeknownst to us, and to the woman in need, God used our hectic schedule to delay a visit to that park so that our arrival allowed us to be present right when we were needed.

Sometimes it is easy to be frustrated by life. There are things we all would like to do, that just don’t work out. There are others which we’d rather not do, but they cannot be avoided. Yet, in all of these circumstances, we are called to trust that our moments are unfolding according to a grander plan. The key, it seems, is to be attentive to the moment we are in, so we may be good stewards of the moments we are given.

Leadership Lessons from Darius

~ brandon ~ Leave a comment

In Daniel 6, we have the rather famous story of Daniel in the lions’ den. The new king, King Darius, decides to outlaw all forms of worship save one: people may worship him. Daniel, a Jewish man living in Darius’ kingdom, refuses to comply and faces the consequence—being thrown into a den of hungry lions. As we encounter the chapter, we tend to focus on Daniel, his faithfulness in the face of persecution, and God’s divine intervention to save him. However, Darius’ actions in this chapter illustrate three, key lessons for leaders.

1. Leaders keep ego in check

Daniel 6 presents us with a King who decides to have everyone worship him for 30 days. No other gods may be worshipped, nor may anyone pray to other gods. All worship, adoration, and supplication is to be presented in name of Darius. Now, the genesis of this decree rises from the recommendation of his advisers. A recommendation which surely stroked the King’s ego. Afterall, whose ego wouldn’t be boosted by entire nation worshipping them?

So, Darius’ fails to keep his ego in check and, therefore, makes a bad decision. The idea of being an object of worship, a god among men, is too enticing. So, he rushes headlong into his decision. The lesson is obvious: ego makes bad decisions. Leaders acknowledge the role ego plays. They recognize our natural propensity toward self-aggrandizement, our need to be recognized, our desire to be adored. With that in mind, leaders keep ego in check when making decisions.

While modern life may not present an opportunity as grandiose as Darius’ decree, leaders still face the temptation of ego. We see it when leaders wonder, “How will this decision make me look,” before asking, “Is this the right decision?” We see it in leaders whose plans revolve around self-promotion and impressing other people. In the end, it is the same ego, the same drive to be praised.

2. Leaders consider second and third order of effects.

In military planning, we talk a lot about first, second, and third order of effects. A first order effect is the intended effect of any given action. Say, destroying a power plant in order to deny power to a nearby enemy installation. Second orders of effect cascade from that first effect. When we destroy the power plant, what else loses power? Perhaps a nearby village also loses power. The third orders of effect are those that flow from the second. What effects will loss of power have on the village? Perhaps a hospital won’t be able to function, or wells will be unusable. Leaders weigh each of those effects when determining if the benefit a target is worth the cost.

Darius does not think of anything but the first order of effects. He seems to only think, “This decision will give me my proper praise from the people.” We see this limited focus in his response to Daniel’s prayers. Once Daniel breaks the new ordinance, Darius sets about trying to free him—a sure sign that the King regrets this second order of effect—Daniel may die.

3. Leaders act swiftly to correct mistakes

Throughout my military career, I hear a quote from President Theodore Roosevelt, “In any moment of decision, the best thing you can do is the right thing, the next best thing is the wrong thing, and the worst thing you can do is nothing.” The point is simple: while the right thing is ideal, it may not always be clear. In that case, making no decision yields the initiative whereas a bad (read: poorly informed) decision keeps initiative on your side, and allows you to course correct as necessary.

This may be the only laudable part of Darius’ decision. He does act quickly (though, it should have been obvious his decree was not the right thing to do). When confronted by the unexpected 2nd and 3rd order of effects, he quickly corrects course.

Now, there is one common denominator to achieving all three of these leadership practices. It is the practice of humility. Humility is the combination of an honest self-assessment, an outward focus, and a teachable mindset. The practice of humility is taking action that reflects those things. So, practicing an honest self-assessment keeps ego in check. Practicing an outward focus keeps 2nd and 3rd order effects in mind, and practicing teachability means paying attention for errors and committing to learn from them.