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"So now, brethren, I commend you to God and to the word of His grace, which is able to build you up and give you an inheritance among all those who are sanctified."
(Acts 20:32)
This week we have been looking at the Apostle Paul and the excellent leader that he was. His speech to the Ephesian elders in Miletus while completing his third missionary journey is full of insightful and practical lessons on leadership. Paul, like all great leaders, told the truth and provided vision and instruction. All great leaders will be called upon to deliver challenging news. Not every season in a leader's life will be on mountain tops. Many dark nights in the valley will be the commentary of leaders. But how do you and I respond in those times? Paul spoke the truth and gave wonderful words of advice to this group of pastors who were serving the Lord in a strategic church in Asia Minor (modern day Turkey).
Today, we look at another characteristic of good leadership, and that is, good leaders invest in others. Paul was a conduit in the sense that he had people who loved and poured into him, and he in turn did the same for others. We read about his missionary colleagues with whom he served, people like Luke, Timothy, Silas, Aquila, and Priscilla, and how they were a blessing to him. Paul was able to pour into and bless other leaders because of the people God gave him who poured into and invested in him.
For you as a leader to invest in others, you will need to be blessed and empowered by key people in your own life. All leaders will have times in their lives where they will be caught and when they will be catchers. I learned this analogy from a new friend of mine named Tim Dowdy. Dowdy leads the evangelism division of the North American Mission Board based in Alpharetta, Georgia. He and I were speaking at a conference a few weeks back in Tennessee. I really enjoyed getting to know Tim and hearing his heart for Jesus and for pastors. Tim is one of those crazy guys like me who is an Ironman and marathon runner. Yes, I know, you have to be a little crazy to do this! Tim shared how before he ran an Ironman race, he volunteered to help in a race. He was asked to be a catcher, and he asked what in the world that meant. He was told that he would be needed to stand near the finish line of an Ironman race and literally catch the elite athletes who push themselves to the breaking point. Some of them go so hard that once they cross the finish line, they literally collapse, fall, and hurt themselves. So, Tim served as a catcher. He told me that he sees this as an analogy for many pastors in our nation. They pushed through the political and societal upheavals over the last few years only to be met with the challenge of a pandemic. Once these pastors pushed through and made it past COVID-19, well, they collapsed. Tim said these pastors need someone to catch them as they fall.
Paul did both. He built up pastors, and he had other pastors and ministers who built him up. Do you have someone to catch you when you collapse? Are you healthy enough to catch another soldier for Jesus who is on his way down? To accomplish great things for God like investing and pouring into another person's life, you first need others pouring into you. I have no doubt that you have people like that in your life who help you if you only ask.
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