Remember your leaders, those who spoke the word of God to you; consider the outcome of their way of life, and imitate their faith.” vs. 7
Hebrews 13:6-8, 15-16
We like to imagine that we make our own decisions about life without any outside influences, but the truth is that all of us are strongly influenced by leaders, both inside and outside of the church. The writer of Hebrews has in mind faith leaders, those who have been our guides in the spiritual and ethical realms. We are advised to consider how they live in the world and watch how their lives unfold. Sometimes they may have been charlatans, saying one thing while doing another. In that case it would be wise to get another leader. But when we’ve known people for a long time and admire their consistency and integrity, we’d be wise to imitate their faith. The surest guides to fruitful and rich lives are not the political pundits and evangelists we know only from television and social media. They can put on a good show, but we know nothing of their souls! A leader’s values become visible most clearly through conversation and personal connections–and the best of them will always point beyond themselves to the Christ. It’s not that they will have led perfect lives–the most genuine leaders will always have stories of failure and pain. In fact their vulnerability and lack of pretense will draw us even closer, and we will gladly walk in their ways.
Thought for the Day: Who has been my greatest faith influence?
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