One earmark of a true leader is the display of initiative. By definition, leaders cannot wait for someone else to move; if they do, they are really followers, not leaders. Initiative requires an element of risk, faith, and foresight. When did you last initiate something significant? If you haven't pushed yourself lately and left your comfort zone, you may need a jump-start on initiative.

Why Do We Fail to Initiate?

It seems easier to run from a challenge than to step out and take a risk. When we initiate, we commit ourselves to a direction. We may feel uncertain about what the future holds. What if we change our minds? What if we fail in front of our followers? We run from commitment and initiative for a variety of reasons.

Reason 1. We are afraid we'll be unable to keep the commitment.

Issue - Low sense of security.

Reason 2. We suspect we might find "greener grass" somewhere else.

Issue- Paralyzed will

Reason 3. We expend time and energy only for personal gain.

Issue - No surrender

Reason 4. Our past makes trust difficult.

Issue - Emotional baggage.

Reason 5. We are lazy and unmotivated.

Issue - Apathy and neutrality

Reason 6. We fear rejection.

Issue - Poor self-esteem.

Reason 7. We fear the unknown and the unfamiliar.

Issue - Low confidence.

Reason 8. We don't want to lose our freedom.

Issue - Entitlement philosophy

Reason 9. We fear being different from others.

Issue - Politically correct.

Reason 10. We don't really know who we are.

Issue - Gifts and calling.

Jonah had to learn initiative. It started with learning submission to God. Once we surrender to His call on our lives and leadership, we can step out to follow Him. We can take risks because our future lies in His hands. Once Jonah submitted to God's call, he saw all kinds of results. What happens when we accept God's call to initiate and commit?

1. We assume healthy personal responsibility (1:12).
2. We'll likely see many come to faith in God (1:13-16).
3. We receive a God-given time and place to gain perspective (1:17).
4. We deepen our experience of worship and prayer (2:1-9).
5. We progress toward a new level of personal freedom (2:10).
6. We enjoy partnership with God (3:1-9).
7. We gain the satisfaction of seeing changed lives (3:10).

Great initiative of John Maxwell to push us to take the initiative in our loyalty towards the Lord. Be more aware of why you step back and what it will take to move forward.

Jonah 2:10-3:10

¹⁰ And the Lord commanded the fish, and it vomited Jonah onto dry land.

Jonah Goes to Nineveh

3 Then the word of the Lord came to Jonah a second time: ² “Go to the great city of Nineveh and proclaim to it the message I give you.”

³ Jonah obeyed the word of the Lord and went to Nineveh. Now Nineveh was a very large city; it took three days to go through it. ⁴ Jonah began by going a day’s journey into the city, proclaiming, “Forty more days and Nineveh will be overthrown.” ⁵ The Ninevites believed God. A fast was proclaimed, and all of them, from the greatest to the least, put on sackcloth.

⁶ When Jonah’s warning reached the king of Nineveh, he rose from his throne, took off his royal robes, covered himself with sackcloth, and sat down in the dust. ⁷ This is the proclamation he issued in Nineveh:

“By the decree of the king and his nobles:

Do not let people or animals, herds or flocks, taste anything; do not let them eat or drink. ⁸ But let people and animals be covered with sackcloth. Let everyone call urgently on God. Let them give up their evil ways and their violence. ⁹ Who knows? God may yet relent and, with compassion, turn from his fierce anger so that we will not perish.”

¹⁰ When God saw what they did and how they turned from their evil ways, he relented and did not bring on them the destruction he had threatened.