Elijah grew tired of his people’s spiritual rebellion and was angry with the false prophets of Baal. He confronted both forces atop Mt. Carmel, and there defeated the devil’s henchmen, although they outnumbered him 850 to 1 (1 Kings 18:19). No one had seen anything like his courage since the day David fought Goliath unremembered years before. And like the underdog David fought Goliath unremembered years before. And like the underdog David, Elijah met the enemy with passion. His eyes drank in the greatness of God, not the numbers of his enemies. This heavenly vision provided the fire that fueled his courage.

Leaders always need courage. No one who wants to bring about change can manage without courage. Courage flamed in Elijah’s heart because:

1. His resolution outweighed his reservations. Although greatly outnumbered, Elijah resolved that Baal had to be confronted at any cost.
2. His desires outweighed his desperation. Although it meant risk, Elijah wanted to honor Yahweh above all else.
3. When our need is greatest (vv. 2,5,21,22).
4. When we take our message to the people (vv. 20,21).
5. When we bring others to a point of decision (v. 21).
6. When we repair and use the altar of God (vv. 23-32).
7. When we face circumstances that only God’s fire will light (vv. 33-35).
8. When we publicly trust God to do what only he can do (vv. 33-37).
9. When we hunger for God to receive glory (vv. 36-39).
10. When we desire to see others return to the Lord (v. 37).

When you think you have lost all courage, remember this story of Elijah. His fire and passion fueled his courage. Great devotional thoughts of John Maxwell.

I Kings 18:1-40

Elijah and Obadiah

18 After a long time, in the third year, the word of the Lord came to Elijah: “Go and present yourself to Ahab, and I will send rain on the land.” ² So Elijah went to present himself to Ahab.

Now the famine was severe in Samaria, ³ and Ahab had summoned Obadiah, his palace administrator. (Obadiah was a devout believer in the Lord. ⁴ While Jezebel was killing off the Lord’s prophets, Obadiah had taken a hundred prophets and hidden them in two caves, fifty in each, and had supplied them with food and water.) ⁵ Ahab had said to Obadiah, “Go through the land to all the springs and valleys. Maybe we can find some grass to keep the horses and mules alive so we will not have to kill any of our animals.” ⁶ So they divided the land they were to cover, Ahab going in one direction and Obadiah in another.

⁷ As Obadiah was walking along, Elijah met him. Obadiah recognized him, bowed down to the ground, and said, “Is it really you, my lord Elijah?”

⁸ “Yes,” he replied. “Go tell your master, ‘Elijah is here.’”

⁹ “What have I done wrong,” asked Obadiah, “that you are handing your servant over to Ahab to be put to death? ¹⁰ As surely as the Lord your God lives, there is not a nation or kingdom where my master has not sent someone to look for you. And whenever a nation or kingdom claimed you were not there, he made them swear they could not find you. ¹¹ But now you tell me to go to my master and say, ‘Elijah is here.’ ¹² I don’t know where the Spirit of the Lord may carry you when I leave you. If I go and tell Ahab and he doesn’t find you, he will kill me. Yet I, your servant, have worshiped the Lord since my youth. ¹³ Haven’t you heard, my lord, what I did while Jezebel was killing the prophets of the Lord? I hid a hundred of the Lord’s prophets in two caves, fifty in each, and supplied them with food and water. ¹⁴ And now you tell me to go to my master and say, ‘Elijah is here.’ He will kill me!”

¹⁵ Elijah said, “As the Lord Almighty lives, whom I serve, I will surely present myself to Ahab today.”

Elijah on Mount Carmel

¹⁶ So Obadiah went to meet Ahab and told him, and Ahab went to meet Elijah. ¹⁷ When he saw Elijah, he said to him, “Is that you, you troubler of Israel?”

¹⁸ “I have not made trouble for Israel,” Elijah replied. “But you and your father’s family have. You have abandoned the Lord’s commands and have followed the Baals. ¹⁹ Now summon the people from all over Israel to meet me on Mount Carmel. And bring the four hundred and fifty prophets of Baal and the four hundred prophets of Asherah, who eat at Jezebel’s table.”

²⁰ So Ahab sent word throughout all Israel and assembled the prophets on Mount Carmel. ²¹ Elijah went before the people and said, “How long will you waver between two opinions? If the Lord is God, follow him; but if Baal is God, follow him.”

But the people said nothing.

²² Then Elijah said to them, “I am the only one of the Lord’s prophets left, but Baal has four hundred and fifty prophets. ²³ Get two bulls for us. Let Baal’s prophets choose one for themselves, and let them cut it into pieces and put it on the wood but not set fire to it. I will prepare the other bull and put it on the wood but not set fire to it. ²⁴ Then you call on the name of your god, and I will call on the name of the Lord. The god who answers by fire—he is God.”

Then all the people said, “What you say is good.”

²⁵ Elijah said to the prophets of Baal, “Choose one of the bulls and prepare it first, since there are so many of you. Call on the name of your god, but do not light the fire.” ²⁶ So they took the bull given them and prepared it.

Then they called on the name of Baal from morning till noon. “Baal, answer us!” they shouted. But there was no response; no one answered. And they danced around the altar they had made.

²⁷ At noon Elijah began to taunt them. “Shout louder!” he said. “Surely he is a god! Perhaps he is deep in thought, or busy, or traveling. Maybe he is sleeping and must be awakened.” ²⁸ So they shouted louder and slashed themselves with swords and spears, as was their custom, until their blood flowed. ²⁹ Midday passed, and they continued their frantic prophesying until the time for the evening sacrifice. But there was no response, no one answered, no one paid attention.

³⁰ Then Elijah said to all the people, “Come here to me.” They came to him, and he repaired the altar of the Lord, which had been torn down. ³¹ Elijah took twelve stones, one for each of the tribes descended from Jacob, to whom the word of the Lord had come, saying, “Your name shall be Israel.” ³² With the stones he built an altar in the name of the Lord, and he dug a trench around it large enough to hold two seahs^[a] of seed. ³³ He arranged the wood, cut the bull into pieces and laid it on the wood. Then he said to them, “Fill four large jars with water and pour it on the offering and on the wood.”

³⁴ “Do it again,” he said, and they did it again.

“Do it a third time,” he ordered, and they did it the third time. ³⁵ The water ran down around the altar and even filled the trench.

³⁶ At the time of sacrifice, the prophet Elijah stepped forward and prayed: “Lord, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Israel, let it be known today that you are God in Israel and that I am your servant and have done all these things at your command. ³⁷ Answer me, Lord, answer me, so these people will know that you, Lord, are God, and that you are turning their hearts back again.”

³⁸ Then the fire of the Lord fell and burned up the sacrifice, the wood, the stones, and the soil, and also licked up the water in the trench.

³⁹ When all the people saw this, they fell prostrate and cried, “The Lord—he is God! The Lord—he is God!”

⁴⁰ Then Elijah commanded them, “Seize the prophets of Baal. Don’t let anyone get away!” They seized them, and Elijah had them brought down to the Kishon Valley and slaughtered there.

David never figured out how to deal with the rebellion effectively; it was as though his anointing and authority had left him.

No one saw this more clearly than his son, Absalom. When Amnon raped his sister Tamar and David did nothing about it, Absalom became irate (13:22). HIs fury grew the longer the king delayed justice. Further, Absalom tried and failed to get an audience with his father. It was as though David had abandoned his role as spiritual leader over his family.

Finally, Absalom could take it no longer. He got everyone’s attention by committing two crimes. First, he avenged his sister Tamar by murdering Amnon; for this crime his father David banished him (13:37,38). After he was permitted to return, Absalom got angery with general Joab and set his field on fire (14:30).

Despite his action, Absalom couldn’t get the fatherly attention he wanted so desperately. Past the boiling point, he used his passion to sabotage his father’s leadership. He played politics and convinced people to bring their lawsuits to him. He lobbied for support of his leadership. Finally he raised an army to rebel against the king.

In the end, Absalom died as a maverick leader whose passion went awry. As you study his story in 2 Samuel 13-18, look for those lessons about passion gone bad:

1. Passion without perspective brings death (13:22-29).
2. Passion will find expression, in either healthy or unhealthy ways (14:28-30).
3. People follow passion over orthodoxy, even when it’s unwise (15:1-12).
4. Leaders who follow passion defeat leaders who follow protocol (15:13,14).
5. Self-centered passion alway skews the judgment of a leader (16:22).
6. Unchanneled and unbridled passion damages everyone near it (17,18)
7. When passion outweighs wisdom, leaders sabotage themselves (18:9).

The Good News

Absalom represents a leaders who can’t bridle his passion. When a leader embraces passion before he learns submission, trouble always follows.

Does this mean we should condemn passion? Absolutely not! Passion is one of the 21 Indispensable Qualities of a Leader. Consider the benefits of passion:

1. Passion is the first step to achievement.
2. Passion increases your will-power.
3. Passion changes you.
4. Passion makes the impossible possible.

Passion helps develop your leadership. Passion must, however, pour from the heart of a leader who is wise, accountable, submissive, and unselfish.

2 Samuel 13:22-18:9 details the tragic fallout from Amnon’s rape of his half-sister Tamar, focusing on Absalom’s calculated revenge (murdering Amnon), his exile, and ultimately his rebellion against King David, culminating in David’s painful flight from Jerusalem and a pivotal battle where Absalom’s rebellion ends with his own death, causing David immense grief. The passage moves from family tragedy to civil war, revealing the deep sin and consequences within David’s house.

Insights of John Maxwell to grow leadership skills and hone your passion.

Nathan knew David had slept with another man’s wife and subsequently caused the man’s death. Although the king had multiple wives, he still insisted on having one more. Nathan saw a greedy and selfish heart in Israel’s king. A few individuals in David’s reign wielded the influence or had the guts to confront him in his sin. Once Nathan discerned what David had done, he gained an audience with the king, told him a compelling story, and, with great poise, dealt with the problem in a caring yet firm manner.

Nathan could act as he did because of his keen, God-given discernment. He knew what had happened and what lay beneath the surface of David’s wicked behavior. Discernment goes deeper than knowledge, resembling intuition. At times, discernment is a gift; at other times, it results from much experience. Discernment brings a profound perception of what is occurring, either on the outside or the inside of a person.

What gave Nathan such keen discernment?

1. He had been listening to God (v. 1). The text says God “sent” him to David. Obviously, God had been speaking to His prophet.
2. He knew David’s circumstances (vv. 1-6). Nathan had watched David for many years and so recognized the egregious changes when they came.
3. He was objective in his perspective (vv.7,8). Nathan could speak for God and provide God’s viewpoint on the king’s situation.
4. He understood the root issues (vv.9-12). Nathan saw more than symptoms; he saw root problems and consequences.
5. He saw the ultimate cause and effect (v. 15). Nathan passionately championed the name and reputation of God. He hated how the pagan nations surrounding Israel might mock the Lord should they hear of David’s sin.

How Do We Grow in Our Discernment?

To improve your discernment as a leader, do the following:

1. Learn to hear God’s voice. Get quiet and read Scripture. Reflect on the mind of God.
2. Build problem-solving skills. If you can see the root causes of problems, you can solve them.
3. Analyze your success. What worked? Can you identify the heart of the matter?
4. Evaluate your options. Discernment involves both your gut and your head.
5. Expand your opportunities. Gain more experience to deepen your wisdom.
6. Explore what others think. Choose some leaders you admire and study how they think.
7. Listen to your gut. Most people are afraid to listen to their God-given intuition.

The path to wisdom takes practice. Take these steps and see how you can apply it to situations in your life.

2 Samuel 12:1-15

Nathan Rebukes David

12 The Lord sent Nathan to David. When he came to him, he said, “There were two men in a certain town, one rich and the other poor. ² The rich man had a very large number of sheep and cattle, ³ but the poor man had nothing except one little ewe lamb he had bought. He raised it, and it grew up with him and his children. It shared his food, drank from his cup and even slept in his arms. It was like a daughter to him.

⁴ “Now a traveler came to the rich man, but the rich man refrained from taking one of his own sheep or cattle to prepare a meal for the traveler who had come to him. Instead, he took the ewe lamb that belonged to the poor man and prepared it for the one who had come to him.”

⁵ David burned with anger against the man and said to Nathan, “As surely as the Lord lives, the man who did this must die! ⁶ He must pay for that lamb four times over, because he did such a thing and had no pity.”

⁷ Then Nathan said to David, “You are the man! This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: ‘I anointed you king over Israel, and I delivered you from the hand of Saul. ⁸ I gave your master’s house to you, and your master’s wives into your arms. I gave you all Israel and Judah. And if all this had been too little, I would have given you even more. ⁹ Why did you despise the word of the Lord by doing what is evil in his eyes? You struck down Uriah the Hittite with the sword and took his wife to be your own. You killed him with the sword of the Ammonites. ¹⁰ Now, therefore, the sword will never depart from your house, because you despised me and took the wife of Uriah the Hittite to be your own.’

¹¹ “This is what the Lord says: ‘Out of your own household I am going to bring calamity on you. Before your very eyes I will take your wives and give them to one who is close to you, and he will sleep with your wives in broad daylight. ¹² You did it in secret, but I will do this thing in broad daylight before all Israel.’”

¹³ Then David said to Nathan, “I have sinned against the Lord.”

Nathan replied, “The Lord has taken away your sin. You are not going to die. ¹⁴ But because by doing this you have shown utter contempt for^[a] the Lord, the son born to you will die.”

¹⁵ After Nathan had gone home, the Lord struck the child that Uriah’s wife had borne to David, and he became ill.

The Results of David’s Servant Leadership:

1. It helped others see the contribution of every man’s gift. Even the older soldiers who remained at the camp because they were too tired to fight added some value to the entire army. They guarded the supplies. David’s perspective on valuing everyone’s gift and contribution kept everyone’s eyes on others and on the big picture, rather than becoming preoccupied with one’s own contribution.
2. It reminded David’s men that God was the trustworthy source of every good gift. David knew that allowing everyone to celebrate the victory and share in its spoils would help his men see that God was the trustworthy source of victory. When people start keeping score on who gets what, they tend to get consumed with themselves and whether they are getting their fair share of the reward. David’s servant leadership helped others see through God’s eyes and trust Him for their rewards in life.
3. It promoted goodwill in potential allies, resources that David enjoyed later as king. The people soon recognized that if you cooperate with David, he makes sure you win in some way. This promoted partnerships and a contagious spirit of service and goodwill among David’s troops. When leaders are selfish, it fosters a selfish atmosphere among everyone they lead. When leaders generously serve, this kind of service orientation spreads through the camp.
4. It enabled David to prepare for the future by making him friends all over Israel. When a leader serves today, it generally pays off tomorrow in relationships with others. David may not have realized it at the time, but as word spread of his generous style, his servant-leadership prepared the hearts of citizens across Israel to follow him. It won them over. Sometimes, little acts of kindness, unpromoted by leaders, spread faster than staged acts on a platform. One appears authentic while the other just looks artificial.
5. It developed a nationwide value of mutual benefit and good faith among people. Once David became king, this same spirit of appreciation and servanthood became the norm in Israel for a season. When leaders don’t sincerely grasp what they believe they deserve, it spawns trust among those who follow. A sense of justice-for-all prevails. Instead of contagious selfishness, there is infectious servanthood.

1. When the time arrives to anoint Saul as king, he hides among the baggage.
2. When Samuel asks Saul to lead, he excuses himself as unable.
3. When Saul’s soldiers begin to scatter, he panics and disobeys his divine orders.
4. When confronted over his sin, Saul makes excuses for himself.
5. When Saul attacks the Amalekites, he is afraid to trust God and destroy the enemy.
6. When Saul fears losing the allegiance of the people, he builds a statue of himself.
7. When the Philistines face Israel, Saul’s fear prevents him from negotiating.
8. When David gains popularity, Saul’s insecurity drives him to attempt murder.

Lessons from Saul

Courage and cowardice are both contagious.

When Goliath challenged Saul’s men, they fled to their tents; when David’s men faced vastly superior forces, they stood their ground, fought… and won (2 Sam. 23:8-12).

Without courage, it doesn’t matter how good your intentions are.

Saul had good intentions when he presented burnt offerings to the Lord. But he let his fear that the people would desert him control his actions (I Sam. 13:13, 14).

Only courage allows you to do what you are afraid of doing.

Saul demonstrated his lack of courage from the beginning, when he hid among the baggage to avoid being crowned king (I Samuel 10:12).

Without courage, we’re slaves of our own insecurity and possessiveness.

King Saul momentarily repented on several occasions when confronted about his repeated attempts to kill David. But later, captive to his fears and insecurities, he always resumed his evil pursuit.

If the leader lacks courage, the people will lack commitment.

Contrary to God’s command, Saul and the people spared the best of the livestock they captured from the Amalekites. Saul let it happen because, as he admitted, “I feared the people and obeyed their voice” (I Samuel 15:24).

A leader without courage will never let go of the familiar.

Saul employed a medium to ask counsel of Samuel’s departed spirit – in direct violation of God’s law (I Samuel 28:5-20). He lacked the courage to trust God to help him step into an unknown future.

Lack of courage will eventually sabotage a leader.

Saul’s lack of courage eventually cost him not only the throne of Israel, but also his own life and the life of his faithful son, Jonathan (I Samuel 31:1-6).

I Samuel 10:17-13:14

Samuel summoned the people of Israel to the Lord at Mizpah ¹⁸ and said to them, “This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: ‘I brought Israel up out of Egypt, and I delivered you from the power of Egypt and all the kingdoms that oppressed you.’ ¹⁹ But you have now rejected your God, who saves you out of all your disasters and calamities. And you have said, ‘No, appoint a king over us.’ So now present yourselves before the Lord by your tribes and clans.”

²⁰ When Samuel had all Israel come forward by tribes, the tribe of Benjamin was taken by lot. ²¹ Then he brought forward the tribe of Benjamin, clan by clan, and Matri’s clan was taken. Finally Saul son of Kish was taken. But when they looked for him, he was not to be found. ²² So they inquired further of the Lord, “Has the man come here yet?”

And the Lord said, “Yes, he has hidden himself among the supplies.”

²³ They ran and brought him out, and as he stood among the people he was a head taller than any of the others. ²⁴ Samuel said to all the people, “Do you see the man the Lord has chosen? There is no one like him among all the people.”

Then the people shouted, “Long live the king!”

²⁵ Samuel explained to the people the rights and duties of kingship. He wrote them down on a scroll and deposited it before the Lord. Then Samuel dismissed the people to go to their own homes.

²⁶ Saul also went to his home in Gibeah, accompanied by valiant men whose hearts God had touched. ²⁷ But some scoundrels said, “How can this fellow save us?” They despised him and brought him no gifts. But Saul kept silent.

Saul Rescues the City of Jabesh

11 Nahash^[a] the Ammonite went up and besieged Jabesh Gilead. And all the men of Jabesh said to him, “Make a treaty with us, and we will be subject to you.”

² But Nahash the Ammonite replied, “I will make a treaty with you only on the condition that I gouge out the right eye of every one of you and so bring disgrace on all Israel.”

³ The elders of Jabesh said to him, “Give us seven days so we can send messengers throughout Israel; if no one comes to rescue us, we will surrender to you.”

⁴ When the messengers came to Gibeah of Saul and reported these terms to the people, they all wept aloud. ⁵ Just then Saul was returning from the fields, behind his oxen, and he asked, “What is wrong with everyone? Why are they weeping?” Then they repeated to him what the men of Jabesh had said.

⁶ When Saul heard their words, the Spirit of God came powerfully upon him, and he burned with anger. ⁷ He took a pair of oxen, cut them into pieces, and sent the pieces by messengers throughout Israel, proclaiming, “This is what will be done to the oxen of anyone who does not follow Saul and Samuel.” Then the terror of the Lord fell on the people, and they came out together as one. ⁸ When Saul mustered them at Bezek, the men of Israel numbered three hundred thousand and those of Judah thirty thousand.

⁹ They told the messengers who had come, “Say to the men of Jabesh Gilead, ‘By the time the sun is hot tomorrow, you will be rescued.’” When the messengers went and reported this to the men of Jabesh, they were elated. ¹⁰ They said to the Ammonites, “Tomorrow we will surrender to you, and you can do to us whatever you like.”

¹¹ The next day Saul separated his men into three divisions; during the last watch of the night they broke into the camp of the Ammonites and slaughtered them until the heat of the day. Those who survived were scattered, so that no two of them were left together.

Saul Confirmed as King

¹² The people then said to Samuel, “Who was it that asked, ‘Shall Saul reign over us?’ Turn these men over to us so that we may put them to death.”

¹³ But Saul said, “No one will be put to death today, for this day the Lord has rescued Israel.”

¹⁴ Then Samuel said to the people, “Come, let us go to Gilgal and there renew the kingship.” ¹⁵ So all the people went to Gilgal and made Saul king in the presence of the Lord. There they sacrificed fellowship offerings before the Lord, and Saul and all the Israelites held a great celebration.

Samuel’s Farewell Speech

12 Samuel said to all Israel, “I have listened to everything you said to me and have set a king over you. ² Now you have a king as your leader. As for me, I am old and gray, and my sons are here with you. I have been your leader from my youth until this day. ³ Here I stand. Testify against me in the presence of the Lord and his anointed. Whose ox have I taken? Whose donkey have I taken? Whom have I cheated? Whom have I oppressed? From whose hand have I accepted a bribe to make me shut my eyes? If I have done any of these things, I will make it right.”

⁴ “You have not cheated or oppressed us,” they replied. “You have not taken anything from anyone’s hand.”

⁵ Samuel said to them, “The Lord is witness against you, and also his anointed is witness this day, that you have not found anything in my hand.”

“He is witness,” they said.

⁶ Then Samuel said to the people, “It is the Lord who appointed Moses and Aaron and brought your ancestors up out of Egypt. ⁷ Now then, stand here, because I am going to confront you with evidence before the Lord as to all the righteous acts performed by the Lord for you and your ancestors.

⁸ “After Jacob entered Egypt, they cried to the Lord for help, and the Lord sent Moses and Aaron, who brought your ancestors out of Egypt and settled them in this place.

⁹ “But they forgot the Lord their God; so he sold them into the hand of Sisera, the commander of the army of Hazor, and into the hands of the Philistines and the king of Moab, who fought against them. ¹⁰ They cried out to the Lord and said, ‘We have sinned; we have forsaken the Lord and served the Baals and the Ashtoreths. But now deliver us from the hands of our enemies, and we will serve you.’ ¹¹ Then the Lord sent Jerub-Baal,^[b] Barak,^[c] Jephthah and Samuel,^[d] and he delivered you from the hands of your enemies all around you, so that you lived in safety.

¹² “But when you saw that Nahash king of the Ammonites was moving against you, you said to me, ‘No, we want a king to rule over us’—even though the Lord your God was your king. ¹³ Now here is the king you have chosen, the one you asked for; see, the Lord has set a king over you. ¹⁴ If you fear the Lord and serve and obey him and do not rebel against his commands, and if both you and the king who reigns over you follow the Lord your God—good! ¹⁵ But if you do not obey the Lord, and if you rebel against his commands, his hand will be against you, as it was against your ancestors.

¹⁶ “Now then, stand still and see this great thing the Lord is about to do before your eyes! ¹⁷ Is it not wheat harvest now? I will call on the Lord to send thunder and rain. And you will realize what an evil thing you did in the eyes of the Lord when you asked for a king.”

¹⁸ Then Samuel called on the Lord, and that same day the Lord sent thunder and rain. So all the people stood in awe of the Lord and of Samuel.

¹⁹ The people all said to Samuel, “Pray to the Lord your God for your servants so that we will not die, for we have added to all our other sins the evil of asking for a king.”

²⁰ “Do not be afraid,” Samuel replied. “You have done all this evil; yet do not turn away from the Lord, but serve the Lord with all your heart. ²¹ Do not turn away after useless idols. They can do you no good, nor can they rescue you, because they are useless. ²² For the sake of his great name the Lord will not reject his people, because the Lord was pleased to make you his own. ²³ As for me, far be it from me that I should sin against the Lord by failing to pray for you. And I will teach you the way that is good and right. ²⁴ But be sure to fear the Lord and serve him faithfully with all your heart; consider what great things he has done for you. ²⁵ Yet if you persist in doing evil, both you and your king will perish.”

Samuel Rebukes Saul

13 Saul was thirty^[e] years old when he became king, and he reigned over Israel forty-^[f] two years.

² Saul chose three thousand men from Israel; two thousand were with him at Mikmash and in the hill country of Bethel, and a thousand were with Jonathan at Gibeah in Benjamin. The rest of the men he sent back to their homes.

³ Jonathan attacked the Philistine outpost at Geba, and the Philistines heard about it. Then Saul had the trumpet blown throughout the land and said, “Let the Hebrews hear!” ⁴ So all Israel heard the news: “Saul has attacked the Philistine outpost, and now Israel has become obnoxious to the Philistines.” And the people were summoned to join Saul at Gilgal.

⁵ The Philistines assembled to fight Israel, with three thousand^[g] chariots, six thousand charioteers, and soldiers as numerous as the sand on the seashore. They went up and camped at Mikmash, east of Beth Aven. ⁶ When the Israelites saw that their situation was critical and that their army was hard pressed, they hid in caves and thickets, among the rocks, and in pits and cisterns. ⁷ Some Hebrews even crossed the Jordan to the land of Gad and Gilead.

Saul remained at Gilgal, and all the troops with him were quaking with fear. ⁸ He waited seven days, the time set by Samuel; but Samuel did not come to Gilgal, and Saul’s men began to scatter. ⁹ So he said, “Bring me the burnt offering and the fellowship offerings.” And Saul offered up the burnt offering. ¹⁰ Just as he finished making the offering, Samuel arrived, and Saul went out to greet him.

¹¹ “What have you done?” asked Samuel.

Saul replied, “When I saw that the men were scattering, and that you did not come at the set time, and that the Philistines were assembling at Mikmash, ¹² I thought, ‘Now the Philistines will come down against me at Gilgal, and I have not sought the Lord’s favor.’ So I felt compelled to offer the burnt offering.”

¹³ “You have done a foolish thing,” Samuel said. “You have not kept the command the Lord your God gave you; if you had, he would have established your kingdom over Israel for all time. ¹⁴ But now your kingdom will not endure; the Lord has sought out a man after his own heart and appointed him ruler of his people, because you have not kept the Lord’s command.”

Samson seemed to begin his leadership journey as a very disciplined man. He could delay some gratification (although he always struggled with a weakness for women) and kept his Nazirite vow. As he grew older, it was as though he left the foundation of self-discipline and lustfully consumed whatever he wanted: food, women, drink, Philistines.

Discipline does not automatically make someone a leader, but no one can long remain a leader without it. More government leaders have failed from poor discipline than poor policies. More pastors have failed due to bad discipline than bad theology. More business leaders have sabotaged their careers from lack of discipline than by lack of cash flow.

Consider the following list of disciplines that followers want in a leader:

1. They want to see character in their leader.
2. They want to observe competence in their leader.
3. They want to witness compassion in their leader.
4. They want to sense commitment in their leader.
5. They want to feel a connection to their leader.
6. They want to make a contribution with their leader.
7. They want to see contrition in their leader.
8. They want to join a cause with their leader.
9. They want to observe consistency in their leader.
10. They want to feel confidence in their leader.
11. They want to sense courage from their leader.
12. They want to spot confiction in their leader.

How to Build Convictions in Your Life

How does a leader become disciplined? Scores of books try to answer that question, but let’s underscore here the spiritual dimension of discipline. Spiritual discipline begins when a leader develops personal convictions, those principles we live and die for – the values that guide our life. This is our starting point. Convictions come when:

1. We have studied and learned what God’s Word says on a given issue.
2. We choose to apply and obey the Word of God in everyday life.
3. We have exposed ourselves to a need.
4. We meditate on specific truths over a period of six months to a year.
5. We have decided what is worth living and dying for.
6. We associate with people who possess convictions in the same areas.
7. We settle an issue before we are forced to do so.

Why not make a list now of those principles you most believe in? Then ask yourself: Am I disciplined in those areas? If not, begin to build convictions there first!

Judges 16:1-20 One day Samson went to Gaza, where he saw a prostitute. He went in to spend the night with her. ² The people of Gaza were told, “Samson is here!” So they surrounded the place and lay in wait for him all night at the city gate. They made no move during the night, saying, “At dawn we’ll kill him.”

³ But Samson lay there only until the middle of the night. Then he got up and took hold of the doors of the city gate, together with the two posts, and tore them loose, bar and all. He lifted them to his shoulders and carried them to the top of the hill that faces Hebron.

⁴ Some time later, he fell in love with a woman in the Valley of Sorek whose name was Delilah. ⁵ The rulers of the Philistines went to her and said, “See if you can lure him into showing you the secret of his great strength and how we can overpower him so we may tie him up and subdue him. Each one of us will give you eleven hundred shekels^[a] of silver.”

⁶ So Delilah said to Samson, “Tell me the secret of your great strength and how you can be tied up and subdued.”

⁷ Samson answered her, “If anyone ties me with seven fresh bowstrings that have not been dried, I’ll become as weak as any other man.”

⁸ Then the rulers of the Philistines brought her seven fresh bowstrings that had not been dried, and she tied him with them. ⁹ With men hidden in the room, she called to him, “Samson, the Philistines are upon you!” But he snapped the bowstrings as easily as a piece of string snaps when it comes close to a flame. So the secret of his strength was not discovered.

¹⁰ Then Delilah said to Samson, “You have made a fool of me; you lied to me. Come now, tell me how you can be tied.”

¹¹ He said, “If anyone ties me securely with new ropes that have never been used, I’ll become as weak as any other man.”

¹² So Delilah took new ropes and tied him with them. Then, with men hidden in the room, she called to him, “Samson, the Philistines are upon you!” But he snapped the ropes off his arms as if they were threads.

¹³ Delilah then said to Samson, “All this time you have been making a fool of me and lying to me. Tell me how you can be tied.”

He replied, “If you weave the seven braids of my head into the fabric on the loom and tighten it with the pin, I’ll become as weak as any other man.” So while he was sleeping, Delilah took the seven braids of his head, wove them into the fabric ¹⁴ and^[b] tightened it with the pin.

Again she called to him, “Samson, the Philistines are upon you!” He awoke from his sleep and pulled up the pin and the loom, with the fabric.

¹⁵ Then she said to him, “How can you say, ‘I love you,’ when you won’t confide in me? This is the third time you have made a fool of me and haven’t told me the secret of your great strength.” ¹⁶ With such nagging she prodded him day after day until he was sick to death of it.

¹⁷ So he told her everything. “No razor has ever been used on my head,” he said, “because I have been a Nazirite dedicated to God from my mother’s womb. If my head were shaved, my strength would leave me, and I would become as weak as any other man.”

¹⁸ When Delilah saw that he had told her everything, she sent word to the rulers of the Philistines, “Come back once more; he has told me everything.” So the rulers of the Philistines returned with the silver in their hands. ¹⁹ After putting him to sleep on her lap, she called for someone to shave off the seven braids of his hair, and so began to subdue him.^[c] And his strength left him.

²⁰ Then she called, “Samson, the Philistines are upon you!”

He awoke from his sleep and thought, “I’ll go out as before and shake myself free.” But he did not know that the Lord had left him.

One of the qualities of self-discipline can be positive or negative. See another post with a positive example of self-discipline. These examples are from John Maxwell’s Leadership Bible to help us see how to apply more leadership qualities in our lives towards others. Which list of disciplines will you work on? Which ones do you already have? Recognizing your leadership skills in how others are attracted to you and how you make decisions to help others make a difference. This is the wisdom the Lord put in us to become better leaders.

If only the Israelites had remembered this lesson! Numbers 33 provides a review of the entire exodus journey, from Egypt to Jordan. And, boy, was it ever a journey! Tons of manna. Far too much grumbling. And it lasted 40 years.

Why didn’t the Israelites get to the Promised Land more quickly? Not because it lay so far away; they could have made the trip in two weeks. The real reason boils down to preparation. The people simply weren’t ready for God’s blessing until 40 years after they began their trip.

How about you? How is your self-discipline? Plato said, “The first and best victory is to conquer self.” If you want to be a leader with self-discipline, follow these action points:

1. Develop and follow your priorities. All leaders are pressed for time, but the successful ones have a plan. If you can determine what’s really a priority and release yourself from everything else, it will be much easier to follow through on what’s important. That’s the essence of self-discipline.
2. Make a disciplined lifestyle of your goal. To be successful, self-discipline can’t be a one-time event. It has to become a lifestyle. One of the best ways to nurture such a lifestyle is to develop systems and routines, especially in areas crucial to your long-term growth and success. Once you have them, put them to use every day for the rest of your life.
3. Challenge your excuses. Challenge and eliminate any tendency you may have to make excuses. If you can name several reason why you can’t be self-disciplined, realize that they are really just barriers to your success – all of which need to be challenged if you want to go to the next level.
4. Remove rewards until you finish the job. If you lack self-discipline, you may be in the habit of enjoying dessert before eating your vegetables. Mike Delaney offered good counsel: He said that businesses need to differentiate betwen their shirkers and their workers, because if they reward both the same, they’ll soon find they have a lot more of the former than the latter!
5. Stay focused on results. Anytime you concentrate on the difficulty of the work instead of its results, you’re likely to become discouraged. The next time you’re facing a must-do task and you’re thinking of doing what’s convenient instead of paying the price, change your focus. Count the benefits of doing what’s right, and then dive in.

What challenges force you to take action? Finding ways you are self-disciplined make a difference. Read Numbers 33:1-49 for the full picture of this story. Another thought of John Maxwell.

Here are the stages in the journey of the Israelites when they came out of Egypt by divisions under the leadership of Moses and Aaron. ² At the Lord’s command Moses recorded the stages in their journey. This is their journey by stages:

³ The Israelites set out from Rameses on the fifteenth day of the first month, the day after the Passover. They marched out defiantly in full view of all the Egyptians, ⁴ who were burying all their firstborn, whom the Lord had struck down among them; for the Lord had brought judgment on their gods.

⁵ The Israelites left Rameses and camped at Sukkoth.

⁶ They left Sukkoth and camped at Etham, on the edge of the desert.

⁷ They left Etham, turned back to Pi Hahiroth, to the east of Baal Zephon, and camped near Migdol.

⁸ They left Pi Hahiroth^[a] and passed through the sea into the desert, and when they had traveled for three days in the Desert of Etham, they camped at Marah.

⁹ They left Marah and went to Elim, where there were twelve springs and seventy palm trees, and they camped there.

¹⁰ They left Elim and camped by the Red Sea.^[b]

¹¹ They left the Red Sea and camped in the Desert of Sin.

¹² They left the Desert of Sin and camped at Dophkah.

¹³ They left Dophkah and camped at Alush.

¹⁴ They left Alush and camped at Rephidim, where there was no water for the people to drink.

¹⁵ They left Rephidim and camped in the Desert of Sinai.

¹⁶ They left the Desert of Sinai and camped at Kibroth Hattaavah.

¹⁷ They left Kibroth Hattaavah and camped at Hazeroth.

¹⁸ They left Hazeroth and camped at Rithmah.

¹⁹ They left Rithmah and camped at Rimmon Perez.

²⁰ They left Rimmon Perez and camped at Libnah.

²¹ They left Libnah and camped at Rissah.

²² They left Rissah and camped at Kehelathah.

²³ They left Kehelathah and camped at Mount Shepher.

²⁴ They left Mount Shepher and camped at Haradah.

²⁵ They left Haradah and camped at Makheloth.

²⁶ They left Makheloth and camped at Tahath.

²⁷ They left Tahath and camped at Terah.

²⁸ They left Terah and camped at Mithkah.

²⁹ They left Mithkah and camped at Hashmonah.

³⁰ They left Hashmonah and camped at Moseroth.

³¹ They left Moseroth and camped at Bene Jaakan.

³² They left Bene Jaakan and camped at Hor Haggidgad.

³³ They left Hor Haggidgad and camped at Jotbathah.

³⁴ They left Jotbathah and camped at Abronah.

³⁵ They left Abronah and camped at Ezion Geber.

³⁶ They left Ezion Geber and camped at Kadesh, in the Desert of Zin.

³⁷ They left Kadesh and camped at Mount Hor, on the border of Edom. ³⁸ At the Lord’s command Aaron the priest went up Mount Hor, where he died on the first day of the fifth month of the fortieth year after the Israelites came out of Egypt. ³⁹ Aaron was a hundred and twenty-three years old when he died on Mount Hor.

⁴⁰ The Canaanite king of Arad, who lived in the Negev of Canaan, heard that the Israelites were coming.

⁴¹ They left Mount Hor and camped at Zalmonah.

⁴² They left Zalmonah and camped at Punon.

⁴³ They left Punon and camped at Oboth.

⁴⁴ They left Oboth and camped at Iye Abarim, on the border of Moab.

⁴⁵ They left Iye Abarim and camped at Dibon Gad.

⁴⁶ They left Dibon Gad and camped at Almon Diblathaim.

⁴⁷ They left Almon Diblathaim and camped in the mountains of Abarim, near Nebo.

⁴⁸ They left the mountains of Abarim and camped on the plains of Moab by the Jordan across from Jericho. ⁴⁹ There on the plains of Moab they camped along the Jordan from Beth Jeshimoth to Abel Shittim.

Becoming a leader is a lot like investing in the stock market. If you hope to make a fortune in a day, you’re doomed. It’s what you do day by day, over the long haul, that matters most. If you continue to develop your leadership, letting your “assets” compound over time, the inevitable result is growth.

Although some individuals have greater natural gifts than others, nearly all the skills of leadership can be learned and improved. But that process doesn’t happen overnight. Leadership has so many facets; respect, experience, emotional strength, people skills, discipline, vision, momentum, timing- the list oges on. That’s why leaders require so much seasoning to be effective.

The good news is that you can grow in your ability to lead. Regardless of your starting point, you can improve.

Joseph was a cocky kid, too arrogant for his own good. He didn’t think it enough to be the favorite of his father, the child who received special treatment, the son of Jacob’s old age. Joseph had to rub it in.

When God gave Joseph a dream revealing that he would one day lead his family- not only his 11 brothers, but also his parents- Joseph thoughtlessly told everyone about it. Twice. His father rebuked him. His brothers wanted revenge. And they got it.

Early in his life, Joseph didn’t know how to skillfully work with others. He lacked experience, wisdom, and humility- three qualities gained only with the passage of time. Joseph’s life illustrates the Law of Process. Observe how time and experience contributed to the development of Joseph’s leadership skills:

Phase One: I don’t know what I don’t know. Everyone starts out in a state of ignorance. That’s where Joseph began. He didn’t understans the dynamics of his family. Either he couldn’t imagine how his brothers might react when he described his dream, or he didn’t care. The scripture says his brothers already hated him; when he described his dream, they hated him even more. Joseph did and said things without understanding the interpersonal issues involved. His ignorance cost him more than two decades of alienation from his family.

Phase Two: I know what I don’t know. It took a life-changing incident to capture Joseph’s attention and start him on the road to change. Thrust into slavery in Egypt, he began to learn what hi didn’t know. He came to understand that leadership is difficult and carries a huge weight of responsibility. Over the years, Joseph suffered betrayal and learned hard lessons in human nature, relationships, and leadership. The process molded his character, granting him both patience and humility. Eventually he recognize God as his source of blessing and power.

Phase Three: I know and grow, and it starts to show. Leaders who show great skill when opportunities arise shine only because they’ve paid the price of preparation. When Pharaoh finally called Joseph, the young man performed with excellence and great wisdom. He didn’t succeed because he suddenly got good at age 30; he succeeded because he paid the price for 13 years. Joseph’s hard-won wisdom and discernment got him promoted to second in command of what was then the most powerful nation on earth.

Phase Four: I simply go because of what I know. During seven years of plenty, Josph executed his leadership plan with great skill. He filled the cities of Egypt with grain and prepared the country for a famine. But one can see how far his leadership had grown only by observing what he did during the lean years that followed. While he focused on feeding the people of Egypt, the strength of his leadership allowed him to feed the people of other lands as well. In the process, he brought untold money, livestock, and land into his master’s possession. He also fulfilled the prophecy of his teenage dreams.

Every effective leader needs time to develop, but time alone cannot make someone an effective leader. Some individuals never discover the Law of Process, never work at growth, and therefore remain at Phase One their entire lives.

Fortunately for the children of Israel, Joseph did not stop at the first stage. He grew in his journey from the pit to the palace. Yet nearly 23 years passed before he reunited with his brothers and saw his own vision fulfilled. At the end, Joseph realized that God had directed the process of his development as a leader and that he had been groomed for a much greater purpose than he ever imagined as a cocky teenager.

By the time his father died, Joseph had learned to see things from God’s perspective. When his brothers feared for their lives, Joseph calmed their nerves by saying, “Do not be afraid, for am I in the place of God? But as for you, you meant evil against me; but God meant it for good, in order to bring it about as it is this day, to save many people alive” (Gen. 50:19, 20).

At last Joseph could trace God’s hand over all the years of his life. And he understood the Lord’s long-term plan for His people, a plan Joseph helped fulfill by growing into the leader God desired him to be.

Share how this story inspires you to invest in yourself to be a better leader.

When God told Abraham to leave the comfort of his home in Haran, his relatives, and everything familiar, so that he might start fresh in another land (Gen. 12), Abraham caught a vision. God gave Abraham the hope of fathering a great nation; in fact, God said he would become the father of many nations! Abraham felt compelled to follow this great vision, even when he had nothing else to rely on.

Lessons from Abraham on Vision

By observing Abraham in Genesis 12-22, we can learn the criteria for a God-given vision. A vision must:

1. Begin with God’s priorities (Gen. 12:1,2). God initiated the vision, not Abraham. When leaders start with God’s vision, they can more easily maintain direction and keep their motives pure.

The Lord had said to Abram, “Go from your country, your people and your father’s household to the land I will show you.

² “I will make you into a great nation,
    and I will bless you;
I will make your name great,
    and you will be a blessing.^[a]

2. Connect with the leader’s identity (Gen. 15:2-4). The vision Abraham received fit him and Sarah exactly; it matched the needs and desires of this barren couple. Even better, it’s fulfillment would serve others. ² But Abram said, “Sovereign Lord, what can you give me since I remain childless and the one who will inherit^[a] my estate is Eliezer of Damascus?” ³ And Abram said, “You have given me no children; so a servant in my household will be my heir.”

⁴ Then the word of the Lord came to him: “This man will not be your heir, but a son who is your own flesh and blood will be your heir.”

3. Include others (Gen. 12:2,3). A vision from God always involves and blesses others. The Lord told Abraham he would be blessed in order to bless many nations, which is precisely what happened through the birth of Christ many generations later. “I will make you into a great nation,
    and I will bless you;
I will make your name great,
    and you will be a blessing.^[a]

4. Be bigger than the leader (Gen. 17:1-8). While Abraham wanted to father an heir, God wanted him to father nations. That hope went far beyond Abraham’s wildest dreams (and his own capabilities). Such a huge vision would take more than a lifetime to fulfill. 17 When Abram was ninety-nine years old, the Lord appeared to him and said, “I am God Almighty^[a]; walk before me faithfully and be blameless. ² Then I will make my covenant between me and you and will greatly increase your numbers.”

³ Abram fell facedown, and God said to him, ⁴ “As for me, this is my covenant with you: You will be the father of many nations. ⁵ No longer will you be called Abram^[b]; your name will be Abraham,^[c] for I have made you a father of many nations. ⁶ I will make you very fruitful; I will make nations of you, and kings will come from you. ⁷ I will establish my covenant as an everlasting covenant between me and you and your descendants after you for the generations to come, to be your God and the God of your descendants after you. ⁸ The whole land of Canaan, where you now reside as a foreigner, I will give as an everlasting possession to you and your descendants after you; and I will be their God.”

5. Connect with the leader’s deepest convictions (Gen. 18:9-12). The vision that captured Abraham’s heart mirrored his strongest values, including his desire for family and land. “Where is your wife Sarah?” they asked him.

“There, in the tent,” he said.

¹⁰ Then one of them said, “I will surely return to you about this time next year, and Sarah your wife will have a son.”

Now Sarah was listening at the entrance to the tent, which was behind him. ¹¹ Abraham and Sarah were already very old, and Sarah was past the age of childbearing. ¹² So Sarah laughed to herself as she thought, “After I am worn out and my lord is old, will I now have this pleasure?”

6. Be tangible and easily communicated (Gen. 15:5). God gave Abraham a tangible picture of the vision: Look at the sands on the shore, He said, and at the stars in the sky. These objects served as visual aids to help Abraham embrace and fulfill the vision.  He took him outside and said, “Look up at the sky and count the stars—if indeed you can count them.” Then he said to him, “So shall your offspring^[a] be.”

7. Have eternal value (Gen. 17:19,20). Abraham’s vision went far beyond his life on earth and included more than wealth and fame. His vision would affect the eternal destiny of millions. ¹⁹ Then God said, “Yes, but your wife Sarah will bear you a son, and you will call him Isaac.^[a] I will establish my covenant with him as an everlasting covenant for his descendants after him. ²⁰ And as for Ishmael, I have heard you: I will surely bless him; I will make him fruitful and will greatly increase his numbers. He will be the father of twelve rulers, and I will make him into a great nation.

There are many lessons learned from Abraham and the examples he left us. The best way to apply what we know is to teach it to others. Which one can you teach today?

God clearly told Adam that a specific tree was off-limits. “Of every tree of the garden you may freely eat.” God told him, “But of the tree of knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die” (Genesis 2:16, 17). At the time Adam received this command, Eve was not present; according to Genesis 2, she had not yet been created. Consequently, it was up to Adam to pass along what God had said.

So why didn’t Adam clearly communicate God’s instructions to Eve? Why the breakdown in the line of communication? Indeed, Eve did not wholly understand what would happen if she ate the forbidden fruit. Consider her muddled response to the serpent: “God has said, ‘You shall not eat it, nor shall you touch it, lest you die'” (Gen. 3:3). Eve added the phrases, “nor shall you touch it,” and “lest you die.” God never said any such thing. So, where did she get her faulty information?

Perhaps the “telephone game” can provide a clue. Have you ever played it? Everyone sits in a circle. One person whispers a message into the ear of an adjacent player, who then whispers the words to the next person, and so on down the line. When the last person to play whispers the phrase into the ear of the one who began the game, a significant distortion in the message is often revealed.

Five Reasons for Adam’s Faulty Communication

Adam’s communication to Eve went similarly astray. His message broke down into five basic reasons:

1. He ignored some details in the message he was supposed to communicate.
2. He allowed Eve’s voice to influence him more than God’s voice.
3. He failed to hold himself accountable for his communication.
4. He forgot what God had said about the consequences of disobedience.
5. He did not take responsibility for the results of his faulty communication.

Let’s learn from Adam’s mistake. You may be a good speaker, but are you a good communicator? Do you pay close attention to what God tells you? Do you give appropriate attention to detail? When you lead, do you ensure your audience receives the message? And do you take responsibility for what God has entrusted to you?

Genesis 2:15-17; 3:1-6

The Lord God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it. ¹⁶ And the Lord God commanded the man, “You are free to eat from any tree in the garden; ¹⁷ but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat from it you will certainly die.”

Now the serpent was more crafty than any of the wild animals the Lord God had made. He said to the woman, “Did God really say, ‘You must not eat from any tree in the garden’?”

² The woman said to the serpent, “We may eat fruit from the trees in the garden, ³ but God did say, ‘You must not eat fruit from the tree that is in the middle of the garden, and you must not touch it, or you will die.’”

⁴ “You will not certainly die,” the serpent said to the woman. ⁵ “For God knows that when you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.”

⁶ When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it. She also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it.

Great thoughts of John Maxwell. Vincent and I thought differently, and we struggled to communicate with each other because of that. We learned what was essential to each other and grew patient to figure out each other’s needs. I remember times when I hoped to find ways we could do more things together so that we could have more opportunities.