Leadership When Things Go Wrong
John 16:33 says “…In this world you will have trouble.” Jesus guarantees us that we will have problems in our lives. The question isn’t will you have trouble, but what will you do when trouble comes? Since we all lead people somewhere, at home, church, work, communities, we have to be prepared to lead people through difficult times. So, when the tough times come here are some easy things we can do to lead well.
- Keep God first. When bad things happen it’s easy to blame God for your problems. He’s up there with all that power and He loves us, so everything should be easy, right? Not always true. God may be working out a plan. He may be trying to teach us something or correct us, or make us into a better person. Instead of blaming God for your problems, we should consider it pure joy as James says in chapter 1 verse 2.
- Count your blessings. Many times when things go wrong that’s all we focus on. It doesn’t matter how many people have told us how good of a job we are doing, if one person criticizes us, we’re destroyed. Let’s not get caught up in all the bad things that may be happening, and instead, look at all the good things God has given us. Life, family, work, home. Once you see how much God has blessed you, the bad things don’t seem so bad anymore.
- Don’t worry. Jesus says in Matthew 6:25-34 to not worry. He says if God takes care of the sparrow, how much more will he take care of you? God is in control of your life and the whole world. We may never understand why things happen they way they do in this life. Put your trust in Him and focus on getting through the day.
- Pray. Pray for wisdom, guidance, understanding, comfort. Jesus continues in Matthew 7:7-8 “Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. 8 For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened.” God is happy to bless his children as he molds us like a potter molds his clay.