I am really fond of the Disney movie The Lion King. I love the way young Simba naively sings about how he cannot wait to be king. He knows it is inevitable but has no idea what is in store for him. Like young Simba we know that God has a great destiny in store for us and we should look forward to claiming it. However, few of us are prepared the day when destiny either arrives or like Simba we have to defend destiny. Being Disney all ends well for Simba but not without some serious soul searching and coming to an understanding of identity, responsibility and destiny. Fortunately God not only guides us when He places us in those long promised positions of power and influence, He tells us in His word what we need to do when we get there. Deuteronomy 17vs14 – 20 (NIV) gives guidelines for kings but is highly applicable to any of the leadership positions God places us in. It reads:
The King
14 When you enter the land the Lord your God is giving you and have taken possession of it and settled in it, and you say, “Let us set a king over us like all the nations around us,” 15 be sure to appoint over you a king the Lord your God chooses. He must be from among your fellow Israelites. Do not place a foreigner over you, one who is not an Israelite. 16 The king, moreover, must not acquire great numbers of horses for himself or make the people return to Egypt to get more of them, for the Lord has told you, “You are not to go back that way again.”17 He must not take many wives, or his heart will be led astray. He must not accumulate large amounts of silver and gold.
18 When he takes the throne of his kingdom, he is to write for himself on a scroll a copy of this law, taken from that of the Levitical priests. 19 It is to be with him, and he is to read it all the days of his life so that he may learn to revere the Lord his God and follow carefully all the words of this law and these decrees 20 and not consider himself better than his fellow Israelites and turn from the law to the right or to the left. Then he and his descendants will reign a long time over his kingdom in Israel.
God is instructing leaders to:
- Know, understand and apply His word
- Refrain from leading people astray or back to the places He has lead them out of
- Stay clear of the fleshly trappings of position
- Abide by His commandments (and stay in His will)
- Remain humble
Remember that as we stay in God’s will success is secured not only for ourselves and the kingdom, but in addition we pass on blessings to our descendants (successors). Therefore honour God as you move into this next promotion. We pray you have the courage to live God’s will.
More Resources
How to hit the ground running in your first 90 days by Michael D Watkins
Your Winning Strategy by Mitch Cowart
How to Get Ahead: Lie, Cheat and Steal by Bruce Kasanoff