We have no desire to bully or push our agenda onto others. In fact, we generally prefer to stay in our own lane and let others do the same. And there is much wisdom here. But leadership also requires us to enter the messy world of others and bear responsibility for the space between us. And we become passive when we wait on perfect conditions before offering our strength.
On the one hand, we respect that we each have our own race. It’s not our place to dictate how others should live out their faith before God. And a lot of heartache is avoided by simply focusing on our side of the street. But we cannot use this reasoning as an excuse to withhold our strength and leadership, as this causes relationships to stall as we wait on each other.
In marriage, for instance, it’s a lot easier to offer ourselves to our wife when know she will shower us with her grace and receive us warmly. But it’s a mistake to hold ourselves back until she does, because she’s likely waiting to trust in the goodness of our strength before she fully opens herself up to us. And so we find ourselves both waiting on each other.
Christ was willing to die for us while we were still in our sins. And, in this way, we’re also to take the lead in moving toward our wife – not waiting to be invited, to feel desired by her, or to have guaranteed outcomes, but to consistently offer her life and goodness as Christ does for us.
We take the lead in giving ourselves to her because she cannot receive with grace what has never arrived. And we cannot enjoy the fullness of her desire for us when our strength is never given.
Leadership begins with small and ordinary acts of faith to pursue the good. Stop waiting to be invited. Your offering is the invitation.
