Humility in Leadership

By Greg Marksberry

Have you ever endured a seemingly endless season of hardship? Perhaps you are weathering such a season even now. Grieving the loss of a loved one, battling an extended illness, suffering a strained relationship at work, agonizing over a broken heart”””“you get the picture. It”s definitely not the postcard scene that evokes happy feelings and warm memories. Hardship leaves a knot in the stomach. So it”s helpful to be reminded from time to time that there is great value in our suffering. Having recently emerged from such a stretch of difficulty, I”ve been reflecting on the significance of seasons like these in leadership.

Humility Comes First

Perhaps the greatest value in traversing troubled times is the appreciation it brings for genuine humility. Browse the leadership section of your local bookstore and you won”t find many works espousing the benefits of humility in leadership. But the example of Jesus is one of downward mobility. Philippians 2:5-11 describes how the Lord of the universe humbled himself and became a man, even a servant. And this servant was obedient, even to death, and not just any death, but crucifixion.

What was Paul”s command? “Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus.” The two supreme examples of humility are the incarnation of Christ””God becoming man””and the crucifixion of Christ””the innocent Son paying sin”s price. In his birth and in his death, Jesus demonstrates the power of humility in our lives.

Augustine said, “If you should ask me what are the ways of God, I would tell you that the first is humility, the second is humility, and the third is still humility. Not that there are no other precepts to give, but if humility does not precede all that we do, our efforts are fruitless.” Most of us readily embrace this ancient wisdom. However, when life is good we tend to forget the significance of humility. It”s not that we become totally self-absorbed; it”s much more subtle than that. Our focus tends to shift to the brilliance of our strategies or the importance of our roles, rather than to the sacrifice and selflessness of genuine humility.

Tough times in a leader”s life can recalibrate our hearts toward humility. In seasons of hardship we are reminded of what is truly important, often because it helps us touch our roots. A friend expressed appreciation for two Atlanta icons, Truett Cathy, founder of Chick-fil-A, and comedian Jeff Foxworthy. He observed, “These men have never forgotten where they come from.”

Others Suffer Too

My maternal grandmother was a single mother of six who waited tables for nearly three decades to make ends meet. Recently, during the sorrow of her funeral, I was able to touch my roots. Her pastor accurately characterized her life as a servant by pointing out her familiarity with the towel and the basin. It was a powerful reminder of where I come from and the value of humbly serving others. I was reminded that my roots extend far beyond the dining room where my grandmother served. They reach back to the upper room where Jesus set an example that we should do for others as he has done for us.

There is something both humbling and grounding in remembering our heritage. Just before Jesus rose to wash the disciples” feet, John 13:3 says, “Jesus knew . . . that he had come from God and was returning to God.” Jesus found the confidence to humble himself partly because he knew where he had come from. Touching our roots, as a by-product of hardship, helps us carry out God”s calling with strength and security.

Enduring difficulty also connects leaders with the many who suffer. As Jesus made his way to Jerusalem for his final week of life, he encountered two blind men. As they cried out for mercy the crowd rebuked them. But Jesus had compassion on them, touched their eyes, and brought healing. Is it possible that Jesus was contemplating what he would soon suffer and these men touched his heart?

How often in our rush to do God”s bidding do we shush those on the roadside, the ones to whom Jesus showed compassion? Hardship tenderizes our hearts with a renewed humility and motivates us to help others who are hurting.

It is said that the first act by Frances of Assisi following his vow to serve God was to kiss a leper. Who are the lepers in our lives that we are called to touch and expose to the kiss of God?

Brokenness Teaches

When leaders spend time on the sidelines due to a bout with hardship, they discover the humble perspective and tender heart that God wants in his servants. Gene Edwards refers to seasons of hardship as God”s “school of brokenness.” King David learned as an enrollee in the school of brokenness that “a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise” (Psalm 51:17). Hard times usher in the humble dependence on God essential for spiritual leadership.

A friend often jokes that we learn in two ways, “through pain and more pain.” One of the most humbling lessons we learn from hardship is that God alone can bring the peace that passes understanding, and to gain it we must depend wholly upon him.

George Whitefield was a preacher who had a profound impact on the American colonies during the 1700s. In his book about Whitefield, Stephen Mansfield identifies 20 lessons of leadership from Whitefield”s life. Interestingly, the top three all relate to the appreciation for humility that hard times can bring:

1) Critics are the unpaid guardians of the soul; 2) Humility is the freedom from self that great leadership demands; 3) Suffering purifies the heart, hones the vision, and fashions the soul for battles to come.¹

. . . It is easy to recall the life of Whitefield and forget the hardships. The pain and the loss can understandably be missed among the glowing victories. Yet to do so would mean failing to learn one of the most important lessons his life has to teach: that suffering is a source of power. As he often said throughout his life, “I never feel the power of religion more than when under outward or inward trials.” It is a challenge to those who would fulfill his legacy, a needed reminder in the age of the easy path.²

Seasons of difficulty are inevitable. Jesus said, “In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world” (John 16:33). As ironic as it may seem, the humility and brokenness that surfaces in suffering may usher in the greatest opportunity for impact in leadership and wholeness in life.

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¹Forgotten Founding Father: The Heroic Legacy of George Whitefield, by Stephen Mansfield (Nashville: Cumberland House, 2001), 265.

²Ibid, 224.

Greg Marksberry began his preaching ministry in 1984 following graduation from high school. After receiving a bachelor”s degree in biblical studies and Christian ministry from Cincinnati (Ohio) Bible College in 1988, he began serving his alma mater as director of admissions. In 1997, after serving five years as senior minister with Wilkinson Church of Christ in Greater Indianapolis, he moved to Peachtree City, Georgia, to lead the Heritage Christian Church plant. The congregation began with 77 people and is now averaging more than 800. Greg and his wife, Eliana, have two children.