When we talk about good leaders in history we often think about glory. We think about their accomplishments, their strengths, and their greatness. We think about their renown and their authority. We think about standing on stages, accepting awards and accolades and names being written in history books.
We rarely hear the term “leadership” and think of a lowly shepherd wading knee deep in sheep excrement. We don’t think about the muck and filth clinging to the tread of their work boots or the stench of the flock stuck in their nose. We don’t think about the long hours of poking and prodding groups of anxious and obstinate livestock to safe heights or the meticulous preparation it takes before moving a flock of sheep to new pasture.
But we should.
The reality of good leadership looks a lot more like lowly shepherding than Rocky Balboa atop the stone steps in Philly.
The Bible mentions shepherding over 200 times and often as a metaphor for leadership. Good leaders are like good shepherds, caring well for their flocks. According to the Bible, a good shepherd is one who does the following:
A bad shepherd did none of those things and even worse, simply used the sheep as meat to appease their hungry stomachs.
It’s clear from that list that shepherding was not a job full glory. Rather, it was a humble job, one that required a lot of patience, consistency, understanding and well, love.
The reason a good leader is like a shepherd is because many people (myself included) often act like sheep. Consider the similarities:
So then, in turn, leading as a good shepherd looks a lot like the following:
This is hard work. It’s messy and tiring. It means spending many more days with the sheep in the muck than on a stage accepting praise.
But, as you can see, leadership is a high calling.
For a sheep to lie down in a pasture, its needs must be met, the needs I mentioned above—to feel safe, to be fed, to be at peace with other sheep and to know that its shepherd is nearby.
A good leader is called to lead in such a way that their sheep lie down in the pasture. May we understand the humble reality of this kind of leadership and may we be such leaders.
Written by: Ashley Buenger
Comments