Leadership & Reconciliation Encore Post

2 Corinthians 5:17-19 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come! All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation: that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting men's sins against them. And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation.

As leaders, we must be the initiators of reconciliation.

People who have been leaders for any length of time will eventually find that there are times where they fall out of fellowship with one or more of their followers. Although this can happen for a variety of reasons, a short list of some of the most common would include:

1. A simple misunderstanding 
2. Poor performance by the follower 
3. Poor management by the leader

The Importance of Being the Initiator 

Invariably, small issues fester within teams, only to be compounded when new conflict occurs. Trying to build a team with a variety of broken relationships will ultimately develop an aroma of disunity. And initiating reconciliation is one of the hardest parts of being a leader. Why? Because it is very hard to do.

A regenerate leader has to put off the "old self,” who wants others to take the first step. Forget for the moment when you just need to eat some humble pie and apologize for your actions. That is hard, but not as hard as initiating reconciliation when one of your followers has performed poorly, and through correction or discipline, falls out of fellowship with you. While some form of relational stress is expected, effective leaders watch diligently for the remnants of bitterness or anger. When these signs don't subside in a reasonable length of time, the leader needs to take action. In other words, the leader needs to become the “initiator.”

Four Responsibilities from Scripture

What are we called to do in today's scripture reference? Take a moment to read it again and see if you can spot at least the four responsibilities that I see.

1. Recognize God's call for us to do what we normally would not want to do. We are "new creations," putting off what we wanted to do in the past. Sometimes the old self wants to initiate pain, not reconciliation.
2. Acknowledge that God is not calling us to do something He has not modeled for us first. He gave us a ministry that is precious. We need to treat and treasure it like a gift. 
3. Learn also that the wrongs of your followers should not "count against" them so much that you as a leader fade from your role as the "initiator,” the one who initiates reconciliation.
4. Preach and teach reconciliation within your organization or ministry. If we model it, we can not only teach others to do it, but we can also require it within our own organizations and churches. Ban the soil in which Satan likes to farm! 

God was the first initiator. He took the initiative to reconcile himself with us through sending his Son. We were completely in the wrong and should have gone to him first, begging to be reconciled to Him. But man did not do that, nor could man accomplish on his own what Christ accomplished for us.

Because God took the initiative with us, we must take the initiative with those we lead. Would you agree with me that everyone reading this has some form of relationship that could be shored up? If you would try today to become an "Initiator,” trust me when I say that a blessing is waiting for you.