27 February 2010

Christian leadership in a secular context

I posted Wednesday about the best way to fulfill my oath to "support and defend the Constitution" being to boldly proclaim the Gospel of Jesus Christ because the greatest threat we face as a nation is our own sin and immorality. However, that is a source of great frustration to me. I cannot be as vocal as I would like to be because of the prohibition against prosyletizing. I have to be careful about creating undue influence or pressure towars Christianity from my leadership role as a commander. Don't get me wrong, I have been completely open about my faith. When I introduced myself to my staff the first thing I told them is that the most important thing for them to know about me is my Christianity, that I receive and process information through the grid of my Biblical understanding and that I make decisions in accordance with my convictions. However, I cannot lead the way I would like to, like I would, say, in a church context. I cannot lead the staff in prayer before making decisions. When someone is having trouble, or in trouble, I would like to point them to what the Bible says about that issue and reach back to God's authority in the matter rather than just my own. I can do that a little bit, in a rather indirect manner, but I have to be careful how I do it. I think the members of my unit know where I stand, but I cannot be as explicit as I would like to be. I pray that God use what I can say to His purposes. To me the greatest measure of my success as a leader will be the spiritual effect God has been able to have through me on the men and women under my charge.

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