A Smiling Leader

At a time when Job was suffering and reflecting on how wonderful things were in the past, he made statements which give insight into what it means to be a great leader. We of course know that after Job passed through his trials that he received multiplied blessings and undoubtedly became an even greater leader to his generation.

Job 29 (The Living Bible)

21-25 "Men and women listened when I spoke, hung expectantly on my every word.After I spoke, they'd be quiet, taking it all in.They welcomed my counsel like spring rain, drinking it all in.When I smiled at them, they could hardly believe it; their faces lit up, their troubles took wing!I was their leader, establishing the mood and setting the pace by which they lived. Where I led, they followed."

He was remembering how people used to listen to him and would quietly consider his words, drinking them all in. A leader will always be a person of few but relevant words. Not always blabbering about this and that therefore cheapening the impact of their words. And a leader is comfortable with silence after speaking. The goal of speaking words of wisdom is not to be complimented or to perceive excitement on the part of the listener, therefore making the speaker feel good about themselves, but it is to come to a place where those words can be welcomed, internalized and expectantly considered. From my wonderful Pentecostal heritage, I have to be careful when preaching not to call for an “amen” too often and remember that silence is not only not a bad thing, but a good thing. When the people of God “ponder,” this can be effective.

And then Job mentions the SMILE. When a leader smiles, it is a breath of fresh air and it should come not only at expected times, but also at unexpected times. When a person comes to a leader and shares a problem, what they need to know more then anything else is that everything is going to be OK! Their troubles take flight when they see the faith, expectation, stability and acceptance in the leader.

Job understood that one of the greatest responsibilities of the leader is to establish a better and more productive mood (environment or atmosphere). Setting the pace by which they lived means that he was involved in their lives and led by example. This setting of a pace brings stability not only to avoid burn-out, but to keep things moving. And because of the consistency and the care and the great mood changing faith filled attitude, where he led, they followed!

Let’s review:
- We should listen more than we speak and we should make our words count by making sure they are timely and Bible based.
- Smile! We should develop our ‘smiling ministry’ to the point that it changes the environment of any given situation by adding to the faith of and inspiring that person we smile at!
- Intentionally establish a better mood and lead by setting a better pace everywhere we go!