This three-part study is written using the book, Just Leadership, as a guide for the themes and concepts. TBN UK commissioned a TV series around this book where the authors, Simon Barrington and Justin Humphreys, interviewed Christian Leaders about the issues of justice. As part of this study, each week, we will be watching a short video, taken from the TV series, which gives an overview on the topic for discussion and then commence a deep dive with some questions to aide discussion.
To see the whole TV series click on the link.
https://watch.tbn.uk/just-leadership
In this session we look at the second section of the book entitled JUST LEADERSHIP. From session one, we understand that to become just leaders we need to understand who we are in God, our identity and how we need to give ourselves away in the pursuit of a common cause by creating an environment in which others can join in. In this session we explore attributes and characteristics of a just leader. This session is all about your heart, your approach, and your posture.
It is so important that we slow down and take time to reflect and make the best use of what the past and present might be telling us. The urge to race ahead, only to find we have reached an impasse without all the knowledge and information that would ne helpful to us, leads us to frustration, disappointment, and a need to retrace our footsteps. Taking time to navigate difficult situations and reach an elevated position from which we can see more clearly, guide more sensitively and speak more compassionately as we assist others, is a crucial part of the process toward finding justice for those who have been wronged and identifying lessons to be learned for all concerned.
Speaking up in an authentic voice is hard to do because you know that when the voice is out there some people will disagree, especially when we are talking of issues of justice as there is inherent conflict there. However, as Amanda Khozi Mukwashi so rightly said in the video, even though you are walking into a storm, Jesus is there and with you, just as He was when He asked the disciples to get into the boat where He calmed the storm.
How can we be justice seeking and generous at the same time? Stuart McCullock said how justice was core to God’s character. In the bible there is more restorative justice than there was retributive. Restoration is a much more generous act, an outworking of God’s grace and generosity. Perhaps our perspective of justice should change to align with how God sees it.
How do we learn to give power away, to empower others and to raise people up? Becca Legge, in the video says that we are made in God’s image so therefore have incredible power within us, but we must use this in the right way. Some people want to be ‘all powerful’! Perhaps some part of that urge sits in all of us in some way. God gives us power to treasure, steward and use for good deeds. The opposite of power is vulnerability – if we can go into situations holding both things, power, and vulnerability well, we have humility and be better heard.
Can we see beyond the stereotypes? Sometimes certain groups of people face assumptions about the that are just not true. Kathy Madavan, in the video, points out that sometime decisions are made about likeability, competence etc are made because of how you look, your gender or if you are able bodied or not. To overcome this, we need to model on platforms gifted and anointed leaders who might have a disability, for example, will help challenge perceptions. It is good to challenge people when they are having stereotypical assumptions, speak up and have the courageous conversations, as kindly as you can, to put across another point of view.
