But By the Grace of God

by Dr. Amanda McKelroy | December 1, 2021

I was sitting in a church service, listening to an enthusiastic young man as he described the accomplishments that he has seen as a missionary to Japan for the past 3 years. He learned the language, is already preaching in Japanese, has watched the ministry grow, and has seen people come to know the Lord. I sat there and listened to the victories the Lord has won through this young man and I was ashamed of myself. You see, in my first years as a leader, before he and his wife went to Japan as missionaries, they were on staff at my organization. I found myself ashamed: not that I didn’t think highly of them, but that I barely thought of them at all. I missed an opportunity to personally invest in a young couple to the best of my ability because I was too busy with ‘boss life’ to take the time. 

It’s so easy to forget that but by the grace of God, I am where I am, I am who I am, and I have the opportunities I have. It’s easy to get caught up in the business of leadership, and even the successes of leadership and make life all about me. I genuinely don’t think I am any better than any other person on my staff, but when your professional life flows to your commands, it can be easy to accidentally put yourself on a pedestal and stop taking time to personally influence your staff. It’s easy for me to spend hours in my office and not take the time to go talk to my staff, to be already busily working when they arrive for their shifts, and not say “good morning” when they arrive and check in with them. But the Bible teaches us to give honor to whom honor is due, and without my staff, I cannot do my job. They need me, and I need them. We are two parts to the whole. Not only that, but I do not have the strength or capacity to handle my load: any success or triumph I experience is not because of me, it is despite me, and fully by God’s grace and hand of blessing in my life and on my business. 

I don’t want to be the leader who gets comfortable in success and forgets either that God made the success possible or that I should always be looking for ways to better serve my staff. As leaders, we can get caught up thinking we deserve different or better or more. However, without God’s hand on our lives and the wonderful people we serve, we don’t get to be us! 

Two Things to Remember: 

1) Without God, I can accomplish nothing of substance.

            We need God’s blessing because with Him all things are possible. A blessing is when you receive something extra that you have not earned and you are not owed. In the Bible, the word blessing is used in the context of bringing a gift to someone or receiving above and beyond what is earned or owed. I am convinced that when I am seeking God and God’s will for my life and my organization, He blesses both me and my company. When I think of God’s blessing on my company, I think of seeing goals fulfilled that appeared to be insurmountable – those goals that you know you should strive for but just can’t see a logical way they will get accomplished. What I know is that I want, and need, God’s blessings in my life and in my organization so that we can make a difference in the lives of our students, families, and staff. 

“But Jesus beheld them, and said unto them, With me this is impossible; but with God all things are possible.” Matthew 19:26

            We need God’s protection because without Him it won’t matter how prepared we are. Have you ever faced a challenge at work that you thought was insurmountable? I have, too many times to keep count. Sometimes it is multiple employees putting in their notice at the same time leaving me scrambling to find their replacements in a short two weeks. It could be that there is a financial downfall that must be rectified to stay in business. Sometimes the state brings new laws to the table and requires us to make massive changes with very little warning. No matter what the problem is we are facing, if we have God’s protection we can be confident that He will guide us through it. 

“The horse is prepared against the day of battle: but safety is of the Lord.” Proverbs 21:31

            We need God’s strength because we are frail and incapable.

Sometimes I have these ‘aha!’ moments when I realize that I have gotten too big for my britches and have started to think that I can do great things, on my own, without God’s help. Usually, these moments come when I am facing a project or problem that is so big it crushes my ego and reminds me that I do not have the capacity to handle it without God’s strength. These moments often feel like the cartoons when something goes wrong and they can dig a hole in the floor and jump into it. If only we could hide like that from our problems in real life. I don’t have the courage to face the problems and projects that I am expected to solve without God sharing His strength with me. If it were up to me, I would walk away and go find a job with no responsibility, no pressure of leadership, but completely out of God’s will for me. I am called to be a leader, to make a difference in people’s lives, but I cannot fulfill my calling without God’s strength! 

“Wherefore let him that thinketh he standeth take heed lest he fall.” I Corinthians 10:12

“And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me.” II Corinthians 12:9

If I am in God’s will, seeking His guidance and strength, and bringing glory to Him, He will protect, provide, and bless. 

2) Leadership is about influencing people, without people there is no leadership

            As a Christian leader, the call of leadership is more than a job, it is God’s will for my life. A few weeks ago, I was watching an episode of the undercover boss. The girl with whom the CEO was undercover treated him horribly and expressed specifically how much she did not like her job. She plainly told him she did not want to work there anymore and couldn’t understand why pretty people like her have to work at all. In the end, when he met with her and revealed who he was, I expected him to scold her and let her go. Her behavior had certainly warranted it. His response was to address her behavior and then, at the moment when one would expect him to bring the hammer down on her… he told her he expected more from her and would be sending her to train with the best leaders within the company if she was willing. It took me back a little bit. Not that he was compassionate to her, but that I was sitting on the edge of my seat waiting to see how he would roast her for her terrible behavior, attitude, and performance. It’s easy to get caught up in the demands of leadership and lose our compassion for our people. Perhaps because we are both busy with our own responsibilities, and perhaps because it’s easier to put walls up than to get hurt over and over. 

May I be blunt? I’m tired of people leaving me. Students at graduation who I’ve known and loved for the first several years of their lives, staff with whom I have a bond, even when we both know it is time for them to move on to the next adventure. Knowing it is time doesn’t ease the hurt. Sometimes I hear from past employees and it makes my heart so very glad. Educators are in our field because we want to make a difference in people’s lives. Educational leaders want to make a difference not only in the lives of their students and students’ families but also in the lives of their teachers and staff. 

Today is the last day of employment for a dear young woman who has worked for me for over 6 years. We’ve been through a lot together. She’s been with me through several different administrators and countless co-workers. I’ve been with her through breakups and mom-life crises. She’s been there for me through my own breakups and major life changes such as moving out of my parent’s house and buying my own. She has brought me many of her friends as employees, and she has been my go-to person for organizational projects, decorating projects, implementing my crazy change ideas, she’s been the lead teacher for several different age groups – willing to go wherever I needed her. She’s even been a backup administrator the past few years and has been the person in charge when I’ve been out sick and unable to be present. What a valuable employee and wonderful friend. When she first came to me as a teacher she had no thoughts of a career, of going to college or doing anything beyond finding a job that would allow her to get off work in time to pick her kids up from school. This morning we sat down for a half-hour and reminisced about our adventures together and talked about her big life change. I couldn’t hold back the tears. Tears of pride for her taking this step, and tears of sadness for me that I’m losing a beloved staff member and friend. 

Sometimes the people leaving aren’t staff, sometimes it’s students and families that I care about. Leaders aren’t supposed to have favorites, but if we’re being real with ourselves we all have families that are extra special to us. Every year at graduation I find myself simultaneously filled with pride and sadness. So proud of my little K4 students for what they accomplished during the school year and so sad that I have to say goodbye when they go to “big kid school.” Sometimes families have to relocate due to a change in jobs or for family reasons and that one student that always brightens your day is gone in a blink. 

In a word, it’s bittersweet. Whether it’s a family, a student, or a staff member, my heart still hurts. The temptation is to close myself off so I don’t feel the pain and can’t get hurt. It’s only a matter of time before they leave. But instead of apathy or guard walls, that knowledge should inspire greater compassion and a greater desire to take advantage of the time I do have with them. Being a leader means having the opportunity to influence people; an opportunity that should never be wasted. I’ve learned that I cannot personally influence people without putting my heart into it. So instead of putting up a wall of professionalism that minimizes my ability to influence my people, I must choose to let them in and to love them, even if it means I get hurt when they eventually leave. But I must do it, because it is the right thing to do, and because making a difference in their lives is my calling in life. I must trust that God will bring me comfort when my heart hurts because they need me and I need them. Leadership is influence. Influencing people requires the courage to care for them and invest in them, that is how we make a difference – let us never forget that. But by the grace of God, I get to be a leader and serve my wonderful staff.