Leadership That Gets Big Results

What does every leader want more than anything else? I’ll tell you. Results! Every leader wants to know their service means something; that their life has not been wasted; that they have not just been marking time or filling a post. 

Some people love the status quo, and some yearn for yesteryear. These are not real leaders. Real leaders find nothing more frustrating than giving all their time and energy to a task that goes nowhere.

Big results come from a leader who leads. People get into leadership positions for several reasons. Have you ever known someone who filled a spot just because they wanted a title? 

A leader needs a driving force—a call, a passion, a purpose. Leaders need a desire that will fuel their activity because real leadership is not always easy. Traditions, culture, personalities, power struggles, and resources all stand in the leader’s way. 

Numbers 13 tells us a fascinating story about one of the great leaders in the Bible: Moses. 

The nation of Israel had been in bondage in Egypt for four hundred years. They cried out to God for a leader who would deliver them. God sent Moses. With signs and wonders, by God’s power, Moses led the nation of Israel to freedom, but the Israelites now needed a new home. God gave Moses instructions to lead the nation to the promised land, Canaan.

From Egypt, Canaan was approximately five hundred miles. No one is sure of the exact route Moses took. It could be around 452 miles, or it could be closer to six hundred. So, for a round number, let’s just say five hundred. The average man can walk up to twenty miles each day. As a large group they would likely have done less. Let’s say 12.5 miles a day. This means they could have gotten to their destination in about forty days. 

Moses and the nation of Israel get to the edge of Canaan, the promised land, but he does not lead them straight in. Instead, as we approach Numbers 13, Moses sends in spies, one from each of the twelve tribes, to bring back a report. He asks for a Mosaic study of the people, places, patterns, productivity, and profitability.

When they returned, the study team reported that the land was good, really good, flowing with milk and honey. They even brought a sample of the fruit to validate their assessment and made realistic observations about the challenges ahead. We should note that all these observations, so far, were the unanimous consensus of the study team.

Then they did something they were not asked to do. In verses 30 to 33, they went a step beyond their original Mosaic assignment and added a feasibility addendum and their divided opinion about whether they should move forward. Two, Joshua and Caleb, said to move forward and take the land. The other ten, however, assessed that they were too weak and too small, saying, “To ourselves we seemed like grasshoppers” (Numbers 13:33). 

Years ago, when I was just out of college, I remember hearing Dr. C. Milton Grannum, who had at that time recently started the New Covenant Church of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, preach on this text about what he called “Valley Versus Mountain People.” He said one thing I have carried all my career. “Never decide what God wants you to do and how to do it in the same meeting.” His message was that there are many valley people who cannot see the “how” so they will vote against the “what.” It is enough for one meeting just to agree on the “what” and then trust that since God told you what to do, He will, at the appropriate time, reveal the how as well.