Men's Rosary

“Lead, follow, or get out of the way;” a familiar mantra in the secular world.  It does have merit, and I subscribed to this, and to some extent still do.  But over the years I have come to look at this in terms of the spiritual life.  What I find important about doing this is the fact that the only “life” we really have, is the spiritual life.  The secular life is merely temporary and a time to prepare our spiritual life so as to have eternal life.  General Patton was closer to how I now view this in his saying “lead me, follow me, or get out of my way” in that he yielded to being led. 

I will say, “To lead, you must follow.”  In the context of our faith and spiritual life it is obvious what I am suggesting.  We must follow Christ.  Christ gave us perfect example of following by yielding perfectly to God’s will and leading by offering us a way to the Father.  Christ knew God’s plan for him, and he knows God’s plan for us.  Make no mistake, God does have a plan for us, the question is whether or not we cooperate.  “For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not evil, to give you a future and a hope.”  (Jeremiah 26:11)  We are called to lead others to Christ.  We are tasked with the duty of forming disciples, missionary disciples.  This is how Christ continues his work here.  In our following him we becomes leaders of men.  We lead them to Christ and ultimately to the Father, not by ourselves but with he who we are following.  “And Jesus came to them and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.  Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you.  And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the ages.””  (Matthew 28:18-20)  The disciples followed Christ and therefore were able to lead.  They were actually charged to lead.

True leadership cannot be about us.  It has to be about something greater.  If we are going to follow Christ in order to lead, it is plain that the “greater” is the will of the Father.  “Look carefully then how you walk, not as unwise but as wise, making the best use of the time, because the days are evil.  Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is.”  (Ephesians 5:15-17)  Recall how Christ retreated to be by himself in prayer, to be in conversation with the Father.  This is how he knew his will.  To lead well we must follow Christ in his example of a prayer life.   Knowing the will of the Father offers us the ability to unite our will with his and be true leaders, not only in the secular sense but in the spiritual sense and be leaders who will help the Church in her mission. 

To yield is not to be weak, rather, it is a sign of great strength.  Think of how strong and solid a leader Moses was, in the secular sense.  And then yielding to the will of God and offering humble service goes on to be one of the greatest spiritual leaders.  Our Blessed Mother yielded to the will of God and became for us a consoler, an advocate and leader.  Her following of Christ, even though she was his mother, enabled her to lead us all.  Our Lord, Jesus Christ, gave us the perfect example of leading through dying to self and obedience to the Father.  His acts of mercy give perfect example of how to treat and serve others, and the Church. 

Christ has given us all the direction we need.  We need to pay attention to it.  To lead, we must follow Christ.  We must humble ourselves and realize we are capable of little on our own merits, and the measure of successful leadership in the world is not the measure in heaven.  We will answer for our actions and inactions.  So, will we answer the call?  “He has told you, O man, what is good;  and what does the Lord require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?”  (Micah 6:8) 

“May Christ be heard in our language, may Christ be seen in our life, may he be perceived in our hearts.”  (St. Peter Damien)