Leading in the Light

“You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.” — Matthew 5:14-16 NIV

You are the light! This is a truth that every believer must receive and believe in their heart. We’ve been called out of darkness, into the marvelous Light (Jesus) and now that same light is within us and we carry it with us everywhere we go. Jesus calls us the light of the world, a light that cannot be hidden. That light must be placed on its stand so that everyone in the room can see. As light bearers we are world leaders, leading the world in whatever room we’ve been assigned to stand. Leading people from darkness of this world into the Light that cannot be comprehended, overtaken, or put out—Jesus.

The theme for this week of devotion and prayer is “Leading in the Light.” Our goal for this week is to walk through five leadership principles for light bearers so that we might lead effectively in the Light. Each principle will form an acronym through the word “LIGHT”.

It's normal for a light bearer to be a leader in innovation and carry great influence and with these attributes, it's normal to desire to be heard or stand out front. However, before we lead in any other capacity, we must lead in love. Love is the foundation of our faith and abundance of God's kingdom. The two greatest commandments are to love God and love people, everything else hangs from these (Luke 10:27). 

Integrity is a core leadership attribute that seems to have lost its value in the world. Although it may not be popular in the world, it’s essential in the church. God instructs us to be holy because he is holy (1 Peter 1:16). Holiness at its core is oneness and oneness is the definition of integrity. Holy living means that I’m not one person today and another tomorrow. Integrity says that who I am in private matches who I am in public. The world is desperate for leaders who are holy, leaders who are integral and those leaders must be found in the church. What are you willing to sacrifice in the dark so that you may lead in the light?

Jesus tells us that one of the ways that God gets the glory is through the good works of the believer. Whether it be the way we keep our home, our contributions at work or how we manage our business, God desires to use what we do as a way to reveal who He is to the world. This means that we should never do anything in a lackadaisical manner, instead we should always see it as an opportunity to introduce someone to the Father.

God is good and His love is everlasting. When He created us, He placed His goodness inside of us. This means that doing good is not unnatural, instead it is an expression of our identity. Doing good is not an inconvenience, it’s our calling. Anything less than good is less than our purpose and design.  

The word used for “good” in the Greek is kalós and it means excellent and praiseworthy. One thing I want to clarify is that nowhere in the definition of the word good will you find the word perfect. God has no demand for perfection (the absence of error). What he desires is an excellent effort. I share this to help those who are perfectionists like me. Don’t lose your mind over what’s not perfect as perfection is not the goal, His glory is. Therefore, in everything you do, do it in a way that reveals the excellence of God.

“For it is written: “Be holy, because I am holy”” (1 Peter 1:16 NIV). God is holy and it’s his desire that we would also be holy. There are two words that I will use to describe holiness: sinless and sanctified. In a world where perversion has been normalized, holiness is clearly not the popular choice. However, holiness is the requirement of Heaven.

As those who have been called out of darkness into the marvelous light, sin has no place in our lives.  We are made righteous by our faith in Jesus, but we are holy by decision. We must decide daily to do what is right and capture every thought that desires to do wrong and make it obedient to Christ. Why is this necessary? Because as a holy people, we are sanctified. A sanctified person or thing is set a part for God’s special use. God desires to use you for special purposes and this special requires holy living.

Perhaps God desires to use you to lead your family to a place of knowing Him. There may be an idea inside of you that will change revolutionize an industry. Maybe there’s a generation of youth that will be inspired to greatness by the life that you live. Each of these can only be done effectively through holiness. Wherever you lead in the world, lead in holiness.

“An attitude of gratitude.” This is a popular phrase I’ve heard since I was a child. It’s been shared in leadership seminars, workshops and I’ve read it in books. It’s a phrase that challenges the mind to reframe every situation and find a reason to be thankful.

An attitude of gratitude is important in leadership because the mindset of the leader will determine the culture of the organization. There’s a king that embodied the attitude of gratitude. He understood the value of giving thanks in every situation. In one of his famous writings, he said “I will bless the Lord at all times; His praise shall continually be in my mouth” (Psalm 34:1 NKJV). These are the words of David, a king who led with thanksgiving.  

As the light of the world, we too must lead with thanksgiving. First, giving thanks to God because He is good, and His love is everlasting (Psalm 107:1). We must also be thankful towards others. We have the ability to change the atmosphere of every room we’ve been assigned to stand in, simply by having an attitude of gratitude. Complaining is convenient but praise is powerful!

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