I don’t consider myself an extraordinary human being, but I do consider myself a leader. I lead in my family, I lead in my community, I lead in my church, etc…and so do you. In very many ways, you probably have more leadership influence than you think you do, and Abraham teaches us something critical (many things really) about how to be an effective leader.
The Abrahamic Leadership Principle is simple (btw, I just made that name up but it sounds like a real thing, doesn’t it?): God has given you gifts and abilities to lead and influence other lives, but those gifts and abilities are meaningless unless you use them to benefit others.
Being in a position of authority is empowering. Everyone enjoys the opportunity to be one of the cool kids and have a voice and decision-making power, but there’s nothing more annoying than someone in authority who’s self-absorbed. Case and point, just look to the national leaders of both major political parties in America right now. All most of us want them to do is stop talking and start serving the actual needs of actual people.
If your authority position terminates on you and your benefit, you’ll be like the loud kid in high school who everyone thought was cool and now has no idea where he is and probably doesn’t care where he is. By definition, leadership can only be “leadership” if it involves influencing others. Abraham spent his life moving others toward God’s Plan-A for them. He could have spent it comfortably in the palace instead but if he had, we would never have heard his name and any opportunity his leadership to be significant would have been lost.
Abraham's choice to live and lead for the benefit of others instead live for his own comfort shows us the delineation between success and significance. He had success as a prince, living in the palace. But he chose to live a life that actually mattered by prioritizing the blessing of those he led instead of using his position solely for himself.
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