MLK Jr Day - Leadership

For a long time I’ve held onto a painful memory of someone I looked up to criticizing me for being “too young” when I took on my first leadership role in the church as a 20-something. The first time I ran for office I was barely 30 and I’ll never forget the way many voters looked at me and chuckled as one does a child flopping around in a pair of “big big shoes.” I remember being told “you need a lot more experience before anyone will take you seriously” as a 30-something applying for a leadership role in business. I’ve long known God created me to lead but even today, as a 40 year old man, I carry the scars of my past and am constantly asking myself, “do I have the experience? Are my credentials worth anything? Do I really know what I’m talking about? Am I truly capable?”

Some time ago I stumbled on some information I don’t think I ever knew. Martin Luther King, Jr was 39 years old when he was killed. 39. I don’t know why but I’ve long looked at MLK Jr as if he lived and led well into his 50s. The words he wrote and the confidence and conviction with which he delivered them, came from a man who was also convinced God created to lead.

If I, a white man, felt the sting of my critics, I cannot imagine the pain MLK Jr endured being told, among far worse things, that he was too young, too inexperienced, too immature, and too ignorant to make a difference. How many people looked at him as one looks at a child playing make believe as he stepped confidently into his role as a pastor, leader, and activist? Yet, here we are, 55 years later celebrating his legacy in a world he undeniably changed.

If you feel compelled to lead, then lead, and don’t let anyone’s criticisms of you stand in your way. Speak loudly, boldly, and courageously regardless of the critics who insist you don’t know what you’re talking about. Serve faithfully, trusting that no matter your age or role, whatever it is you’re doing, God will use it to impact the world around you. Above all else, trust the calling God has placed on your heart and walk with confidence knowing He will ensure every step is on solid ground.

Thank you for your faithful, courageous and world changing leadership, Reverend King.