Prepare yourself for what God has in store

A couple of years before I took early retirement from the company I worked for I was selected for a new job.  For 28 years I had worked in the shop, belonged to our company union, but now I was chosen for a very unusual position.  Several things made it unusual.  One, because our company was unionized all shop jobs were given based on seniority; this job would not be based on seniority.  Two, the union was responsible for selecting the person for this job.  Third, there were only about five people working this job throughout this world-wide company.  Fourth, I would continue to be a shop employee but would work from an office and would report directly to the quality manager and the plant manager.  Finally, I was the contact person for every customer for every product our plant produced.  I would receive all complaints from every customer we had around the world, and it would be my role to find out why there was a problem and how it would be corrected.  Needless to say, it was a very interesting job.

Out of all the persons in our plant who could have been chosen, why did our union rep select me?  I believe one reason was that about five years earlier I had began working on my bachelor's degree and was nearing graduation.  To my knowledge, I was the only shop person in our plant with a college education.  I also think it was because I had been a pastor for a number of years, and our rep knew that I could work with people.  He also knew I would represent our company well and treat our customers with integrity and courtesy.

I did not enroll in college with the hopes of being qualified to get this job.  In fact, these positions did not exist in the company until about three years after I enrolled.  I was completely surprised when our union rep told me he wanted to submit my name for the position.  However, I don't think it caught God by surprise.  Scripture teaches us that he has a path prepared for each of us even before we were born.  Whether we follow that path or not depends on us and the choices we make.  In this particular situation, I had made a choice to pursue an education later in life than most that turned out to prepare me for a new position in the company I was working for.  Not surprisingly, that choice has also prepared me for several other opportunities I may not have been given otherwise.

Mark Miller has written a wonderful book, The Heart of Leadership: Becoming a Leader People Want to Follow, in which he writes, "Others control many of our opportunities, so that shouldn't be our concern.  We control our readiness."  Too many people want to be in positions of leadership but have done nothing to be ready if and when their time comes.  They are by-passed over and over and wonder why, and the reason is that others can tell they are not ready to lead.  The same thing happens for those of us in ministry leadership as well. 

I think of the time when Samuel was to select the person who would follow Saul as king of Israel.  God kept rejecting the ones Samuel chose.  God explained that while mankind often chooses people based on their outward appearance, he looks at the heart.  Only David was prepared to become the next king, and he was the one Samuel (and God) anointed.

How have you prepared yourself for whatever God has in mind for you?  I'm not talking just about educational achievements, either.  As Miller writes about in his book, a leader's character is more important than his or her skills or knowledge.  What are you doing to grow your leadership character?  Are you consistently trustworthy in your words and actions?  Do you put others first?  How well do you listen?  Do you accept responsibility for your failures, or do you blame others?  Miller discusses all of these, and more, in his book.  I've had the opportunity to do things I would never have supposed possible because I was prepared when the time came.  At the same time, I sometimes wonder how many other opportunities were never presented to me because I wasn't prepared.

You never know what God may have in mind for you.  Look for ways to develop your skillset and your leadership character so you'll be ready when God opens up a new door of opportunity for you.  I think Miller's book will help you do that.  You'll find it to be an enjoyable and a quick read.  I read it in two days because I found it so helpful.