At his blog, “The Sometimes Preacher,” Andy Holt put up a chart he found in a book about house churches that shows the differences between leaders who try to hoard power and leaders who share power. The former is called exploiting; the latter is called empowering.
The chart is simultaneously discouraging and challenging. It’s discouraging to discover how on most of the lines exploiting looks a lot easier than empowering people. Too often I quite comfortably operate out of the left column. But it’s challenging to see what empowering others looks like. I’d even say this chart is encouraging in how it is already helping me come up with some practical ideas for moving more to the right column.
As Andy suggests: “Take some time, look at the list, and see where you fall. Are you an Empowerer or Exploiter?”
|
How to Exploit Others |
How to Empower Others |
| Make them believe in you. | Believe in them. |
| Give them functions. | Allow them to function. |
| Require submission. | Delegate authority. |
| Make them part of your plans. | Further God’s plan in them. |
| Use them. | Invest in them. |
| Love the task more than the people. | Love them, and say so. |
| Take what they have to give. | Give them what you have. |
| Preach at them. | Discuss with them. |
| Require appointments. | Freely spend time with them. |
| Make them wait until you retire. | Give them the keys now. |
| Accept their praise of you. | Praise them. |
| Let them serve you. | Serve them. |
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4th Point 