AND HE said unto.them, Ye know how that it is an unlawful thing for a man that is a Jew to keep compa­ny, or come unto one of another nation; but God hath showed me that I should not call any man common or unclean-  Acts 10:28

Peter was so rigid in his understanding of leadership that he restricted his min­istry to a small group of Jews. But God had a bigger plan for him. God wanted him to reach many other people. Do not be myopic. There are more people dif­ferent from you than there are who are like you.

A leader is someone who is trying to get people to follow him. It seems to me that leaders sometimes for-, get that they are supposed to have followers. If you are a leader, you must make sure that you have people following you. Otherwise, you are not a leader. You must realize that your "type" of person is a limited species upon this earth. You are not likely to find many people in your age group, with your background, colour or accent. 

If you want' to succeed as a leader you must realize very early that you need to be able to relate with all kinds of people, specially people who are lot like you. To the weak you must become weak, and to the strong you must become strong.

To the weak became I is weak, that I might gain he weak: I am made all things to all men, that I might by all means save some. And this I do for the gospel's sake, that I might be partaker thereof with you- 1 Corinthians 9:22,23

My father is from and my mother is from Switzerland. I was born in England but I have lived in Ghana all my life. My colour is neither black nor white.

When I was growing up, most of my friends had European parents or a mix­ture of white and black. This was because my mother is Swiss and therefore had many European Mends.

My father was an unusu­al man. He loved classical music and played bridge and owned racehorses. ‘ Because of this, many of his friends were not Ghanaian.

Many of his friends were British, Indians or Lebanese. As I grew up, my hobbies were table tennis, squash, horse riding and swimming. I can assure you that there are very few people in the world who have the same background that I have. Not because I am special, but because this is an unusual combination of culture and circumstances.

If I have been raised up to'be a leader, you tell me how many people will have a similar background to what I have just snared with you? .Not many! To become a leader of many people I must relate with people who do not have my back­ground.

Many of my friends have had a very different background. But I relate with them naturally and easily.

If you are a leader with a poor educational back­ground, rise up and relate with all kinds of people, including rich and educated people. You will definitely need some rich people to achieve what you are doing. Do not drive away all the educated people because of your lack of education. You can educate yourself!

 

Do not be Surprised by Ingratitude!

Jesus answered them, Many good works have I showed you from my Father; for which of those works do ye stone me? M

John 10:32 Jesus experi­enced ingratitude. He was killed by an ungrateful mob of Jews. Every leader comes face to face with ingratitude. People are not grateful for the services you render them.

Many years ago, I found out that people whom I loved could turn around and hurt me. Men that I had trained did not remember that they had been helped. However, I have continued to believe in people and to trust people. I have no choice. If I begin to retaliate because of ingrati­tude, I will lose my place in the ministry.

After ministering for more than twenty years, I have seen pastors being run out of town. Jesus was mur­dered for His good deeds. He was exchanged for an armed robber. But he never responded to the evil spirit of ingratitude. Do not look to people for gratitude. A leader looks to God for rewards.

Knowing that whatsoev­er good thing any man doetn, the same shall he receive of the Lord, whether he be bond or free.

Ephesians 6:8

Tne Scripture teaches that your rewards depend on God and not on the peo­ple you helped. God is the only one who can reward you adequately. - Do not expect much from people, .expect your rewards from God.

Do’ you consider your­self to be a leader? Ask your­self, "What type of person am I? What type of person am I not? Make a decision to relate with every type of person and it will be a bless­ing to you. theaol@ymail.com