Richard L. Evans
The Spoken Word
28 April 1946
DEMANDS UPON LEADERSHIP
It is often apparent that we expect much more of other men than we expect of ourselves. Especially do we expect more of those who lead us. Indeed, those who accept the privileges and the obligations of leadership learn that they must be prepared to have their lives and their actions scrutinized and to justify the confidence imposed in them.
But we must not expect the impossible — not even of our leaders. We must not expect them to produce a miracle for every difficulty. We cannot expect them to find answers that aren’t there or solutions that are contrary to law and reason.
For example, having long since proved that we cannot live beyond our private means without meeting trouble, we cannot reasonably expect anyone to find for us a way to live beyond our public means without meeting trouble. Having proved in our personal affairs that we cannot produce something for nothing, we cannot reasonably expect anyone, no matter who he is or what position he holds, to produce something for nothing. We may desire to have more and more, and we may hope to get it for less and less, but everything comes from somewhere, and if we demand more, we must expect to give more.
And we must learn also that title or position, either public or private, does not make supermen of ordinary men. Indeed, in mortality there are no supermen. There are some very wise and able men. And throughout the generations there are those who are endowed and inspired with vision and understanding beyond their time. But there is none who is not subject to irrevocable laws and principles, and there is none who at will can set aside the sequence of cause and effect, whether it be in economic or social or moral or spiritual matters.
And among the requisites to good leadership, therefore, whether public or private, is wise acceptance and administration of law and of principle, and not fruitless and disastrous attempts to set them aside. This is a world of law, and what we sometimes think is the magic touch, is in fact only deception.
But seeming miracles do come with common sense, and integrity, and hard work — and we have a right to expect no less than this in our leaders — and they have a right to expect no less than this in us.
A very timely message.
While it feels this was contextually meant to be applied to secular government, I can’t help but see the tension it sets up in religious government. We tend to ascribe the attributes of God to his church. “For with God nothing is impossible.” So goes our thinking regarding the church that is true and living and with which God is well pleased.
On the one hand, we want to expect God to be at the will and we want his miracles to be present in the church and emitting from it. We want the Lord to produce solutions to our problems via his church.
On the other hand, we see human error. We see bias and error and misunderstanding. We see mortal humanity muddling through.
Anyway, thanks for the contemplation this morning.