Leadership Thought: Determination

Dear Friends,

As a former coach and teacher, one of the qualities that I have always admired in both my players and students was determination. Determination is a key ingredient in the life of anyone who wants to be successful, but it is especially important for the one who desires to be a leader.

Determination  is the ability to hang in there for just one more round, and the willingness to get up just one more time than you get knocked down.

One of my favorite stories involves a ‘want to be’ journalist who lived in a small town where nothing much happened of noteworthy significance. Then one day the dam upstream broke, and the town was flooded. He got into  a rowboat and headed out to look for a story. He found a lady sitting on her rooftop. He tied up his boat to the house and told her he was looking for a noteworthy story. Together they both watched as various items floated on by.

He says, “Now there’s a story.” “No,” she would say, “that’s not a story.” Finally, a hat floats on by and then does a 180-degree turn, goes upstream a way and then does another 180-degree turn.

The fellow says, “Now there’s a story.”

“Oh no, that’s not a story,” she says. "That’s my husband, Hayford. He said he was going to mow the lawn come hell or high water.”

Now that’s the kind of determination I love to see in people. They just won’t quit regardless of the situation or circumstances.

While Hayford was probably never the smartest guy in his class, he did possess the kind of determination that might mark him for success. He possessed the quality of determination as seen in the life of the Civil War leader General Ulysses who once said, “One of my intentions in life has always been that when I started to go anywhere or do anything, I would never turn back or stop until the thing intended was accomplished.”

The Apostle Paul was like that. In 2 Corinthians 4:8-10 (Living Bible) he writes, “We are pressed on every side by trouble but not crushed and broken. We are perplexed because we can’t know why things happen as they do, but we don’t give up and quit. We are hunted down, but God never abandons us. We get knocked down, but we get up again and keep going.”

I don’t know what challenges you face or what obstacles you must overcome, or how great is  your temptation to pick up, pack up, and pull out, but don’t do it. Hang in there for just one more day, for your rainbow may be just beyond the darkness of those storm clouds. 

The great Old Testament leader Nehemiah may have faced the same temptation as he gazed upon the rubble of those broken-down walls surrounding Jerusalem.  Despite the enormous task of rebuilding those fallen walls, he picked up a trowel and began the restoration process. But mid-way through the project, the hearts of the builders grew discouraged as they looked at all the rubble, and they began questioning whether they had the strength to complete the task. And with the critics quick to plant the seeds of discouragement, and others threatening the lives of the builders, Nehemiah did what every great spiritual leader does: “He redirects the builders’ focus away from the impossible toward the greatness of God.” Spiritual Leadership, Oswald Sanders, p. 201.

Undeterred, Nehemiah presses forward despite the obstacles, and in so doing he encourages his people by his example of determination. “Don’t be afraid of them”, he says. “Remember the Lord who is great and awesome, and fight for your brothers, you sons and your daughters, your wives and your homes” (Nehemiah 4:14).

Nehemiah knew that the difference between the impossible and the possible lies in a man’s determination, and he wasn’t about to quit. 

When you and I are faced with what seems to be overwhelming odds, we need to do the two things Nehemiah did.

We need to “Remember the Lord” and  “Resist Retreat,” knowing that “The Lord who is great and awesome (will) fight for (you).”

May you and I be encouraged as we read the words of Habakkuk who writes, “But these things won’t happen right away. Slowly, steadily, surely the time approaches when the vision will be fulfilled. If it seems slow wait patiently, for it will surely take place. It will not be delayed” (Habakkuk 2:3).

Enjoy a wonderful weekend, stay healthy, and don’t forget to worship the God who reigns supreme and whose power far exceeds the strength of any Coronavirus.

Yours in Faith and friendship,
Tom