Influence.
Let your roots grow down into him, and let your lives be built on him. Then your faith will grow strong in the truth you were taught, and you will overflow with thankfulness.
~ Col 2:7 NLT
rooted, 6.
Today’s post is a timely excerpt from Jerome’s book Gravitas: The Monastic Rhythms of Healthy Leadership (Colorado Springs, CO: NavPress, 2020), 9-10.
How far is your influence meant to extend? Honestly, most of us don’t know—and that’s probably by design. If it were further than seems comfortable, we would likely be intimidated… and if it were smaller than our ambition, we might well chafe at the constraints. Most of us simply have to live into our destiny one day at a time.
The reason it’s valuable to consider our reach lies in the classic illustration of the branches on a tree. Perhaps you know that the network of roots underneath a tree extend horizontally in roughly the same dimension as the branches. So, a tree with a twenty-five-foot height and a twenty-foot branch radius, like the weeping cherry in my backyard, would have a tangle of roots with approximately the same spread beneath the surface. And the towering willow oak just outside our fence probably has root tendrils that extend almost sixty feet in diameter! Talk about biological gravitas.
The influence of leaders can easily outgrow their character. It happens every day. God-engineered giftedness does what it was designed to do: It grows. Branches spread and influence rises. But what was meant for the glory of God is often undermined by a stunted root system, so we now have a leadership landscape virtually littered with capsized “trees,” men and women of great potential and calling whose spiritual formation in God was cut short in their rush to do great things for God. And maybe even somewhat for themselves.
So how far does your leadership influence extend? How many children rely on your spiritual foundation? How many employees or direct reports? How many in your small group? How many represented by the nonprofit board you’re on? How many read your books or blog, listen to your podcast, or are on your payroll? Frankly, we have little idea of just how much influence we already carry and are usually naively eager for more.
Now think about the roots underneath your tree. How strong are they, and how deep do they run? Can they sustain a class-7 gale with ease, or do they tremble in a summer thunderstorm? Before you grasp after that next promotion or instigate strategic planning for a new satellite office, it might be time to do some root work.
growing your soul
What might “root work” look like in your soul today? Journal some ideas…
serving our world
How might you cultivate a root-friendly environment in your sphere of influence?
takeaway
Go Deep.