Becoming a leader
In his text, Hindson (2011) illustrates leadership through the life of Moses, a great leader for the Israelites. The section analyses what it takes to become a leader. Hindson (2011) suggests that leaders need to be humble, have courage, and be willing to sacrifice for the greater good. The author adds that leaders should positively inspire and support others to follow their successful traits. Furthermore, leadership is not about perfection but obedience to God and the courage to step out in faith (Thompson, 2020). A quote to support this argument is that “A leader is not someone who goes first, but someone who goes first and then draws others along with him” (Hindson, 2011). Thus, a leader is usually positively transformative to others and ensures to do so with others around them.
No More Excuses
The sixth chapter analyses how people should not make excuses for not following God. According to Hindson (2011), everyone has the same opportunity to follow God, regardless of their past or backgrounds. Moreover, people must take responsibility for their actions and not blame others for their choices. Hindson (2011) uses Joshua’s life and how he overcame excuses and trusted God to lead the Israelites into the Promised Land to support his claims on excuses. People have excuses to justify their fear and inaction but can have the faith to step out and trust God instead. One quote from this chapter is, “it is not enough to know what is right; we must also do what is right” (Hindson, 2011). Many people understand the correct actions but make up many cases to justify their poor decisions.
Facing Your Weaknesses
In this chapter, the author discusses how facing your weaknesses can be a strength. He uses the example of Moses, who had a speech impediment but could still lead the Israelites out of slavery. The author also discusses how David defeated Goliath despite being a shepherd boy (Thompson, 2020). The chapter concludes by indicating that God can use anyone to do great things, no matter their weaknesses. Hindson (2011) states, “God can use anyone, no matter their weaknesses, to do great things.” To show that God could accomplish His plans through anyone, He constantly used the most despised or unlikely person that normal human reasoning could not have chosen. This depicted humbleness in the face of imperfection to accomplish amazing things.
Reaching out to Others
The chapter discusses how important it is to reach out to others. Hindson (2011) uses the example of Ruth, a Moabite woman who reached out to her Jewish mother-in-law, Naomi. He also discusses how Esther reached out to her people, the Jews when they were persecuted (Thompson, 2020). The author concludes by saying that people should all reach out to others, no matter who they are, to show them God’s love. “Ruth’s act of love and kindness toward Naomi was an act of obedience to God’s command to ‘love your neighbor as yourself” (Hindson, 2011). This quote shows how Ruth’s act of reaching out to her mother-in-law was an act of obedience to God and love for others.
References
Hindson, E. E. (2011). Courageous Faith: Life Lessons from Old Testament Heroes. AMG Publishers. Web.
Thompson, G. B. (2020). Welcome to the One Great Story!: Tracing the Biblical Narrative from Genesis to Revelation. Wipf and Stock Publishers. Web.