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Submission is a natural facet of life. Children submit to their parents, husbands and wives submit to each other, employees submit to the boss, and bosses must submit to the will of the customers. There are times, however, when you must not submit. Do not submit when you are being asked to do something you know is morally wrong.
My pastor has an expression to help young people understand this mystery of dealing with people who have authority over you: “Obey when unreasonable, disobey if immoral.” The idea is that ninety-nine times out of a hundred you will obey and do what you are told. When a person is in charge they may not have time to explain something fully and need you to quickly follow directions.
If I explained everything to my kids I’d go crazy. I am a leader who has lead in many situations. Explaining why is useless if the followers will not understand the reasoning behind the explanation. They must just trust me and let it go. Sometimes as a leader I am not allowed to share the reasoning behind a directive because my superior has asked me to not share that information.
You need to know that too many questions are considered rude and disrespectful. Sometimes the issue is timing, if I have time I will explain something later, sometimes I won’t. So as a follower, you should follow the directive, then if it is really bugging you, talk with your supervisor afterwards when you are alone with them. As a young adult, you need to know your place, and realize that you just need to follow directions and work hard (Romans 13:1-7).
When you are told to do something that seems illogical (not immoral but illogical), it can be very hard to follow directions. Fight the urge to mumble and complain along with the other workers. This will be hard because most likely the others will. If you feel you need to challenge the leader, you should be as tactful as possible. Be aware that you are stepping into a minefield and proceed cautiously. You need to state what you see as wrong without coming across as insulting (Daniel 3:13-18). This takes great courage, but you need to follow God on this.
If you follow blindly without running things through God’s truth, you can find yourself doing something that could do a lot of damage. Remember: Obey if unreasonable, disobey if immoral. If what you are asked to do is against the law, don’t do it. If it will hurt someone else, don’t do it. If it goes against your values, don’t do it.
If you follow blindly without running things through God’s truth, you can find yourself doing something that could do a lot of damage. Remember: Obey if unreasonable, disobey if immoral. If what you are asked to do is against the law, don’t do it. If it will hurt someone else, don’t do it. If it goes against your values, don’t do it.
You should not wait until a person is worthy of your respect before you extend them that respect. Don’t be surprised when respect is not given to you, you haven’t earned it yet. Your turn will come, and then you will need to use your authority and prestige to help others.
Great information Mike!. I love the quote from your pastor, "Obey if unreasonable, disobey if immoral' That is good advice, however morals are really in the shade of grey. This young generation struggles to know wrong from right and all the "politically correct" issues that boarder immoral.
ReplyDeleteI enjoy your work here and the guidance you give- like a lighthouse shining through the darkness. God bless!
Thank you Terrie.
ReplyDeleteYou are right, when we define morals by ourselves we get into trouble. I could have done a better job of elaborating this point.
Filtering everything through the moral filter of the gospel is always a good idea! :)
ReplyDeleteThank's for dropping by Pegg
ReplyDeleteThe leap to submit -- words that don't usually go together, but definitely catch attention. I really like your pastor's quote. Good words to pass on to my kids as we continue to work on respect, a key character issue, one some come by much more naturally than others. Thanks for another great post!
ReplyDeleteThank you Cindee,
ReplyDeleteIt takes great courage to submit to another when we doubt that person's concern for us. Christians have access to this power to submit in the face of unreasonable authority. Trusting God is so intimately tied up with submission. For me it takes a leap of faith to trust God in this manner.
Wow. This is really fantastic. :) I need to forward this to a few people in my circle. HAH! ~ahem~ Great reminders all, and some added items that I hadn't thought about before. Great information to put into play with my novels, too. :)
ReplyDeleteThank you. Working with teens and young adults, I tend to not get feedback on whether or how my information affects them. I call teaching "pushing the blob." The idea is that I know what I teach helps, I just don't get to see it. It's like I'm pushing a huge room filled blob on one door knowing somewhere it is exiting another door or window. I have to have faith there is movement and push the blob as hard as I can.
DeleteI love your heart for young people. Always good advice. From my point of view of course, I chuckled at "If I explained everything to my kids I'd go crazy." Been there, came out...uh, slightly daffy!
ReplyDeleteI just went round and round with my oldest on this, it's hard...
DeleteSubmission really isn't a halfway thing. Like the similar word "submersion," it means going ALL the way under. So I think the "leaping in" illustration fits very well. And part of full submission means accepting instruction without questioning it--with the exception, of course, of those times when one is being asked to do something that's wrong on its face.
ReplyDeleteGreat points, Mike.
Scott, your comment brought out two thoughts.
Delete1. I had never thought of submission like submersion. I need to ponder this one.
2. Isn't it interesting how the crowd mumbles and backstabs when they aren't happy with the boss. Very few have the courage to constructively criticize one on one? It seems as if the crowd gets it wrong most of the time.
Good advice. Our human tendency is to rebel at submission to any authority...man's or God's and that's what always gets us in trouble. Peace and Blessings.
ReplyDeleteYour right, a lack of submission is rebellion. It is hard to submit when we don't see the sense of the directive. The tough part is discerning right and wrong in those grey areas. I need to go to God and ask, "What is your will here?"
Deleteit's much easier to listen if you are humble too.
ReplyDeletegood post as usual
biiiig hug
Right on Jack, submission takes humility and humility takes the power of the Holy Spirit.
ReplyDeleteYour pastor is one smart guy! His saying is right on the spot
ReplyDeleteAs soon as I heard it I posted it on the wall of my classroom.
DeleteThought-provoking stuff.
ReplyDeleteYou have put some very good principles out there Mike. I will remember this in the context of my interactions with those above and below me.
So when dealing with those below us, we should look to the interests of developing and nurturing those under our responsibility all while getting the job done. The Army nailed this concept correctly with the axiom: "My Mission, My Men, Myself."
ReplyDeleteYes, sometimes it does seem like it's a leap following the suggestion's of a supervisor that seem illogical!
ReplyDeleteIllogical supervisors can be just plain illogical or they may have logic that they are not allowed to share, or no time to share it. When you see a red light that could cause your organization real problems, it is up to you to say something. The problem is that whistleblowers can be severely sanctioned. Sometimes the hard thing to do is the right thing to do.
DeleteI loved what your pastor said, Mike. Sometimes, people in authority think nobody should ever question them. If it goes against our beliefs, though, we have every right to do so.
ReplyDeleteGreat post.
Deborah,
ReplyDeleteTeens and Young Adults tend to under-comply and adults tend to over-comply. The reality is that we need to be ever mindful of God and what He is leading us to do in any and every situation. There is no stark formula with the leading of the Holy Spirit.
Great thoughts in the post and comments. A lot of good information for consideration. As one with God-given leadership tendencies, I sometimes question when I shouldn't. Your post is an excellent reminder that even leaders - perhaps I should say "especially leaders" - have to know when and to whom they should submit.
ReplyDeleteTraci,
ReplyDeleteAll leaders must submit to someone. Even a dictator who goes too far will find themselves running from an angry mob. When we cease to listen to our followers then we disrespect them and lose the sense of buy-in required for the successful implementation of any plan.
At some point the leader has to realize that they will have to make the call to implement something that is unpopular. This is the burden of being a leader, it can often get very lonely at the top.