Trusting the winds of God in leadership

My family encountered wind turbines for the first time during a road trip to Chicago. My daughter was particularly intrigued, because she had never seen one.

“What’s that, Dad?” she inquired.

“That’s a windmill,” I replied. “The wind turns it, and it generates electricity.”

Her innocent response sparked a revelation.

“Those windmills aren’t turning,” she said. “I guess they don’t work without wind.”

She was right. Windmills cannot do what they were created to do without the presence of wind. Her question and our conversation interested me, prompting some additional research — OK, I Googled: “Why don’t windmills turn?”

The diagnosis of the idle windmill was correct but not comprehensive. Windmills are also designed to still in excessive wind conditions, in order to maintain their mechanical integrity, preventing damage. For similar reasons, roadways are designed to include curves under certain conditions, prompting drivers to slow down and navigate more cautiously, preventing accidents.

Like the windmills, we cannot fulfill God’s purpose for our lives without the presence and aid of the winds of God. We need to pay attention to them.

Each day, God embraces us with gentle reminders of God’s presence. Through an insightful conversation, a sagacious suggestion, a song, a social media post, we’ve all experienced the refreshing reminder that God is with us.

The cracks and crevices of the pericope in Acts 27 are also reminders. Neatly nestled between the lines, we find evidence of God’s presence in the winds. The apostle Paul has again been arrested for spreading the gospel of Jesus. He and others set sail for Rome, crossing the Mediterranean Sea.

Along the way, the winds vary, sometimes slowing their journey, other times aiding it. The travelers learn that winds provide both resistance and assistance, pushing at times toward setbacks, at times toward advances.

One responsibility of leaders is to be anemometers within their organizations. We must discern the speed at which the winds are moving and consider the ability of those we lead to handle them. When we find the winds blowing against us in leadership, we must slow down and recalibrate. Those blissful moments when the winds gust in our favor are the times to go full speed ahead.

As leaders, we must also always keep our ears attuned to the sound of beneficial wisdom. Paul cautioned those aboard the ship to reconsider sailing in view of the impending storm season. His advice was ignored, and the ship was soon caught in a violent windstorm.

This begs the question: How many storms could we have avoided if we just followed the wisdom God allowed to be shared with us? Leaders routinely must decide whether to move forward or heed valuable advice.

In my first year as executive pastor of Fellowship Chicago, I attempted to navigate the turbulent waters on my own. While I was charting my course, and getting tossed on the seas of my pride, I was graciously rerouted by a sage with the institutional wisdom that I did not possess.

My grandmother Mary Lee Essex would wisely advise my cousins and me when we were children to sit silently and pray as thunderstorms passed over her tin-roof house. Her edict taught us that it is not the time to panic when faced with a rising storm but the time to pray and focus our attention back on the God who controls the winds.

Such refocus and awareness can be beneficial; the winds that prompt them are necessary. Perhaps the storms of a low quarter, the tension within your board, the reductions in your workforce will bring a renewed attention to your aims and purpose.

We know from Acts that Paul and the other passengers are tossed about on the seas for 15 days, struggling to keep the ship from being destroyed. They throw cargo and valuable resources overboard to save the vessel. Despite their efforts, the ship runs aground on a reef and breaks apart in the pounding waves. The inevitable occurs.

How many days have we allowed ourselves to experience discomfort, fearing the inevitable? How many resources have we squandered to save what was destined to fail? The wreck on the reef ultimately relieved the passengers of the turmoil caused by the tempestuous seas.

Throughout your leadership, face the facts and understand the inevitable. Perhaps a direct report is good for morale but has been a consistently poor performer. Or a process you championed is not working, but you are seemingly too invested to pull back. It could be time to allow for failure. Reset. Try again. As a leader, you must be resolute in making the decision to cut your losses. You will find that you will be relieved versus repulsed.

While devastating, the wreck on the reef should be appreciated. It was the crucial turning point in the journey. The wreckage itself — pieces of the broken ship — carried the passengers safely to the shore, bringing them to dry ground. When, not if, you experience a wreck in your leadership because of a failed project, erroneous instruction or poor judgment, find the confidence that you will arrive safely on the shore.

Trust the winds of God in your leadership. They provide resistance and assistance, refocus and awareness, relief and aid. The winds have led you this far. Let them lead you farther.