Leader, check your Motives

“The sacrifice of an evil person is detestable, especially when it is offered with wrong motives.” (Proverbs 21:27)

Everyone who is in the position of leadership should ask this question: What is my motive? (If you don’t know if you’re a leader, click HERE to find out) It’s a crucial question that we need to ask ourselves before we’re doing anything for a worthy cause. For example, when someone donates a large sum of money to charity they might do it - to earn a tax break, win political favor or is it because of a deep compassion for the poor.

As a leader, you need to examine your motives. Is it to gain popularity or to serve others? Is it motivated by personal interest or motivated by love? While it is impossible to have a genuine motive to serve God without influence by our own human motivations, it is important for us to identify this deadly cancer early before it produce selfish, sinful and self-centered leadership.

When I’m preparing to write notes in my blog, I always asking myself this question; Richard, what is your motive? Whenever I get the feeling that I want to impress others or write just for the sake of writing with no purpose at all, I would stop and examine my heart. Remember this leader, sometime we might be tempted to find excuse for doing almost anything for the cause, but God looks behind the excuses to the motives of the heart.

To lead well and gain the respect of those you lead, check your motives before you act. King David praised the Lord, saying,

‘I know my God that you examine our hearts and rejoice when you find integrity there. You know I have done all this with good motives.’ (1 Chronicles 29:17)