Author Unknown
"As surely as you live, I will not do such a thing!" (2 Samuel 11: 11)
On this night Uriah was a better man drunk than King David was sober. David had impregnated Uriah's wife, Batsheba, while Uriah was away, serving in the war. David brought him home to cover his adultery. If he could get him to sleep with his wife, no one would suspect anything unusual.
But Uriah would not sleep with his wife, even after David got him drunk. His thoughts were on the men whom he commanded on the battlefield. Uriah would not grant himself privileges his men could not also enjoy, even with the king's permission.
Uriah's strict adherence to his principles cost him his life. When King David purposely put him in harm's way, not even the mighty Uriah could single-handedly hold off the enemy forever. Rightly so, he is remembered as one of the great men of Israel (2 Samuel 23:39).
True leaders have personal integrity and commitment to the shared cause. Leading others means leading by example. You can't tell someone else what they should do for a business or a ministry if you are not willing to operate by the same standards.
Leaders quickly learn that there are many times when it is appropriate to postpone pleasure and comfort for the greater cause. Are you consistent in your moral principles even when no one is watching, willing to forgo pleasure to do what would please God?
Talk is cheap; example is everything.
"As surely as you live, I will not do such a thing!" (2 Samuel 11: 11)
On this night Uriah was a better man drunk than King David was sober. David had impregnated Uriah's wife, Batsheba, while Uriah was away, serving in the war. David brought him home to cover his adultery. If he could get him to sleep with his wife, no one would suspect anything unusual.
But Uriah would not sleep with his wife, even after David got him drunk. His thoughts were on the men whom he commanded on the battlefield. Uriah would not grant himself privileges his men could not also enjoy, even with the king's permission.
Uriah's strict adherence to his principles cost him his life. When King David purposely put him in harm's way, not even the mighty Uriah could single-handedly hold off the enemy forever. Rightly so, he is remembered as one of the great men of Israel (2 Samuel 23:39).
True leaders have personal integrity and commitment to the shared cause. Leading others means leading by example. You can't tell someone else what they should do for a business or a ministry if you are not willing to operate by the same standards.
Leaders quickly learn that there are many times when it is appropriate to postpone pleasure and comfort for the greater cause. Are you consistent in your moral principles even when no one is watching, willing to forgo pleasure to do what would please God?
Talk is cheap; example is everything.
