Leading during Hard Times

We are in the midst on an ongoing and seeming unrelenting world wide economic recession. Despite the horrific suffering world wide  that this economic down turn has caused, there is another crisis being revealed with much graver implications. The vanishing of  our national prosperity has revealed a severe lack of leadership in every aspect of human government.
  Much of our inability to overcome the downturn in stock markets, banking, housing and other main economic indicators has resulted from the lack of moral fiber in our elected leaders worldwide. The price of true leadership never varies during crisis:

1. Courage
2. Frank and honest communication
3. Long term planning
4. Willingness to sacrifice for the common good
5. Humility
6. Moral commitment to absolute truth

  Since the corruption and hubris of Wall Street and the global markets came crashing down in October of 2008 we have seen very few willing to 'pay the price' to lead us out of this recession. We have seen massive borrowing and printing of money, but no real honest and bold leadership. The facts are that many individuals, families, local, state and national governments are in deep and unsustainable debt. We simply have to change the way we live to bring real and lasting change to our economic worlds. Who will speak the truth into the midst of this harsh reality?

  Not only have our leaders failed us, but our media who have become a part of the consumer propaganda machine, don't dare speak the truth either. We are told to buy more.... get the latest gadget and keep riding on the Ferris wheel of consumer fantasy.

 The fact is we are in a recession for some very good reasons. We have created an entire economy built on greed, deception and short term gratification. We are wanting our pleasure fulfilled right now regardless of cost and consequences. We have met the enemy.... and he is us! We criticise our leaders and fail to remember we elected them! We elected them largely because we would rather believe the lies of short term and grossly ineffective 'solutions'. 

  There really is no easy way out of the global economic crisis. There really is no gain without pain. The solution will come when we accept the real moral truths revealed to us as a society by God himself. When we return in humility to those truths we will find the prosperity we have squandered over this last generation. Prosperity and blessing are not accidental.... they are born of a commitment to truth lived in community under God.

Jim