Leaders have the ability to be dream makers or dream killers for others. In my many years of organizational development experience in corporations and churches, I have seen leaders at their best and at their worst. Some have been imperfectly genuine, real, and truly interested in making a difference with what they do and who they interact with on a daily basis. Others have perfected a false face, proclaiming one thing, practicing another, and blindly believing that others don’t see that “the emperor doesn’t have any clothes on.”
Whereas dream makers are credible to others, dream killers are incredibly incongruent in integrity, intent, capabilities, and results. Dream makers inspire others to greatness, equip them for success, and encourage those who need enlightenment. Dream killers speak burdens, dream makers speak blessings.
By the way, God was a dream maker in a world filled with dream killers. Dream killers give up on others long before God gives up on them. Paranoia eats at them so much that they look at people to devour. King Saul, the first king of Israel, was like that. So was Diotrephes (3 John 1:9-10) who loved to be first in a community of friends. Sometimes dream killers have a way of giving up on themselves, no longer believing that they can actually change, truly discern, and be openly teachable. Most dream killers I know are insecure, puffing themselves up with their leadership status in home or work and spend most of the time trying to take the splinters out of the lives of others while the log is firmly entrenched in their own eyes.
But what I find astonishing is that God, as a dream maker, doesn’t give up on the dream killers. Let me give you examples:
- Adam and Eve killed the first dream, but God never gave up.
- Sarah laughed at Abraham’s dream, but God never gave up.
- David self-destroyed his legacy, but God never gave up.
- Peter betrayed the King of dream makers, but God never gave up.
- We all run away from the truth, but God never gives up.
I want to make a difference in the lives of others. I want them to be inspired for greatness, equipped for successful living, and encouraged when life starts knocking. My model is the triune God: Father, Son, and the Holy Spirit. God is a dream maker that never gives up! It is a good lesson for me. I hope it is one for you.
For His Kingdom, a Church for the Sake of Others
Tony Baron+