Leadership And Prayer

LEADERSHIP AND PRAYER

Henry and Richard Blackaby in Spiritual Leadership in chapter seven "The Leader's Influence" stress that leaders influence others through prayer. They give six reasons why leaders should pray. The fourth reason is "God is all-powerful. . . .God can do far more than even the most resourceful leaders. God's promise is open ended: 'Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock; and it will be opened to you' (Matt. 7:7 NIV). If someone is angry with a leader, reconciliation might look impossible. But God can melt the hardest leader. Leaders can be stymied when people refuse to cooperate. But God can change people's attitudes overnight. There are times when even the most powerful CEOs in the world can do nothing but retreat to the privacy of their executive office, pray, and let God work."

The Blackabys next gave this example. "When Nancy Reagan was diagnosed with a malignant tumor and had to undergo a mastectomy, her husband, though he was President Ronald Reagan, realized that even being the most powerful executive in the world had its limits. Commenting on that day, Reagan confessed: 'For all the powers of the president of the United States, there were some situations that made me feel helpless and very humble. All I could do was pray---and I did a lot of praying for Nancy during the next few weeks'"

(Spiritual Leadership, pages 149-150).