By the Rev. Dr. LeQuita Porter
December 6, 2023
Listen to this post.
Do not follow where the path may lead. Go instead where there is no path and leave a trail.
—Ralph Waldo Emerson
Exploring, experimenting, and moving into new territory is NOT for the faint of heart! Testing previously uncharted paths and navigating through unknown waters will undoubtedly broaden your perspective, but it can also try your patience and upset your comfort level at its very core! It doesn’t matter how accomplished you might be or how many challenging endeavors you’ve already tackled. Nor does it matter how experienced you might be in trying new things—blazing trails and moving in and through uncharted waters often stretches us and carries with it a kind of pressure that may cause us to question our very purpose. But it is at that level of challenge that we can birth the best we have to offer in whatever we seek to accomplish for God!
Exploring, experimenting, and moving into new territory is NOT for the faint of heart!
When my son Brian was just a small tot in third grade, my husband and I were very excited about an opportunity to enroll him in a special summer enrichment program in Cincinnati, Ohio, where our parents lived. That summer, an educational institution sponsored a program that would bring the wisdom and merit of the acclaimed private elementary school, Westside Preparatory School of Garfield Park in Chicago, Illinois, to the Cincinnati area. This school was founded in 1975 by the well-respected and celebrated educator and author, Marva Collins, and received many awards for its “every child can succeed” approach to education. In this summer program, our son learned valuable lessons about character, respect, and integrity, and he also learned about the world and our history.
In the closing exercise for this summer program, each child had the task of memorizing and persuasively presenting a poem that spoke to this whole notion of taking risks and having confidence in our abilities, especially in the face of uncertainty and unforeseen circumstances. Brian practiced and practiced his poem, and I helped him to memorize it. In the process, I memorized it, too, and we affectionately call it to this day “Where the Big Ships Are.”
“The Call of the Open Sea”
Daisy Rinehart
I’m tired of sailing my little boat,
Far inside of the harbor bar;
I want to be out where the big ships float,
Out on the deep where the great ones are!
And should my frail craft prove too slight,
for the storms that sweep those wide seas o’er;
Better go down in the stirring fight,
Than drowse to death by the sheltered shore.
This poem of inspiration reminds me of the task that is inherent in leading change and navigating through uncharted and unknown waters. It challenges me to launch into deep waters (properly safeguarded, of course), regardless of how murky or even strong the current may seem. This poem serves as my metaphor for personal living, and it has also served as a guidepost in leading organizations through change, especially when we might feel ill-equipped or uncertain about our future destination.
Tell the truth…are you risk averse? Have you ever opted for the safest route over taking a known risk?
Tell the truth…are you risk averse? Have you ever opted for taking the safest route over taking a known risk? Have you ever settled for what seemed to be a sure thing over and above a distant, not-so-certain but interesting opportunity? Have you ever chosen the path of least resistance and settled for what you deemed as good enough, rather than going after what God has already determined to be great? When we are called into service to our God, we must be steadfast in knowing that in whatever we do, in furtherance of the call of God, we are never alone. God has a way of orchestrating the events of our lives and ministries in a way in which we can produce in areas that may be totally unfamiliar to us.
If our goal is to change things from the way they are into the way God intends things to be—we are called to risk something of present value, to gain something of eternal good.
We are called to risk something of present value, to gain something of eternal good.
Leading and making change is all about taking risks! It is about not settling for the status quo or the easiest and most comfortable path…that which is known and sure. Instead leading for change calls us to launch out into the deep where you find yourself operating at your “edge” …surfing the unpredictable and ever-changing waves in order to experience the greatest thrill of your life! It is where you operate in that space where you’re not sure if you’ll win or lose, succeed or fail, be appreciated or ridiculed, stand or fall! And although taking risks can be daunting when it feels like we are facing it all alone and when we are leading others to places unfamiliar to us—remember, we walk by faith and not by sight! God is present in all that we do for the common good, and God will bring it to pass!
In leading an organization, congregation, ministry, or even a project through change—it will require that you employ all of the skills you have garnered, and it will stretch you to acquire even more skills that are necessary for the task at hand. As a leader, we have to be eternally agile, adaptable, and teachable! And leading through change requires empowerment of others to achieve, as a team, the goal at hand.
Empowering Leadership is based in a belief that goals can be achieved through leaders and participants working together, exercising power with each other, rather than leaders exercising power over others, as explored in 1 Peter 5:3 “not lording over those entrusted to you, but being examples to the flock.” Empowering Leadership involves practices that Jim Kouzes and Barry Posner lay out in The Leadership Challenge such as “Model the Way, Inspire a Shared Vision, Challenge the Process, Enable Others to Act and Encourage the Heart.” A full discussion of the Five Best Practices of Exemplary Leaders (empowering leaders) can be found in my doctoral thesis entitled “Empowerment: Equipping in the Best Practices of Empowering Leadership for Transformation.”
As we learn and grow, God refines and sharpens our tools in a way that they can be more effective to meet the demands and challenges of the present age. In other words, what I used to do I am not able to effectively do anymore because it was specifically ordained for a time, place and circumstance. In the words of my esteemed pastor, the Rev. Dr. J. Michael Sanders of Fountain Baptist Church in Summit, New Jersey, “We are called to remain open, with no limits, to new ways to tell (and curate experiences around) the old and proven story!”
Just as importantly, in our call to lead others through change is a consistent discipline of prayer, patience, positioning, and performance. As we practice these disciplines, they will defy the odds and reveal even to our very souls the hand of God working in and through us…as we open our hearts and minds to whatever God is calling us to in this season.
a consistent discipline of prayer, patience, positioning, and performance
We are often called to places we are not familiar with, places that undoubtedly hold uncertainty and the possibility of dangers seen and unseen. But a place, nevertheless, where God has called us to! Have you ever felt called to go to places where you’ve never been before? Have you ever felt the knowledge to set out into the deep waters to find out what is there after you get there? It sounds like a tremendous act of faith—one in which we begin to move forward, blazing trails and surfing in the deep “where the big ships are,” even though we do not know where we are going…but God does!
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LeQuita H. Porter, Project Director of the Isaiah Partnership
The Rev. Dr. LeQuita Porter (she/her) is a pastor, educator, and workshop leader who is currently serving as the Project Director for the Isaiah Partnership (IP), a project at Princeton Theological Seminary funded by the Lilly Endowment’s Pathways for Tomorrow initiative. The IP partners pastors and church leaders with practical, congregational, and scholarly research developing a theological framework to promote innovation and change in, with, and through congregations and in seminary pastoral leadership formation. Porter earned an MDiv from Princeton Theological Seminary in 2002 and a DMin from Acadia Divinity College of Wolfville, Nova Scotia, Canada, in 2018. Her doctoral research developed a Transformational and Empowering Leadership Project that would impact the church and community and resulted in an Empowerment Academy that continues today. She has worked as a pastor, church planter, entrepreneur, and lawyer, and in addition to her theological education, she holds a JD and MBA.
Featured image by Michael Schwarzenberger
