Delegate or Deteriorate
OR: Many Hands Make Light Work
Hey buddy,
I hope you’re having a great week so far.
The Mass readings the past few weeks have been a build-up to the institution of the Eucharist from the Gospel of John.
Our priest was talking about the nature of the miracle and how Jesus, the King of the Universe, who could have laid out a magnificent feast before the crowd and showered them with luxuries, opted instead to feed them with a more humble sustenance, bread and fish.
In John’s telling, the boy brings the loaves and fish to Jesus who then multiplies them into enough food to feed thousands of people. Our lesson here is that whatever we bring to the Lord, he will multiply far beyond our capabilities. It’s not enough to be spiritual and do good things, we need to trust in Jesus and contribute intentionally to His will.
Another aspect that jumped out at me, especially after how things have been going at work and after talking to a friend of mine (He’s a GM at a fast casual restaurant and is having similar team issues) is this:
the Lord does not hand out the food himself, directly
he does not make it appear in front of each personal individually
he does not, beyond the multiplication of the food, alter the process
Jesus Christ, in what would also further support the institution of the priesthood, has the disciples physically walk around and hand out the food to people.
He delegates.
Could he have done it all Himself? Of course!
What he provides here for the disciples, however, is empowerment. He brings them into the process so that they can be more engaged in the building of the kingdom.
I am in no way comparing myself to the Son of God, but what I realized through my and my friend’s experiences is that there is often more at stake than just reaching a goal.
If you’re in charge of a team that has a KPI or metric that you need to reach, I would suggest that the real aim should be building a team that can reach that goal without you physically needing to do anything (although you may have to jump in from time to time).
Train your people, bring them into the decision-making process in an appropriate way, ask for their feedback and then genuinely consider it, encourage ownership and offer them constructive feedback. Accept that mistakes will be made and embrace the learning that can come from them.
Jesus knew that his physical time with the disciples would be finite. He knew that he would die, rise, and ascend and that he would send the Holy Spirit (the paraclete, the helper).
See, buddy, He build a team and empowered them. He took the prayers, works, joys, and sufferings that they brought to Him and He multiplied them.
Not all glorious acts are earth-shattering, over-the-top events. You can do a similar thing in your corner of Creation and unite it with God’s will, to help build the Kingdom to come.
Thanks for stopping by. It was a pleasure to see you as always.
Your Friend,
Dave