Why the next generation should prepare for take-over
Children sing during the first school day's prayer at a primary school in Hungary. Photo canva.com, AFP, Atilla Kisbenedek
Christian Life
We were raised in the era of the microwave. We don’t like waiting and expect immediate results in life, work, church. But Christian leaders aren’t born that way. They are raised.
What if your pastor or the principal at school gets old and retires? The next generation must take over. But where do you find Christian leaders?
Headhunting can go very fast. You put up a job vacancy and wait until the applicants apply. However, sometimes we tend to forget that these applicants must be leaders and leaders are not born but raised.
The younger generation believes that when they get the “position”, they will learn how to lead. However, that is a myth. Leaders do not “grow” overnight. Instead, they are raised. And that always takes time, effort and faith.
Raising leaders requires patience, and it brings risk of failure. Besides, raising the next leader is a two-way process; both the mentor and the mentee walk the road together.
Command
Take Joshua from the Bible. He became the great leader of the Canaan Conquest when the people of Israel journeyed to the Promised Land. However, he did not get into that position without any experience. Joshua was Moses’ assistant. He followed Moses closely, learned from him, and supported him by faithfully doing his work (Ex. 24:13). Joshua became his right-hand man and led battles under Moses’s command. During the fight with Amalek, Joshua commanded Israel’s army (Ex. 17:9-13).
Future generals are made in trenches.
Moreover, Joshua didn’t only acquire Moses’s skills, but he also carried his heart within him. When you shape someone’s growth from within, they take over your heart, your vision, your values. They don’t just “do the job”, but they carry the mission. A true leader multiplicates himself in his followers and disciples.
Serving leadership
In addition, Joshua stayed behind even after Moses finished speaking with God face-to-face. That’s significant because it shows that Joshua was hungry for God’s presence too (Ex. 33:11). Later, Joshua became one of the twelve spies. Yet, he was different from others because of his faith (Num. 14). That made him stand out as a future leader.
Finally, Joshua was commissioned to succeed Moses (Deut. 31). Joshua’s years of humble service made him the natural and God-chosen successor. After decades of formation, he was ready to become the next leader.
Joshua didn’t try to be Moses. He served, he listened, he watched, and he learned. And when the time came, he led with strength and courage. It’s a classic picture of serving leadership in the Bible. Future generals are made in trenches.
Manual work
Raising leaders takes time. It’s a slow and messy process, but it has powerful effects in the long run. When you raise leaders from the heart, you’re not just building a team. Instead, you are building legacy, you are building God’s Kingdom.
In unstable times, it is always a risk to invest in the kid or teenager next to you. We cannot predict the future nor control the present. However, the best choice we have today is to raise the next generation of leaders and do the “manual” work within the hearts and minds of the younger generation for God’s glory.
“So that the next generation would know the Lord’s teaching, even the children yet to be born, and they in turn would tell their children” (Ps. 78:6).
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