My (In)famous Church Camp Director’s Cap
For a number of years, I served as the director of one session of a church camp in southeast Missouri (Bootheel Youth Camp). Every once in a while, I’d break out my “official church camp director’s cap.” It was a different color than the one in the picture above, but it contained the same message (“I’m their leader; which way did they go?”).
I usually didn’t wear the cap long. I just wore it long enough to get about all of the laughs I thought I could get and then “retired it” until another session of camp. I was very happy when it came time for the “retirement” because I do not like wearing caps or hats of any kind.
I think that something else needs to be retired. I think that a certain “leadership style” needs to be retired immediately (if not sooner) and permanently. That “leadership style” is, sadly, exemplified by my old cap. We see that in almost every walk of life.
I am told that modern-day job interviews have been “turned on their heads” from the kind of interviews that used to take place. It used to be the case that the prospective employer would take the lead. The person looking to be employed would be informed about such things as job descriptions, expectations, salary, etc. From what I’ve gathered from some recent conversations I’ve had and some material I’ve read, it now seems to be that the person who is looking for a job is dictating the terms of employment.
In the business world, it also seems that a premium is placed on providing a comfortable and maybe even an entertaining work environment rather than focussing on that old, outdated concept of productivity. “Leaders” spend a lot of time making sure that employees are happy and fulfilled. This time could be spent on making the product better, making the company more efficient, etc.
It seems sad to me that this kind of thinking has found its way into almost every conceivable walk of life. When was it, for example, that local boards of education stopped determining the curricula, the agendas, the faculty, etc. of local school systems? When were those responsibilities turned over to the students (and some irate parents)?
When did religious leaders stop focusing on the concept of the Lordship of Jesus Christ? That entire concept means that His followers are to live according to His teachings, expectations, and example. Since that is too unpopular for so many today, “leaders” in local congregations and in some religious circles worldwide are, in fact, following the whims and wishes of people who “want it their way.”
I think that it probably goes without saying that what passes for “leadership” in government is actually following what the poll numbers indicate that people want. This seems to be true regardless of party affiliation or level of government.
I guess that I could go on and on, but I will stop with one more observation. That observation is at least my idea of what might be one of the real roots of this entire situation. Without going into a lot of detail and without referring to a number of scriptures (which I can provide for anybody who is interested), I will suggest that we might take a look at our homes.
God has given parents, specifically the fathers, the responsibility of rearing children to know Him and His will. He has also given husbands the responsibility of guiding and directing the family. That’s called leadership. It is not called dictatorship. It is also not called abandonment of responsibility.
So – before I start griping about the government, the elders where I worship, the school system, the general state of disarray which seems to increasingly characterize our society, maybe I need to take a serious look at myself. I may find that I shouldn’t be joking about leadership.
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AUTHOR: Jim Faughn
