Being Honest with your Leaders

(Prov 16:13 NLT) The king is pleased with words from righteous lips; he loves those who speak honestly.

In our last verse Solomon taught us that kings would be wise to acknowledge the righteousness of the God that placed them on the throne in the first place. I like how Solomon is teaching us about kings, because he was a sitting king when he wrote this

It would be different if Jeremiah, Isaiah, Ezekiel, or any one of the other prophets attempted teach us about kings. If a prophet gave us the Word of God about what a king should do and how he should operate his throne, it would come from a prophetic perspective, but not a practical one. Solomon could give other kings (and all leaders for that matter) practical and sound divine counsel, because He had years of experience as a national leader. Furthermore, the Bible calls him the wisest man of his time. So, not only did he have the practical experience of leading on the national level, but he also had the divine insight of God, which was supernaturally imparted into him. This was a powerful combination.

So that’s the backdrop for our text for this morning. After understanding that we are learning from an exceptional leader and a divinely appointed author, we find out that kings are pleased with the words that come from righteous lips. In other words, kings enjoy those who speak the truth to them. It is unfortunate, but many of our leaders today are surrounded by “yes men” and “yes women.” These are people that only speak the things that they know their leaders want to hear. But good leaders foster an environment where honesty is encouraged.

The Message Bible paraphrase of this verse reads: “Good leaders cultivate honest speech; they love advisors who tell them the truth.” I have had many such leaders in my life group. I often have to point out flaws in some of my leader’s plans. Of course, I do it in a tactful way, but my leaders have always appreciated the fact that I cared enough about them, to speak the truth and to help bring a course correction, if I saw that they were about to make a mistake. I believe it is part of my job to keep my leaders on track, but I could not be able to do that if I were not willing or able to speak with candor or if they were not willing to receive.

No one likes the person who always speaks flattering/empty words. Good leaders surround themselves with good people that provide the right counsel, at the right time, in the right way, for the right decisions to be made.

None of us is as smart as all of us and when we surround ourselves with confident, competent, and capable people, we will receive the information we need, in order to make informed decisions.

So what does this mean to you today? It means different things to different people:

1. To the leader it means that you should surround yourself with the right people and then welcome honest feedback, insight, and input.

2. To the led is means that you should have the courage, candor, and tact to tell your leader what you know they need to hear, not just what you think they want to hear.

Father, I thank You for making me a Godly leader. I welcome honest feedback, and even correction. I know that I am not perfect and I don’t know it all. Therefore, I surround myself with bright, confident, courageous, and tactful leaders, that will tell me what I need to hear, when I need to hear it; so that I can make informed decisions daily. I love the truth and I welcome it with all my heart. I maximize my purpose and potential by giving, receiving, and responding to honest feedback. At the end of the day I just want to grow into the person You desire for me to be! Help me to receive what I need to hear, with an open heart. In Jesus’ name. Amen!