In Joshua chapter 2 we read a story of intrigue.
Two spies are sent to the city of Jericho. They decide to spend the night at a prostitute’s home. I have no idea why that seemed like a good idea, but there they were.
According to the story, she was hiding the spies. When somebody tattled about the spies to the king, he sent orders to Rahab to turn them over.
Rahab lied to the king:
“Yes, the men were here earlier, but I didn’t know where they were from. They left the town at dusk, as the gates were about to close. I don’t know where they went. If you hurry, you can probably catch up with them.”
Joshua 2:4-5 NLT
After the king’s men ran off on a wild goose chase, Rahab tried to strike a deal with the spies.
Can you imagine listening in on THAT discussion between the two spies?
Spy One, “Well, she DID hide us from the king. Maybe we can trust her to keep helping us?”
Spy Two, “Are you kidding? We’ve only known her a couple hours. No, not “known her” like that. We know she’s a prostitute. Apparently, she’ll blatantly lie to save her own skin. And she’s the sworn enemy of Israel just like everyone else in this town. And you want to trust HER? How are you even going to explain this to your wife?”
Spy One, “My wife is gonna kill me. But do you have a BETTER idea?”
As the story goes they made a deal with the lady. On behalf of all Israel. Without necessarily having the authority to do so.
That agreement required the spies and the lady to trust each other. But it also required both of them to trust that Joshua—the leader of Israel—would honor the terms of the agreement they made as well.
It’s actually an incredible story of the unlikeliest of people trusting each other.
How is it possible to trust someone that you have no history with? You weigh your options and gamble. You take a risk. And you wait to see what happens.
It can be a tough thing to do because it’s a crapshoot. You’re wading into uncertain waters with no indication of how it will play out.
Trusting somebody you DO have history with can be a mess as well.
How do you measure trustworthiness? Consistency over time.
Consistency over time is also the best measurement of capable leadership performance.
Trustworthiness and capable leadership go hand in hand:
“Select capable men from all the people—men who fear God, trustworthy men who hate dishonest gain—and appoint them as officials over thousands, hundreds, fifties and tens.” Moses listened to his father-in-law and did everything he said. He chose capable men from all Israel and made them leaders of the people, officials over thousands, hundreds, the fifties, and tens.
Exodus 18:21, 24-25 NIV
Consistency begins with one decision and one step. If you’re ever going to be a worship leader, you have to start.
Today, choose to become a leader that others will deem trustworthy. Whether you’re leading in worship or any other arena, build your trustworthiness and leadership ability with consistency over time.
–Pastor Steve.