“And when the king heard the words of the Law, he tore his clothes.” – 2 Chronicles 34:19
What a beautiful picture of godly leadership! King Josiah loved the Lord and had worked diligently to restore the temple. However, he simply did not know God’s Law. When workers found the scroll of the Law (likely Deuteronomy) and it was read aloud, Josiah recognized the many ways that he and his nation had fallen short of God’s standard and he was deeply sorrowful and afraid.
We all make mistakes and fall short of God’s standard from time to time even when we have the best of intentions. A critical measure of godly leadership is how we respond when presented with our sins and shortcomings as leaders.
Godly leaders won’t try to hide from their shortcoming, they’ll be sorrowful and repent. Godly leaders won’t defend their error, they’ll publicly acknowledge it and move forward. Godly leaders won’t seek to shift blame to others, they’ll take ownership of their mistakes, even those made in ignorance. Godly leaders won’t excuse their ignorance, they’ll admit it and learn. Godly leaders won’t seek to justify themselves based on their prior accomplishments, they’ll commit to change going forward.
Once again, we all make mistakes and fall short of God’s standard from time to time. In Christ there’s always forgiveness available when we confess our mistakes and ask for God’s forgiveness. We don’t need to dwell on, or be constrained by, the past. We must move forward in Christ with integrity.