Essences Of Leadership In The Third Sacred School
True To The Basic Agreement
Uranda
September 16, 1953
This is the central focalization of the
Third Sacred School on earth, and those who come here to share this program
are, to some degree, going to school. Going to school for what purpose? Well,
to learn to enter into the kingdom of heaven at hand, yes. But if one enters
the kingdom of heaven at hand, what is the requirement? We may answer, "To
serve the King of the kingdom," and that is true. But what is it that the
King of the kingdom needs? The King of the kingdom needs those who are
qualified to be leaders in His program on earth.
A leader must be so centered that he is
in position to lead. What is it that controls in the pattern of our lives? We
have talked about a control pattern. What is a control pattern? A control
pattern in relationship to the kingdom that is at hand is developed through
individuals on a basis of capacities in leadership which permit the reality of
agreement.
The individual who comes into that
agreement has one primary question to answer: "What is my purpose here?
Why am I here?" And if the answer is something other than to serve the
Lord, it is the wrong answer. If you came here for any purpose other than to
serve the Lord, then sooner or later your purpose must change. If we are going
to serve the Lord, we must of necessity be centered in the Lord and follow Him.
We have emphasized over and over again
that no one can be a true leader until he has first learned to follow. I could
not be a leader here, having achieved what little has been done so far, if I
had not learned something about following—following the one who is my leader.
When pressures come, when circumstances become difficult, when personal
preferences tend to come into play and there is the question of what one likes
to do or wants to do, there will be a distortion in the pattern unless one has
a leader and he has learned to follow. Until such stability becomes evident the
individual is not in a true sense a leader.
If there is to be the development of the
pattern of leadership the individual must learn how to follow, so that he or
she does not inadvertently break the vibrational pattern in relationship to the
whole. The individual must develop vision and understanding in relationship to
the human element, working with people for the attainment of a larger purpose.
Leadership—what does it mean? In the
building, in the doing, if there is leadership we cause the form which is being
brought into manifestation to conform with the spirit, and no matter how important
the form is it is never as important as the spirit that is to find expression
through the form. Those who do not have the capacity of leadership may labor in
the realm of giving form to something, the doing or the building, but those who
control in the sense of leadership must be constantly aware of the manner in
which the forming form is conforming to the spirit. And if in any moment the
building of the form begins to be separated from the spirit which is to
manifest through the form, then in that moment the work of building the form
ceases to have its correct meaning.
Leadership provides that element of
correlation between spirit and form on the basis of a heavenly agreement. If
the heavenly agreement is violated, then leadership has the responsibility of
remaining true to the agreement while that which is violating the agreement is
in some fashion cleared; for if the form is to be a living thing, having real
meaning, it must conform to the spirit, not only in some future time but during
the time of the forming, the time of the doing and of the building.
I have seen various individuals who have
a potential leadership ability who allowed some quirk of character or mental
attitude to make that leadership ability more or less meaningless over a long
period of time.
Sometimes the individual begins to see
something and, instead of remembering the agreement in Center, tries to go off
on a tangent basis. He is going to do some great thing. It is not merely the
ability to do some certain thing, but the ability to do it in the current of
leadership in relationship to the kingdom of heaven that is at hand. Leadership
must be flexible. Leadership must have patience. Leadership must reveal
ingenuity. Leadership must show a willingness to accept more than one's fair
share of the load.
The development of leaders is, in actual
fact, the greatest need of the Lord's service. It is not money, not material
things, not greater world recognition, but leaders. A leader who becomes so
great in his own eyes that he cannot step into the little place and do the
little things ceases to be a leader. The leader is able to enter into any
sphere that relates to his pattern of function and serve in it, whether he
particularly wants to do so or not. The leader does not function on the basis
of "what I want to do." He functions on the basis of what needs to be
done.
A leader is willing to lead in little
things as well as large, and being a leader he can begin to develop that sphere
of things in which his leadership may take form. He does not ask that it be
carved out and prepared in advance. At least he is willing to do his part in
the production of that situation which will allow his leadership greater
opportunity of expression.
One of the primary, central points that
I watch in relationship to the development of
leadership is this: To what degree does this person remember, and remain true
to, the basic agreement? What circumstance will cause the individual to violate
the agreement? The circumstance that is greater than the individual marks the
limits of the individual's capacities as a leader. The violation of the
agreement is the central, serious point of failure.
I will let those who have never entered
into the agreement do things, without any question, which I would strenuously
object to in relationship to those who have entered into the agreement. Merely
because a person comes, does not mean that I assume that he has entered into
the agreement. I look to see what leadership material there is. I consider what
it will take to inspire him to enter into the agreement. But until he does
enter into the agreement, I do not treat him as if he had entered into the
agreement. I expect certain things from those who have entered into the
agreement—certain things to appear through them.
The true leader does not constantly make
known to others all that he himself knows. The true leader can keep his
counsel, and if there is something that he feels should be changed he will
speak to those who have authority in
the matter and not talk with those who can do nothing about it. He will not be
doing something or saying something simply to stir up feeling. The true leader
can keep his counsel. He can hold his tongue. He can remain patient. And he
will consider the matter only with
those who should be approached in relationship to it. The true leader will not
attempt to develop a tangent pattern in order to demonstrate his leadership. He
will not go out and try to make something be thus and so. He will not try to exert
his power of leadership over others simply to demonstrate his ability. He will
let the reality of leadership appear in the expression of the whole as it
appears from Center, so that the whole may be integrated, correlated.
We are here to serve our King in the
kingdom at hand, but if we so serve we must of necessity become leaders, to the
glory of God and the blessing of the children of men.
© Emissaries of Divine Light
