Few leaders finish well.
That thought has captured my heart for the past three years since I first heard it from Dr. J. Robert Clinton. It seems that there is a ministry casualty everywhere we look, some are in the headlines but many aren’t. What happened? Where did things go wrong? At one point they are thriving in their relationship with God and in ministry but then all of sudden they are sidelined with a good possibility that they will never make it back. My heart cries for them.
But then there are those who make it to the end. It is as if they understood what Paul said in 2Tim. 4:7, “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the course, I have kept the faith.” At the end of their lives they are able to look back and know they have fulfilled God’s purposes for their generation (Acts 13:36).
Dr. Clinton has studied Biblical characters in-depth and of the 100 prominent leaders in the Bible he has determined that there were primarily four different life outcomes. The following is taken from the book Starting Well by Richard Clinton and Paul Leavenworth, a book I recommend for all leaders.
Cut off early – These leaders were taken out of leadership by assassination, killed in battle, prophetically denounced, or overthrown. Some of this activity was directly attributed to God. Some of these were positive and others were negative. Abimelech, Samson, Absalom, Ahab, Josiah, John the Baptist, James
Finished Poorly – These leaders were going downhill in the latter part of their ministry. This might be reflected in their personal relationship with God or in terms of their competency in ministry. Gideon, Samson, Eli, Saul, Solomon
Finished So-So – These leaders did fairly well but were limited in their ministries because of sin. They did not complete what God had for them or had some negative ramifications surrounding their lives and ministries even though they personally were walking with God. David, Jehoshaphat, Hezekiah
Finished Well – These leaders were walking with God at the end of their lives. They contributed to God’s purposes at a high level. They fulfilled what God had for them to do. Abraham, Job, Joseph, Joshua, Caleb, Samuel, Elijah, Jeremiah, Daniel, John, Paul, Peter
Let me make three observations regarding the above lists. First, there will be those whose lives will end early. That cannot be helped. A person’s life here on earth is ultimately decided by God. However, what will people remember if you pass early? (See last week’s article “The Tombstone Exercise”)
Second, we can choose whether we will finish poorly, so-so, or well. Those who finished poorly or so-so were not victims of circumstances. They chose to do what they did which led to their finish. One of the things I constantly say to my children is, “How you respond is up to you.” When a temptation comes, you have a choice on how you respond. When a situation occurs and your emotions rise up, you have a choice on how you react. Those who didn’t finish well responded in the wrong way. They gave into temptation. They let emotions override wisdom. Or as the Knight who guarded the Holy Grail said in Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade, “He chose poorly.”
Third, those who finished well had one thing in common: an on-going vibrant relationship with God which caused godly changes in their lives. That doesn’t mean their relationship with God always went well. Job questioned God. Jeremiah wrestled with his calling. Peter at one point thought he knew better than God. But in the end their relationship with God was firm.
Over the next three notes I will look back at the Finishing Well articles I wrote back in 2009-2010 and update them with some of my personal thoughts. I will look at seven keys to finishing well, followed by seven barriers to finishing well, and conclude with seven enhancements to finishing well.
My hope is that at the end of your life you will finish well.
Questions to think about:
Can you think of any Christian leaders who were cut-off early? What do you remember about them?
Can you think of any Christian leaders who finished poorly or so-so? Do you know what led to their demise?
Can you think of any Christian leaders who finished well? What do you notice about their lives?
Is there anything right now in your life that will cause you to not finish well?
© Gary Lau 2011
All rights reserved. This article may not be distributed, forwarded or duplicated without prior permission from the author.
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