Leadership is an act of submission to God. To be a leader means

Hear now the sacred words of Richard Foster, a man of deep reflection and spiritual vision: “Leadership is an act of submission to God. To be a leader means listening to all kinds of people and situations. Out of that listening, we are hoping to discern the mind of God as best we can. This is the price of leadership — it’s an act of sacrifice. So leadership is part and parcel of the work of submission to God.” In these words lies a truth that pierces the pride of the ages: that true leadership is not the pursuit of power, but the surrender of the soul. It is not the exaltation of the self, but the humbling of the spirit before divine wisdom.

In every age, men have sought to rule — some by force, others by wit — but few have understood that to rule rightly is first to bow. Foster’s vision of leadership is not born of ambition but of reverence. He reminds us that authority, when stripped of submission, becomes tyranny; but when rooted in humility before the eternal, it becomes service. The great leader does not command from the throne, but listens from the ground. He bends his ear to the cry of the people, the whisper of conscience, and the still small voice of God. For it is only through such listening that a leader becomes a vessel of wisdom rather than a prisoner of ego.

Think of Moses, the shepherd who trembled before the burning bush. When the voice of the Eternal called him to lead his people, he did not rise in pride — he fell in fear. “Who am I,” he said, “that I should go?” Yet that very humility was his anointing. Through submission, Moses became the conduit of divine will; through obedience, he guided a nation from bondage to promise. He bore the burden of leadership not as a crown but as a cross. In the desert of doubt and complaint, he listened — to the people, to the silence, and to God. And it was in that listening that he discerned the path forward when all seemed lost.

So too, in later ages, the saints and sages who shaped the world did so not by force of command but by depth of surrender. Mother Teresa, who walked the streets of Calcutta, led no army and commanded no wealth. Yet her submission to the divine voice that whispered, “Serve the least of these,” moved nations and softened hearts of stone. Her leadership was a daily sacrifice — a thousand small deaths of self — that others might live. She listened not to applause, but to suffering. Not to strategy, but to spirit. And through that listening, she revealed the face of God to the forgotten.

Foster calls this the price of leadership, and rightly so. For to lead in this sacred manner is to suffer the weight of both heaven and earth. It is to walk the line between authority and humility, between conviction and compassion. The leader who truly serves must constantly crucify pride and ambition, and seek instead the quiet guidance of divine purpose. He must speak with courage yet listen with tenderness; he must act boldly yet remain still enough to hear what the Eternal whispers beneath the noise of human striving.

O seekers of truth, take this teaching to heart: leadership begins not in strength, but in stillness. Before you act, listen — not only to others, but to the Spirit that moves within all things. Before you command, submit — not to men, but to truth. Before you lead, kneel — for only those who kneel before God can stand before men. The proud may rise swiftly, but the humble endure. The arrogant may build empires, but the submissive build legacies that time cannot erase.

Therefore, when you are called to lead — whether in home, in work, or in the quiet stewardship of your own heart — remember that leadership is not about having your will done, but discerning the will that is greater than your own. Be patient in hearing, slow to speak, and fearless in following where righteousness leads. To submit is not to be weak; it is to align yourself with the infinite.

And so, let Foster’s words echo in your soul: the highest throne is reached through the lowest bow. The true leader is the one who listens until he hears God’s whisper in the noise of men. The true act of leadership is the act of submission, and the true reward of submission is peace. Lead, then, not for glory, but for grace. Rule not by command, but by compassion. And in your quiet sacrifice, may the world see not your power, but the reflection of the divine purpose you serve.