Seduction and Leadership

Proverbs 7:1-5 (MSG) Dear friend, do what I tell you; treasure my careful instructions. Do what I say and you'll live well. My teaching is as precious as your eyesight—guard it! Write it out on the back of your hands; etch it on the chambers of your heart. Talk to Wisdom as to a sister. Treat Insight as your companion. They'll be with you to fend off the Temptress—that smooth-talking, honey-tongued Seductress.

These verses make it clear that eternal core values must be of paramount importance if we are to protect ourselves from seduction – of any kind. For leaders, the line between leading and seducing it mighty thin: consider the German language where “to lead” is “fuehren” (think Fuehrer!) and by adding only the prefix “ver” or “verfuehren,” the result is “to seduce.” We must protect ourselves from the “Great Seducer” who wants to add a “simple prefix” to our thinking and paints his path as the path to freedom – freedom to think on our own and to run our lives and business on our own – a path that is actually the very opposite of freedom – slavery; a path that looks good, but is not. Seductive path mimics the real. Can you tell the difference? You can if you make Wisdom the “apple of your eye.”

Copyright ©2006 by P. Griffith Lindell