I came across a very profound statement by Paul Orfalea. Who is Paul Orfalea, you ask? Here’s a hint: His nickname was “Kinko” because he had curly red hair. That’s right – Paul Orfalea, founder of Kinko’s.
Paul Orfalea made this powerful observation: “The goal of management is to remove obstacles.“
Wow! If you’re a leader of any kind and want to be successful, you should post that quote in big letters in your office. On your fridge. On your bathroom mirror. Your job is to remove obstacles from your staff, from those you lead, from your customers. If you’re a parent, from your children’s lives. If you think it should be the other way around, you aren’t actually management material.
Now, here is an example of what management doesn’t do: When Dwight is driving, sometimes (Okay…more than sometimes.) I will give him driving “advice,” such as: “Watch that car!” “Why did you turn on this road?” “Watch your speed; there’s a police car.” And, sometimes (when he feels brave), he’ll smile and say, “You just sit there and look pretty and I’ll handle the driving.” Point taken. And, I’ll laugh. (Well…depending on the day, I might laugh and I might not.) What he’s saying is that I can trust him to take care of us, that he is careful and mindful, and that I don’t need to fear.
However, when Dwight is the driver, he is “management,” And, his job is to remove the obstacle of fear from my life. That, in turn, will make his life better. (At this moment, I’m hoping he’s reading this blog. I’m kidding.) It’s not my job to not be afraid; it’s his job to not cause me to be afraid. (Heaven knows Dwight has volumes of reference books on what things scare me as a passenger.) [Don’t get in an uproar: It’s not sexist. Men drivers don’t take driving “advice” from men passengers either. And, women drivers don’t either.]
But, I digress.
Back to Paul: Paul Orfalea may not know it, but he actually borrowed that concept from Jesus.
Jesus told us to pray that God’s will would be done on earth as it is done in heaven. The big question is, “How is God’s will done in heaven?” I asked God that several years ago, “So, how is Your will done in heaven?” And, He said, “Without resistance.”
There is nothing in heaven that can resist God’s will. Oh, there was resistance once…when Satan rebelled against God. So, God just simply gave him the boot, along with the 1/3 of the angels that followed Satan’s rebellion.
There is no resistance to God’s will in heaven.
So, when you pray for God’s will to be done on earth, you are calling on God to remove all resistance to His will. His will for you, for your family, for your health, for your supply, for your church, for your country, etc. Proverbs 3:5-6 says the same thing: Acknowledge God in all your ways and HE – not you – HE will direct (Hebrew for, “make straight; make pleasant, prosperous“) your path (Hebrew for, “the road, path“). God will remove the obstacles from your path.
If you’re in ministry, you work for Him. If you’re a Christian, He is the head of your life because He is your heavenly Father. It is His responsibility to remove from your life the resistance to His will. Why His? Well, because we can’t and He can. We aren’t that kind of management material. And, because He wants to. Does that mean we can just be slackers? Just the opposite. As God removes the resistance in our lives, we are free to run the race set before us.
Let God manage your success. If you are struggling in any area, just pray and ask God to remove that resistance. If you are the resistance, the Holy Spirit will guide you into all truth and reveal that to you and will empower you to walk free from being the resistor. If the resistance is elsewhere, God will handle that.
God expects you to run the race. Ask Him and He will remove the resistance – the mountains, the obstacles.
The Real Deb 