Press the arrow to listen to “Every Season” by Nichole Nordeman.

Scripture
But Josiah refused to listen to Neco, to whom God had indeed spoken, and he would not turn back. Instead, he disguised himself and led his army into battle on the plain of Megiddo. But the enemy archers hit King Josiah with their arrows and wounded him. He cried out to his men, “Take me from the battle, for I am badly wounded!”

So they lifted Josiah out of his chariot and placed him in another chariot. Then they brought him back to Jerusalem, where he died. 2 Chronicles 35:22-24

Observation
What made me successful in the last life season may work against me in the next. King Josiah rose to power because of his black and white, uncompromising stand against impurity. That worked to rid the land of idols and to restore the worship of God.

But the king’s proven recipe for success failed when ground conditions changed. God used a pagan king to do his will and spoke through a foreign ruler. That had never happened before. Until that time pagans and their kings were the problem. But now they had become the solution. King Josiah continued leading as he had always lead. Because he did not change his leadership style his life was lost.

Application
If I am to rise as a leader I must change my leadership style to react to ground conditions. It is like changing from 4WD to 2WD to save the transmission. What has made me successful in one life season may work against me in the next. Currently, the biggest change for me is this: God will do more through the leaders I develop than through my leadership.

Prayer
Father, I’m not clever enough to discover this on my own. I need you to open my eyes to ground conditions so I can grow as a leader. Amen.