1 Maccabees, Chapter 3, Verse 55-56
55 After this Judas appointed officers for the
people, over thousands, over hundreds, over fifties, and over tens. 56 He proclaimed that those who were building houses, or were just
married, or were planting vineyards, and those who were afraid, could each return home, according to the law.
Judas is confronted by a
large Army so what does he do. He prays, fasts and calls on God’s mercy. Then
he organizes all of the people into squads, platoons, companies, battalions,
and regiments. Then he basically lets anyone who wants to go home go. To those
that remain he says, “Arm
yourselves and be brave; in the morning be ready to fight these Gentiles who
have assembled against us to destroy us and our sanctuary. It is better for us to die
in battle than to witness the evils befalling our nation and our sanctuary. Whatever is willed in
heaven will be done.”
Judas only wanted real
fighters. The mindset of Judas reminds me of the mindset of the early Antarctic
explorers like Ernest Shackleton who wrote this famous advertisement for men of
courage.
Men
wanted for hazardous journey. Low wages, bitter cold, long hours of complete
darkness. Safe return doubtful. Honour and recognition in event of success.
Loyalty-Sir
Ernest Shackleton
Sir Ernest Shackleton like so many of his generation were ultimate
adventurers – part hero, part daredevil – fighting the elements and the odds,
too far from civilization to call for help – laying it all on the line purely
for the love of adventure. Shackleton led a doomed expedition to miraculous
survival through the sheer force of his motivational leadership. In 1914, he
set out with a crew of twenty-eight men on a quest to be the first to travel
across the entire Antarctic continent by way of the South Pole. His ship,
Endurance,
became caught in ice and was crushed. After abandoning the ship, he and his men
faced incredible hardship from a variety of brutal Antarctic conditions – from
shifting weather to shifting ice, along with the trials of hunger, illness and
discouragement – for more than a year. Yet every man got home safely, when the
entire expedition would have perished under weaker leadership. Incredibly, the
only casualty was frostbitten toes on one man. He had passion for the adventure
of the mission but he also had passion for the men he led. When he was forced
to abandon his doomed ship and realized he would not achieve his goal of
reaching the South Pole en route to the other side, he kept his disappointment
to himself while he shifted his priorities to the well-being of his men. He
said to another leader, F.A. Worsley, “It is a pity [to miss the crossing], but
that cannot be helped. It is the men we have to think about. “He put his men
above himself. He understood that the survival of them all might well depend on
the quality of his leadership. He also realized that he could provide better
leadership if he served as well as led. “Shackleton shared the physical labors
as well as the watches…[He] would forego his own rations in order to feed the
undernourished or the ill. And he often did so without anyone knowing
it…Shackleton always put the needs of his men ahead of his personal comfort,
and as a result he saved them all.” He realized that in order to survive they
would have to stay healthy – mentally as well as physically. When we are trying
to survive, having fun is the farthest thing from our minds. It may even be
seen as trivializing the suffering. But during harsh tribulation it is more
important than ever to find something to
enjoy. During hard times we need to find a source of joy in order to maintain a
healthy perspective. As a leader, Shackleton accepted responsibility for
maintaining the spirits as well as the health of his men. Yes, they were brave
adventurers just as Shackleton was, well able to take care of themselves.
Still, Shackleton knew that as a leader he could provide a unique kind of
influence that would be empowering, energizing and uplifting. He continually
sought out ways to boost morale. He set aside time for recreation. They
improvised various forms of entertainment. Several of the men had chosen books
among the possessions they salvaged, and they read aloud to each other. They
played soccer on the ice. “Humor…played a role, with Shackleton telling stories
or teasing his men. What Shackleton was doing was keeping his men alive inside;
by encouraging them to read or sing, he was keeping their spirits from sagging
or dwelling on the inhospitalities that in other circumstances might have
overwhelmed them.” He Inspired Loyalty. Shackleton’s passion for his mission
and for his men, his passion for leadership, and his passion for motivation
were a source of energy and courage during times of severe adversity. These
virtues made him a leader that people wanted to follow. Even when his men may
not have wanted to do something for themselves, they would do it for him. He
inspired this kind of loyalty because he gave it to his men. They respected and
trusted him because he respected and trusted them. They took care of him
because he took care of them. They put him first because he put them first. He
was a wonderful example of what a role model should be.
Shackleton dedicated South,
the book he wrote about their extraordinary exploits, “To My Comrades.” In
one especially moving passage he observed: “In memories we were rich. We had
pierced the veneer of outside things. We had suffered, starved and triumphed,
groveled down yet grasped at glory, grown bigger in the bigness of the whole.
We had seen God in His splendors, heard the text that natures renders. We had
reached the naked soul of man.” Sixty years after they had been rescued, the
expedition’s first officer, Lionel Greenstreet, was asked how they had done it,
how had they survived such a deadly misadventure. Greenstreet gave a one-word
response: “Shackleton.”
Daily Devotions/Prayers
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