I’m Only Human After All and Other Things That Courage Requires

‘Every night I say a prayer in the hope that there's a heaven

But every day I’m more confused as the saints turn into sinners

All the heroes and legends I knew as a child have fallen to idols of clay

And I feel this empty place inside, so afraid that I’ve lost my faith

 

Show me the way, show me the way

Take me tonight to the river

And wash my illusions away

Please, show me the way.’

 

These are the lyrics from the rock band Styx. This was not a worship song at a justice conference exploring the implications of collective lament. This is a rock band at the height of their career who managed to sing a prayer out-loud that hit a spot in the heart of everyone with enough courage to be human. And recently, I’ve been having this song return to me. Let me tell you why.

 

Our culture (including our Christian one) is addicted to the Hercules Myth. And when I say ‘we’ of course I mean ‘me’. I’m addicted to this myth. And since people have been addicted to this myth since the beginning of time and I’ve been addicted to this myth for my whole life it’s hard to shake. And if you think we don’t have a problem with this myth then you most likely don’t go out very much. Whether it’s Rick and the gang thinking that more guns and a better plan is the latest answer in the retributive endless violence in The Walking Dead or Marvel’s latest blockbuster release of the newest super hero to dawn a suit, we cannot get enough of that story. Even though it seems obvious in our world that violence, power and fear are the dominating forces of evil and that every time we participate in believing that there is someone stronger, better, bigger, faster and more powerful than anyone else who can rescue us from this seemingly inevitable cycle of human violence and conflict - there is not.

 

So, with a bit of light and truth (cue the #metoo movement in case you needed more evidence) every hero and legend I knew as a child has fallen to idols of clay. And it wasn’t that far to fall. Because there are no heroes and legends - there are only humans. Even writing that sentence hurts. No legends? No Heroes? What kind of a cynical and sad world is that? I believe that understanding and celebrating our humanity is the most courageous act of all. True courage means facing the truth and then honoring the truth that we are only human after all.

 

And not in a way that excuses our weakness or justifies our tragic, dark and endless systems of advancing our selves at the expense of other humans. I don’t mean a fatalistic, shoulder shrugging, giving up on trying to be better. I mean the exact opposite of that.  If you pay attention, the humans that often look like heroes and legends are doing their very best to contribute to the flourishing of this world from their own humanity.  And that most often confronts our cultural ideals of leadership and so we kill them. We are more in love with the myth of Hercules than Jesus - and admitting that isn’t a terrible place to begin. Because when that confrontation happens - we have an invitation to use all of our internal resources and all of God’s resources to find the courage and power to be the kind of humans we were intended to be.

 

This weekend is Easter. And I’m getting ready to worship the anti-hero. Jesus is the opposite of Hercules. One takes a life for justice, the other lays down His own life for justice. One uses a sword, the other uses Truth incarnate, one uses force, the other uses Love. One continues the cycle of vengeance, the other extends forgiveness and grace to end cycles and set people free. Although we do our best to make Jesus fit the ‘Hercules’ model - it is clear in the scripture that he chose to embrace all of his humanity and intentionally offered himself as a sacrifice at the behest of a people who wanted a revolutionary.  He chose surrender, love and forgiveness as a final stand when they wanted someone more like, well, Barabbas to be exact. The people Jesus was leading chose to sacrifice Him for a familiar kind of leader because a violent zealot convinced that revolutionary overthrow was the best option is well, the kind of leader we get! In the midst of that world, in that context and those days, how did Jesus continue to lead with love and authenticity and power? How did He do that? And maybe even more essential to our leadership, no matter what our position or work situation we have been invited to follow Jesus in being the best humans we can. And He set the bar pretty high. So how can we do that?

 

Here are 3 areas that have helped me embrace and celebrate my humanity and do my best to follow Jesus’ example to be the best human I can which means to be the best leader I can. Before you read this list remember we are trying to shake the Hercules myth and lead like Jesus - rather than what I can win/gain/fight to emerge the hero I’m posturing my life to give/surrender/serve the needs of humanity. That posture change is essential and here are three quick things that might help with the adjustment.

 

1. Need. Instead of excuses and/or facades, admitting our own humanity with humility is the beginning of transformational leadership. Dragging our limits, our frailty and our need into the light is the way of authentic and sustainable leadership. Leaders who admit their weaknesses and get help are headed in the right direction.

 

2. Healthy Self Value/esteem. I can’t stress how hard and important this is. Jesus did not need crowd affirmation, religious permission, or ego management. He knew who He was - and that dependency on his value from above brought a liberty to His life and actions that no amount of money/fame/power could hope to offer. Where does your value come from? Performance? Crowd size? Bank account? You might need to rethink where you find your self value.

 

3. Team/community. Jesus created a team. He asked them to pray with Him, accompany Him, talk with Him, eat with Him, travel with Him, well, you get the idea. He needed them. And He told them that. He understood the mutuality necessary in thriving relationships. Do you? Without an embracing of your own human need, and a healthy self value you will not be able to build a thriving community. But everyone is built to function in community - so, if you find yourself lonely and misunderstood most of the time - visit step 1 and try again.

 

NOTE: I’ve been using a little tool to follow in the Way of Jesus on a daily/weekly/monthly basis that has been proving very helpful in my own leadership journey. If you need some more tips and a way that might help you further check out infinitumlife.com for some other posture shifts and practices that will keep you trying to lead like Jesus.