What in the world is going on with our leaders? Why are they failing us so badly?

We have no faith in our politicians.

Young people are leaving the church in record numbers.

A large majority believe that the country is headed in the wrong direction.

With so much we can't control, we would do well to look at the parts of our world that we can control.

Here's me
For example, let's look at my life. I lead a few hundred amazing people at Adventures. They are committed to changing the world. Most work for a lot less money than they could make elsewhere in the marketplace. They make sacrifices to do what they do.

I'm not only a steward of their lives, but of the dream of a better world that God has placed in their hearts.

The opportunities to abuse my stewardship appear afresh every day. Here's how:

• by confusing my needs with the needs of the people I serve
• by controlling their behavior instead of seeking opportunities for them to thrive
• by failing to connect them to the vision, answering the question "why are we doing this?"
• by misusing the resources at my disposal
• by not being accountable for performance
• by failing to develop the people I serve

What about you?
The abuse of power by our leaders may be pervasive, but many of you aspire to show a better way. Our young people have the opportunity to fix what's broken. They may not be able to fix the brokenness in the leaders that came before them, but they can fix the brokenness in themselves.

It begins with understanding that leadership is stewardship. It is temporary. You serve and then you hand the reins of power over to someone else. The question is, "how will the people you served evaluate you?"

Will they say that you set aside your own needs to serve the bigger picture?

Will they say that you were humble?

Will they say that you developed them?

We need leaders
It's not too late for my generation to serve the next generation by calling out the leadership in them. And it's not too late for young people to learn another way of leading that is based on servanthood.

Who do you know who has undeveloped leadership potential? How can it be developed?

Maybe that potential is within you. What will you do to develop it? We need leaders who won't abuse power. Your stewardship may start small, but you're preparing to lead in a new way. The world is waiting.