There are moments in leadership when the path ahead is anything but clear.
The plans we carefully crafted change. The outcomes we hoped for remain uncertain. The challenges in front of us seem larger than our resources, our experience, or even our courage.
In those moments, we have a choice.
We can resist, retreat, and cling to fear. Or we can move forward despite the uncertainty, trusting that purpose is greater than our anxiety and hope is stronger than our doubt.
I have faced this reality many times through our work serving people experiencing homelessness and survivors of human trafficking. Some situations carry significant risks because the goal is not simply to meet a temporary need. The objective is freedom. The objective is restoration. The objective is helping someone escape exploitation, poverty, or circumstances that have held them captive for far too long.
Whenever we step into difficult situations, there is always a question that emerges:
Is the risk worth the reward?
For me, the answer has always been yes.
Every life restored is worth it.
Every child given a second chance is worth it.
Every person who discovers freedom, hope, and dignity is worth it.
Over the years, I have found two forces that are more powerful than fear: love and purpose.
When we live with a clear sense of purpose and a genuine love for others, our “why” becomes louder than our fears. That does not mean fear disappears. In fact, there have been many moments when fear felt overwhelming.
Fear has a way of screaming.
Love often whispers.
Yet I’ve learned that courage is found in that whisper. It is found in the quiet reminder to remember why we started. It begins as a small seed, but when nurtured through faith, conviction, and action, it grows.
That seed of courage moves us from saying, “Someone should do something about this” to asking, “What can I do about this?”
It challenges us to ask deeper questions:
Why am I here at this point in history?
What unique gifts have I been given?
What role am I meant to play in this story?
The truth is that none of us can do everything.
We are not superheroes.
But we can all do something.
Perhaps your leadership journey does not involve life-threatening situations. Perhaps you are leading through organizational change, economic uncertainty, staff turnover, or personal challenges. Maybe you are carrying the weight of difficult decisions while wondering what the future holds.
If so, I understand.
And while every situation is different, I have found that the principles remain remarkably similar.
Remember Your Why
When uncertainty rises, reconnect with the reason you stepped into leadership in the first place.
Who are you serving?
Who benefits from your vision, wisdom, and perseverance?
Purpose has a way of steadying us when everything else feels unstable.
Use What Is Already in Your Hands
Many leaders spend so much time focusing on what they lack that they overlook what they already possess.
Experience.
Relationships.
Wisdom.
Skills.
Faith.
Resilience.
Take inventory. Often, the tools needed for the next season are already within reach.
Focus on What You Can Control
Fear tends to magnify everything beyond our control.
Great leadership focuses on what can be influenced today.
You can control your attitude.
You can control your words.
You can control your behaviors and responses.
You can choose to lead by example.
One step at a time. One decision at a time. One day at a time.
Let Feelings Inform You, Not Direct You
Fear is real.
Ignoring it is not leadership.
But allowing it to dominate every decision is not leadership either.
Feelings are indicators, not dictators.
They provide information, but they should not determine our destination.
Acknowledge the fear. Evaluate the situation. Then move forward with wisdom and purpose.
Love Still Wins
One of the greatest privileges of my life is hearing stories from individuals whose lives have been transformed. Every letter, every testimony, and every story of restoration reminds me why this work matters.
Love changes lives.
Love restores hope.
Love overcomes fear.
And every time I witness someone’s journey from despair to freedom, I am reminded that the reward far outweighs the risk.
For me, it is far better to step into the arena and serve than to sit on the sidelines wondering why no one intervened.
The world may never need us to do everything.
But it does need us to do something.
So whatever challenge lies before you today, remember your why. Lean into your purpose. Let love speak louder than fear.
You may discover that courage was there all along, waiting for you to take the next step.
—
About the Author
Through writing, speaking, and nonprofit leadership, I am passionate about helping individuals discover purpose, lead with courage, and create lasting impact in their communities.
To learn more about our work serving individuals experiencing homelessness and survivors of human trafficking, visit:
There were no mass riots/mass looting/mass protests before America had to watch George Floyd lynched on film.
I am against looting/destruction of property/uncalled for violence.
I am also not sure people see the series of events that got us here. 400 years of fighting for equal rights which benefited all people of color, not just African Americans and we still have some major problems. It was a “whites only” society for hundreds of years. I am stating history, not trying to blame a current generation for what was done.
Without many African American and non-African American people willing to risk their lives for equality, only whites of European ancestry would have access to great schools, freedom, drinking from the same water fountains, the right to vote for people of color and for women, jobs rights, access to the same facilities, and protection under the law from discrimination. Their sacrifices benefit the Latino community, immigrants not from Europe, Asian community, and other marginalized groups.
People thought the Civil Rights movement put an end to inequalty. It did not. Dr. Martin Luther King peacefully protested and was jailed 30 times, then murdered. Recently football players peacefully took a knee to protest police brutality. They were publically condemned and called thugs. People peacefully protested so many deaths that were ignored. People tried to raise their voices in civility to say, “There is a problem.” Many were ignored.
Dr. Martin Luther King taking a knee to pray.
Now that things are being filmed, cities are being burned and looted, people who are not African American are suddenly impacted, shaken by a reality that has been continual, and saying, “Hmmm, maybe there is a problem.” I am quoting the words of others who did not recognize an issue until now.
Even still there are people missing part of the root and catalyst. Sure there are opportunistic people across the color spectrum behaving in ungodly ways. There are far, far more peacefully stating, “Injustice is not okay, not on my watch!”
What gave looters/rioters the opportunity? Were they doing this in mass number prior to death of George, Breonna, Ahmed? No. Breonna was killed in her home. Ahmed was jogging down a public street. Neither were criminals.
People also forget 1 in 5 Americans are unemployed due to COVID19. We are suffering through a pandemic, economic downfall, and racial unrest. Even before race related tensions rose, people were breaking into cars in my neighborhood. I live in an extremely nice neighborhood. My sister’s friend was held at gun point and robbed at the grocery store for money, and groceries. People are hurting, and some are desperate. Does it make crime okay? No!!
I hope to God we see roots and stop trying to deal with just fruit. Why? Because I do NOT want a repeat of this.
Whether people agree with me or not, America’s failure to deal with certain issues thoroughly has created problems later. I will save tackling all the arguments on things people state the black community does wrong for a later post.
I will say media shows the worst, presents the ugliest stats, and often minimizes or hides the major contributions of people of color. The message that can be propagated is, “We love you as entertainers, athletes, musicians, but overall we do not view you as equal. If there is injustice against you, we may remain unmotivated to help or even at times believe you. You must have done something to cause this mistreatment or it’s a misunderstanding. If you peacefully protest injustice, this will be condemned too. America is great, the land of the free! Respect America even if America continually disrespects you.”
Across the world people are now protesting for George Floyd. Yet in America, there are still people who do not get it, or are focused more on the fruit of civil unrest rather than the root. Guess what happens when we refuse to dig up roots? The same fruit keeps popping up. The riots of the 1990s over the beating senseless of Rodney King did not teach America all the lessons needed.
We need to cease pretending we are not sick to be made whole!
I rarely hear sermons on racism unless someone has been murdered. Even then some pastors avoid talking about the sin of racism. People are reacting to George’s death because it was filmed. Normally it’s just, “Oh, another black man died. It must have been his fault. Black people are criminals.” The person becomes a hash tag for a season, and people move on with their lives.
Black people are painted as thieves and violent when some of the most heinous crimes in America have not been done by men of color. The extreme majority of mass shooters and serial killers have not been black men. When it comes to embezzling money and stealing millions from corporations, it has not been black men. If you look at the slavery era and post slavery, extreme violence, lynching, rape of black women, looting, burning down towns, these were crimes that were not prosecuted and committed not by black men. Yet the narrative is consistently “black men are violent and criminals.”
I believe the media is partially to blame for the way stories are told. If we do not tell the whole story, it creates blame shifting and bias. Are all white men mass murders, no. Are all black men criminals, no. Are all police unjust, no.
Across racial spectrums there are sinners. There are people who try to help humanity, and those who try to harm humanity. At the end of the day, we need God’s help. No group of people or person is perfect.
When we do not know history, it repeats itself. Read about the Tulsa Massacre and Rosewood Massacre. On false accusations of rape, entire black cities were looted, burned to the ground, and hundreds of black people killed on a false accusation. Some of the people alive today, were alive during the time of the Rosewood Massacre. If you demonstrate the way to get justice is to do certain things, understand where the model was set. It has only been 52 years since the assassination of Robert Kennedy and Dr. Martin Luther King. Peaceful protestors of injustice murdered before their time.
What about black on black crime? This always comes up when a black person is murdered and it was racially motivated.
I will say racism fuels self hatred. It is challenging to love people who look like you when you have seen and been told you are the problem, you are bad/violent, your life does not matter. When the images of you were/are often negative, it takes God or a strong will to rise above a system that was set up to keep you from succeeding or even loving yourself.
After the Native Americans, the main recipients of violence were slaves; lynched, murdered, beaten till their flesh came off, women raped, families broken, unable to go to school, unable to marry, unable to vote, refused jobs, towns burned down/looted once you got on your feet. Violence was the language of the slave master. So when people talk about black on black crime, violence was learned. Culture drives behavior. Want a different behavior, change the culture!!
I hate injustice against any people group. I also hate when people look at fruit and not the root. There is tons of judging, criticizing, finger pointing. I think if we want to heal, we must stop simply looking at fruit and look at roots. How do we heal hundreds of years of injustice? I included some steps below:
1. Listen. When people speak up and say, “There is a problem,” don’t dismiss it.
2. Ask God if there is any prejudice in our hearts. I have had “friends” who held some pretty racist beliefs. They slipped out in conversations or times like these. Racism is sin. Attitudes of superiority are sin. Apathy is also sin. Only God can fill us with love for our neighbors. God HATES pride and a sense of superiority (Proverbs 6:16-19).
3. Stop ignoring parts of history that are shameful.Many people did not know about the Tulsa Massacre because it was hidden for 75 years. Watch films like Hidden Figures, Selma, Just Mercy, the Netflix film 13th, Harriet, 12 Years a Slave, Glory.
4. Learn about the contributions of people of color to America. The stop light, refrigerated trucks, automatic elevator doors, electret microphone, light bulb filament, co invention of the color IBM PC monitor and gigahertz chip, laser cataract surgery, the super soaker, identifying explosives spot test, illusion transmitter, peanut butter, numerous medical patents, NASA space calculations (see the movie Hidden Figures) were done by African Americans. Despite severe oppression, there have been countless contributions.
5. If you feel called, get involved with organizations seeking to fight injustice. Racism is a humanitarian issue. People in Christianity shout, “I am pro-life!” Yet crickets are sometimes heard when you talk about injustice against people of color.
6. Shut down racist conversations and speak up! I unfriended some people online spewing divisive or racist propaganda. One lady had to let people know a black lady hit her car. Well, I have had 3 major car accidents where a white person totaled my car. I did not get online and say, “This white person did this to me.” I have not posted publicly online videos or stories that increase division or have not been fact checked. What we permit, we promote. If we see people who are causing more problems and we go along with it, we help promote that narrative.
I do not want a repeat of this year. I want real change. I desire equality and justice for all people.
I hate that people are being hurt, looted, brutalized, murdered. I also know part of how we got here was because racism has not a big deal until someone dies or a city is burning down. Sin got us here. The numerous cases of injustice ingnored, got us here. Before there was ever black on black violence there was hundreds of years of extreme, sadistic, and horrific violence and injustice against black people.
I have seen some of the best and worst of humanity this past week. I hope we turn to Jesus. I will say being out with protestors I have seen the most amazing acts of kindness. People are giving their hearts to Jesus. He cares WAY more about people than politics, being politically correct, appeasing the masses, and material possessions.
Photo: Circuit Riders (Baptism on the streets in Minneapolis)-Black Lives Matter protest.
Unfortunately we are feeling the reaping of what has been sown for hundreds of years. We can look for ways to stop the cycle!
Thank you to those signing up for Confident & Free 2019. So far 17% of the ticket sales has been sown into the following combined efforts (International Justice Mission (ending human trafficking), Extreme Love Ministries (education programs for at risk children for human trafficking), the Happy Givers NPO (children’s homes, clean water projects, rebuild of Puerto Rico), and additionally 18 people have been sponsored for this event. I am hoping we sell out to reach the target goal for education programs and assisting the poor with real solutions.
When you look at the ticket price for the event, I hope you see a child getting clean water, a home being rebuilt in Puerto Rico, a woman or child rescued from slavery. This event is not lining my pocket, it is helping (hopefully) to save lives. The charities received their payment of already sold tickets already. I will be the very last person paid, if I see anything at all.
Thank you for those coming!! We have guests coming from 15 different states and Canada.
I bless you and thank you!!
Charity info: extremelove.com, ijm.org, and thehappygivers.com.
If you have not signed up yet, seats are filling. Once we sell out, there is no overflow. Tickets are also a bit more at the door.
“The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to set the oppressed free, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.” Luke 4:18-19.
Silenced Screams
Written by Erin Lamb
December 12, 2010
I hear the echoes of your silenced
screams piercing through my mind.
Screams from the forgotten,
abused, and misused.
Compassion overflows
for hearts and bodies tattered, worn,
wounds left open, and exposed.
The cries of your heart,
that you feel no one else seems
to hear,
reach high into the heavens.
God sees and understands.
The tears that flow like waterfalls,
that you think no one seems to see,
God sees them.
He hears them.
I must respond on bended knee.
On bended knee before my Father
there is a plea for your Deliverer to
come;
knowing only He can move the vast
mountains of oppression,
that have remained for way too long.
It is here,
I feel the earth shake,
in an outcry,
for justice,
for your freedom,
to live a life free of being someone’s
slave.
I see a light,
pierce through the darkness,
illuminating your tear stained face.
Your face is not forgotten,
God knows your name.
You are the King’s treasure,
and He longs to give you His very best.
You are not someone to be overlooked,
neglected,
ignored,
or clothed in shame.
You are a precious one,
one that God adores.
God hears the wailing of your heart,
and He is calling for the world to
respond.
We do not lose hope for justice,
for our help comes from above.
He is breaking our hearts,
with the pain that breaks yours.
No longer are your screams to be
silenced,
or your suffering ignored.
We cannot live your nightmares
or even heal your wounds,
but we can keep shouting from the
rooftops for deliverance to come.
We can fight for your freedom.
Your freedom is my passion,
for the world to see your plight.
Prayers will surround you,
until all the injustices are made right.
More than prayer,
there is rallying for you!
We cannot do everything,
but we can do something.
It starts here,
with the world hearing your silenced
screams.
There are so many hurting people in the world. So many children and women, who are being abused, or held against their will. My heart aches for every hurting person in the world. While I cannot carry each person’s individual burden, I can pray for the oppressed. I cannot forget those held captive and so my knee bends to pray. So please join me in praying for our friends held captive around the world. God loves them as much as He loves us.
Check our these great organizations who are fighting for freedom.
God=Love 