I love listening to warriors, veterans of both natural and spiritual conflicts who survived to live another day. One such person was Gary Littrell who fought in Viet Nam. Due to his heroic actions, he was awarded the Medal of Honor. When speaking about his award, Littrell said, “When I think about the Medal of Honor, I realize I am wearing this medal for the 400 and some people that died in those four days. I’m their representative. They won this medal. I was selected to wear it for them”.

There are times when those in leadership willingly or unwillingly take credit for the success of a business or ministry without recognizing they are simply wearing the success of those under their leadership who paid the price for their notoriety.  

The larger a business or ministry grows the more we tend to elevate those at the top. This elevation can be honorable if the ones receiving recognition do not hold on to the honor as a personal accomplishment but rather, share the honor with those who equally deserve credit 

The Lord is purifying the hearts of his leaders. That purification will not stop with just the leader. It will reach down into the ranks of a team and pull others into a place of visibility where they will be honored for their service. These honorable leaders will become living testimonies of what Gary Littrell said about his award and his leadership, “I’m their representative. They won this medal. I was selected to wear it.”

^“Pay to all what is owed to them…honor to whom honor is owed” (Romans 13:7).