One afternoon a man named John, dressed in blue jeans, walked into a bank to cash a check. Afterward asked the teller to validate his parking ticket. The teller informed him that, according to bank policy, she couldn’t validate his parking ticket because his transaction did not involve deposit. He told her that he was a substantial depositor, but she wouldn’t budge. “It’s our policy,” she said.
John asked to see the bank manager. Because he had come in wearing construction clothes, covered with dust and dried cement, the bank manager looked at him with disdain and told him that rules are rules, and there was nothing he could do.
So John began withdrawing his money from the bank, $2 million altogether. And the bank manager learned a lesson about leadership … maybe.
A LEADERSHIP LESSON
The above story has made the rounds in a variety of urban legends, with different well known persons playing the lead. This version appeared as an actual news item in USA Today February 21, 1989, so chances are that it’s accurate.
Regardless, it’s a good story that underlines a distinction leaders need to make:
-Training is learning the rules.
-Experience is learning the exceptions.
-Leadership is in knowing which to apply when.
Following the black and white of the letter of law is easy; you don’t really have to think about it. Applying God’s truth to the gray shades of the human situation is a greater challenge: it requires wisdom. This wisdom is acquired not by leaning on scripture less, but more. As was written about Ezra, “For Ezra had devoted himself to the study and observance of the Law of the Lord, and to teaching its decrees and laws in Israel.” (Ezra 7:12)
As Solomon said, “Every prudent man acts out of knowledge.” (Proverbs 13:16) May we become so grounded in God’s word that we can see clearly in every situation how to accurately apply his truth in wisdom and righteousness.
