I can’t count the number of times I have experienced Person A who wants Person B to learn or do something that he/she (Person A) isn’t willing to do or just don’t do.  It happens all the time.

Examples:

• A adult tries to teach a child that drinking or smoking is unhealthy but drinks or smokes at least part time.
• A father tells the kids they should go to church but won’t turn off the game to go with them.
• A employer cracks down on tardiness but is consistently late for everything.

For me this plays out in several different ways.  I am a husband, a father and a pastor.  I cannot expect my wife to become a great communicator in our marriage if I am not willing to share my thoughts and feelings with her.  I cannot expect my child to grow up following Christ if I am not living that out in front of her.  I cannot expect the people at church to focus and worship if I am not setting the example.

We live our lives leading (or not leading) others around us.  We want them to reach that next level and become a better spouse or a well rounded child or a more head over heels follower of Christ, but if we aren’t modeling that out for them, how are they supposed to know and learn that it is actually something good for them?  Without real leadership from those before them (spouse, parents, boss, pastor, etc.) it just comes out as talk and probably taken with a grain of salt.

Are you leading those around your sphere of influence to be better or are you just blabbing hollow thoughts that go in one ear and out the other?  Lord, help us learn to lead by example and not by words.