Refuse the glory
Paul and Barnabas at Lystra
When Paul healed a lame man at Lystra, the crowd concluded the gods had come down and tried to offer sacrifices to them. Paul and Barnabas were horrified. They tore their clothes and rushed in, shouting: men, why are you doing this? We also are men, just like you. They refused the worship and pointed the crowd to the living God.
The contrast with Herod is chilling. When a crowd hailed Herod as a god, he accepted the acclaim — and Scripture says an angel struck him down, because he did not give God the glory. Two leaders, the same temptation, opposite responses. One deflected the glory; the other absorbed it, and it killed him.
“Men, why are you doing these things? We also are men of like nature with you.”
— Paul and Barnabas, at Lystra — Acts 14:15 (WEB)
Refuse the glory that belongs to God. Deflect praise rather than absorb it — taking God's glory is deadly, as Herod learned.
“Immediately an angel of the Lord struck him, because he didn't give God the glory.”
Paul recoiled from worship and redirected it to God; Herod absorbed it and died. A leader formed here actively deflects the glory that comes with effectiveness. He treats absorbing God's glory as a deadly danger, not a perk. The inner work is reflexively turning praise Godward.
When praise and acclaim come, deflect them to God and to others rather than absorbing them. Build habits and a culture that redirect glory upward. Treat the temptation to accept undue honor as serious, not flattering. Point people past you to the God who actually did the work.
Effective leaders quietly absorb the glory that comes with success, not recognizing it belongs to God. The blind spot is accepting acclaim that, like Herod's, is dangerous to take.
Notice the praise that comes your way this week. Each time, deliberately deflect it — to God and to others who helped — rather than quietly absorbing the glory.
When praise and acclaim come — and for effective leaders, they do — there is a real temptation to quietly absorb the glory that belongs to God. Paul tore his clothes to deflect it; Herod accepted it and was struck down. How a leader handles glory is not a small thing.
When praise comes your way, do you deflect it to God like Paul — or quietly absorb the glory like Herod?