Above all, my brothers, do not swear–not by heaven or by earth or by anything else. Let your “Yes” be yes, and your “No,” no, or you will be condemned. James 5:12 (NIV)
One trait that marks a good leader is the practice of saying what you mean and meaning what you say.
I can’t resist turning to the political scene in America. While there are many politicians who are honest, decent folks, too many have allowed themselves to operate based on political correctness rather than the truth. It has gotten so bad that we can’t even rely on organizations who portray themselves as “fact checkers.”
Our military needs to be better than this, and it usually is. Defending our nation is serious business. Leaders who won’t speak clearly and truthfully risk mission failure. In extreme cases, this can mean life or death, victory or defeat.
It’s easy to slip occasionally, perhaps because you don’t want to risk an unpopular decision- or for other reasons.
But look at the entire verse above. What James has written is true. Be certain of this: God will condemn this kind of speech. Don’t equivocate. Say what you mean.
The content of this Devotional comes from “Daily Strength for the Battle (You, God’s Word, 5 Minutes): Volume 6 Developing the Leader in You” (2020) and is copyrighted by Scott and Judy McChrystal. Used with permission.
