Today I want to hit on a component of Christian leadership that is sometimes overlooked - vibration damping.
What is damping? Damping is the energy dissipation properties of a material or system under cyclic stress. Active damping and passive damping:
Active damping:Active damping refers to energy dissipation from the system by external means, such as controlled actuator, etc.
Passive damping:
Passive damping refers to energy dissipation within the structure by add-on damping devices such as isolator, by structural joints and supports, or by structural member's internal damping.
Information from MTU.EDU - here
Many times church leaders, especially pastors, get to fill, and feel, the role of vibration dampers. If you are not familiar with such things - as described above - they are basically some form of rubber or elastomer that separate a retaining bolt or screw (churches, families, church members) from the object that is in motion (the world, sinful acts, selfish people, death, etc). Many times church leaders have to absorb the majority of the shock where the force does not destroy the individual, the family, the ministry, the church, or any other number of things that the leader is in a leadership or protector role over.
I say this not because it is the job that leaders want, but it is the job that leaders are called too. The Bible is clear that leaders have a higher call and they are responsible for what their followers learn, what they are taught, the values that are conveyed, etc. Leader’s due to their call have to work to be sure that those that follow and listen to them are not being taught, encouraged to follow or affected by false and wrong teachings and that the actions of sin are kept out of their flock as best as possible.
Most of the time this is accomplished easily as most shocks are not sudden and deep and are easily absorbed. This is best visualized when we look at a car' suspension. If we have one tire that is slight deflated we may never noticed it because the suspension mask it via it constant slight adjustments and it's ability to absorb the small difference in rotation and travel that one tire causes. Over time though if that tire is not repaired or properly inflated the shock will get worse and eventually the difference in travel and rotation is very noticeable.
Unfortunately, many people never care about the problem until it reaches that point. The leader is the one that tries to correct the problem before it reaches the noticeable point. They do this because they are the one that is first aware of the situation, when it is still minor, and they absorb it and solve it before it impacts others. That is pro-activity and that is what Christ was about. Christ believed in dealing with problems when they happen or when they were occurring, not at some later point when destruction was at hand. The nature of Christ and God is to have their followers deal with the problem / sin before they are planted, where they never flower or develop into bigger issues. Christians are called to eliminate sin, not just ignore it. Christians are called to flee from sin, not develop a healthy respect for it. The leader accomplishes this by encouraging and directing those around them to eliminate is, avoid sin, deal with issues, and work to become more holy instead of maintaining their current worldly lifestyles.
Unfortunately over time the more vibration or shock that a damper takes the more it breaks down and the less it is able to absorb shock. Even if it just small shocks over time the damper wears out if it is not maintained. In the church that comes out in people quitting or leaving ministries (similar to the situation we discussed with our church mate A - link here - a few weeks ago), or people becoming less and less involved in leadership where they have less and less stress or shock in their lives. Sometimes it even results in the complete physical, emotional and spiritual destruction of the damper. Regardless of the risk though, damping shock (i.e. protecting the followers from the full attacks, lies, and temptations of the enemy) is part of being a leader, and it is a part that can be very dangerous for all involved if not handled correctly.
Now, I am not here to say that we all are called to be vibration dampers, though I do believe we are all leaders in some portion of our lives to some other person or group of people. Of course, we all know people that get a hang nail or catch a extra red light going to work and it puts them into emotional torment. Those people need to be protected from shock, not absorb shock themselves. Someday they may be able to act as dampers but that time is not now. Truthfully, if they acted as dampers they would not reduce the shock but actually increase it due to their actions that would cause more stress, more frustration, more division, and more ripple effects. Unfortunately many times these are the people that yearn to act as dampers as they want to help others and be involved, but that is a note in itself for another day. Fortunately though a person of this emotional makeup is probably not ever going to rise to high leadership position because they break down emotional before reaching a point where they are responsible of others.
Now back to true leaders, true dampers, they take the blow and they do not let the protected person or group ever feel it. While doing this though, the true dampers warn the followers about what the full effect would have been. The leader does this with the hope that they - the damper - will not have to the absorb that same shock again. That is what leaders do, they lead, they have vision, they catch spears, they command respect, they teach lessons, and they create the desire in others to follow them because they do the things listed above well.
The trick is that the leader also has to learn to get out of the shock damping business at times. There are times that the damper has to take a rest and recover where they can restore their previous shock damping capacity. That is why it is key for leaders to always be about creating other leaders and it is also key to for them to maintain a support structure around them. The center of this support structure should be God, His words and His lessons. If leaders do not develop and maintain a good support system with other developed and developing leaders they will wear out or break like I mentioned before. Many times this can be avoided by allowing other fellow leaders to help absorb the shock. God does not leave us alone and isolated for long. He always sends us a support team to help us handle all that comes against us. Finally, there are also times that the leader has to allow a bit more shock to reach the protected. The leader has to do this where they - the followers - fully understand the situation.
Next week I will talk about a second part of this situation - the hard jolts. So do not think I am saying that the job of leaders is to completely isolate the masses, next week I will address that more. No what I am trying to say today is that although vibration and shock damping is one of the duties of leadership it is one that has to be handled where it does not destroy the leader (the damper). To handle it correctly the leader has to balance the needs of protecting their flock with protecting themselves, fighting sin, and insuring both their own and the groups future. Again I return to a point I have already made, but one that can not be stressed too much, the best way to accomplish the first (protecting others) is to be sure that there is proper personal support (a key to the second point - hard jolts) where the leader / main damper is not alone in their duties.
I am not sure if this was any help to you, but hopefully what God put on my heart made it through this. Regardless of weather this was beneficial or not at this moment this is a important lesson. God calls his people, who I believe are all leaders in some way, to overcome the world and live lives of holiness and servant hood. At times to accomplish those things - holiness & servant hood - you may be have to care for and protect others by absorbing the vibration and shock that others bring into the situation.
"I counsel you to buy from me gold refined in the fire, so you can become rich; and white clothes to wear, so you can cover your shameful nakedness; and salve to put on your eyes, so you can see. To him who overcomes, I will give the right to sit with me on my throne, just as I overcame and sat down with my Father on his throne. He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches" (Revelation 3:18,21,22, NIV).
Stay strong, be courageous, and serve God mightily.
