Ghandi, a charismatic leader who used his influence for good.
The world has gone mad! Unreasonable people are making unreasonable decisions and coercing others to take unreasonable actions on their behalf. Youth of South Africa, youth of the world: Listen! This is your call to action. Hear what people have to say, learn what they are talking about and then think for yourselves and determine if they are right and just in their words. Follow those who are an inspiration for good and not evil. Lead those who might otherwise lose their way. Youth today, you have a responsibility to help repair the world. In Hebrew it is called Tikkun Olam.
Every person has a responsibility to fulfill the mission of Tikkun Olam. Young people can start by being a positive influence amongst their classmates in school. One way is to stand up against the “bullies” who want control. A bully only becomes a bully when he can get others to follow after him. If bullies are allowed to influence young people, when they go on to University their loud voices will be heard by many. They will manipulate their friends to follow their lead and pretty soon a movement of mindless followers begins to create havoc on the campuses. Those bullies then move into positions of power in businesses, cities and governments and so corruption and evil ensue.
When a charismatic individual rises to a place of leadership, whether in school, on the job, or in government they have influence that can affect other people for the good or bad. For those powerful people whose thinking is unreasonable, their charisma gives them the ability to influence their followers in a way they don’t even realize they are not thinking for themselves. This is very dangerous. So who will stand up against them? What will it take for the bad people in leadership to be called out for what they are and for good people to step in and make the world a better place? It is time to break this cycle. Youth of the world; it is time to listen, learn and take action.
Youth, stand up to bullies.
The story of Moses’ young adulthood can give a lot of insight into choosing to stand up against bullies.
One day, after Moses had grown up, he went out to where his own people were and watched them at their hard labor. He saw an Egyptian beating a Hebrew, one of his own people. Looking this way and that and seeing no one, he killed the Egyptian and hid him in the sand. The next day he went out and saw two Hebrews fighting. He asked the one in the wrong, “Why are you hitting your fellow Hebrew?”
The man said, “Who made you ruler and judge over us? Are you thinking of killing me as you killed the Egyptian?” Then Moses was afraid and thought, “What I did must have become known.” When Pharaoh heard of this, he tried to kill Moses, but Moses fled from Pharaoh and went to live in Midian, where he sat down by a well. Now a priest of Midian had seven daughters, and they came to draw water and fill the troughs to water their father’s flock. Some shepherds came along and drove them away, but Moses got up and came to their rescue and watered their flock.” Exodus 2:11-17
OK…we can’t change the fact that Moses actually killed the Egyptian bully (not recommended!), but the fact is that Moses saw someone doing an injustice and stood up against him. Were there consequences to his actions? Absolutely! Should he have handled the situation differently? For sure! But Moses’ decision to stand up was very brave. He did suffer life-changing consequences because of the way he went about it. He lost his princely position with the Pharaoh, he lost the respect of his own people and he was forced to flee for his life. But even in the same biblical paragraph, Moses went on to stand up again for the daughters of the Midian priest against other bullies. Despite Moses’ terrible act against the Egyptian, his heart was in the right place. And God gave him a chance to redeem himself by eventually asking him to save the Hebrews from the cruel hand of the Pharaoh and lead them out of Egypt and into the Promised Land. This story speaks volumes into the fact that even when we make awful mistakes, if our heart is in the right place we can be given opportunities to redeem ourselves.
Consequences for bad behavior are a given, but blessings for noble actions also abound. Moses didn’t always make the right decisions, but he tried to obey God throughout his journey in life. That’s all that can be asked of anyone. What made Moses a good leader? He had a sense of justice for his fellow man. He didn’t go along with the cruel ways of the powerful Pharaoh. He didn’t allow other Egyptians to do harsh things against the people. He stepped in to confront one of his own people when they were in the wrong in an argument. He did a kind thing for women who were being taken advantage of. And most importantly, he listened to the call of God when the time came to go back to Egypt and rescue his people. Did he feel worthy? No. Did he feel afraid and inadequate? Most certainly the answer is yes. But he did it. And the world is a better place because of it.
The next generation of youth will lead us~
Youth of today, stand firm against those who want to do harm to others. Be brave and take a stand. Don’t be afraid of what others will think of you. In the end, you are the only one accountable for your actions, or inactions. You can be a part of Tikkun Olam by making the world around you a better place starting today. Take the challenge. It will be worth it!
