This is the forty-ninth of a weekly blog series that will focus on leadership in the outdoors and how to get the most from the least. Even though the title is called, “Thoughts of a Modern-Day Mountain Man”, it will hopefully cover topics that are useful to everyone.
Chapter 49: Turn the Tables.
"We shall go on to the end. We shall fight in France, we shall fight on the seas and oceans, we shall fight with growing confidence and growing strength in the air, we shall defend our island, whatever the cost may be. We shall fight on the beaches, we shall fight on the landing grounds, we shall fight in the fields and in the streets, we shall fight in the hills; we shall never surrender."
- Winston Churchill June 4th, 1940
“The battle of France is over. I expect that the Battle of Britain is about to begin. Upon this battle depends the survival of Christian civilisation. Upon it depends our own British life, and the long continuity of our institutions and our Empire. The whole fury and might of the enemy must very soon be turned upon us. Hitler knows that he will have to break us in this island or lose the war.
If we can stand up to him, all Europe may be free and the life of the world may move forward into broad, sunlit uplands. But if we fail, then the whole world, including the United States, including all that we have known and cared for, will sink into the abyss of a new Dark Age made more sinister, and perhaps more protracted, by the lights of perverted science. Let us therefore brace ourselves to our duties, and so bear ourselves that, if the British Empire and its Commonwealth last for a thousand years, men will still say, ‘This was their finest hour.’”
-Winston Churchill June 18th, 1940
Winston Churchill believed that oration skill was one of the most powerful skills and abilities a human could possess. He believed this even to the point of stating that if a man loses all material possessions and titles in his life, if that person can still possess the ability to be a powerful orator they still had in their possession something more powerful than any earthly King, and that power can never be taken away.
The unique thing about Churchill is that his rhetoric and impassioned speeches weren't simply meaningless words, but rather profound statements backed up by experiences from the field by a man of life-long action. Winston Churchill knew what it meant to go to war, to fight other men over what was right and true, and he had a full understanding of all the sacrifices and hardships that would result from war. Still knowing all of that, his impassioned speeches leading up to World War Two inspired his country and the entire free world to prepare to take action against the evil that was coming for them. Sir Winston Churchill knew and realized that the time for diplomacy had passed, that evil could not be reasoned or rationalized with, and fighting to the last man would be a necessity if what is good and right were to win the day and the world. England and the United States of America had fought many wars and battles in the past against each other, but this was no longer a fight over property, commerce, or governmental style but rather fighting together against evil and demonic ideals. How quickly we have forgotten these lessons and we now find ourselves in another time and place requiring immediate and substantial actions for the causes of truth and liberty.
We can use the speeches and actions of Winston Churchill as an example when we serve in the role as a leader or guide at an outdoor program or facility. We may often find ourselves in the role of providing inspiration, prompting the staff or participants in our care to take discernable immediate action. The ability to be a powerful and great orator is not a gift that many men or women possess in today's world. Most of what we hear from our leaders is empty rhetoric, with no relatable experience or action to back it up. Winston Churchill is widely regarded as one of the greatest speakers of all time and certainly the best of his generation. There was a simple reason for this. Even in his later years when times and resources would have allowed him to take refuge and seek a place of safety and comfort he chose to go into harm's way and to stare evil down and to work to eliminate it at all costs. Being on the front lines by choice gave his impassioned speeches a genuineness that his fellow countrymen understood. Leading from the front was not just some new age catchphrase, but a way of life. He would never ask his fellow countrymen or inspire them to do something he himself would not do or hadn’t done already. He was the ultimate leader for the ultimate mission.
The mountain men of yesteryear were very well known and regarded for their storytelling and public speaking ability. While some of these stories were purely fiction and grandiose in their nature, they still came from a place of knowledge of action. Simply by being in the mountains the men and women of the golden area of the trappers and traders were people of action. Their oration skills and abilities, while highly embellished, still built upon the true and everyday life experiences of their audiences. When they talked about how high the mountain pass was or how big a grizzly bear was the audience could visualize it because they too had experienced such things. During the Second World War almost the entirety of the world was forced into action. Some by choice and some by necessity. A leader was needed that could pull the good world up by its bootstraps and provide a story and message that others could follow.
Being a leader of substance and experience is one of the main reasons why I believe getting solid experience and learning as much as possible before taking on any leadership role is of paramount importance. It is very difficult to inspire and lead others into a place or position of difficulty, if you yourself have not experienced that same difficulty before. Without this good experience, your talk and leadership is purely theoretical. I have encountered a few supervisors or leaders that clearly gained their position from something other than merit, and it became painfully clear that they did not know their business or their craft in a way that would be beneficial to their staff or program.
When we think of the great speakers or writers of all time, Winston Churchill will be towards the top of most lists, but without a doubt the most influential leader and speaker of all time is Jesus Christ. The words He spoke came from a higher power and understanding and were for a greater purpose than any speech or writing a human man or woman could ever give, no matter how well it was written or rehearsed. Jesus' talks and speeches had the explicit purpose of equipping all subsequent generations with the knowledge and framework to provide a substantial concrete objective moral foundation.
However, Jesus didn't stop at just words, parables, or speeches; He was also a man of action and continually placed Himself in harm's way to defend against and wholly defeat evil. When Jesus turned over the tables in the temple to run out the merchants, this marked the end of the time for talk and diplomacy, it was time for hard discernable action. Tales of this action undoubtedly followed Jesus the rest of His days on earth and when He spoke to the people they would have known the words were coming from a man willing to take action. His ultimate action of sacrifice would lead to Him overcoming death and the devil on our behalf. After His arrest, Jesus could have used His powerful oration skills or even called on Angels to rescue Him from the coming suffering, but He didn’t; His actions needed to back up His talk.
I believe God our creator always has a plan to put us in the place we need to be. God also gives all of us different gifts. By choosing to be a leader or guide in an outdoor program, facility, or conference center, especially a Christian one, we have chosen to use the gifts and skills God has given us to lead a life of action. Our undertaking is no longer philosophical or theoretical, but rather practical and applied. I have personally heard many teachers and preachers throughout the years that could deliver a very eloquent sermon or lesson using their oratorial skills God had endowed them with. However, these words were not necessarily coming from men of positive action, in fact some of their actions ran counter to the very words they spoke. This is why Christ’s words were so powerful, they were not just empty words or promises, but fulfilled and paid in full by His sacrifices and actions. This is the example we should strive to emulate.
We must endure to never find ourselves in this position as leaders, delivering words with no substance or backing. We must make ourselves table turners, always ready and willing to cast out the nest of vipers we encounter in our ministries and programs. Diplomacy and rhetoric have a time and place, but so does action. If we can become someone who represents the best of both worlds, and use our good experiences to know when to act and when to talk, we will become part of a rare company. With examples like Winston Churchill and Jesus Christ the very words and speeches they utilized were tangible and real actions, delivered by men of action who were willing to get into the fight and turn the tables on those who represented evil.
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