Avoiding Third Rate Successors - A Lesson from Elijah

When I was engaged in training managers one of the issues was about developing people who would most likely take your job someday. Like all of us either the chariot of fire will come and pick us up or the grave will call. I'm still hoping for that chariot of fire.

The issue always was and is: First rate people hire and first rate people. Second rate people hire third rate people and are frustrated by the results. Most of the time it's a matter of fear and intimidation that keeps people from putting in place the kind of men and women needed to do the job. People with low confidence hire people who won't threaten them.

Elijah didn't seem to suffer from that problem. He hired Elisha. Elisha was bold enough to not only ask for the Mantle of Leadership but for a double anointing. If your successor isn't believing to be twice as effective as you currently are, then you have the wrong person in the line of succession. Here are some principles I believe I can scripturally demonstrate from the interaction between Elijah and Elisha about leadership succession. And without Midrash!

• Choose gifted and anointed people. Don’t be afraid to find someone that has the potential to be better than you are in your current role. There is no substitute for the Gift of God in Ministry. Elisha should always exceed Elijah in greater works.
• Identify the key elements of your role that need to be executed and communicate those expectations to your Elisha. You want them to understand what is expected from the assumption of the Mantle.
• Create a plan for their development. Development does not happen by accident and you need to lay out the details of how you will train them. Then do it.
• Serve as an active coach providing your Elisha with honest feedback about their current performance and partner with them on how they can step further into their calling. Elisha must be challenged to go further, deeper and higher.
• Be sure to celebrate as they grow, extol them in their progress and insure that they are empowered to take on new duties and responsibilities when the Mantle is dropped. Expect them to do better, twice better, than you EVER did.

I have often wondered if, as Jesus was about to ascend back to the Father, when he said Greater Works will you do, if he wasn't thinking about Elijah and Elisha. Are we missing the mark by not expecting a double anointing? To do greater works?

Just asking, because I have that pesky old Bible next to me. There's so much in there that we aren't doing.