Status Quo??

THIS caught my attention earlier today - and it's a quote that had never been on my radar:

 "Status quo, you know, is Latin for 'the mess we're in'."  

                                                                                -Ronald Reagan  

(Correctly translated is means "the state in which".)

I let out a laugh!  Ya got to hand it to RR - he always did have a knack for saying things in a memorable way.

I've been letting this phrase be a part of my day, and I believe there are implications on leadership - as it relates to the "status quo":

1) A leader who loves the status quo will quickly become a follower.  To be leading - by definition - means that you are toward the front, breaking new ground, exploring new worlds, moving away from the status quo.  Leaders are seldom content with the way things are - but they carefully need to cultivate their vision for "what could be" in healthy and dynamic ways.

2) Dissatisfaction with the status quo does not mean having a negative, grumbling attitude.  Unfortunately, many leaders eager to challenge the status quo are misinterpreted as "trouble makers".  At it's best, this has more to with the willingness to try different things - and mustering up courage to take risks.  Someone that fails to take risks now and then, fails to grow.   And what happens when something stops growing?

3) Risking the status quo feels very dangerous because so many people are more comfortable with old problems - versus what it takes to come up with new solutions.  Good leaders will be constantly seeking to come up with new ways to solve problems.  What feels "dangerous" in the present can actually strengthen and save many organizations or families or Churches in the long haul. So hopefully, an attitude that leans away from maintaining the status quo is invited, encouraged, nurtured - and appreciated.

Another quote that I came across and put up on my Facebook status several weeks ago:

"Dead things don't change.  Living things always do".  

                                                                     -Author?  (I. Dunno)

If we are alive - and more significantly, alive in CHRIST - we should recognize that an important part of His character was - undeniably - challenging the status quo.  You simply cannot read very far into the Gospels to catch this significant trait in Him.  Jesus came to bring change.  He came to NOT let things be the same.  He came to usher in something new and fresh and powerful and dynamic:  His Kingdom.  Seeking to live out the Gospel daily, will always bring with it fresh and glorious challenges and changes.  Christ wants to peel us away from the status quo - and offer us a more abundant and purposeful and complete way of living.

Paul sums it up quite nicely below...

The Word You Can Lean On:
2 Corinthians 5:17 - "Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, He is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new."