WISDOM FOR LIVING DAILY DEVOTIONAL
JULY 19, 2024
TOPIC: SHARE CREDIT WITH YOUR TEAM
BY T. O. BANSO
“Then the king promoted Daniel and gave him many great gifts; and he made him ruler over the whole province of Babylon, and chief administrator over all the wise men of Babylon. Also Daniel petitioned the king, and he set Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego over the affairs of the province of Babylon; but Daniel sat in the gate of the king” (Daniel 2:48-49 New King James Version).
King Nebuchadnezzar threatened to kill the wise men in his kingdom if they did not tell him his dream and its interpretation. However, he promised that whoever told him the dream and its interpretation would receive gifts, rewards, and great honour.
Nebuchadnezzar knew the dream, but he didn’t know the interpretation. But to be sure anyone who interpreted the dream was correct, he insisted that the person tell him the dream and the interpretation. None of them could. “For this reason the king was angry and very furious, and gave the command to destroy all the wise men of Babylon. So the decree went out, and they began killing the wise men; and they sought Daniel and his companions, to kill them” (Daniel 2:12-13 New King James Version).
Daniel and his companions – Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah – were among those to be killed according to the king’s decree. When Daniel heard about it, he went to the king and pleaded for time to tell him his dream and its interpretation. “So Daniel went in and asked the king to give him time, that he might tell the king the interpretation. Then Daniel went to his house, and made the decision known to Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah, his companions, that they might seek mercies from the God of heaven concerning this secret, so that Daniel and his companions might not perish with the rest of the wise men of Babylon” (verses 16-17 New King James Version).
God revealed the secret to Daniel in a night vision and he went to tell the king the dream and its interpretation. “Then the king promoted Daniel and gave him many great gifts; and he made him ruler over the whole province of Babylon, and chief administrator over all the wise men of Babylon. Also Daniel petitioned the king, and he set Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego over the affairs of the province of Babylon; but Daniel sat in the gate of the king” (Daniel 2:48-49 New King James Version).
This scripture showed that Daniel was a team player and unselfish. Love is not selfish (1 Corinthians 13:5). After the king promoted him for telling him his dream and its interpretation, he didn’t go to enjoy his new office and the perquisite of office, forgetting his companions – Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah.
He remembered his companions whom he had told to ask the God of heaven to seek His mercies concerning the secret of the king’s dream so they would not be executed along with the other wise men of Babylon. Daniel knew that although God revealed the dream and its interpretation to him, they had all sought the mercies of God. Therefore, he petitioned the king after his promotion. He must have pleaded with the king to reward them for their role in the divine revelation of the dream and its interpretation to him.
The king had no idea what Daniel’s companions did because they didn’t come before him to ask for time to tell him the dream and its interpretation and didn’t come later to give him the answer he had sought. But because of Daniel’s petition, he promoted them also. Daniel shared the credit for his success with his team. He didn’t take the credit alone.
The fact that Daniel carried his companions along to seek the mercies of God to reveal the secret of the dream to them to avert the king’s decision to kill all the wise men in Babylon, including the four of them, showed he had team spirit. He could have gone to pray alone, but he didn’t because the four of them were affected by the king’s decision to kill all the wise men.
Jesus encouraged believers to pray in agreement. He said, “Again I say to you that if two of you agree on earth concerning anything that they ask, it will be done for them by My Father in heaven. For where two or three are gathered together in My name, I am there in the midst of them” (Matthew 18:19-20 New King James Version).
Going back to Daniel’s petition to the king concerning his companions, I will say that by this action, he demonstrated a great leadership skill. Don’t be concerned only about yourself. Don’t monopolize rewards for teamwork. Don’t deny other team members a share in the credit for performance or success. After all, if the team fails, they’ll also share in the blame. Sharing credit with others for their contributions to the success you have been praised or rewarded for does not reduce you. Acknowledging their involvement and roles will improve your image and motivate them to do more. Don’t be a leader who blames team members for failure but takes all the credit for team success.
An adage says, “A single tree cannot make a forest.” As a leader, acknowledge others’ contributions to your success. Nehemiah did. He highlighted the contributions of various people to the rebuilding of the Jerusalem wall (Nehemiah 3). He alone didn’t rebuild the wall in 52 days. He acknowledged the roles of others. He shared the credit with them.
Don’t receive and enjoy the credit for teamwork alone. Mention your team members to your superiors. Call their attention to their good works, ideas, or proposals. If they want to commend them directly, encourage it. It doesn’t reduce you if you’re the head. It only shows you are secure. Referring to a woman who honours the Lord, Proverbs 31:31 says, “Give her credit for all she does. She deserves the respect of everyone” (Good News Translation).
The same principle applies to your personal life. Acknowledge others’ contributions. Give them credit and share credit with them. Paul said about Priscilla and Aquila, “I send greetings to Priscilla and Aquila, my fellow workers in the service of Christ Jesus; they risked their lives for me. I am grateful to them—not only I, but all the Gentile churches as well” (Romans 16:3-4 Good News Translation). Note the phrase “they risked their lives for me. I am grateful to them.” Paul didn’t hide that Priscilla and Aquila played a role in his life. Do the same.
Paul also remembered the role of Onesiphorus in his life: “May the Lord be merciful to the family of Onesiphorus. He often took care of my needs and wasn’t ashamed that I was a prisoner” (2 Timothy 1:16 GOD’S WORD Translation).
When you magnify others, you’ll be magnified too. When you belittle their role or contributions to the overall success of a programme, project, or your life, you lock up what is in them. And you will become little also.
Share credit with your team. It improves your leadership ability. It increases the trust the team members have in you. It motivates them to do more. It enhances overall team performance.
TAKE ACTION!
If you are not born again, you need to give your life to Jesus now. Take the following steps: *Admit that you are a sinner, and cannot save yourself, and repent of your sins. *Confess Jesus as your Lord and Saviour. *Renounce your past way of life – your relationship with the devil and his works. *Invite Jesus into your life. *As a mark of seriousness to mature in the faith, start attending a Bible-believing and Bible-teaching church. There they will teach you how to grow in the Kingdom of God.
Kindly say this prayer now: O Lord God, I come unto You today. I know I am a sinner, and I cannot save myself. I believe that Jesus is the Son of God who died on the cross to save me and God raised Him on the third day. I repent of my sins and confess Jesus as my Lord and Saviour. I surrender my life to Jesus now and invite Him into my heart. By this prayer, I know I am saved. Thank You, Jesus, for saving me and making me a child of God.
I believe you have said this prayer from your heart. Congratulations! You must join a Bible-believing and Bible-teaching church where they will teach you how to live your new life in Christ Jesus. I pray that you flourish like a palm tree and grow like a cedar of Lebanon. May you grow into Christ in all things and become all God wants you to be. I will be glad to hear from you. The Lord be with you.
PRAYER POINTS: I will share credit with my team; I will not deny them the credit due to them. In my life, I shall acknowledge the contributions of others; I shall not be ungrateful or insecure.
(For over 900 in-depth and powerful messages by T. O. Banso, visit www.cedarministry.org).
T. O. Banso is the President of Cedar Ministry International, Abuja, Nigeria.
Phone No: +2348155744752, +2348033113523
WhatsApp No: +2349081295947
Email: cedarministryintl@yahoo.com,
cedarministryng@gmail.com
Website: www.cedarministry.org
