When to Roll Up Your Sleeves
Rolling Up Your Sleeves vs. Delegation
There are a ton of articles out there on delegation and why great leaders become masters at this art. I absolutely believe that our focus should be primarily on the things that only we can do, and that we should allow others to handle tasks they are capable of executing well. However, from time to time, even leaders need to step up and complete the task at hand—regardless of what that work looks like. There is something profoundly impactful about a leader who truly understands how to get the job done.
Not just the big overarching "job," but also the small, daily tasks that those who report to us perform regularly. A lot of learning takes place when we get into the weeds, and this firsthand experience often enables us to make better decisions by getting up close and personal with the work.
The Bible has insightful wisdom on the balance between delegation and rolling up our sleeves. Let’s take a look.
Doing the Work Yourself
Proverbs 14:23 – "All hard work brings a profit, but mere talk leads only to poverty."
This emphasizes that personal effort and diligence lead to results.
Colossians 3:23 – "Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters."
A reminder that our work should be done with dedication and excellence, as if serving God.
Galatians 6:4-5 – "Each one should test their own actions. Then they can take pride in themselves alone, without comparing themselves to someone else, for each one should carry their own load."
Encourages personal responsibility for one's own work.
Delegating and Leadership
Exodus 18:17-23 – (Jethro’s advice to Moses) "What you are doing is not good. You and these people who come to you will only wear yourselves out... Select capable men from all the people and appoint them as officials over thousands, hundreds, fifties, and tens."
Moses was advised to delegate tasks so he wouldn’t be overwhelmed.
Acts 6:2-4 – "It would not be right for us to neglect the ministry of the word of God in order to wait on tables... We will turn this responsibility over to them and will give our attention to prayer and the ministry of the word."
The apostles delegated tasks so they could focus on their primary mission.
So what should we do?
These verses highlight an important balance. Proverbs 14:23 warns us against being all talk and no action—we need to understand the work itself when leading others. In Acts 6, the apostles chose wisely what to delegate and what to keep. They didn’t offload all work to simply take on managerial or QC roles. Instead, they kept the most vital tasks that required direct engagement with people's spiritual well-being, while delegating other necessary but different responsibilities.
While delegation is smart and often necessary, my encouragement to you today is to find a way to get close to those doing the real work. Roll up your sleeves. Give some of it a shot. Have some fun with it. Learn. Not only will you benefit, but those you lead will as well—because they will see a leader worth following!
-Mark
