The president of a third world country once asked his pastor, “Who is more powerful? The president or a spiritual leader like a pastor in this case?” This certainly makes for a good debate. There are very interesting points to be raised on both sides, but I think the spiritual leader has an edge. Everyone needs a “spiritual well” from which they can draw energy, strength and warmth. You need someone that is there for you in that sense. Stimulating your spirit and helping you activate your latent spiritual potentials.
It is not everyone that is able to, or willing to grow their spirit to the level of not needing any intermediary at all. You are always going to need someone functioning at a higher consciousness than you to help you activate and stimulate your spirit. You need to engage with a true master in some form of apprenticeship. The fellowship will transform you in a profound way and you will unlock greater productivity. That is what the right apprenticeship and mentorships do for people. However, your mentor is not to replace God in your life, and such authority should never be abused.
We know that God wants people to work together. The goal is not dependency or independence. The real goal is INTERdependence, a state whereby we depend upon each other and neither can succeed without the other. We see then that the president needs the pastor as much as the pastor needs the president. If everybody insists that they do not need anybody else to grow into their full potential, we will have a cruel society. There will be no checks and balances to serve as a guardrail against our more sinister tendencies. To grow into your most powerful and effective person, you need to be connected to a spiritual well somewhere.
