From Judges To Today: Why Producers Must Lead

A strange little parable from Judges 9 wouldn’t leave us alone: trees asking for a king, the olive, fig, and vine declining, and a bramble stepping up with threats and empty shade. We followed that thread through Abimelech’s bloody grab for power—funded by seventy pieces of silver and judged by a falling millstone—and asked what it says about leadership today in government and the church. The picture is uncomfortably clear: when producers avoid service, brambles rush in, soak up resources, and set fires they can’t control.We dig into the difference between builders and performers. Builders speak in solutions, accept fallout, and measure by fruit. Performers multiply programs, manage optics, and explain why it’s complicated. That contrast can feel abrasive because our ears have been trained by bramble talk—lawyerly hedging, endless process, and outcomes that never quite arrive. We trace how that dynamic shows up in Congress, on church boards, and even in our own habits of cynicism, humor, and influence. Clearing brush starts locally: refuse to be lobbied by money, status, or outrage; choose fruit over shade.There’s good news. We sense a real call for quiet producers to step forward—prayerful men and women who love Scripture, dislike drama, and actually build. Expect leadership that sounds different: fewer slogans, more work; fewer committees, more disciples; less marketing, more mission. If that jars your sensibilities, test it by fruit. Are people being served, saved, and strengthened? Is the field producing again? That’s our aim: to challenge, encourage, and invite you to say, Here I am, send me.https://wofoyo.org/              #wofoyo