Not long ago a friend told me one of his co-workers had been promoted above him. "You wouldn't believe this guy," he said. "Power has gone to his head and he's becoming impossible." "How's that?" I asked. "Well," my friend said, "when I'm late even if it's only 10 minutes he says something about it. And he's always on my back about meeting projections. He used to be great to work with, but now no one wants to be around him."

Unfortunately, my friend's attitude reflects the attitude of many people. They don't understand that sometimes leaders have to make tough decisions. Sometimes leaders have to say things they don't like having to say. A leader can't be "one of the guys". Where others might be willing the let things slide, a leader has to deal with the problem.

In fact, this is the most difficult aspect of being a leader: You no longer have the luxury of turning your head and looking the other direction when a problem comes up. Leaders have to take responsibility for making things right, even when the task is unpleasant. Sometimes this calls for taking stock of a situation and cleaning house. This applies to all leaders pastors, parents, bosses, coaches, managers, or any other person in a leadership role.

There was a time in Jesus' ministry when he found himself in the midst of a bad situation in desperate need of an overhaul. He couldn't and certainly wouldn't look in the other direction. Instead, Jesus did something that no one would have expected him to do. The saying "Desperate times call for desperate measures" might apply to this story today.