“Now when the people saw that Moses delayed coming down from the mountain, they gathered together before Aaron and said to him, “Come, make us a god who will go before us; as for this Moses, the man who brought us up from the land of Egypt, we do not know what has become of him.” So Aaron replied to them, “Take off the gold rings that are in the ears of your wives, your sons and daughters, and bring them to me.” So all the people took off the gold rings that were in their ears and brought them to Aaron. And he took the gold from their hands, and fashioned it with an engraving tool and made it into a molten calf; and they said, “This is your god, O Israel, who brought you up from the land of Egypt.” Now when Aaron saw the molten calf, he built an altar before it; and Aaron made a proclamation, and said, “Tomorrow shall be a feast to the Lord!””
Exodus 32:1-5 AMP
There is so much happening in Exodus 32 and while I want to blame it all on the impatience of the Israelites, I was struck instead by Aaron’s response to their complaint.
Moses delayed. He was gone for 40 days. We have no idea how long it had been from the plagues to this point, but it was at the beginning of what would be a 40 year journey.
And, in just 40 days, they turned from “yes Lord!! We will do what you say!!” (Exodus 24:3) to worshipping a golden calf. Just FORTY days!
In just 40 days of waiting, they grew impatient, asked Aaron to make them a god, and Aaron said YES! How did they make the jump so quickly?
Aaron – who was an intricate part of and had a front row seat to the many miracles of G-d in Egypt, Aaron who witnessed everything FIRST HAND, gave up and gave in when the people complained instead of reminding them what G-d had done.
Aaron’s response mattered. Aaron asked for their gold. Aaron fashioned the calf. Aaron built at altar. Aaron proclaimed the feast – and the people worshipped – a calf mind you – with great abandonment, so much in fact that Joshua thought the sound he heard was the sound of a war in the camp. (Exodus 32:17-18).
I can’t help but be stuck by Aaron’s response and wonder how things might have been different if he responded differently and led the people through their fear instead of giving in.
We’ll never know of course and it was all part of G-d’s plan in the end, but as a leader, there’s a message here for me: leadership matters. Whether I am leading at home or at the office, how I respond to my family and my team during moments of fear and crisis DOES make a difference. I have a choice in how I will respond personally and how I will lead in moments of crisis and pain.
Last year at the Global Leadership Summit, Author Shola Richards shared a story that became my motto: be the Buffalo. He relayed an African proverb his dad shared with him during a particularly difficult and painful time about buffaloes. His father said, “Shola, when a storm comes, cows run in the direction of the storm and as a result they tire quickly and give up. But the Buffalo – the Buffalo turns INTO the storm and plods forward. As a result – they come through the storm much faster. Look at them! They are big and strong. BE THE BUFFALO!!”
The proverb became my mantra. In difficulty, I want to “Be the Buffalo”. Sometimes I stand strong. Sometimes the storm knocks me over – but I get up – and I keep plodding forward.
As a leader, I want to inspire my family, colleagues, and team to stand as strongly in the storms as they have in the sunshine. I want to inspire them to dig a little deeper and hold on a little longer. I don’t want my kids or my team to give up too soon and “worship a calf” – I want them to hold on and stand strong knowing that G-d is good, He can be trusted, and His leadership is perfect. Whatever we are facing – good or bad – may He find us standing strong waiting for Him to come. He might be closer than we think.
Father – I love You. Thank You for how you constantly pursue and teach me. Help me to stand strong today. Amen.