Cultivating A Circle of Influence
Read time: 6 mins / Author: Paul Records
At The Full Proof Man, we talk a lot about a man’s “circle of influence.” Because this is such a vital concept, we want to discuss it in more detail in this article.
Every man, informed of the fact or not, has been given by God a certain measure of influence. In the New Testament, the apostle Paul often used the Greek word charismata to describe the spiritual gifts, or divine empowerment, of the church. It is where we get the English word charisma meaning “influence with others.” These gifts are not reserved for a selected few but distributed to all believers. As a man is filled with the Spirit and begins to develop a life of devotion, he will begin to discover the God-given gifts that are available to him.
Though a man may not run a business, manage employees, or hold a formal position at his church, he has been called to a certain level of spiritual leadership. He may not be married, he may not have children, and he may not feel he is worthy. Nonetheless, he has a role to play in leading, defending, and stewarding the people around him.
The various sectors of his life, which demand a level of responsibility, form around him a circle of influence.
This circle may include his immediate family, his extended family, his business, his church, his neighborhood, his students, his team, his friends, or his troops. His circle consists of anything or anyone that he may lead, defend, or steward.
It must also be stated that, in every man’s circle, there is a certain culture. This “life culture” follows him wherever he may go and is created by the example he sets, the company he keeps, the choices he makes, the things he celebrates or allows, and what he may advocate, oppose, or pursue.
The culture within his circle is a representation of himself–his thoughts, his emotions, his actions, his words, and the overall direction of his life.
If he cheats on his taxes, lies to his wife, never pays his debts, or cannot keep a job, these behaviors create a negative life culture. Likewise, if he tells the truth, is faithful to his wife, goes the extra mile in his work, and maintains a consistent walk with God, he creates a positive life culture. In this sense, he either adds to his circle or subtracts from it.
In our pursuit of Full Proof manhood, we must continually ask ourselves:
Who or what is in my circle?
What kind of culture am I creating around me?
How can I become a better leader, defender, or steward of my circle?
SHAMMAH: A CASE STUDY
To help us embody the concept of a circle of influence, it is helpful to read the story of a man in the Old Testament named Shammah, son of Agee. Though he does not have as much press in the Bible as characters like Moses, David, or Elijah he provides a stirring example of what a man must do to defend the territory assigned to him.
From the time of the Exodus, the Philistines were a fierce, warlike people. They had such a reputation as warriors that, as God led Moses and the twelve tribes out of Egypt, He took them on a southern route to circumvent the Philistines' land out of concern that they would strike fear in the Israelites (Exodus 13:17). The Philistines were a seafaring nation with highly developed weapons who settled on the Mediterranean coast of Canaan, and they had become the chief enemy of Israel by the time of Saul, Israel's first king.
Not only were the Philistines fierce and brutal, but they were strategic. First Samuel 13:16-22 notes that, to prevent Israel from forming weapons, they attacked and killed all the blacksmiths and iron-workers. When David became king in Israel, he fought nearly constant battles to dispel the Philistines from Canaan. They were a large nation divided among a series of kings, each with a military force. Goliath, the giant whom David slew as a young man, was a Philistine warrior trained in the art of war from childhood.
It is in this context that David formed an elite force of Israelite warriors to confront the Philistine threat. Among these “mighty men” were three chief warriors known for their great exploits.
Listed among this core group of three was Shammah, the son of Agee. Shammah was no ordinary soldier. He was a member of the elite ranks in Israel’s army and commanded 24,000 men (2 Samuel 23:25; 1 Chronicles 27:8).
It is recorded that on a certain day the Philistines sent out a large troop to raid a field of lentils. Scholars believe that by modest counts this was a company of about sixty men. Their goal was to destroy the crops that fed the Israelite people. This was common practice in ancient warfare. Some historical accounts portray armies marching through wheat fields simply to walk over and destroy the crops of their enemies.
Lentils were a vital component of the typical diet among Hebrews. They were used in stews and smashed to produce paste or cakes.
If the Philistines were able to destroy this crop, it would potentially starve the people and force the Israelite army to relocate and thus lose their position on the battlefield.
Whatever their exact reasoning, the Philistine troop had been sent to disrupt the harvesting of the lentils and to kill anyone who would resist them.
As the Philistines marched in all their might and fury, the Israelite people fled in fear (2 Samuel 23:11). Farmers quickly dropped their tools, grabbed their children, and ran in the opposite direction seeking safety. As they ran away, Shammah stepped onto the scene and “stationed himself in the middle of the field” (2 Samuel 23:12). As the Philistine troop marched closer by the minute, he sharpened his sword and tightened the leather straps on his armor. The biblical text indicates that Shammah was alone, though it does not tell us why. We are left to only guess. The field of lentils may have belonged to his family. Or, it may have been owned by a fellow member of his tribe. Or perhaps, Shammah knew that this field and its future harvest would sustain the greater network of families living throughout the Judean plains.
Though we do not know if Shammah had a personal connection to the lentil field, we do know that he decided to stand, face, and fight the attacking enemy force by himself. He believed that the lentil field was worth defending. By the day's end, Shammah stood in the field with a sword in hand and the bodies of his enemies laying at his feet.
So the Lord brought about a great victory. 2 Samuel 23:12.
This is the story of Shammah and a testament to his courage to defend a field of harvest that others had left behind. Because of his efforts on the battlefield that day, a great number of Israelite families had food on their tables in the months that followed. Though he fought alone, his fight was worthy, and it was recorded as one of the many great exploits of David’s mighty men.
In his classic book Mansfield’s Book of Manly Men, Stephen Mansfield writes these potent words:
Every man has been given territory. Let’s call it a field. It might help some men to think of it as a zone. This territory is defined by what a man is responsible for. The key to powerful manhood is that a man fully owns—takes responsibility for, tends, stands guard over, assures the healthy condition of—the field assigned to him. Who “belongs” to him? What is he responsible for? What forces (physical, moral, emotional, spiritual, intellectual) must he guard against?
It is the job of a man to cultivate that field—to guard its boundaries, assure its health, provide for it generously, and fill it with love so it thrives.
He takes responsibility for the field assigned to him because he knows this is what he is put on earth to do. He also knows that faithfulness now is the key to increase later.*
These words are exemplified in the life of Shammah. And they illustrate what every man, father, and husband must do to ensure the sustainability and success of those whom God has placed in his circle of influence. There will be moments when he feels as if he is fighting alone. He will look behind him and see others surrendering to cultural pressures, selfish desires, and complacent attitudes. Then, he will look ahead of him and see the monumental task of fatherhood. Though the fight is never easy, it most definitely is worth it.
Each man has at his disposal a territory to which he has been called to steward. Though he may, at times, feel overwhelmed in the task of its defense, he must cross the metaphorical “line in the sand” and face the adversary with a will to win.
As was the case of the Philistines in the Old Testament, our adversary is strategic. He knows exactly where to strike to cause the greatest effect. But as a man becomes active and deliberate in the cultivation of his territory, he can dispel the lies of the enemy and cast out what seeks to rob him of an enduring legacy.
References
*Stephen Mansfield, Mansfield's Book of Manly Men (Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 2013), 64.
