Word of Wisdom: Empower

“Advised on & agreed…that His Honour will be pleased to Impower & authorise him for that purpose as he Shall Think Meet.”
Council Minutes, Fort Anne, Nova Scotia, 1727

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has been one of the top geopolitical stories—and tragedies—of the past year. It has ended or upended millions of lives; not just those in the combat zone, but also across Africa, Central Asia, and even Latin America due to food shortages caused by the conflict.

The human suffering has been severe, as it is always in war. But what has been surprising to observers the world over is the status of military operations ten months after the commencement of hostilities. While many believed the government in Kyiv would collapse quickly, Ukraine has not only repelled Russian forces, but also has executed successful counteroffensives and retaken territory.

The factors contributing to this are many, not least of which is Western military and economic aid to Ukraine. But also near the top of the list is the culture—and resulting combat effectiveness—of Russia’s army. Slow, centralized, top-down decision-making; low confidence in subordinates; rigid planning; and fear of failure have significantly contributed to poor performance…and morale.

Those cultural attributes, at least, are not a surprise. An authoritarian regime with roots in a paranoid security system could hardly be expected to exist without brutally confiscating power and coup-proofing the military. While it may preserve control, it necessarily prevents the empowering of frontline commanders. As a result, battlefield losses—and combat casualties—mount.

Disempowerment always disappoints. And daily life is not immune from it.

We have all experienced the limiting, if not debilitating, effect of not being empowered by someone near to us. We’ve been betrayed by someone who should support. We’ve had things or opportunities taken when they should be given. We’ve been undermined by sarcasm or accusation when we needed attention and affirmation. We’ve been condemned, not consoled. Ostracized, not authorized. Ignored instead of inspired.

Perhaps we too have failed to empower. Maybe it’s come to light that others have felt hurt or held back by us…even when we’ve tried to help.

Why is it that empowerment seems so fundamental, yet fundamentally elusive in our lives and leadership? Let’s examine the word itself for insight.

For the past forty years or so, a common meaning of empower has been “to give someone more confidence, positivity, or sense of strength”. Originally, however, the English word empower meant much more: “to give power or authority to someone”. It crossed the English Channel, as it were, from the Old French en- and pouer, meaning “ability to act or do; authority to command”. This developed from the Latin in- (“into”) and potere (“power, ability” or “to be able”). Spanish speakers will recognize that as the root of poder.

One thing we discover in this is a distinction between empower (“to put in power and ability”) and encourage (“to put in courage or heart”). While both are necessary, encouragement involves providing the inner person with needed resources; empowerment, on the other hand, provides the external means needed to take action. The means to procure something; decide something; order something; accomplish something.

Encouragement grants others the power to be—empowerment grants the power to do.

And “ay, there’s the rub”, to quote the Prince of Denmark. To truly put power, ability, into others means a grant of independence and autonomy that is difficult for us. It feels risky, because it feels like we’re putting things at risk: the status we’ve strived for, the assets we’ve accrued, the circumstances we’ve strategized, and—yes—the power we’ve prized.

We are limited, embodied beings, after all, and a granting of the finite amount of ability, access, and authority we possess—without a clawback clause—feels costly. Because there is, indeed, a cost.

But that very “power” we prize—however we view and value it—will corrupt our mortal frame, like a piece of rotting fruit hanging too long on the branch, if we guard and grasp it. Unless we let it go and put it into the soil of others’ minds, hearts, and—importantly—hands, it will not flourish and produce a return. Unless we plant it elsewhere, there will be a stench.

This is perhaps the temptation and trial in life and leadership: to hoard, rather than husband, the powers and abilities entrusted to us. It has been since the garden, and continues to the present. As the U.S. Army Ranger Handbook puts it, the challenge to leaders is always “to provide the minimal amount of control” while maximizing command in others, which fosters the fruitfulness of “initiative, the acceptance of risk, and the rapid seizure of opportunities.”

To be given command, to be given resources to lead soldiers with courage, creativity, and constant communication confirming that if mistakes occur or things go sideways, more resources and air support can be called in—rather than a summons back to Moscow—makes all the difference.

Put another way, the challenge to us is to be giving, not grasping. Entrusting, not intractable. Enabling of growth, not indignant at growing pains.

It is to live like sons of an empowering Father.

It is to believe that we bear the divine image and ability to govern toward flourishing. It is to receive, no matter where we’ve been or what we’ve done, that we will be covered—yay, even re-covered—with the resources of relationship. It is to perceive the pattern of misidentifying power in this age, and instead generously provide the means and ability others truly need.

When we do, we can support others with no strings attached. We can aid others with our assets without a quid pro quo. We can faithfully foster flourishing without fear of failure. Our spouse in her new endeavor. Our daughter as she heads to campus. Our son as he enters a new life stage. Our team as they lead on the frontlines of the franchise. Our friends as they tread the hills and dales of life.

All experiencing power put into them. Ability accorded to them. Autonomy granted—and aid, when needed along the way, made available.

Because, with apologies to Alexander Pope, to hoard power may be human.

But to empower, divine.

“Joshua asked God to empower Caleb son of Jephunneh and assigned him Hebron.”
Joshua 14:13 NET