International Justice Mission is at it’s core a voice for the voiceless. IJM’s Bill Clarke shared incredible stories of determination, perseverance and courage in the everyday things. Unlike many speakers, Clark did not urge us to become the Ghandi and Kings of our era, but rather to be human beings who live to serve. This coincides with, and encourages me in the choosing and pursuance of my current leadership style, influences my personal values, integrity and ethics and helped me to shake that feeling of helplessness in the face of despotism.

My favorite leadership theory last semester was one of servitude. Being first and foremost a servant whose heart is in the healing and edifying of followers is my mission. Clark’s lecture brought a lot of light to the power of working for ‘the least of these’. In fact I felt like Matthew 25:40 was a prevalent rhetorical anchor for Clark throughout the night. He often referenced the rather mundane, and tedious work IJM does daily to free enslaved peoples globally, which I think speaks volumes for the role personal beliefs have in leadership.

It is so easy to be apathetic toward the international community with all the distractions and excuses Generation Z has at hand. However, with the rise of internet and social media, Marshall McLuhan’s vision of a global village has come to fruition. Thus, my values need to reach beyond my borders, to value the well-being of all humanity. Integrity is more of an instinct in me, however I think it needs to become a driving force in pushing me to take action. I enjoy the ethics IJM displayed and find myself in agreement of them. However, ethics tend to be a work in progress, and all fall short of the glory of God.

I think the greatest lesson I took away from Clark’s lecture is perseverance. The narrative about IJM traveling eight hours, fifty times, just blew my mind away. It’s such an average task to drive to a courthouse. However, what they accomplished there was extraordinary. I was not only greatly impacted by, but also empowered by this story. It is so easy to weigh yourself against others who are just so gifted, but it should be far more important to weigh yourself against even the most simple needs of a community and find yourself in balance.

Bill Clark may have come to shed some light on the work IJM is doing abroad, but he did so much more. I left feeling excited, and reassured that what I do for the least of these, I do also for God, and the least of what I do can be the greatest of things I could do for another person.