Moses is away, meeting with God. The people were alone and feeling abandoned (feelings are not always reality!!!), so they turned to an idol. Idols are always made up gods. As a leader, Moses could have said, “I can’t be gone any more.” Leaders can often live out of the fear that if they are not present things will go wrong… or the fear that things will go right! Either way, that moment of crisis can seep into the thinking of a leader such that they begin to live out of that fear rather than out of their calling and strategy. Was it more important that Moses was with the people to keep them from turning to an idol? Or is it possible the Lord was indeed surfacing the idols in the hearts of the people? And is it also possible, or likely, that what God was doing in Moses was critical to the future of the nation? The laws would outlast the moment of Moses’ leadership. The laws could bring direction, leadership and blessing to multiple generations. Or, he could abdicate the time away with the Lord to keep his hand on the moment and assure the momentary obedience.
Things may go wrong when we are away from those we lead. Or they may even go quite well. Either way, the wrong response is not to think that we are too important and, out of fear, determine not to be away.
The Lord is at work whether we are absent or present. Resist the temptation to lead for the moment only. Choose to lead with the longer view in mind.
Perhaps things will not go as well for a week or two, but those we lead will blessed by our being with the Lord even if they miss our leadership in the moment.