This weekend is Memorial Day weekend, a time when we honor those who “gave their last full measure of devotion,” as Abraham Lincoln once said.

As I think about the meaning of this weekend, and what we celebrate, I ponder what it truly means to be a leader.

In the context of a battle, the best leaders are those who are on the front lines, being the first to charge into the line of fire instead of standing behind the lines barking orders. The person most likely to be considered a leader will be first out of the foxhole, not the last.

In 1965, Kansas’ own Dwight D. Eisenhower, who himself was a respected leader in many avenues of life, was asked to write a piece for Reader’s Digest, entitled, “What Is Leadership?” In the article, he described the most crucial qualities of anyone who aspires to be a leader in any context, be it military, community, family or business.

Of leadership, Eisenhower said, “Perhaps the greatest of these qualities is single-minded and selfless dedication to the task at hand ... (i)f he is a truly great leader, the cause must predominate over self.”

In short, if you are to lead effectively in any endeavor, you put yourself and your personal ambitions last. You have to be willing to lay it on the line.

History’s greatest leader, who led by the ultimate sacrifice, said it this way: “But whoever would be great among you must be your servant, and whoever would be first among you must be your slave, even as the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” (Matthew 20:26b-28)

If you want to lead in your home, be the first to take on the most difficult household chores. Be willing to set aside your personal time to engage your spouse and kids. Do the dishes. Take out the trash. Turn off the TV at night and take the time to read with or play with your kids. Whatever it takes, let go of yourself.

If you want to lead in the workplace, be the first to volunteer for the most menial and mundane tasks. Anything you would ask of one of your coworkers, be the first to do it yourself, and, if possible, do it when no one else is watching.

A leader with integrity does not undertake the task for personal glory, but to build up those in whom they are tasked with growing.

“My own conviction is that every leader should have enough humility to accept, publicly, the responsibility for the mistakes of the subordinates he has himself selected and, likewise, to give them credit, publicly, for their triumphs,” Eisenhower wrote.

In other words, if you want to lead, It is not about you. Always shine the spotlight away from yourself. Be willing to step into the background so that those around you can shine, and so Christ can shine all the brighter through you.

“Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves,” the Apostle Paul writes, pointing to Christ as the ultimate example of servant leadership. “But (Christ) emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.” (Philippians 2:3, 7-8)

We sacrifice it all, because He sacrificed it all for us first.

Thank you to all the men and women who gave their last full measure of devotion.

Have a blessed Memorial Day, everyone.

Daniel Kiewel is a reporter for the Great Bend (Kan.) Tribune. He can be reached by email at dkiewel@gbtribune.com.