It All Comes Down To Ignorance (Sun Tzu 3:9) (John 14:5-14; 1 John 2:3-6)

Not knowing (that is, ig-know-rence),
Can mess things up – attack, defense;
And here the civil leadership
Is one who lets the winning slip.

When armies are confused all day,
They let the victory slip away;
Some say they fling it, others say,
The enemy takes it away.

Surrender it, it’s yours to lose,
Draw them along, so they can choose
How they desire to conquer you –
Disruption caused by one who rules.

A ruler – civil leadership –
Has role to play (this is not it);
The sovereign has the power, you see,
To bring such disarray to be.

I love the touch Sun Tzu portrayed,
Reversing words in scene displayed –
So army brings misfortune on
The King – for they his will have done.

Misfortune, harm, and trouble come,
When difficulties rising from
Confusion, mixed with doubt, afield,
Let’s others win, and armies yield.

Three ways the King can so display
His ignorance – cause disarray –
Not knowing facts; how troops are led;
That “it’s adaptable or dead”.

When he of facts is unaware,
He’ll say “Attack” (not being there);
Or say “Retreat”, but cannot see,
Such movement simply cannot be.

But as the King all power holds,
He says such things, and can’t be told
That he must hold his tongue instead;
“Go have some lunch”; “go back to bed”.

For giving orders troops can’t do,
Entangles them like sticky glue;
Like hobbled horses they must stay –
Two opposites they can’t obey.

Administration of a force,
Quite different is than lands, of course,
For war needs flexibility,
And use of opportunity.

So that requires the leadership
To rule their troops in light of this;
But that’s no way to rule a land,
As King is first to understand.

He says, “Humanity must rule;
Let to justice reign – don’t be a fool;
Due diligence – to sort things out,
Discuss, take time, make rules be stout.

In war there’s little time for that;
Objectives must be reached, in fact,
Humanity and justice are
More flexible than peace – by far.

But if the King with sweeping power,
Insists on process by the hour,
All opportunity is lost,
And flexibility’s the cost.

Confused and leery, restlessness
Sets in, for soldiers are perplexed;
Not sure just what must now be done,
They miss their cue – opponent’s won.

A leader’s needed in the field;
Long-term objectives he won’t yield,
But showing flexibility,
He’ll use that tool to victory see.

Adapting to the circumstance,
Involves responding fast to chance;
With estimations made at first,
He shifts those plans to dodge the worst.

So variation rules the day,
As strategy informs the play;
Maneuvers to position right –
Chu’an’s applied to win the fight.

Ch’uan – that’s balance of the power
That’s used in tactics every hour –
Is central tool in field-command;
It must not yield to King’s demand.

But Kings hold power every day;
Can interrupt field-leader’s sway –
Let those who understand the field
Perform their work – the King must yield.

With doubt the troops will hesitate;
Lose confidence; on guidance wait;
The King can undermine that trust
Devolved to them – as so it must.

Confused and doubtful – bad the mix
In troops afield – it must be fixed;
For trouble comes when other lords
Move into vacuum with their hordes.

Competitors advantage take;
Calamities they love to make
For those who will not seize the day,
Or danger skirt some other way.

Disordering one’s own array
Of soldiers, as they go this way,
Wrecks havoc with deranging acts –
A sad confusion of the tasks.

For Kings assign the task to do;
Supply resource to see it through;
Then they should let the field-command,
Adjust to circumstance hand.

Lord Jesus said as much as well –
“As I was sent into this hell
On earth, above, beneath it too,
To context such I now send you.

“Authority on earth, in heaven,
To me, for leadership, was given;
I send you, as field-general,
And I’ll abide with you as well.

The Spirit guides you through each day –
Turn left, turn right, don’t go this way;
Stay flexible – foe cunning is
As we go forth in finance, biz.

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