It's too bad that Noah's and the whole ark story is often relegated to a simple story about animals and two by two. Noah (Genesis 6) was a hero and he's clearly an example of a leader who's obedient to God's will.

It's not like God didn't give everyone the same opportunity as He gave Noah. I'm sure He did, but they refused to listen. They stayed in their box of comfort, traditionalism, pride and self. Many scholars believe they had never seen rain. They must have been thinking, "What's a boat?" Can you imagine the peer pressure Noah felt? His family felt?

Noah turned his back on business as usual. He turned his back on conventional wisdom. Noah turned his eyes heavenward, stayed focused on what God was telling him and he was rescued and blessed.

What does that tell us as leaders? What does Noah's example show us?

• Listen to God. As leaders we must focus completely on God and His voice. It's not that we shouldn't get wise council, or read and study. That's important, but in the end, we must seek and hear God's voice and ask, "What is He calling me to do for Him?"
• Obey God's voice. Once we hear His voice we must obey. Obedience isn't easy, it isn't comfortable, but it's the right thing for leaders to do. I'm sure it wasn't easy for Joshua to march around a city and blow order his people to blow trumpets. Many thought he was crazy. How do you take a city by blowing a horn? Joshua obeyed. He heard God's voice and obeyed. So did Noah.
• Stay focused. Once Noah heard God's voice he went about the work he was called to do. He had a mission. He stayed on it. He didn't waver under the pressure of other people's visions. He stayed on God's.
• Be persistent. Noah must have had those days, but he didn't give up. In spite of what was around him he was confident in God's plan for his nation. God gave him the mission and the vision and he didn't cave in.

Noah's a leaderhip hero. There is a lot we can learn from him. The bottom line – obedience to God's vision won't always make sense, but we can be protected by doing what He asks us to do. Noah was fully dedicated to living in God's will. He went against the flow, he stayed tuned in to what God asked and called him to do.

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