When I served as collegiate minister, I tried to get to know
as many freshmen students as possible.
When leaders come and go as they do on a college campus, you are always
looking for the next generation of leaders.
Whether a minister is working with volunteer, part-time, or
full-time people, she or he needs to have the same mindset. Although turnover
happens less frequently in a congregation, leaders come and go more often than
we would like.
Volunteers are those lay leaders who form the core of every
church’s ministry. They teach Bible
study for adults, youth, and children, work with preschoolers, lead in worship,
provide maintenance and administrative support, and perform vital ministries both
within and outside the walls of the church.
Ministers need to identify, cultivate, and encourage these lay leaders.
Often in churches today, a gifted lay leader shows the
potential to become a part-time staff member in a specialized area such as
music, age group ministry, or mission leadership. Employment as a staff member is not the end
of this person’s development but just the beginning. Ministers must provide not only supervision
but opportunities for continuing growth to keep these part-time leaders
engaged.
Ministers also have the opportunity to work with
professional staff members with varied backgrounds and skill levels. Unfortunately, staff leadership is not often
taught in seminary, but it is vital if a staff team is to be productive and
healthy.
As I attended the first session of the Willow Creek
Association Global Leadership Summit today, I heard more than one speaker
address this theme of leadership development.
Whether one leads in a church, a not-for-profit organization, or a
corporation, finding and developing good leaders is vital.
In his keynote presentation, pastor Bill Hybels asked
participants to consider who placed the “leadership seed” in them by
encouraging their gifts. He went on to
challenge us to invest time in planting this seed in young leaders.
Sheryl Sandberg, Chief Operating Officer of Facebook, identified
leadership development as an investment in the future. She also emphasized the need for all types of
leaders for organizational success with the comment, “We would have a more efficient
world if women and people of all races and backgrounds has a seat at the table.”
I previously heard pastor Andy Stanley, another Summit
speaker, ask the questions, “Who is going to replace you? Who are you developing to take your place?”
Whatever your leadership role, one of the most important
tasks before you is cultivating others to discover and use their gifts for
ministry. You may call it leaving a
legacy, making an investment, or assuring the future, but developing others is
vital to your leadership.
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