Learning and Leading in Ministry: Chapter Seventeen

Keep Your Vision Alive

Learn vision-casting.

Does staphylococci, antibiotic resistance or penicillin mean anything to you? It should, but not in the way you might think. Sir Alexander Fleming, a Scottish biologist and pharmacologist accidentally discovered penicillin as an anti-bacterial agent in September of 1928. His finding forever changed the world of modern medicine, and saved the lives of millions of people. The truth is that, even though Fleming didn’t specifically search for this product of a mould, he had long before dedicated himself to finding a cure for dread diseases like scarlet fever and pneumonia. The vision consumed him. The day he found that an invasive fungus would not grow on the mould from the penicillium genus may have seemed like an accident, but his observation was preceded by casting his vision in the field of antibiotics. The actual discovery of penicillin may have been a surprise, but the vision that led to it was far from accidental.

Nearly every great event in history has come about by vision-casting. From landing a man on the moon to the fall of the Iron Curtain, from the invention of the incandescent light bulb to the development of the airplane, great people with great visions have amazed the world. But it is a mistake to believe that the high quality of the vision itself transformed it into a reality. No. Brilliance that gives up on itself wilts in the shadows of despair and then dies a mediocre death. The drive, the dedication and the persistence of a leader to keep casting the vision to a company, to associates and to oneself forms the other half of the success equation.

Since few visions become wildly successful overnight, the only answer to winning is the dogged determination to stay with vision until it turns into reality. When you find something that you know is your calling, when you identify so strongly with an idea that it captivates your imagination, your soul and your very being, then you have your vision. Now, you must cast that vision—spell it out, articulate it, push it, preach it, plan it, talk it, dream it, live it—until spreads into the warp and woof of your ministry.

Jesus came to seek and to save that which was lost. The Apostle Paul gave his ministry to reaching and discipling the Gentiles. Pentecostal giants like Howard Goss and W. T. Witherspoon focused their lives on the birthing of a oneness, Pentecostal fellowship. Missionaries like E. L. and Nona Freeman were more zealous for reaching the continent of Africa for Jesus than any other pursuit in life. Crusade evangelist Billy Cole gave himself to helping people receive the gift of the Holy Ghost. As a result, he has seen hundreds of thousands receive the experience.

Keep preaching your theme. If you get weary with it and switch off to something else that does not fit with your pastoral or leadership vision, you lose your cutting edge. Nothing will ever evoke as much passion and sincerity in you as your own vision. It will provide you with your greatest effectiveness and your cleanest cut. Along with this, maintain a tight rein on your hobbies, pastimes and sports. When you become too engrossed in a personal pursuit, your vision for your church and ministry languishes. Don’t confuse what you enjoy doing with what you are called to do. Enjoyments provide a needed break from a heavy schedule, but they will not give you the joy that the pursuit of your vision will yield. Let the footnotes to your life indicate your pastimes. Make sure the headlines are about fulfilling your vision.

Learning and Leading in Ministry: Chapter Sixteen

Elevate Your Spirituality

Learn spirituality.

In the high, dry desert climate of southwestern Wyoming , the thin air lacks the oxygen levels that people grow accustomed to in lower altitudes. On a recent trip there, I saw a sign for a business on a strip mall building that said, ALTITUDE ANALYSIS. It’s a computer business that offers software support for altimeters and other instruments for airplanes. Immediately, I was struck with the application to the spiritual life. We cannot go higher without changing the way we live. Higher spiritual altitudes force us to adapt to a different atmosphere that starves our carnal appetite. Without change, we gradually retreat back to lower levels.

It’s never been harder to be spiritual. Contemporary pastors and church leaders work in the most complex environment ever faced by religious organizations. Technology, demographics, market demands, a radically-shifting social structure—you name it—all impinge upon leadership to keep up the ever-increasing pace. These factors place an enormous pressure plus a seductive pull upon church leaders to stray from their element of spirituality and suit up in the latest techie development or fashionable idea. Much of it is fun. A lot of it is interesting. All of it can be deadly. Leaders who abandon the highway of spirituality to seek out popular trends follow a glitzy path to apostasy and ruin.

Elevation of spirituality cannot be accomplished by just stepping up prayer activity or added emphasis on reading the Bible. There must be an accompanying attitude fostered by leadership that teaches people to actually seek God for personal and congregational direction. Often, churches enter into programs or series of studies in an attempt to “try this for awhile,” or “let’s see if this works.” After the final seminar session, people stop doing what they really didn’t want to do in the first place and go back to the way they were. Cultivation of true spiritual growth involves weaving in a constant reliance upon the presence of God in a person’s life.

Researcher Adair T. Lummis of the Hartford Institute for Religion Research studied an intriguing question about pastors, “What do Lay People Want in Pastors.” He found that people want a pastor with a sense of humor and an ability to laugh. But Lummis concluded that the most important trait people look for in a pastor is an authentic religious life. He said, “Most lay people define that as a person whose faith combines both head and heart; a person whose lifestyle is spiritually inspiring to others.” www.hartsem.edu/research. Wise pastors understand that people come to church for spiritual reasons. The church must be seen as a spiritual oasis in a high, dry desert.

Leaders and pastors who try to be everything to everybody will end up being nothing to everyone or everything to no one. People do not want legal, medical or financial expertise from their pastor. They do not want psychological, construction, computer-geek advice. They don’t want decorating, fashion-statement or sports advice. All these things may be interesting and entertaining, but they can get these from real experts in the community. More than anything else, they want spiritual help from their spiritual leaders. Pastors who become bored with living a spiritual life and dispensing spiritual advice cut their own throat. It is paramount that they have a ready scripture, an instant prayer, a spiritual insight, a Word from the Lord and an uplifting comment for people. Keep the church looking upward before you have it looking outward. Never allow any aspect of the church to overshadow its spiritual mission.

Learning and Leading in Ministry: Chapter Fifteen

Grow Leaders

Learn inspiration.

Their names were Peter, James, John, Matthew, Andrew, Philip, Thomas, Bartholomew, James (son of Alpheus ), Thomas, Thaddeus and Judas. Unremarkable and typical, they probably would not have achieved much notoriety in life. Some were rough, some were refined, some were gullible, some were skeptical, some had a servant’s heart and at least one was greedy. All of them were common novices, with issues and baggage, desperately in need of teaching. Jesus chose them to follow him. He could have had better, at least by the world’s standards. But the Master refused to cherry-pick sophisticated, learned achievers to make his job easier. He bypassed the choice men and chose humble men who were teachable and capable of submitting to leadership.

Contemplating the mission of Jesus staggers me. He came to save an entire world from eternal darkness. He came to fulfill ancient prophecies, to engage the religious hierarchy in substantive dialogue, to perform signs, wonders and miracles, to teach thousands true doctrine, to offer himself as a spotless sacrifice and to be a light for dying humanity. The enormity of these tasks would seem to have left little time for mingling and fussing with people, but Jesus carved out large chunks of time to develop and train leaders. In fact, deliberate discipling occupied center stage in the ministry of Jesus and the Apostles of the church. Their insistence on growing leaders preempted all other items on the divine agenda.

Despite his or her show of humility, a loathing to develop leaders reveals a leader’s inverted arrogance. Some can’t bear to see anyone else in positions of influence and prestige but themselves. When they do judge someone capable of leading, they nitpick their foibles or sometimes deliberately poison the waters so that the up and coming leader will fail. Jesus, the one individual who could have monopolized all the leadership positions in the fledgling church knew that his soon departure from the world demanded that he organize, equip and train leaders to evangelize the world. His model was then used by the apostles and later church leaders. True leaders grow leaders. Leaders who fail to grow leaders fail at leadership. It’s that simple.

Do not confuse developing leaders with delegation. Delegation involves assigning a task to subordinates who remain accountable to their supervisors. Growing leaders involves replacing yourself with another person, or permitting someone to do the same thing you do, perhaps in another place or another business. Growing leaders requires a commitment to the future, a specific plan and the willingness to let others get some of the credit. Leaders who claim they are too busy to grow leaders sabotage their own success.

This is where the Apostle Paul excelled. He knew how to choose leaders. He knew how to train leaders. He knew how to inspire leaders to give their best.  And he knew how to commission leaders to take over the work.

“And so this is good-bye. You’re not going to see me again, nor I you, you whom I have gone among for so long proclaiming the news of God’s inaugurated kingdom. I’ve done my best for you, given you my all, held back nothing of God’s will for you. Now it’s up to you. Be on your toes—both for yourselves and your congregation of sheep. The Holy Spirit has put you in charge of these people—God’s people they are—to guard and protect them. God himself thought they were worth dying for.” [1]

Fear of letting go must be overcome by faith in the process. Ultimately, each of us will answer to God for our own work. We may not be able to control the future, or even the way future leaders will respond to their own challenges. We must, however, let them have their day.

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^[1] Peterson, E. H. (2002). The Message : The Bible in contemporary language (Ac 20:25). Colorado Springs, Colo.: NavPress.

Learning and Leading in Ministry: Chapter Fourteen

The Basic Mission Comes First

Learn focus.

“He is a jack of all trades, but master of none.” This time-worn aphorism may describe how people got by in the world of the last century, but we now live in the day of specialization and focus. From cardiologists to neurologists, from tax attorneys to corporate lawyers, from rough framers to finish carpenters, we all know the importance of knowledge or skill concentrated in a single individual. Those who know a little about a lot may make interesting conversationalists, but when it comes to contracting a critical job, we‘re more apt to hire the guy who knows a lot about a little.

The minutia of peripheral activities that surround today’s average task continues to grow exponentially. An example that comes immediately to mind is technology in the modern office. Regardless of the nature of the revenue-producing business, office managers can quickly get so bogged down in hardware, software, bugs and crashes, internet access, spyware and malware, networking and desktop publishing, plus hundreds of other computer related activities, that they have difficulty finding the time to do the job that they are supposed to do. In the church arena, huge problems often erupt over building plans, site locations, expenditures of money, music styles, ministry appointees, service times, choir robes, choice of carpet and serving of coffee, causing people to lose the real purpose for belonging to the church in the first place.

But it doesn’t take a crisis to throw a church off track. Successful ventures into para-church activities can have the same effect. A joking comment circulated among churches several years ago that “we ought to change our name to the “United Peanut Brittle Church.” A fabulous music ministry, breathtaking décor, a phenomenal fundraising program, a cutting-edge multi-media operation or an outstanding catering service, all ministries that can benefit the congregation, at the same time can overshadow the core purpose of preaching the gospel and reaching the lost. Too much time spent on the extras leaves too little time for the primary task.

Churches and leaders should never become so enthusiastic over a fundraising project or some other side-issue that it swallows up their calendar and consumes them. I am personally aware of a number of churches that lost their focus because they got so wrapped up in making money though pyramid schemes or tiered sales organizations that they forgot what they were all about. One church tried to infringe on the buying habits of its members, forcing them to shop for their personal and household needs in a room in the church basement. It was soon seen as a misguided attempt to exploit people and eventually factored into the demise of a once thriving congregation.

Derailing the basic mission of the church often comes down to degree, not substance. Indulge in the peripherals only as much as is necessary, and only to the point that it actually serves the ministries of the church. Be skeptical of anything that threatens to evolve into a time and energy eating monster. When any extra-curricular venture absorbs the core energy of the church, it will most certainly throw the mission out of focus and negate its purpose. The preaching of Jesus Christ and Him crucified must be the constant and dominant theme of every message and ministry. Our mission is still the great commission!

Learning and Leading in Ministry: Chapter Thirteen

Don’t Hide Information

Learn openness.

On July 2, 2007 , President George W. Bush partially commuted the sentence given to Lewis “Scooter” Libby who was convicted of obstruction of justice. Mr. Bush said,

“My decision to commute his prison sentence leaves in place a harsh punishment for Mr. Libby. The reputation he gained through his years of public service and professional work in the legal community is forever damaged. His wife and young children have also suffered immensely. He will remain on probation. The significant fines imposed by the judge will remain in effect. The consequences of his felony conviction on his former life as a lawyer, public servant, and private citizen will be long-lasting.”

Mr. Libby was not convicted of “outing” an FBI agent, the original intent of his prosecutors. His crime was that he tried to keep information hidden from public view.

Our litigious society has made cowards of many people. We have become afraid of the truth because an opponent may use our truthfulness and good will to fire facts back at us as bullets. Many leaders, fearing that someone will misunderstand their use of authority or finance, try to protect themselves by hiding sensitive information. They mistakenly believe that keeping people in the dark will spare them from embarrassment or charges of wrongdoing. Those who say they have nothing to hide should not proceed to hide the details of their business.

As Scooter Libby found out, the public does have a right to know. In a church or ministry setting, those who give financial support or who place their trust in leadership also have an inherent right to know the business of the church. While they may not have decision-making power over the assets, they should have access to any data that involves their contributions or their reputations. Denial of access constitutes manipulation.

Critical information such as financial data, sudden changes in leadership or major decisions that affect the entire church needs to be fully aired. “No one needs to know,” is a statement rooted in ignorance. It is based on the immature belief that people who ask questions of their leaders don’t trust their leaders in the first place. President Ronald Reagan used to say, “Trust, but verify.” Leaders can no longer assume that people will live in blind faith. Like many plants, trust withers in the shadows, but thrives in the sunlight. If people think that you are hiding something, they may begin to distrust you.

Without trust, a church will not progress.  But, beyond that, suppressed information often escapes its imprisonment and finds the light of day.  Those sworn to secrecy may have an occasion or desire to change their minds at some future point.  Some inquiring mind may eventually stumble upon the critical question that blows the lid off the situation.  Some inadvertant slip of the tongue may reveal hidden facts.  Withholding information to protect innocent people is one thing. Hiding information to mask inappropriate actions is quite another.  Don’t do it regardless of how much you think you have to.  In the end, the cover up always creates the most damage.