Category: Leadership

Although there is to be one mission and one direction for
each church, there are many expressions or ways that these are outworked. Like
a highway with many lanes, a growing church provides opportunity for many
different and unique ministries to thrive and flourish within the context of
its overall purpose, as long as there is integration and alignment between
them.

When it comes to your ministry, you need to lead with
excellence (Rom.12:6-8). Most ministries rise and fall on leadership. Overall
direction and broad parameters will be given to you, but the vast majority of
the details of what your ministry becomes is up to you. Our desire is to create
an empowering culture where many strong leaders can find ministry fulfilment
working together towards a common goal.

Leadership is not just occupying a position. It is about
creating “movement” (Deut.1:6-8; 2:1-3). God is a God of movement and he calls
us as leaders to be his “change agents” to bring about his purpose on earth. Leadership
is not easy. There are many challenges to be faced and obstacles to be overcome.
However, great leaders take full responsibility for themselves, their ministry
and the people they lead. They don’t make excuses or blame others when things
aren’t going well. They look at themselves and they make adjustments. They find
a way even when there seems to be no way. 

First of all, leadership involves giving people an example
or model to follow (2 Thess.3:7-9). People catch who you are – your spirit. It
is more than programs and events or even ministry activities. It is about a
spirit and an atmosphere of life, energy and joy that you impart to people.

Second, leadership also requires having a vision and giving
people direction (see Prov.29:18. Hab.2:1-2. Zech.4:1-2. Acts 2:17-21. 1
Cor.14:8). A leader has to define reality (the way things really are) and then
to paint a picture of a preferable future (the way things could really be).
Only then can you begin to move people to where they need to be. See things as
they truly are not as you wish they were. Don’t fool yourself into thinking
things are better than they are or that they will get better on their own. Recognise
the reality and then launch strategies and initiatives to help make things
better.

You’re in charge and therefore responsible. Like a coach of
a team, you need to know what is happening right now (this “play”), in the
context of this quarter (the “score”), this game, this season (year) and the
history and future of the team. This includes an understanding of the game,
your players (new and old, strengths and weaknesses) and the opposition. These
different perspectives assist you in making the right decisions and calls right
now. 

Putting Legs on It:

* Avoid being a leader who is not following
(overly independent) but also avoid being a follower who is not leading (overly
dependent). You’re the leader!

* Spend time in prayer, contemplation and
reflection on God’s Word, as well as observing other leaders and ministries.
Evaluate the intensity, clarity and size of your vision.

* Get with your team and do a SWOT analysis of
your ministry (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats) and create an
improvement plan from it.

* Articulate your vision then get others
passionate about making it happen. Lead by energising others, not by an out-dated
autocratic style of leadership (‘command and control’). Create internal
motivation. Energise, excite and inspire.

* Live with a sense of urgency. Don’t waste time
through indecision. “Pounce” every day and be willing to work hard to make the
vision a reality. Leaders need great energy and an ability to spark excitement
and achieve results. Don’t be satisfied with the status quo.

* Involve everyone and welcome ideas from
everywhere. You don’t have a monopoly on leadership – or good ideas for that
matter. The hero is the person with the good idea. If your ministry has to rely
on you for all its good ideas, you’re finished. Get ideas from everyone, even
the quietest people.

Leadership occurs 360 degrees around us. We give leadership downwards to those who are looking to us
but we can also give leadership sideways
to our peers and upwards to those we
are responsible to. Each of us can lead or influence others positively from the
middle of the pack.

[Habit #3 – Manage]

Every leader needs to first of all be a good follower. In
fact, your ability to lead well is directly influenced by your ability to
follow well. The apostle Paul said, “Follow me as I follow Christ.” (1 Cor.11:1).
As church leaders, we too are to follow Christ by imitating him in character,
who we are, and ministry, what we do (see Mk.4:19. Mt.16:24. Jn.10:27.
Rom.15:5. 1 Pet.2:21. Rev.14:4). Shepherds are also sheep, disciplers are also
disciples, and leaders are also followers.

Secondly, church leaders are to follow the overall direction
of their senior leader and the church they belong to. Ultimately, there can
only be one mission or vision in a local church. Division is simply “di-vision”
or two competing ways of looking at things. A church should only have one
vision and go in one direction (Phil.2:2. 1 Cor.1:10-13). 

Our church has a Mission Statement that explains why
we exist as a church, twelve Core Values that describe who we are and
what’s important to us, and a DEVOTE 3
theme that defines what we are focusing on during this season in the life of
our church. Something powerful begins to happen when each leader embraces the
mission strongly, models the core values clearly and pursues the prophetic theme
passionately. As each leader does this, together we will achieve great things
for God through the power of unity (Ps.133).

Putting Legs on It:

* Be attentive to what God is saying to your
church, respond to it and use your influence to reinforce the message in the
hearts of those you lead. Micro-vision casting is very important.

* Make sure you “own” and live out the mission,
core values and vision of your church. Make them part of who you are so that
others catch the sense that you’re totally “on board”.

* Ensure that your personal and ministry goals
contribute to the overall direction of the church.

* Be open to feedback and adjustment about the
direction and progress of your ministry.

* Be aware of the various policies and procedures
that have been established to help the church run smoothly and work within them.

Before becoming the Senior Minister of our church, I spent 5
years as a volunteer leader then another 10 years serving specific ministries
of the church, while making other senior leaders successful. I learnt a great
deal about leading well from learning to follow well, even when my thoughts
differed at times from those who were leading me. Effective leaders are first
good followers.

[Habit #2 – Lead]

The Importance of
Leadership

Church and ministry leaders have a wide variety of tasks and
responsibilities. These may include preaching, teaching, pastoral care, training
and coaching others. One of our main tasks is to lead and God wants us to do
this with the very best of our ability.

Romans 12:6-8. In his
grace, God has given us different gifts for doing certain things well. So if
God has given you the ability to prophesy, speak out with as much faith as God
has given you. If your gift is serving others, serve them well. If you are a
teacher, teach well. If your gift is to encourage others, be encouraging. If it
is giving, give generously. If God has given you leadership ability, take the
responsibility seriously (“govern diligently” – NIV). And if you have a gift
for showing kindness to others, do it gladly. NLT 

In many ways, everything rises and falls on leadership. When
good things are happening you can always trace it back to a leader who is doing
something right. When bad things continually occur you can usually trace it
back to a leader who is doing something wrong.

We live in a world of increasing fear, anxiety and upheaval.
This environment is very conducive for the cause of Jesus Christ as God shakes
everything that can be shaken. In times like these there is a desperate need
for strong godly leadership. People are looking for someone and something to
follow. As leaders, let’s not settle on our past achievements, as wonderful as
they are, but let’s focus on the opportunities in front of us.

Leadership in the church is a wonderful privilege that
provides a person with the opportunity to build a successful ministry that will
make real difference in the lives of people both now and for eternity. Leadership
also carries with it a tremendous amount of responsibility as leaders
face the challenge of reaching people for Christ in our contemporary culture
and then helping them grow to become fervent followers of Jesus Christ. It also
includes the responsibility of leading and managing the ministry itself
(including the leadership team, volunteers and various ministries) so that it
continues to be healthy and fruitful.

Leading a ministry requires the ability to do a wide variety
of tasks. It is essential that these tasks be done with excellence in order for
the ministry to continue growing in its impact. Over the next few days, we will
reflect on 7 Habits of Highly Effective Leaders.
These tasks need to be done well on a regular basis if a leader desires a
maximum return for his or her efforts.

These habits are also relevant for leadership in any other environment or context. 

[Habit #1 – Follow]

I really enjoyed the insights from this BLOG post on leadership by David M.Dye …

A mature bonsai tree commands attention. With just one tree a master evokes an entire landscape and tells a story of power, perseverance, struggle, or abundance.
As I’ve studied bonsai, I realized that the art of growing these trees has much to say to aspiring leaders. To accomplish this elegant combination of grace and strength, great bonsai practitioners must be both gifted horticulturists and artists.
In the same way, leading people entails both vision and cultivation. Here then, are 12 most inspiriting bonsai leadership lessons:

1. Focus on strength and directing energy, not fixing weakness. Peter Drucker told us long ago that nothing is built on weakness. In bonsai, the artist looks for a tree’s strengths. What is unique and special? What can be showcased?
The artist, like an effective leader, looks for strengths and builds on those. You can be aware of weaknesses so as to manage them and keep them from hindering strength, but focus on strength — in people, in yourself, and in your team.
These strengths are what produce results.

2. Growth requires patience. A fully developed bonsai can take decades to reach perfection. You collect material, let it rest and grow out for two or three years, prune and shape, then wait some more.
One of my very favorite trees is on display at the National Arboretum in Washington D.C. It is a white pine almost 400 years old! It’s an awe-inspiring sight, made all the more so by the fact that this tree survived the bombing of Hiroshima.
There are no shortcuts to produce growth. Nothing less than four centuries make that tree what it is. You would not force an apple tree’s blossoms open — you would ensure it had adequate sun, water, and nutrients in the soil. Then it will bloom and fruit.
But sometimes we force ourselves and our teams out of season. We push when we should rest. Or rest when we should study. Or move when we should question. Or question when it’s time to act.
Effective leaders are aware of their own seasons and the seasons of their teams. They work within these seasons and provide what is needed.

3. Treat individuals as individuals. A skilled bonsai artist knows that you cannot prune a trident maple at the same time of year as a juniper. Not all trees are the same.
People are also unique. Different people should be treated differently. What motivates one person may be terrifying or humiliating for another.
Effective leaders understand the people they lead and learn how to maximize their each person’s potential.

4. Healthy conditions = growth. You cannot force a tree to grow. Rather, you provide the right nutrients, fresh air, sunlight, water, and soil and the tree will naturally grow. It’s what trees do.
People and organizations are much the same. Healthy organizations have healthy cultures and in healthy cultures, healthy people accomplish great things.
If your people aren’t growing and producing what you believe they’re capable of, its time to examine the culture and systems they work in.

5. Appearances don’t tell the whole story. With certain trees there are times of year when you might swear the thing is dead. Some of the greatest abstract juniper trees have vast amounts of dead wood. A tree (and a person’s) potential is not just what you see.
In a tree, you look for life in the roots, in the channels that carry sap to the branches.
In a person, you look for character. For integrity. For the desire to learn and willingness to try.
And when those are there, you:

6. Nourish or encourage what you want more of. A bonsai master knows which of three buds on the tip of a branch will be strong and best serve the tree. That bud is encouraged. If other buds would steal energy, they are removed.
You cannot wave a magic wand in bonsai or in leadership and have the right branch, team, or skills spring into existence. These things must be grown. If you want more creativity, encourage it and remove barriers to healthy risk. If you want more ownership, nourish responsibility and remove impediments to implementing ideas. If you want to strengthen customer relationships, remove policies that prevent staff from serving.

7. Pruning is beneficial. Sometimes a branch or an entire limb needs to be removed for the health of the tree or so its full potential can be realized.
In an organization, it is a vital practice to ask what we need to stop doing.
What methods, products, or services are no longer beneficial or serving the mission? With limited time, money, and people, effective leaders set aside activities that do not serve their teams and the mission.

8. Every part needs light to thrive. When caring for a tree, great attention is given to make cure that every set of leaves or needles receives the light it needs. Without this care, interior leaves are weakened and will ultimately wither and die.
In organizations we can shade out essential people who make a difference every day, but aren’t the glamorous ‘face’ of the organization.
Do you treat your cleaning staff with the same dignity as your executives? Do you show appreciation to everyone in the organization for their contribution to the mission?

9. Mistakes are necessary for growth. “Killing trees is the tuition you pay for learning bonsai.” ~ John Naka. No one enjoys making mistakes, but they are the price of knowledge. Effective leaders create safe environments for their team to make mistakes and learn what to do next time.
“Anyone who has never made a mistake has never tried anything new.” ~ Albert Einstein

10. Mastery is a lifetime pursuit.
I once read a bonsai master claim that the last task he was allowed to do after years of apprenticing was to water the trees. Now, after a lifetime of practice, he was just beginning to understand how to water correctly.
There is always more for a leader to learn. Our environments change, our teams change, the people in our teams are themselves growing and learning. If you want to be effective, make learning an ongoing habit.

11. You cannot change the core. When selecting a tree, the bonsai master knows that some qualities of the tree cannot be changed. The general shape and strength of the trunk, the position of key limbs, the way the roots spread into the ground — these things are core to the tree and cannot be changed later.
Likewise, effective leaders know that they cannot change people. No matter how hard you work at it, forcing a gregarious people-person to work in isolation all day will end in failure.
Effective leaders work diligently to find people with a passion for the mission and the skills their work requires.
You cannot change the core of a tree or the core of a person, trees (and people) have natural strengths, values, and motivations. Your job is to reveal what is there.

12. Nothing is perfect. Some of the most inspiring bonsai tell a story. Perhaps the tale is of a lifetime fighting salt-laden storms blowing in from sea — or the struggle to survive hostile conditions in the cleft of a rock far above tree line.
These stories and a bonsai’s grace often result from the tree’s imperfections. The masters incorporate dead wood, twisted branches, and even wounds into the design to reveal the essence of the tree.
Even the view of the tree is specifically selected — few trees are meant to be viewed from every angle.
Leadership is not about perfection. It’s about improving the condition of your team and accomplishing the mission. Just as there is no ideal tree, neither is there a single ideal person … 

Your turn:
As in bonsai, effective leaders look for strengths, manage imperfections, and aim for magnificent results.

* How do you build on the strengths of your team?

* How do you encourage what you want more of?

* How do you prune away what needs to stop?

[Source]

My final reflections:

11. The Advantage (business consultant and best-selling author Patrick Lencioni). 

Building a healthy organisation is the single greatest competitive advantage. There are two requirements for organisational success: (1) be smart - strategy, marketing, finance, technology and 2) be healthy - minimal politics and confusion, high morale and productivity, low turnover. Most companies spend 80% of their time on #1.

Four Disciplines to Master for Building Healthy Organisations:

a. Build and maintain a cohesive leadership team. Trust, Conflict, Commitment, Accountability, Results.

b. Create Clarity. This is not done through a mission statement! You must answer 6 critical questions: Why do we exist (mission – this should inform your decisions)? How do we behave (values)? What do we do? How do we succeed (strategy)? What is most important, right now? Who must do what? 

c. Over communicate clarity – people need to hear things 7 times before it sinks it. 

d. Reinforce clarity. Organisational health should be a standard.

* Soundview Book Summaries has released an 8-page summary of The Advantage. If you enjoy it, consider subscribing to their annual summaries.

12. The Hope of the World (Bill Hybels).

For Bill … the church has been (1) hopeless, (2) hopeful, and now he sees it as (3) the hope of the world – because it has been entrusted with the Gospel, which is the only thing that can change a human heart, both now and for eternity. 

It's one thing to see a vision; it is another thing to be seized by one. Vision makes the present experience indefensible. We must not stay here. We must go there. Without vision, people settle for a life of lesser purpose (Prov.29:18).

If the local church really is the hope of the world then every member matters. We need them to discover their gifts then step up and serve. We have to see every church reach its redemptive potential. 

Will the local church be able to sustain itself until the end of time? Many huge empires and companies are gone today. Who would have thought? Jesus himself is building and sustaining His church. It is the only thing he is doing. How can we be so busy building our own thing when Jesus calls us to build his church along  with him? 

P.S. Other speakers included Condalezza Rice, Pranetha Timothy (Director of Aftercare, International Justice Mission, Chennai, India), Mario Vega (pastor of a 100,000 member church in El Salvador), Marc Kielburger (a Rhodes scholar with a law degree from Oxford now involved with Free the Children and Me to We), and Sheryl Wudunn (author of Half the Sky and sex-trafficking activist), as well as artists Michael Gunger and Kevin Olusola.

Here are some more reflections:

9. Changing the Odds (Geoffrey Canada).

Geoffrey is the President and CEO of Harlem Children's Zone. He says, "Hope is infectious but so is despair." Lift your sense of your urgency. Break out of this idea that you can't. We put rovers on Mars when we want to!

Succession plan … how will the company survive if you died? Think intentionally about this. Plan to leave your organisation when it is on its way up (not going down). Tell them you are leaving and what you are doing to plan for it. Don't wait until you are tired and burnt out. 

Staying the Course – in dark times, remember that others have fought for a lifetime, seeing no change, yet never giving up because they knew they were right. You are part of a process moving towards victory. 

Faith … the real test of faith is when you we faced with something that only your faith could keep you believing in God. 

Leaders – people are watching us all the time. Bat 100%. Be always on top of your game. Get your moral compass right. Fallen leaders hurt the whole business. 

10. Negotiating Conflict (William Ury).

William Ury is an anthropoligist and best-selling author of Getting to Yes. He is the champion of what he calls "principled negotiation" in contrast to "positional bargaining." 

a. People – separate the people from the problem. Don't be soft on the people and soft on the problem OR be hard on the problem and hard on the people. Be hard on the problem and soft on the people. Soft on the people means listening, empathy, understanding, respect, etc. Negotiation is an act of influence. How can you do so if you don't understand how they think? Change the game from face to face confrontation to being side by side tackling the problem together. 

b. Interests – focus on interests not positions. Probe behind positions to discover the real underlying needs and concerns. 

c. Options – invent multiple options looking for mutual gains before deciding what to do. Find creative options that meet the interests of all sides. 

d. Criteria – insist that the result be based on some objective standard. Create a fair process. How do we expand the pie before we divide it up? Often this becomes a position of 'will.' Base decisions on fairness not on will alone. It's about deferring not giving in. 

What will do of we can't reach agreement? What is our alternative? Know this ahead of time. How will you know if the agreement is acceptable or not? Don't accept an agreement that it is worse that your bottom line!  

During the Civil War, Abraham Lincoln once said, "Do I not destroy my enemy when I turn them into my friend?" 

This process often results in a wise agreement and an amicable outcome. The goal is not to eliminate conflict but to deal with them in a constructive way. Focus on basic interests, mutually satisfying options, and fair standards. 

Greatest obstacle? Ourselves! We react – which means we act without thinking. The power to not react is one of our greatest powers. "When angry you will make the best speech you will ever regret." Email: Reply, Reply to All, or Save as Draft?

Part 5

Here is part 3 …

7. Bridging the Generation Gap (Craig Groeschel, pastor of lifechurch.tv and best-selling author). 

Advice to the Older Generation:

• Don't resent or fear or judge the next generation. Believe in them. They need you. 
• God values maturity. If you're not dead, you're not done.
• Hand ministry over – not just tasks (creates followers – people who simply do what they told) but authority (creates leaders). Give leadership to the next generation. 
• Embrace the season that you are in. Don't try to be something you are not. The younger generation can smell a fake a million miles off. Authenticity trumps cool every single time. 
• Care and love them. Be yourself. Be a pastoral father or mother. Be a coach. Invest in the lives of those coming behind. 
• Declare God's power to the next generation (Ps.75:18). What you have is an asset to those coming behind. 

Advice to the Younger Generation:

• Tim Elmore conducted a study asked to describe 20 something's in workforce. The four most prominent answers were: exceptional, enthusiastic, extraordinary … and entitled. This is an over-protected generation. 
• You tend to over-estimate what you can do in the short run and grossly under-estimate what you can do through a lifetime of faithfulness. 
• You can lead up by honouring. Andy Stanley says, "Honour publicly results in influence privately." Even Jesus was limited through lack of honour and faith in people. Honour God or who he is … then honour people. Honours builds up. "Respect is earned but honour is given. Show honour to those who are above you." If you ever want to be over, learn to be under with integrity. 

For the generations to work together, it has to be intentional. Organisations naturally age. 

Three Practical Tips:

a. Create ongoing feedback feedback loops … from the older and younger. Do with this with your sermons (before and after speaking). Value their opinion. Creates all sorts of opportunity for mutual growth.

b. Create specific mentoring moments. With business leaders, sharp 18-24 year olds, etc. Plan for them. Develops strength in your organisation. Ask someone to mentor you. Don't copy what they do. Learn how they think. Ask questions and learn.

c. Create opportunities for significant development in your organisation. Put the next generation up on stage. Believe in them. 

Honour those who have gone before you … most lived and ministered in tough environments (sacrifice).

Believe in the next generation … they are the most cause-driven in recent history. 

"What will you do with your life that will last forever?"

8. A Leader of Unimaginable Influnece (well-known pastor and best-selling author John Ortberg).

John shared from his most recent book, Who is this Man?

Too often we argue about Christianity but fail to marvel at Jesus. Where, before the church, was there a movement that sought to include every human being (see Col.3:11)? It was Jesus' idea!

• Jesus changed how we think about history. Nero, Napoleon and Stalin died in the year of our Lord … Whose influence would last longer – Jesus or the Roman Empire?  
• Jesus shaped how we express compassion. The weak and the marginal were not valued in the ancient world. Jesus turned children into people. He cared for lepers, the blind and the deaf. This vision gripped the world. Orphanages and hospitals were begun by Christians, as was the Red Cross and the Salvos. 
• The Jesus movement shaped education. Education was usually reserved for male children in elite families. Jesus taught everyone (men and women, slave and free) and told them to teach others. Churches started universities. The medieval insistence of the rationality of God led to the emergence of science. Languages, alphabets, dictionaries …
• The Jesus movement shaped art and music. 
• The Jesus movement changed political theory. Jesus declared that there was another realm that even kings would have to answer to. 
• The Jesus movement changed how we think about human rights and dignity. God is like a Father … "… you are all one in Jesus Christ." First egalitarian statement in literature. 
• Jesus taught uniquely that we are to love if enemies. 

We must marvel at this man because his work is not done yet. Our world awaits for a fresh manifestation of Jesus' vision.  Jesus still calls, "Follow me …" Will you devote yourself to his expanded vision of the kingdom. You are not alone. You are accompanied by someone who is for you. Jesus still lives and still loves. 

Part 4 …

Here is part 2 of my reflections on the recent Willow Creek Leadership Summit:

5. Great by Choice (Jim Collins).

Business professor and lecturer Jim Collins studied two teams travelling to the south pole, one who failed and one who succeeded, as part of answering the questions: "Why do some enterprises thrive in uncertainty and others do not?"

The X factor of great leadership is humility + will (he calls these "Level 5" leaders in his book Good to Great). What else is needed is: 

a. Fanatic discipline. Create a 20-mile march and complete it every day! Don't over-stretch. Don't adopt an erratic pattern. Turn good intentions into great results. Growing by a consistent percentage like clockwork over a long period of time leads to success. The key is to commit to consistent, consecutive performance. The true signature of mediocrity is chronic inconsistency. 

b. Emperical creativity. Find new ways of doing things. Innovate and create the future. Fire bullets then canon balls. Fire enough little things to find out what works. Strive to be one fad behind. Blend creativity and discipline (both/and). Creativity is natural, discipline is not. 

c. Productive paranoia. The only mistakes you can learn from are the ones you survive! The greatest danger is not failure but to become successful and not know why. Create a 'SMaC recipe' that works. Follow it with great discipline and then adapt as time goes on based on empirical creativity. Preserve the core (your values that are not open to negotiation) AND stimulate progress (separate practices from values)! 

Great leaders and/or winners are not luckier It's what they DID with these supposedly lucky events. Many people squander these potentially significant moments. Bad events can be defining events that make us better. 

Both south pole explorers had the same environment and conditions. One rose and the other fell. Greatness is not primarily a function of circumstance but one of conscious choice and discipline. Build something enduring and great (a marriage, family, friendship, church, etc). Commit your life to this. It is impossible to have a great life without a meaningful life and meaning only comes out of great work of intrinsic excellence and beauty.  

* Soundview Executive Book Summaries have released a complete book summary of Jim's recent book Great by Choice. An annual subscription to their excellent summaries is well worth it. 

6. Leadership Trust (Bill Hybels).

At its very core, leadership is all about trust. Do people trust you … and the people you have empowered to lead? When we lose trust, it's game over. We can no longer lead. It all comes to a halt. Do a 'trust audit' – a heart check, not just a brain dump. Allow God to talk to you about your trustworthiness. Has there been any slippage lately? Is there any area of your life right now that would fail the trustworthiness test? Are you knowingly compromising your integrity in any significant way? In finances? Relationally (breach of confidentiality)? Legally (a grey area)? Sexually (private addiction)? 

Because we have a 'slow to anger' God, sometimes he allows us to wander just a little bit to see if we can sort it out, without exposing us publicly. Will you this day pledge to do what is right? While you still have influence? Within 24 hours, make a choice to fix it. Do you have to blow your whole world up (family and ministry)? God is giving you an opportunity to get help now … so that you can maintain trust. Take one step towards integrity and you will feel the presence of God accompanying you for step two and three. There is such incredible freedom when we are right with God – a sense of joy! 

Senior leaders are responsible for the integrity of all of our team within our organisation at every level. When you know people are off track, work up the courage to do something before more damage is done. We fail people when we are chicken. Is there anyone with whom you need to have a conversation? Is there someone you need to remove from leadership? They hurt too many people, they don't tell the truth, they don't follow up, etc. Trustworthiness is on the line. 

Finally, celebrate the trustworthiness of God. He is always faithful and always keeps his Word. He always comes through. Everybody's life would be better off with God at the centre of it. 

Part 3.  

Last week I had the privilege of attending the Leadership Summit hosted by Bill Hybels and Willow Creek Community Church. This is an excellent training event held annually in Chicago which reaches over 100,000 church and business leaders across America via satellite. Everyone wins when leaders get better. That's why leaders need to be humble enough to adopt a continual learning stance. 

Here are some of my takeaways and reflections:

1. Churches need to keep sowing more and more seed (Bill Hybels).

In Luke 8, we have the Parable of the Sower and the Seed. Despite how bountifully the seed is sown, for all kinds of reasons, people are sometimes closed off to the message of the kingdom. However, the message is still true and lives will be changed. In Jesus' parable, the seed rejection ratio is 75% (3 out of 4)! To see more trees, you need to plant more seed … to overcome the math. Sow more seed and different seed.

Sow the same amount of seed and you'll see the he same results. Leaders … stay curious, courageous and experimental. Refuse to allow entropy to occur on your watch. Insist on a non-stop series of experiments that force learning. Become incessant tinkerers. Inspire everyone to get better … by your example. Trees (transformed lives) are worth it …

2. Self Leadership (Bill Hybels).

The concept of 360-degree leadership involves leading in all directions. At the heart of all of this is 'self leadership.' You are the most difficult person you will ever lead. Your work habits as a leader are critical. 

Many leaders incorrectly assume that their most important asset is their time. No, it's their energy and their ability to energise other people (culture, new initiatives, etc). Periodically ask, "God, in the next six weeks, what would be the greatest half dozen unique and significant contributions I could make to the church that you and I both love?"

Energise some people and some initiatives. Pick six tasks/projects, then prioritise them (not necessarily six things you feel like doing!).  Then focus on them alone (deliberately disregard everything else). You will feel a sense of clarity and excitement. Pray over them. You can't sprint for six months but you can for six weeks. Create 'energy bursts' throughout your day against all these challenges. Focus, pray, and energise people around these six things. 

Willow Creek now manages people and prioritises projects around this 6 x 6 concept. It creates a highly productive culture. Leaders are meant to move stuff ahead, not just respond to stuff all day. 

Prayerfully set your 6 x 6 projects. Pray over them every day. Focus on them every day. Self leadership matters!

3. Succession Planning (Bill Hybels). 

In 1950, there were only 3 "mega-churches" (churches with over 2,000 people attending each weekend). Today there are many 1000s. Many of these have been founded by their current senior pastor. A key question emerging is about succession planning. If you are the leader, do you see yourself ever dying? What will you be doing when you are 90? Who will take your place?

At Willow Creek, they have established (a) a planning phase (discussion of roles, time frame, honouring current pastor, etc), (b) an attempt at finding a successor (internally first, but if not, then externally), and then (c) a transition phase or baton passing (ideally 18 months in length). Bill is now 60 years of age and this process will take place over the next 5-10 years. 

Senior pastors must not hang on too long and ensure that they leave a legacy for the next generation. Elders and Board members need to understand that feelings run deep in the lives and hearts of pastors, especially long term or founding pastors. These a delicate conversations.

4. Moving People to a Preferred Future. 

Leaders, build a strong case that your followers can't stay here before you start talking too much about there.  Along the journey from here to there, when is the vision most vulnerable? A (beginning), B (midway) or C (near the end)? It's B! The beginning energy of A carries you, as does seeing the finish line (C). Visions are extremely vulnerable in the middle (B). Start right but be careful in the middle. You need your best inspiration there. 

When are you most vulnerable? Early years (A)? No, you have so much adrenaline. It's in the middle years (B) where you discover you aren't invincible. Ministries waver and die. Betrayals and disappointments occur. There may be tough layoffs, deaths of people, mistakes, team members leaving. You are very vulnerable. Near the finish line (C) … there is a growing sense of excitement! 

What an incredible privilege to be a leader! Only a small percentage of people get to do this. Have you thanked God recently for this? We know the price … and the war stories. Enjoy every single day you get to lead, because it will be over in a blink. 

Part 2 …