the reluctant leader

Rubber Ban Shooters & 5 Ministry Tension Points

Last week I spoke to 250 female pastors and pastor's wives at the New Zealand Assembly of God national conference. My previous blog is my confessional from that meeting.

Here's a blog version of my message to those female leaders:

Remember shooting rubber bands at your friends in elementary school? If you stretch the rubber band too much, it breaks and stings your finger. If you don't stretch it enough it will not fly all the way to the target. If you stretch it and aim it properly, you can hit the second grade bully three rows over and the clueless substitute teacher will never know who the sniper was. The trick is to keep the right amount of tension on the rubber band.

Managing tension in a healthy way - that's what leadership longevity is all about.

Here are 5 tension points that leaders - male and female, young and old - must learn to manage. Too much tension and we snap. Too little tension and we accomplish nothing.

1. MINISTRY & FAMILY. This tension transcends nations, cultures, ages, and careers. No matter if you are a businessman or a pastor, you will have to deal with this one. We can't afford to sacrifice our families on the altars of temporal success. Consider Hebrews 11:7. "By faith Noah, when warned about things not yet seen, in holy fear built an ark to save his FAMILY." Noah's calling enabled him to save his family, and in saving his family, he saved the world. We do not have to choose between family and ministry. God has called us to do both. Is family or ministry first in your life?

2. LOCAL & INTERNATIONAL. According to Acts 1:8 we were given the power of the Holy Spirit so we can reach "Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria and the ends of the earth" not just so we can have a spine-tingling religious experience. As we build strong local churches, we must not forget the nations. This local/international tension creates difficult personnel, time, and money decisions. I believe God wants every church to be a house of prayer for all nations. Is your church local or global?

3. ESTABLISHED & EMERGING LEADERS. My generation knows how to teach and lead the next generation. But if we are serious about reaching the ends of the earth, we must learn how to listen to and lead with the next generation. Leading the next generation and leading with the next generation are not the same. Leading with and listening to the next generation will cause tension. Accept it and manage it. What are you doing to intentionally connect with other generations?

4. UNITY & DIVERSITY. Heaven is described as "a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people and language..." (Revelation 7:9) Diversity in heaven is a beautiful thing, but on earth diversity causes tension. Diversity will pull us apart unless we make every effort to keep the unity of the spirit. Jesus had diversity in his genealogy. Do you have diversity in your church?

5. CAMPUS & CHURCH. We are called to plant churches and we are called to reach campuses. Building the church by reaching employed adults helps the financial bottom line. Growing the church by reaching the campus costs money - lots of money. And students don't generally give a lot in the offerings. No matter the cost, we must do both - it's a calling, not a preference. What are you doing to reach the campus?

I pray God will give us wisdom to lead through these and other tensions you will certainly face in the coming years.

A Simple Solution to the Leadership Shortage

Churches and other volunteer-based organizations are always plagued with leadership shortages. Too many good people are waiting around for a title, a position, a salary, or an invitation to lead. But that's not how real leadership works.

Consider the leadership lesson in Judges 10:18.

"The leaders of the people of Gilead said to each other, 'WHOEVER WILL TAKE THE LEAD in attacking the Ammonites WILL BE HEAD over all who live in Gilead.'"

In other words:
Whoever acts like a leader will be recognized as a leader.
Whoever takes responsibility will get authority.
Whoever takes action will get a title.
Whoever leads will be the leader.

You want to be a leader? Start leading and you will be.

5 Tips for Finishing Strong in Life & Ministry

I do not understand young leaders who do more talking than listening when around ministry veterans. Far too many act as if they already have it all figured out. There is absolutely no way they can learn anything from a ministry dinosaur who owns a suit, shaves daily and can't spell UFC. 

Maybe it was the way my generation was raised, but I have always had deep respect for ministry elders and spiritual fathers, even if they are pitiful at self-promotion and totally unimpressed with their own accomplishments. When around these spiritual heroes I try to ask a lot of questions and listen aggressively.

Pastor Jack Hayford is one of those elders we can all learn much from. Ed Stetzer (Mr Ed) included the following Jack Hayford gem in his blog today. (Pastor Jack's words are in bold italics. My comments follow.)

In this my 77th year, I am still privileged to speak to thousands of pastors annually. Their most asked question: "What is the secret to an abiding fruitfulness in ministry." To answer, I acknowledge the essential touchpoints:

1. Fidelity to God's Eternal Word. (The Bible is always a good answer, no matter what the question is.)

2. Faithful devotion to one's wife and family. ( As Vito Corleone once said to his worthless son, Sonny: "A man who doesn't spend time with his family can never be a real man." And a pastor who does not prioritize family...)

3. Personal purity and self-discipline in all things. (This is not a side issue or a afterthought, but a daily and lifetime conviction and passion.)

4. Love Christ's people, humbly and respectfully acknowledging the worth of all who honor Christ, though they differ from my theology. (There is so much we can learn from other movements and denominations, as long as we don't assume our group has all the answers.)

5. Keep a life of personal worship and intimate prayer fellowship with Jesus. (So simple, yet so powerful. Probably the key to all of the above.)

 

4 Next Generation Leadership Tips

Moses was one of the strongest leaders ever, but occasionally the leadership burden got to him. At one particularly low moment he said to God, "I cannot carry all these people by myself; the burden is too heavy for me." (Numbers 11:14)

Moses discovered that doing leadership alone is a heavy burden. He also discovered that equipping and empowering next generation leaders is the best way to lighten the leadership load.

That sounds simple, but how do we equip and empower leaders? Here are four leadership development tips from Numbers 11:

1. GROW YOUR OWN. Next generation leaders are already with you. When more leaders were needed, God told Moses to bring 70 of Israel's elders. He did not tell him to find some Egyptians. The future leaders were already with Moses, he just had not yet recognized them. (Numbers 11:16a)

2. LOOK FOR LOYALTY. Next generation leaders must be willing to "stand with you" for a season. If they are only interested in replacing you, and are not willing to stand with you, then they are not ready to lead. (Numbers 11:16b)

3. THE GOD FACTOR. Next generation leaders need the power of the Spirit. No amount of natural leadership ability, education, or charisma can replace the power of God's Spirit. You have your part to play, but only God can anoint leaders with the power of his Spirit. (Numbers 11:17)

4. THE NECESSITY OF COMMITMENT. Next generation leaders must consecrate themselves. You can teach them and you can train them, but only they can consecrated themselves. (Numbers 11:18)

If your leadership burden seems too heavy to bear, it's probably time to identify, equip, and empower a new generation of leaders.

Creativity and Relevance Are Way Overrated

A few days ago I tweeted the following: Creativity and relevance are way overrated. If you want a healthy church you might want to try consistency and reliability.

That one got multiple re-tweets, upping my weekly re-tweet average from one to two. For those unfamiliar with the twitterverse, a re-tweet means the author of said tweet is both profound and important. A re-tweet brings much honor to the family name.

Back to the point. I am tired of watching sincerely dedicated pastors and church planters focus on things that ultimately don't matter and on things that don't transform lives, all in the name of being creative and relevant.

Creativity is fine and good, but it does not break the power of sin. Relevance appears to be hip and cool, but it does not restore broken relationships or heal broken bodies.

I have done church for a long time. Sometimes I have been creative. Often I have not. But I have always tried my best to be consistent: to do what I say I will do, to stay faithful to the basics of the Faith.

Over the years, I'm sure there have been times when I looked relevant, and times when I did not. But I think my church is healthy today because relevant or not, I have been reliable (ie: authentic, genuine, trustworthy, dependable).

I know this is not an either/or situation. It is possible to be creative and relevant, and consistent and reliable at the same time. But too many pastors and preachers tend to go all OCD about creativity and seemingly forget that the power is in the gospel.

Question: I know you are creative and relevant, but are you consistently preaching the gospel?

I am not ashamed of the gospel, because IT IS THE POWER OF GOD for the salvation of everyone who believes... (Romans 1:16)

No One Wants to Follow a Slave Driver Leader

While reading Exodus on my recent Manila to China flight, I scribbled some notes contrasting the leadership styles of Moses and Pharaoh.

Here's how Moses led:
1. Moses called God's people to a "festival" which is like a party. Good leaders know how to mix work and fun. (Ex5:1)
2. Moses called God's people to "sacrifice." Good leaders are not afraid to lead people to greater sacrifice. (Ex5:3)

And, here's how Pharaoh led:
1. Pharaoh leaders constantly demand, "Get back to your work!" (Ex5:4)
2. Pharaoh leaders produce underlings who are "slave drivers." (Ex5:6)
3. Pharaoh leaders are obsessed with "requirements" and "quotas." (Ex5:8,17)
4. Pharaoh leaders look for ways to "make the work harder" rather than looking for ways to lift the burdens of their workers. (Ex5:9)
5. Pharaoh leaders will never "reduce the work" load. (Ex5:11)
6. Pharaoh leaders "beat" their people when they don't produce enough. (Ex5:14)

What type of leader would you rather follow?
What type of leader are you?

Self-Absorbed Leaders

Self-absorbed leaders cannot build multi-generational ministries or businesses. In fact, they repel potential next generation leaders.

The ancient prophet Isaiah tells a sad story about a self-absorbed one-generation-wonder named Hezekiah.

In many ways Hezekiah was a good king. But when it came to next generation leadership, he failed royally.

Here's what happened:

1. DISASTER. The prophet boldly warns the king that A DAY IS COMING when everything he owns will be stolen by his enemy, the evil Babylonians. (Isaiah 39:6) Hezekiah sees no problem since this refers to a future disaster.

2. DESCENDANTS. The prophet also warns that the next generation, Hezekiah's descendants, will be kidnapped and dragged to Babylon. (verse 7) Again, no worries since this affects future generations not Hezekiah himself.

3. DECEPTION. You don't need a prophetic interpreter to tell you that this is bad news, yet the king responds: "The word of the Lord you have spoken is good, " For he thought, "There will be PEACE AND SECURITY IN MY LIFETIME." (verse 8)

Self-absorbed leaders only concern themselves with their own lifetime, and that is why they will never build multi-generational ministries. They sellout future generations for momentary glory rather than sacrificing now so that future generations can succeed.

(WARNING: short political rant... And that is exactly how American political leaders think as they accumulate astronomical debt, selling out future generations for temporal peace and security and entitlements and votes...)

Stupid Leaders

Because of their positions, all leaders know stuff that others in the organization do not know. Thus the need for professional confidentiality.

I recently had to correct a colleague who inadvertently leaked some confidential info during a meeting. He responded to my correction by saying, "You're right, I should not have said that. I don't get corrected very often, but I need it. Thanks."

He not only admitted his mistake, he embraced correction and he thanked me for it. I am thankful I get to work with such humble and wise people all over the world.

How do you respond to correction? Do you accept correction, or get offended? Do you love correction, or do you hate it?  

A long time ago a really wise man wrote: "he who hates correction is stupid." (Proverbs 12:1) Sadly, that verse describes many leaders today.

Wanna be a smart leader? Make peace with the fact that you are often wrong and need correction, then surround yourself with people who are willing to "speak the truth in love."

What to Look for in a Potential Leader

I am often asked by pastors, church planters and missionaries: "What should I look for in potential leaders?" Simple. The starting line for potential leaders is HUNGER & HUMILITY.

HUNGER. Spiritual hunger. I'm not interested in someone who is spiritually fat and overfed, but someone who is hungry for more, hungry to learn.

HUMILITY. I can't teach someone who already knows it all. I can't mentor an expert. Potential leaders know they need to know more. The best leaders are learners, not experts. Humility is a non-negotiable leadership foundation.

It does not matter how gifted, connected or credentialed a person is, it he is not hungry and humble, he is not a potential leader. 

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Bonus leadership thought from twitter: LEADERSHIP. Need more leaders? You already have them. You simply need to equip & empower them - then validate & celebrate them.

 

 

Be Careful Who You Listen To

Be careful who you listen to because sometimes the voice of God sounds a lot like the voice of spiritual leaders.

I read Deuteronomy on my Manila to Nashville flight yesterday. At the end of the book Moses is old and he knows it is time to pass the leadership baton to Joshua.

So Moses gathered Joshua and the Israelites and spoke these words: "BE STRONG AND COURAGEOUS. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the Lord your God goes with you..." (Deut 31:6)

Then Moses summoned Joshua and told him to "BE STRONG AND COURAGEOUS, for you must go with this people into the land..." (Deut 31:7)

Moses told Joshua and the people to BE STRONG AND COURAGEOUS, then he specifically told Joshua to BE STRONG AND COURAGEOUS.

Interesting that when God spoke to Joshua, He sounded just like Moses:

"BE STRONG AND COURAGEOUS, because you will lead these people... BE STRONG AND very COURAGEOUS..." (Joshua 1:6-7)

Joshua first heard the BE STRONG AND COURAGEOUS message from Moses, then from God.

When people start hearing weird things "from God" I always wonder who else they have been listening to, because what we think God is saying is often something we already heard from someone else.

Who are you listening to?