In a previous post, we talked about how we should never delegate before taking the time to train, and some of the problems that arise if we forget to follow that rule. There are a couple of other issues to consider before we start training a staff member, ministry leader or other volunteer.
The first of these issues deals with us, the pastor or leader who is planning on handing over a task or ministry to another person. We have to make sure that we have prepared ourselves to let go.
We are in the midst of our first Christmas season in a new pastorate. This week my wife spent an extra day or two buying and arranging decorations for the church. Last night we had our midweek Bible study, and many were glad to see the sanctuary looking so nice.
While I appreciated their joy at the decorations, a comment was relayed that broke my pastoral heart. My wife was told that the church hadn’t looked so beautiful in many years. During one of the decorating days, we heard ladies in the church say that it was so refreshing to have a pastor and wife who cared about how the church looked, because the people were so used to doing it on their own.
Leadership means many things to many people. We lead through vision-casting, administration, calendar setting, ministry creation and development, staff and leadership meetings, facilitation of seminars and workshops, or even assigning a book to read as a team. I know a pastor in his early seventies who told a group of fellow pastors, “I still don’t know what leadership is.”
How many of us think to lead by caring?
Have you heard the news? When you are the “senior,” “lead,” or only pastor at your church, you do not have to do everything. Isn’t that great news?
So many of us have learned to be a jack-of-all-trades: preaching, counseling, Bible study, youth group, worship, kids’ church, home/cell/life groups, finances, building repair, janitor . . . The list can get long when you stop to put it all together. One of the loudest messages for leaders in the last several years is simply this: Do what you do best, and delegate the rest.
We’ve heard a lot about teams, teamwork, delegation of authority and responsibility, and everyone focusing on their strengths instead of dragging themselves through the mud of their weaknesses. Our offices have filled with rejoicing over the chance to work less than 80 hours a week, to spend time with our family, to enjoy life, and even to have a few hours to ourselves each week.
However, there is a key element that we can forget to implement before we delegate: training. To help us and our team members, we must learn to follow an important rule: Never delegate before taking the time to train.
A good friend of mine in life and ministry, Andrew Duncan, posted these thoughts on his Facebook a few days ago. I truly appreciate Andrew, and am blessed to be included in the long list of musicians and worship leaders he has ministered with. Besides his involvement in music, Andrew travels and speaks, and God follows him wherever he goes, even onto the Facebook chat room. Be encouraged and challenged by his thoughts on “The Sound of Heaven.”
(P.S. Thanks, Andrew, for letting me repost this here.)
So I’ve been in the Kingdom now for almost a decade and I must say it’s been a sweet ride. With playing in various and mixed denominations there’s been a consistent topic that keeps coming up. The topic that we aren’t supposed to be receiving during worship, we are supposed to be giving God everything we’ve got. To a small degree I agree; on the most part, forget it.
In order for proper Levites to help the Holy Spirit lead others into worship, we first must create the musical atmosphere that Heaven can say amen to. If this atmosphere is missed and an order of service takes precedence over the spirit moving, we have not done the proper duties as Levitical worshippers.
Pastors and Leaders: Do you take the time to develop yourselves and/or others? Many of us have heard of or even read John Maxwell’s Developing the Leader Within You and Developing the Leaders Around You.
If you’re like me, you could read a lot of books in a year and forget what you read. Some of it will stick with me, but have I really taken the time to apply it? There are so many ways to develop and mentor ourselves and others, but if we get discouraged by the things that say it isn’t possible for us, we miss them.
As a staff pastor for nine years before becoming a senior pastor, I have served under those who made it a priority to include development and those who haven’t. I know the power of being developed. I also know that there are issues that keep us from including development in our ministry.
Pastors, how do you begin a prayer meeting?
In the past I used to put a different prayer focus on each slide of a PowerPoint presentation. This would run throughout the meeting, giving constant direction for prayer, but leaving the meeting itself unstructured. Another model I’ve used is to set a quiet, personal atmosphere in the room by turning the lights on low, turn on some instrumental or intimate worship music.
In each case, those attending were welcome to come and go as they please. There was no opening or closing prayer. One could enter, pray or worship or read their Bible, and quietly walk out the door when finished. Occasionally we might have prayed together, but not regularly.
I have discovered the power of leading the group into prayer. Remember, I’ve led prayer groups for over fifteen years, and I’m no stranger to the prayer meeting. I’ve also seen it done a few ways that I have chosen not to employ in my own ministry. But recently I’ve stumbled on some of the benefits of being the pastor and leading the group in prayer.
Chris MacKinnon 