This is Part 3 of the Laying the Foundation series on Thursday Leadership Lesson. As we build our groups and ministries, we must ensure that we are building on a solid foundation. This series will explore characteristics of leaders who lay and build on firm foundations. Today, we will talk about growing as a leader.
Romans 12:8 says, “If God has given you leadership ability, take the responsibility seriously (NLT).” Other translations use the words “dilgence” and “zeal” to describe how we must carry out our leadership gifts and duties.
In 1 Timothy 4:14, Paul reminded Timothy of the spiritual gift he had received and encouraged him not to neglect it. The original language carries the meaning of “making light of,” “disregarding,” and “being negligent.” In his second letter to Timothy, Paul’s language became even stronger as he encouraged Timothy to “fan into flame” or “stir up” the spiritual gifts he had been given (2 Timothy 1:6). Paul wanted to ensure that Timothy continued to grow in and refine his leadership gifts.
Leadership is a stewardship. God has entrusted this gift to us, and we have a responsibility to be good stewards of it. Leadership is not a destination; it’s a process. While spiritual growth is our first priority, Scripture also instructs us to grow in our leadership. Here are a few ways you can make leadership growth a priority:
Find Training
Leadership 101 will not make you a great leader. It’s only the bare minimum stuff you need to know about forming and leading a small group at NCC. Becoming a great leader is a life-long process, and you should take advantage of every training opportunity you can. As John Maxwell says, “If you think you’re done, then you are.” In other words, if you think you’ve arrived, then your influence will plateau. Or worse, it will disappear.
We try to provide you with many different forms of leadership training each year. Our Annual Leadership Retreat is designed to propel you into the next year with vision, resources, and practical ideas. Our semester Leadership Summits are designed to give you advanced leadership training that you can’t get at Leadership 101. Zonegathering.com provides rich resources for personal spiritual growth and leadership growth every week. We don’t do these things to keep ourselves busy, keep tabs on you, or keep all of us off the streets. We do them because we take our Ephesians 4:11 mandate seriously– to equip (or “perfect”) you for the work of the ministry. We understand the importance of developing leadership gifts, and we want to provide you with every opportunity possible.
Surround Yourself With Leaders
Leadership is caught, not taught. I’m not sure who said that first, so I’ll credit Myron Goodwin, one of my former discipleship pastors. Training is good and we should pursue it throughout our lives, but it is limited in that it is primarily an academic and intellectual preparation and does not necessarily transfer the heart and passion of leadership. One of the best ways to grow as a leader is to surround yourself with leaders who are a step or two ahead of you. Meet with them, pick their brains, ask them questions. Take the initiative to ask them for a few minutes of their time.
I’m so thankful for the pastors, teachers, coaches, and leaders who allowed me to spend a few minutes in their world. People like Pastor Fred Wolfe, who shared with me his teaching preparation process and resources that I still use to this day. People like Coach Barry Murphy who spent hours after school answering my junior high questions and listening to my life dreams. People like Mike Mathews who strategically set me up for “wins”– whether on the backyard football field or in ministy– and answered many an email seeking direction on life-changing decisions.
But here’s what you have to do: First, think about what you want to learn from them. Most of the time, if you ask someone to mentor you, they don’t really know where to start, what you’re expecting, or what you need. Be very specific and practical about what you’d like to learn from them. Secondly, approach them. Take the initiative to go to the leader and ask them if you can spend a few minutes with them to pick their brain. Don’t expect a leader to come to you and begin to coach you. That would be presumptuous!
In addition to learning from leaders who have more experience than you, you should also be pouring into the lives of leaders and potential leaders who do not have as much experience as you have.
On a practical level, at NCC we have established teams and zones of small groups for this very purpose– to help you get around other leaders of all levels from whom you can learn and to whom you can contribute. At any given time in your life, you should be growing from the leadership of another, and you should be helping someone else grow. The theological term is discipleship.
Identify Your Strengths and Weaknesses
Over time, your leadership strengths and weaknesses will reveal themselves. Leadership assessments and tests can give us some insight into what our strengths and weaknesses might be, but they will emerge over time. We should lead from our strengths and manage around our weaknesses. For instance, I’m not great at the administrative side of leadership, so I’m thankful for someone like Sarah Owen on my team who provides strength in that area. I’m not fantastic at compassion, so I’m grateful for Leslie Adams who stretches me in that area. Every leader is limited in their perspective, so I’m thankful for folks like Brian and Kim Hill and Nathan and Heather Gonzales who bring a more well-rounded view. Discover your strengths and lead from them. Then, build a team around you filled with people whose strengths completement yours.
A bit of a disclaimer is needed here. By “weakness,” I mean some area of leadership skill that is not natural for you. I am not talking about sin. Sin is not a weakness to be managed around. Sin is sin that must be confronted, confessed, and repented of. We should also strive to grow in the fruit of the spirit and in obedience to the commands of Christ. Don’t excuse your sin or lack of spiritual growth as a leadership weakness that you are managing around.
Read
In reading, we have the ability to do everything previously mentioned– find training, learn from other leaders, and identify our strengths and weaknesses. In 2 Timothy 4:12, Paul requested, “When you come… bring my books, and especially my papers.” In Spiritual Leadership, Oswald Sanders speculated that these books and papers included not only Scriptures, but also Jewish histories, explanations of the law and the prophets, and perhaps even some of the pagan poets that Paul quoted in his sermons.
John Wesley, founder of the Methodist movement, stressed the importance of readership to his disciples. In fact, he told his younger ministers to read or get out of the ministry.
We should read the following types of books:
- Books that will help us grow spiritually
- Books that help us grow intellectually
- Books that cultivate your teaching and leadership gifts and style
- Books that help you understand the times that we live in
- Books that help you grow as a leader
Finally…
The most important thing you can do to grow as a leader is to put a plan into place. Identify some goals, write them down, and implement a strategy for reaching them. What are your strengths and weaknesses? Where do you need to be trained? What leaders do you want to know better? What books do you need to read? A spiritual development plan or other personal growth plan will help you become more intentional in developing your character and your leadership abilities.
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