S.I.M.P.L.E. Leadership

In May, Lord willing, I will graduate with a Doctor of Ministry in Leadership.  My project report (dissertation) has been approved for binding and the only remaining requirement is my attendance at the Graduation Week Workshops.  As I have come to the conclusion of my studies, I thought it would be beneficial for me to outline my leadership philosophy in a clean concise format to which I could return over time.  The outline that I have come up with is one that I call S.I.M.P.L.E. Leadership.  Hopefully some of these thoughts will be of help to you.

S – Select your leaders carefully. 

There are certain characteristics that need to be present in any potential leader’s life.  There should be a passion that is already identifiable, a willingness to learn, a recognizable giftedness from the Lord, and the courage to step out. 

I – Invest in your leaders. 

In the beginning this means that you provide instruction.  You will have to share with them the basics of the tasks that they are being asked to perform.  As time progresses, you will provide opportunities for continued learning.  Leaders need to know that they are valued.  A willingness to invest in your leaders over the long haul shows that they are truly valued.

M – Model your expectations. 

Potential leaders need to be able to look around them and see others doing what they are being asked to do.  Painting a vivid picture for someone is one thing but being an example to them is all together another.  Bring your potential leaders in close; let them see you do what is expected of them.  As they see you perform tasks, they will begin to grasp what is expected of them.

P – Prepare your leaders to lead.

Here is one of the areas where a gap exists.  Too often we believe that we have prepared people once we have made the expectations clear and have modeled for them what we want them to do.  Telling someone what to do, and showing them how to do it still has not prepared them to lead.  Leaders will need tools as to how to deal with others, how to encourage others, and how to successfully hold others accountable.  Make sure that your potential leaders get the leadership specific tools that they need.

L – Launch your leaders into leadership.

Once the job description has been made clear, the task has been modeled, and the leadership tool set has been passed along, then and only then are potential leaders ready to be launched into leadership.  There is a bit of an art to be exercised here…launch someone too soon and they will fail, hold them back too long and they will grow frustrated. 

E – Encourage your leaders along the way.

This is the second area where I believe a gap exists.  For some reason we think that because we made the job description clear, and because we modeled the activity for them, and because we gave them the necessary leadership tools, that we can launch someone and never worry about them again.  This simply is not the case.  Some people will need encouragement so they do not grow discouraged and still others will need accountability so that they do not grow complacent.  If we fail to provide the necessary encouragement, our leadership team will become a revolving door of folks who have grown frustrated or disinterested.  Remember, as a leader we delegate tasks we don’t relegate them.

Effective Leadership in times of Change

Leadership can be a frustrating task.  Specifically, it can be frustrating to lead an organization that existed when you took the leadership helm.  Existing organizations have their own traditions, their own history, and an established way of doing things.

Often, as the leader, you will recognize that for an organization to move forward there are things that will need to change.  These things can cover an array of areas.  Changes can involve the organizations approach to its mission, the way decisions are made, or the way information flows.  You might also find that there needs to be changes made in what is expected of staff and volunteers.

In my years of leadership I have often been frustrated by these things.  You see what needs to change, but you are not sure how to change it.  You know that the organization could be much more effective than it is, but it seems the members that make up that organization are more in love with the method than the mission.  At times, these things can be overwhelming.  I have learned to break needed changes down into three categories:

1.  Changes that need made and I can do it NOW.

When beginning in a new role there will always be simple changes that can be made immediately that will not cost you a lot of leadership chips.  These changes are not only good for the organization but they also gain the leader some credibility.  These changes help the organization get some small wins right from the beginning and help build momentum for changes that are coming later.

2.  Changes that need made but they will take TIME.

Any leader of a new organization will notice things that need changed, but they are things that he or she dare not touch right now.  These changes often focus on some area that has become part of the “culture” of the organization.  The leader needs to give these changes time.  As credibility is gained, and as people grow to trust the leader, then these things can be made.

3.  Changes that need made but there is NOTHING I can do about it.

This is likely the most frustrating category…those changes that need to be made but would be a death nail in the coffin of one’s leadership.  These are things that the leader might want to change but simply knows better.  A word of warning here, don’t be too quick to just throw all difficult issues into this category.  A leader must have courage.  A leader must make tough decisions.  A leader must be willing to go where others are not.  I would say that in any leadership positions there would not be more than one or two things that go into this category.

As a leader, be bold.  Be willing to show courage when others are not.  However, be fair to yourself.  Understand that there are some things that simply are not going to happen right now.  If there is a change that needs made but now is not the time, then don’t beat yourself up or think less of your own leadership.  There is a great deal to be said for wise, consistent, intentional leadership. 

Three Powerful Tools

I have written on several occasions recently about following God’s will, pursuing your dreams, and being in the center of what God has planned for you.  I would like to share three powerful tools you might use for such pursuits.  In a day of computers, iPads, and apps (I love apps), these tools would be considered relatively low tech.  However, the fact that they are low tech has not diminished their effectiveness one bit.  Are you ready?  Here they are:

1.  The Bible

2.  A Journal

3.  A Pen

There really is nothing better for a man or woman, who wants to know the will of God, than to sit down with the Bible, a journal, and a pen.  Record what God says to you.  Record what you are thinking.  Record the thoughts and ideas that continue to resurface.  Then, as you look back over what you have written, you will discover that there are patterns and themes.  These patterns and themes will begin to clue you in as to what God has for you.

The journal is also an incredible place to vet your dreams in light of scripture.  Think through what you desire to do.  Think through the ins and outs.  Think through the obstacles that might be faced.  Such an intentional approach will help you to be successful in your pursuits.  My mom used to tell me, “Darrell, anything worth having is worth working for.”  Such advice certainly applies to our spiritual walk as well as our pursuits in life.

Dream Crashers

Do you have big dreams you have never told anyone about?  Do you keep your deepest aspirations to yourself because you wonder what others would say or think?  Are you afraid that your secret inner desires would cause others to break up in laughter?  Then I would say to you that you have fallen victim to the “Dream Crashers.”  Sadly, I think most people fall victim to the “Dream Crashers”.  We have big ideas, big dreams, big aspirations, but we sit politely by out of a fear of what might happen if we actually chased our dreams.  These “Dream Crashers” are all around us.  In fact, I can think of seven that you are certain to deal with:

1.  Fear  

Too often we are afraid to move because we don’t know what the future will look like.  What if we fail?  Maybe just as frightening is the thought, what if we succeed?  Here’s a question for you, what if you chase your dream and fail?  What would be different than it is right now?  You already don’t have the dream.  Chase it, what’s the worst that could happen?  You end up with what you already have?

2.  Low Self-Esteem

Have you ever thought, “That would be great but it is obviously not for me”?  Maybe someone smarter, or better looking, or smoother, could pull that off.  Why not you?  Give yourself one shot and see what might happen.

3.  Denial

I wonder how often we don’t pursue our dreams because we love the idea of the dream too much to risk it.  So we convince ourselves that while it would be great, it could never work.  And even if it would work, it would not work for me.  I don’t know enough.  My name is not big enough.  No one would listen to me.  We deny the very idea that we might be successful.

4.  Well Intentioned Friends

It has been my experience that well intentioned friends can pick apart my dreams, ideas, and vision until there is nothing left.  They just don’t want me to get hurt.  They want to make sure I have thought of everything.  They want to make sure that if I do set out on a venture that I am successful.  Here are two thoughts for such well-intentioned friends:  Until you chase your dreams, leave mine alone.  And second, why are you so afraid that I might sneak off and be successful?

5.  Well Intentioned Family Members

I remember like yesterday, even though it was nearly 15 years ago, when my biological father (that is a whole other blog post) stood in my driveway and told me I would never pastor anything but a small country church.  I have nothing against small country churches and would gladly pastor such if it is God’s will, but thanks for the blessing DAD.  I think that family members are often afraid that your potential success will make them look bad.  Don’t let them hold you back.  Go chase the dream.

6.  A Lack of Faith

The simple fact is, you may not be good enough to pull off the dream, but God is.  God can do through you what you might never be able to accomplish on your own.  Step out in faith; give God the opportunity to use you.  Take a chance and see how God might use your life just to show off a little bit in order to bring glory to Himself.

7.  Security

It’s safe here.  I know what I have, I know what life looks like, and I’m seldom asked to step outside my comfort zone.  Here’s the cold hard truth:  If you are unwilling to step out of your comfort zone you will always have what you have and nothing more.  Take the risk.  Step out there and see if just maybe your wildest dreams will become a reality.

I often wonder what God thinks as we sit safely by unwilling to take a risk.  Psalm 37:4 instructs, “Delight yourself in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart.”  Is it possible that God gives us the desire of our heart because He is the one that put them there in the first place?  Be a good steward of the dream.  Do not waste the vision that God has given you.  Pursue your dreams with passion, faith, and expectation.

Four Things to Remember When Preaching

Another Sunday is in the books.  Another sermon has been preached and yet another awaits preparation.  Preaching is one of the things I get to do as pastor that I truly love.  However, it is also one of those areas that I can be overly critical of myself and the job I have done.  While preaching is exciting, it can also be frustrating.  I guess any preacher who cares is constantly asking; “Did I do a good job with that text?”  “Did I clearly communicate the truth that was there?”  “Were people moved by the message that I shared?”

All of these are good questions.  Any pastor who loves the word of God and loves his people should certainly seek to improve his skill set.  However, there is a point at which self-evaluation can cross the line of being a positive practice and instead become self-criticizing.  In order to check such a danger there are four things I always try to keep in mind.

1.  Until you have prayed well, you cannot preach well.

In Colossians 4:3-4 the Apostle Paul says to the church, “At the same time, pray also for us, that God may open to us a door for the word, to declare the mystery of Christ, on account of which I am in prison – that I may make it clear, which is how I ought to speak.”  That’s not a bad way to approach our prayer; “God help me to declare the mystery of Christ and help me to make it clear.”

2.  It is Christ who is to be on display, not the preacher.

Isaiah 42:8 has strong words for us, “I am the Lord; that is my name; my glory I give to no other, nor my praise to carved idols.”  It seems that the Lord is a little bit jealous for His glory and does not respond well when we try to take it for ourselves or inappropriately place it on other things.  There is a certain freedom to be experienced by the preacher who asks “how do I make sure I properly glorify God this morning?” instead of asking “will I look good this morning?”

3.  The word of God, properly preached, will be effective.

There is often a temptation to place an emphasis on the wrong things.  We spend too much time worrying if our presentation is effective or if we came across as relevant.  While these things are important, they are not the most important.  We are given this encouragement in Isaiah 55:11, “So shall my word be that goes out from my mouth; it shall not return to me empty, but it shall accomplish that which I purpose, and shall succeed in the thing for which I sent it.”  Our first and greatest concern should be to properly “expose” the text.  If we give the word of God opportunity to work, it will accomplish what He intends.

4.  It is God, not the preacher, who brings about change in the hearts of individuals.

While we certainly celebrate decisions made for Christ and growth in the individual’s spiritual life, we can never take credit for these things happening.  Further, we cannot beat ourselves up in those lean seasons, those seasons when it seems God is still or that He is not moving.  Philippians 2:13 reassures us, “it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure.”  God’s working in the heart and the life of an individual is not our responsibility.  These things rest with God alone.

In no way do I represent this to be a complete list. I am sure that there are items that you would add to this list that are significant to you.  However, when I remind myself of these four things I have a freedom in the pulpit otherwise does not exist.