Last month we discussed the concept of finding verses
discovering leaders. Today's blog
continues the process of discovering leaders by looking at Jesus' example of
leadership training. Jesus’ ministry
provides simple principles for training leaders.
1. Jesus did
ministry - As a Pastor it is tempting to want to administrate ministry –
but real ministry happens face to face.
Jesus never used Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram. I don’t even think He had an office or a
laptop, yet His ministry changed the world.
Jesus spent time in prayer and with people – leadership development
starts here; prayer then people. We
should never ask someone to do what we have not done or are unwilling to do
ourselves. We set the example
2. Jesus did
ministry with others – Jesus did few things by Himself. Too often we are guilty of solo
ministry. Leadership training and development
happen when we take someone along with us.
The disciples SAW how Jesus led
before they were ever asked to lead. Paul said it this way, “Imitate me as I
imitate Christ” (1 Cor. 11:1). As a leader,
our responsibility is to model how others should live. Training cannot happen out of the context of
relationship. Whether you are an
introvert or extrovert, building relationships with future leaders is
imperative. Allow them to see your
“success” and “failure”. Do ministry
WITH others.
If you lead a Life Group, are you being
intentional about training future leaders?
3. Jesus released
his disciples to do ministry while he watched. One of the great examples of this is when the
5,000 people were hungry and all they had were a couple fish and a few loaves
of bread. Jesus clearly said, “You feed
them” (Matthew 14:16). I imagine the
disciples were nervous – but no need to fear for Jesus was very close by. Give small leadership opportunities – lead
prayer, lead a lesson, call someone... then stay nearby. Release.
4. Jesus empowered
people for ministry. At some point,
after you have walked with someone through the steps of leading, you will need
to release them to succeed and to fail.
Don’t worry, the failures are as important as the successes. People will fail. It is out of the times that we fail where we
are reminded that ministry only happens as the Holy Spirit directs. As people step out and lead, always be
available but don’t prevent them from failing.
Fight the urge to micromanage. Empower
leadership.
Summary: As a
Life Group leader, it is your responsibility to train future leaders. Prayerfully consider the following
steps. 1. Ask God to place someone on your heart that
you can train. 2. Ask this person to join you as you
minister. Allow him/her to see your
mistakes and victories; be candid about successes and failures. 3. Ask
the individual to minister while you remain nearby to help. In a Life Group setting, it is as simple as
asking the individual if they would be willing to facilitate next week’s
lesson. 4. Release, but stay in relationship.
