A Difficult Vision

It’s great to have a vision about how the world can be, but it’s not always easy to share that vision.  It can be scary, difficult to get across, and many times people just laugh at you or wonder what planet you’re really from.  Some people are taught very early that sharing their vision earns them ridicule, scorn, and shame.  They learn to keep their vision to themselves, and deprive the world of potentially great ideas.

I learned all of this the hard way when I started to share the idea of Next in Line with other people.  The idea of involving young people in leadership training had people looking at me like I had a third eye.  After a couple months of that, I wasn’t sure whether or not I wanted to do anything with Next in Line.

I say all of this because I know that many of you have the vision to start leadership groups in your organization but may not be getting any traction.  I talk to people all the time who have tried leadership development in their churches and schools but couldn’t get any support and ultimately ended up quitting or never getting off the ground in the first place.

To those of you who are dreamers and visionaries I say don’t give up.  The world needs young leaders now more than ever.  Now, like never before, the call to raise up young leaders needs to be answered.  

I know it can be discouraging sometimes; I’ve been there.  But I’ve also seen young people rising up to their potential.  I’ve seen young people do amazing things and take the reigns of leadership before anyone thought it was possible.

As we talk about pitching the idea of leadership development programs, don’t get discouraged if you’re having trouble getting your idea off of the ground, and don’t let others dictate to you what God has put on your heart.  Don’t let past obstacles dictate the route you take in the future.  Keep praying, keep planning, and prepare the ground.  What God has ordained you to do, He will bring to pass!

Training Tomorrow’s Leaders Today,

Matt

The Long View

Instant Gratification is the order of the day,

but when it comes to developing tomorrow’s leaders, we aren’t going to get any instant gratification.  We aren’t going to see amazing results in hours.  We aren’t even going to see amazing results in days.  We have these young people for 4-6 years in our youth groups, and it will probably take every bit of that time to see results.  This isn’t like a paid advertisement where our gizmo does everything in ten seconds or less.

Experts tell us that Leadership is a lifelong journey. 

so why is it that we think a weekend retreat or a one-week conference is going to develop our young leaders?  Do we really believe that?  Why do we develop non-programs to teach young leaders and believe that we have done them a favor?  Is it us?  Are we seeing things wrong?     

Leadership Development is a lot of work.

I’m not going to deny it, I’m going to embrace it.  Does it mean another item on my plate?  Yeah, it does, but it’s an important item.  I believe very strongly that giving our students the opportunity to lead and to learn leadership is one of the most important things we can do for our young people.  

I’m Adopting a Long View

I’m spending my time putting together materials that will help you develop students over the long haul.  I’m not concerned with force-feeding them a leadership course in a weekend, I’m concerned with how these young people will fare over a lifetime of leading.  It’s a long haul, but so is leadership.  If leadership is a lifelong journey, let’s not short-change our students as we prepare them.  Let’s model the long view.  They’ll be in it for the long haul, and we should be, too.

Training Tomorrow’s Leaders Today,

Matt

Organic Leadership Development

How does the Holy Spirit change the face of leadership development? 

The last time I wrote I talked about how the Holy Spirit is a differentiating factor between Christian and non-Christian leaders.  What I didn't write about is what that means for developing leaders, and it means a lot.

First, the Holy Spirit changes everything.  Leadership development is no longer a regimen or just a curriculum, but an organic process that we are not in charge of.  This is significantly different than most programs of education.  Christian leadership isn't something you can just get a degree in and be good.  The development of Christian leaders takes considerably more time, patience, and discernment.


Since the Spirit is in control, the time it takes to cultivate a Christian leader cannot be set in stone.  I recently read an article by the creator of Relevant Magazine where he stated that God had to teach him over 8 years before he could finally start his magazine.  It might take others a lot less than eight years to become the kind of leader God wants to carry out His purpose in their life, and it might take longer.  Again, we can't relegate the process; thinking that after we review these principles and such and such a program that the people we are teaching will automatically be the leaders God wants them to be.  How long did Moses wonder in the wilderness before God called him to lead the Israelites out of bondage? 

Because we aren't in charge of the time it takes to become a leader, we have to be very patient.  So do the young leaders in our care.   Can you imagine David, after being proclaimed King, waiting to actually become King?  That must have been grueling, but God had much to teach David before he became king.

Lastly (please, however, don't think that this is exhaustive), I think that the organic nature of Christian Leadership Development takes a lot of discernment.  Not all of your students are going to be at the same place, and each will learn and develop at their own pace.  It will take a lot of discernment to know what to teach and when.  This will take a lot of prayer and a deep knowledge of each of your students.  Take the time to see this through.  Be responsible to them and to God for their development.  It's not easy, but we didn't get into this because it was easy.

Christian leadership development is difficult, and the organic nature of it makes it that much more difficult.  But with patience, endurance, and perseverance, we will be blessed to see the godly leadership of tomorrow.

Training Tomorrow's Leaders Today,
Matt

What Distinguishes a Christian Leader?

What makes a Christian leader a Christian leader?  Is it a style?  Is it training?  Is it the kind of organization that the leader is running?  What should be the criterion by which we designate a leader to be "Christian?"

With hundreds of books on leadership hitting the shelf each year and just as many different methods of leadership, it's easy to get caught up in method when determining what makes a Christian leader.  Christ has a very distinctive method of leadership, one that is based in service and in power revealed through weakness.  However, even the "secular" world has co-opted these leadership methods and uses them with much success in the corporate, government, and not for profit realms.

Neither can we determine a Christian leader by the kind of organization that the Christian is heading.  There are Christian men and women in all realms of society, leading all sorts of ventures.  Likewise, I fear that there are many non-Christian people who are leaders in Christian organizations. 

Likewise, Christian and other leadership training is available to all people, regardless of their faith.  A good leader will peruse leadership material from all sources and incorporate that which works for them and for their organization.  The Christian leader will consider non-Christian sources of leadership, determine whether they are of God or not, and use them accordingly.

What then, distinguishes a Christian leader?  It is as simple as this:  The Holy Spirit.  The Christian leader is indeed a Christian, and therefore is guided, chastised by, and strengthened by the Holy Spirit.  This difference between a Christian leader and a non-Christian leader cannot be overemphasized.

God does not hold a specific training regimen for leaders, nor does He work the same in all leaders.  He calls, trains, and uses different leaders in different ways.  God's spirit which indwells us is manifested so many different ways.  The Holy Spirit gives Christian leadership a mysterious edge that you can never quite predict and a quality that makes it incomparable with regular leadership. 

This makes even the most unlikely person a leadership candidate, and makes normal models of leadership training and development irrelevant.  It means that instead of solely paying attention to a book or program of leadership development, Christian leaders must also discern the calling of the Holy Spirit on the lives of leaders and be open to His leading and prompting, no matter how much this leads us outside the realms of "normal" leadership or our zones of comfort and familiarity.

And while it is important to see and understand the Holy Spirit's place in Christian Leadership, let's not forget that the Holy Spirit also plays unknowable and mysterious roles in non-Christian leadership too.  The Holy Spirit factor in leadership and leadership development should not be overlooked, and those Christian leaders who do run the risk of being outside of the will of God and leading without the sustaining power of the Holy Spirit.

Training Tomorrow's Leaders Today,
Matt

Discontent

Tomorrow, or today, depending on when you read this, millions of people are going to the polls here in America.  According to most analysts, many of the people going are quite discontent with the state of things, and for the third time in as many National elections (2006, 2008, and now 2010) the makeup of our government is going to change largely out of a feeling of discontent (that's a pretty nice term seeing as some people are more fed up and angry than "discontent").


Now, this isn't some political hack piece.  I like politics as much as the next man, and maybe more, but I want to talk about discontent.  Discontent is one of those pieces of leadership that I think goes overlooked in many circles. 

We are told in the Bible to be content with what we have.  Not being content with what God is providing us can get us into sketchy spiritual territory.  I believe, however, that God has put into us a discontent with the state of the world that drives the Christian leader to act.

Why are you a Christian leader?  My bet is that some aspect of the world seemed wrong to you and you acted on it.  Discontent at work.  For centuries God's  people have seen the spiritual and physical poverty of foreign and domestic peoples and have entered the harvest.  Discontent at work.  This Ministry:  Next in Line, is the product of discontent with the way that young people are prepared for a life of Christian leadership.  Discontent at work.

God gives the Christian leader a holy discontentment with some aspect of the world and then calls that person into His work.  Think of Nehemiah, being told that the city of Jerusalem lay in ruins, a laughingstock to surrounding nations.  Nehemiah knew that this was less than optimal.  Soon, Nehemiah was supervising the rebuilding of the walls of the great city.

When we get down, or seem to lose our way, remember the discontentment that first brought you to where you are today.  Likewise, look for discontent among your students.  This is a first sign of leadership capability.  Listen to them, and offer them a path to "sooth" their discontent.  Tell them to listen to God and hear what He is calling them into.  Nourish holy discontent (not so people can complain, but so they can act.  Nothing points out a person who isn't a leader like a person who just wants to complain about the problem instead of going into the work to cure the problem).

Tomorrow, or today, watch what discontent does.  Pay close attention to what leaders are doing with that discontent.  Look and see what discontent is capable of.  Agree or not with the way that tomorrow's election goes, you have to see the beauty of what discontent can accomplish.  What more can it accomplish when a holy discontent is burning within the heart of a servant of God?

Training Tomorrow's Leaders Today,
Matt