A young leader sat across from me in obvious discouragement recently. Frustration, cynicism, and resentment were written all over her. She told a story I've heard or watched play out in ministry lives too many times to be ignored. She was meeting up with resistance in her mission. She was struggling to gain momentum. She was having trouble recruiting help. She was getting criticism and whiffs of grumbling everywhere she turned. People within the ranks were resisting change. Team members were failing to fulfill commitments. She felt completely unbonded to her troups. Success was a pipedream.
Her conclusion? "I'm not cut out for leadership. I quit." Many more times I've heard the conclusion, "These people are too stiff necked and unsubmissive." or "I need to move on to the next church or next ministry team and see if they will be easier to lead." If someone doesn't come alongside a leader who is foundering like this, they either will quit and live under that failure, forever afraid to lead again, or they we come to resent the very flock they are there to tend. Either way, the kingdom loses.
Whether you are new to leadership or just struggling to break through to a bigger level of responsibility or bigger playing field, I want to share a game changing tip that set me free from this discouraging trap early on in my development as a leader. After a complete meltdown and cry session one night after dinner, my wise and gifted husband said in a firm but gentle voice, "Honey, God's people are never the problem. God's resources are never too small and His children will want to do what He wants if they understand what they're fighting for or giving to. If the kingdom is not growing, the leader is the issue. If you're in over your head, it's time to grow and develope. It's time to reinvent yourself. Stop blaming them and step up your game. Vision is where you start. If you don't do this, you will be stuck like this." Boom! I knew immediately he was right. I'd watched him grow in that very way, taking his church to victory after victory for God's glory. He's a born leader. But I had to be taught.;)
So here's the principal: When you encounter resistance to change, lack of cooperation, division, doubt, unfaithfulness or chaos among the team you are leading, The vision is not getting caught. Go back to the vision, pick up your team and take them with you.
And Here are the first steps to take to reinvent yourself:
1. Make sure you've heard from God- Know where you are going and burn that finished product in your heart. Be sure you are lining up with the authorities over you first. For example, your vision should be the same and be guided by the vision of your senior pastor. Know where you want to go, know why, know how.
2. Present the vision on a large scale- Use God's word. The Spirit is a better leader than we are. Let Him speak. Assume your leadership position with humility but boldness. People need to feel confident in following you. Never miss an opportunity to draw focus on and reinforce the vision. Cast it over and above what you think is adequate and recast it if you meet resistance.
3. Present the vision individually- Identify legitemizers in the group. Find stable, trustworthy, godly, and mature folks with history in the group. Spend time speaking the vision into them. Keep them bought in and you'll have the support of the whole. Recruit these folks to help you project the vision and inform of rationale. They will help you monitor morale and encourage others to trust you.
4. Identify other leaders and develope them- Always have someone you are developing. Have them partnering with you and learning from you. Instill vision in them and inspire them. Your organization will never grow until you learn to give the ministry away through recruiting, training and motivating other leaders to expand the work. This requires an investment at the individual and personal level.
5. Communicate commitment- To a certain extent, when a follower buys into your vision, they are buying in to you. To do this, they need to know you and observe your life. They need to trust you to give you their loyalty. Be winsome. Be organized, prepared and focused. Be the hardest worker on the team. Absorb the blame and deflect the credit. Respect their time, money, individual makeup and dignity.
So often, I see people trying to lead through assigning tasks. They jump over vision and go straight for the job. This makes you their boss but not their leader. This is especially hard to pull off when leading an army of volunteers who aren't looking to be bossed. It is especially hard when leading young adults who want impact not hierarchy. It is even harder when trying to lead seniors who might be resistant to new things. But vision opens heart and unites us all around a common purpose. When that happens, God's people are willing to give and give some more. They are willing to sacrifice personal preferences and agendas. They are unstoppable and you will be too! Vision is the key to great leadership.
"Where there is no prophetic vision, the people cast off restraint, But blessed is he who keeps the law." Prov 29:18
Thank you for writing this. When you mentioned: Go back to the vision, pick up your team and take them with you, this immediately reminded me of the importance of having a vision, a goal, a destination for the whole team to reach. Without it, a team is lost and has no sense of direction.
Posted by: SylviaShadeChan | 09/15/2013 at 09:25 AM