The previous 5 blog entries show an email conversation that I had started. It’s shown in “blog order”, i.e. start at the bottom. (They’re numbered.) I’ve included edited versions of them here because I feel it has been a very important conversation. Important not just in terms of our WHES mission but also for Faith's mission as a whole, for discernment, and for Faith’s leadership development. (I’m defining leadership here beyond our ministers and officers to include any member that takes an active leadership roll in the mission of the church.)
The thing that strikes me the most from this conversation is not about the form or shape of the WHES mission but what form of mission leadership will develop at Faith?
The traditional leadership model has come from the corporate world. It takes one strong leader to spearhead a project through to success. In the church we’ve replaced the name “manager” with “committee chair” and we’ve wrapped words like “call” and “vision” around it. Even the corporate world is now using those terms. But the bottom line is that it all falls onto one strong leader to make a project successful.
One of the problems with this model is that it can easily lead to overwork and burnout for those few leaders. This is particularly true in a church setting because, like it or not, church is largely a part time job for most of us. Another problem is the potential narrowing of the vision to one person’s.
But times are changing and I believe many young leaders are not engaging simply because of the level of commitment required; real or perceived. Young leaders of today do not want the full responsibility of leadership to rest entirely on their shoulders. They are much more comfortable with a team approach. Much of this comes from a more balanced perspective on life. It is no longer acceptable for one’s life to be entirely consumed by one job. Yes, it still takes vision and leadership to get things done but it is more of a team leadership that is shared and shifts from person to person as needed. This can actually be more efficient, balanced, and rewarding. It enriches the vision because it encourages individuals to contribute to the vision. It fosters a people through which the Spirit can act. An outline of this model can be found in Faith’s own “A Covenant for Shaping Our Future”. (A copy is at the end of the Emerging Culture Report;
http://www.presby.org/share/EC_Report.pdf )
I recently saw an interesting blog,
http://missionalorder.com/successful-or-fruitful , asking the question, do we want to be successful or fruitful? The point being that the goal of church leadership isn’t necessarily the same as corporate leadership.
So the question is, which kind of leadership will Faith adopt? In actuality both forms of leadership will be needed. For short term urgent goals a point person is required. But for long term, sustainable, Spirit led leadership the team approach should win out. Members would grow, in both faith and experience, from showing up for a work day, to becoming part of a leadership team, to identifying visions and kicking off new initiatives.
So maybe my calling is not a particular WHES mission? Maybe it’s more a calling to get Faith members to look at calling, vision, and leadership differently than the world around them dictates?
Discernment is a tough job. Again, though, isn’t it the journey that brings the fruit?
Still listening for the Spirit,
Dave
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