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steven,
Have you ever seen people's reactions to a natural leader who no longer has a title? It's very interesting to watch. For instance, when I was in high school, my dad was an elder. Our church was only about a year old, and, as a young church, there was a lot to do and the stress took its toll. Within a year, most the elders had resigned and there were fewer elders than the church bylaws would allow, so Dad and the others dissolved the eldership.
What was interesting about it was the way people reacted when they found out. Some people wouldn't even accept it as fact. Dad would explain the situation, they would say, "No, you're still an elder." He would explain again that the church bylaws prohibited there from being so few elders. The people would just shake their heads and say, "No. . . . You're an elder." Dad would explain again and again, but some people just refused to understand.
Why the confusion? Because good leaders don't need titles. They just step up and lead so well that others want to follow. Titles are just there to recognize and organize, but most people don't realize that. I think that's why people struggled to accept that Dad wasn't an elder. He fit everything they expected someone with the title of elder to be, so they couldn’t figure out why he didn't have a title. As you look for ways to develop more leaders in your church, keep that fact in mind. The quickest way to identify potential leaders is to ask who's already stepping up and leading. Who are people going to for advice? Who do you see taking out the trash when no one asked them to?
Who volunteers to help before you know you need help? These people have great leadership potential.
Also, remember that the most important factor in good leadership is not uncanny abilities. The most important factor is that the leader be passionate about serving your church. God will always equip those He calls. But, those who are already equipped aren't always His first choice. So, concentrate on finding people who love the church and are willing to stay up late and get up early to make everything run smoothly. Those people make the best leaders.
That's why, above, I suggested you look for people who voluntarily take out the trash.
Once you've found some promising leaders, give them a predetermined, clearly outlined path to follow in their development. By clearly outlining the path:
1. You make it easier to fix your mistakes. If you use the same process for everyone, you can easily evaluate and refine your process.
2. You give your leaders something to measure themselves against. When they're feeling tired, they can see their progress and see that they're farther along than when they started.
3. You give potential leaders you may not have noticed a way to express their interest.
A great way to track leadership development is with Excellerate's Member-step tracking feature. You can customize the steps, so your church's values are central to what you track. You can see reports on who completed one step and not the next. You can even create certain steps that won't show for every member. This means that you can create growth steps that are designed specifically to help minister to sub-groups in your church, such as teens or children under 10. Check it out at http://www.excellerate.com/?F_Leaders
If you have any questions, let me know,
Trevor Gore
Excellerate
http://www.trevorgore.com/bio
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