How to develop new leaders – part 2

 

In the last blog I shared with you some of the things I learned from reading a book called T4T – a Discipleship Re-revolution, by Steve Smith and Ying Kai.  In that blog I talked about how vital it is to develop new leaders in order for movements to continue long after you graduate.  We looked at how Jesus developed His leaders as a great model for leadership development. This week I want to continue to share the insights I gained from the chapter on Developing New Leaders.

What can we learn from how Jesus discerned the right people and how He developed them?

• Give new disciples small assignments and see who is faithful, then increase the level of responsibility you are asking them to take on and watch to see if they follow through (Matt.25:21).

Ease them into responsibility.

Remember, in the beginning you are not expecting new leaders to take on full responsibility for leading the ministry, you are just trying to see who is able to fulfill the responsibility given in smaller tasks.  You are looking for those who will obey the Word, who will begin to witness, who are starting follow up new believers or is helping other believers to grow in their relationship with God as well.

• As people prove faithful, give them more time and attention as they are fulfilling responsibilities in ministry.  The best leaders are developed ‘on the job.’

A common leadership mistake we make is by spending 90% of our time with the 10% who are the least responsive.  We try to help move along those who are not willing to move or who aren’t ready to move at the current moment.  And we ignore those who are envisioned to the ministry, are faithful and ready to step up to the plate to serve.

These developing-leaders need more of your time because they are taking on increased responsibilities and the problems that accompany them.  They need to be developed in the midst of fulfilling the tasks of ministry. 

• An important point:  God often chooses those who seem to be unlikely leadership prospects because He sees that these persons long for Him and are teachable (1 Sam.22:2, 1 Chr.11:10ff).

Developing leaders happens best in the context of ministry.

• Believers mature more rapidly when they are given responsibilities for service immediately.
• Leaders are developed in the midst of proving themselves in ministry.

When we talk about developing leaders for student ministries or movements, we are not talking about developing a church leader. 

• What student leaders need and what their responsibilities call for are not the same as for someone leading in the church. 
• You are simply looking for the most basic qualifications for spiritual leadership that is appropriate for what you are asking them to be responsible for.

What are indicators that someone is growing into a leader within your ministry?

• you are able to observe their obedience to God and faithfulness in ministry.
• you can watch them taking the initiative to share Christ.
• you are aware of whether or not they are helping new and young believers to grow.

How can you help begin to develop future leaders for your movement?

• share your vision of what God has called you to do on campus with them.
• help to appoint them to appropriate leadership responsibilities in the beginning of their involvement.
• create ‘proving’ (‘proving ground’) opportunities for growth as a leader.

I would like to add one thing to Steve Smith’s list:

• Don’t wait until there is a ‘crisis of leadership’ before you start to develop new leaders!  You should be developing all who are involved in your group on some level or another at all times.   It takes time to develop new leaders and give them time to ‘prove’ themselves.  The more experience in ministry they have before they move into a more formal leadership role, the better leaders they will be.

What are some of the lessons you have learned in developing new leaders?  We have so much that we can learn from each others' experience!