How Do We Develop Missional Leaders for the Renewal of the Christian
Movement?
There are leaders who are part of the missional leadership movement. As Reggie McNeal writes in “The Present Future: Six Tough Questions for the Church”:
They are the missionary force in the marketplace. They are the heartbeat of renewal in North America. They are the future for the missional church. I find these people in every congregation I visit. They know something is wrong. They know God has more in mind for the Christian movement than they are typically experiencing at church.[1]
How do we provide leadership development for such missionally motivated
leaders?
At the region of Caesarea Philippi, Jesus said to Peter, “Upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.” (Matthew 16:18)
As McNeal goes on to ask:
“How do we develop a leadership core that is not program based, but is instead a group of leaders who are ready to charge hell with a water pistol?”
Can you imagine your church officers and trustees, Elders on Session—missional ministry leadership teams, likewise poised and readily clothed with the full armor of God, charging forward together to forge ahead into the present future that is already upon us, with the Spirit of the Almighty leading the way, knowing that the battle is the Lord’s?!
The Need for A
Leadership Learning Community
The goal of a congregation’s leadership development process is to create a core of leaders who are capable of strategizing, launching, and conducting a mission for expanding the kingdom of God. Contrast this to holding a leadership role in an organization that primarily makes demands of the leaders’ time, money, talents, energy, and prayer for its own survival.[2]
We need... [to be continued]