To my fellow gospel ministers:
If you had 13 weeks to train a young man for ministry (knowing he will get more training later) what things would you be sure to cover? And what resources would you use?
It is all in my head and heart somewhere...I am having difficulty mapping it out and making it organized. I would hate the first 3 weeks being spent on me trying to figure out where we are going.
Here is what I have so far. I am wanting to sum it up as best I can. I have found five broad categories of ministry. Lead. Plead. Read. Bleed. And for lack of a better rhyming term...Breed. I want to teach a few principles of leadership--mostly that we are called to be a servant (Mt. 20:20-28). Here is a list so far:
Lead with gentleness (1 Pet. 3:16)
Lead with courage (Joshua 1)
Lead with humility (Phil. 2:3, 1 Pet. 5:5)
Lead with your life, authenticity (1 Thess. 2:8, 2 Tim. 3:10-11)
Lead with holiness, example (2 Tim. 2:22-26)
Lead with labor, suffering (2 Tim. 2:3)
Lead with passion, fervency (1 Pet. 5:1-5)
Lead with appropriate patience (1 Thess. 5:14)
There needs to be some teaching about where leadership comes from; this will probably be covered in our discussion of Matthew 20.
What would you add? What resources would you use? How would you teach these things? Obviously modeling them in my own life. How would you put this young man in situations where these graces would be brought out and cultivated?
Later I will discuss--Plead, Read, Bleed, and....Oh, I really need another name for this...Breed.
UPDATE: I think I have figured out how to avoid the word "breed" as a category. The concept of reproducing can fall under a category in leadership. One of the categories will now be "lead to be replaced".
About this blog
In 1832, after reading the life of Jonathan Edwards, Robert Murray McCheyne was deeply humbled. He related this experience in his diary: "How feeble my spark of Christianity appears beside such a sun! But even his was a borrowed light, and the same source is still open to enlighten me."
2 comments
Comment by Chris Taylor on April 24, 2008 at 7:21 AM
Mike,
I've often wondered about "Leading through being human"....Too many times laypeople (myself included here) think that pastors are supermen. That it is hard to "attain" that level of devoutness. Your sheep need to know your human which is encouraging. I know that is a fine line, and you may have it covered somewhere in your other topics. Perhaps you disagree, but I know the pastors I'm closest to and the ones that have the most grace are the ones that can talk about their shortcomings, their thorns if you will.
God Bless!
Chris
Comment by Mike Leake on April 24, 2008 at 3:44 PM
Chris,
Great suggestion...actually this one is covered in "leading with humility".