The C's of picking a Leader

I've been thinking alot about leadership these days. How do you pick the right leader?

This list is not original with me, but it is helpful:

1. Character: It starts here. What is the person's character? Are they truthful? What are their temptations? Are they aggressive or passive? Are they empathetic or detached? You need different kinds of character traits for different kinds of jobs - are you aware of what you are looking for? If not, you will most likely hire a person you like who may have the wrong character for the job.

2. Chemistry: How well does a person get along with people? Even if he or she isn't a people person, have they developed the skills to do social interaction? How well will the person do with the team? And if you are to be the person's leader, can you relate to them and with them?

I've had to learn the hard way that there are great people out there that I, for whatever reason, can't lead very well. That's why God made lots of different churches and lots of different leaders.

3. Competency: Can the person do the job? Do they have the skill set that is needed? For example, one person might be very competent to lead adults, but that doesn't mean they would be competent to lead children. Do they have the right credentials? A man might be gifted with his hands, but that doesn't mean I want him to operate on me until he's been to Medical School!

4. Capacity: Can the person grow? Do they have a teachable spirit? Are they asking questions going in or are they acting like they have all the answers? If they act like they know all the answers, run!

Everyone has a limit. Some people can interact with lots of people; others, only a few. Does this person have the capacity to double the ministry reach (or whatever the job entails) of what you are asking them to lead?

5. Call: In Jim Collins book, Good to Great, he talks about leaders who have a passion for their work and their organization. The passionate leader makes all the difference in the world.

In Kingdom world, this is a sense of call. Our goal is to make sure that no one does a job at church "to fill a hole." We want people who are called to make a difference as an usher, a choir member, a two year old teacher, a BCG leader, a student ministry worker, etc.

The Five C's of picking a leader: Character, Chemistry, Competency, Capacity, Call.

The Deepest Level…

Get on your soul’s elevator. Push the button for the lowest level. Start the long trip down to very foundation of your life.

As the elevator starts its descent, you realize you haven’t been all the way to bedrock lately. Maybe it is because the trip can’t be done quickly – even in a crisis. Maybe it is because there are some scary things at the bottom of your soul – wounds and hurts you don’t understand, you just know they are there.

The uncomfortable truth is you haven’t visited this deepest level of your existence because you’ve been busy – going to work, raising the kids, trying to pay the bills, trying to have some kind of social life. At night, you distract yourself with Facebook and ridiculous games that don’t matter, or you numb yourself by watching an inane show that features good looking people and not much else.

The elevator stops and you step out. Some things haven’t changed. Over there is the pain from your childhood, although age has mellowed it. In another corner is baggage left over from an old relationship – something you never resolved. Strange sounds come from the darkness. You recognize the sounds of your appetites – you’ve never been brave enough to go over and explore that particular darkness.

All is not dark at this bottom level. Some things glow. There is raw feeling for your spouse; after all these years, you still can’t quite explain the crazy love feelings you have. A bright light comes from the images of your children. You would sacrifice anything for them.

Some areas of your soul used to be pretty dirty. You worked on yourself, got some help, and with God’s grace, those spaces have been cleaned up.

At this deepest level, a familiar voice calls your name. Once again you recognize the strength, the authority, the mercy and the love of that voice. He lives here. You invited him to take up residence years ago. He knows the dirt and progress better than you do. He welcomes you back to yourself, to the self that He is redeeming.

You know who this is – it is Jesus, who wants to make His home at the deepest level of your heart.

Before you get on the elevator to go back up, two reminders. First, visit Jesus often at the deepest level of your soul. Second, and most important, make sure He is there.

Everything Rises and Falls on Leadership

Watching Tennessee play Florida this weekend, I once again saw Tim Teabow put a team on his back and play to victory. What a Leader!

I first heard this from Bill Hybels: Everything rises and falls on Leadership. I think he got it from John Maxwell. Regardless of the source, it is true.

Every organization that rises, rises because someone, out of a sense of discontent, said, "let's charge that hill."

Every organization that falls, falls because some leader gets off course ands stays there.

The key difference between a leader and legitimizer is a leader is helping move people to a goal; a legitimizer is a gatekeeper who through influence, resources, or resistance allows progress or thwarts it.

Here's the new thought: Everyone must engage in the tasks of leadership. You must learn to lead yourself at the very least.

Who or what is God asking you to lead?

Sunday Download

Great launch to new series - The NowWhat Family. I preached on a passage rarely addressed - the rape of Tamar in 2 Samuel 13. The fascinating part of the passage is how relevant the family response is to our culture. No one invested energy into preventing this tragedy - rather, the Dad, David, enabled it. In the aftermath of the assault, the advice she was given reflects the dysfunctional dynamics in families today: Let's keep this a secret; Protect the perpetrator, not the victim; Get over it; but most disturbing, do nothing - just get mad.

Stories like this are in the Bible to remind us what not to do! When a crisis hits our family, we need to take action.

Good crowd today - close to 1200. We were looking for folks at Starting Point tonight, but had a slim crowd - that's okay.

Look forward this week to preparing for the second message in this series.

The NowWhat Family…

Everything seems to be going well at home. You and your spouse are getting along, the kids are doing well in school, and life is flowing along.

Then it starts. A phone call from your parents, informing you of their changed health alters your schedule. A meeting with the boss alters your income (up or down, it can be stressful). Report cards come in and it is a warning sign that something is amiss with one of the kids.

Your daughter finds a new boyfriend and you smell trouble. You find termites and the air-conditioner breaks – you have money to fix one, but not both (what would Dave Ramsey say?).

Your spouse says, “We need to talk.” You find some cell phone calls that are suspicious. An old girl-friend sends you a friend request on Facebook. You propose and get turned down.

After twenty three years of marriage, twenty years as a parent, and twenty five years as a pastor, I have learned that family life is not predictable. The unexpected comes up. There are crises, threats, and challenges.

The good news is God does not expect your family to be perfect. There are no perfect families portrayed in the Bible. Instead, the families in the Bible seem to lurch from crisis to crisis, depending on God’s grace and intervention to get them through.

Starting this Sunday, I’ll be preaching a series called “The NowWhat Family.” Whether you are married or single, have children at home or children away, I think you will benefit from the truth of God’s word about how to deal with the unexpected in our family life.

The Good News is this: Every time you throw up your hands and say, “Now what?!,” God answers by saying, “Me.”

Thirteen Days Ago…

Thirteen days ago, I had never met a child who was HIV positive. Now, I have hugged them, tossed in the air, played checkers with them, and had them feel the hair on my arms.

Thirteen days ago, I had never conducted a funeral anywhere but in the American South. Now, I have stood beside the grave of an African woman while the men of her neighborhood shoveled dirt on to her casket, and the assembled crowd sang “Jesus, the Alpha and Omega” in Swetswana.

Thirteen days ago, I had never seen a crowd of children pushing each other in line to get food. Now, I have watched children being feed because the kitchen that feeds them was fixed in the name of Jesus.

Thirteen days ago, I did not know that in Africa, children are not valued until they marry. Now, I know their culture needs to be transformed, just like ours.

Thirteen days ago, I had never driven on the opposite side of the road. Now, I have driven in the city traffic of Gabarone, and only occasionally turn on the windshield wiper instead of the blinker.

Thirteen days ago, I thought Morudi James was the name of the pastor of Old Naledi. Now, I know Morudi means “pastor” and James is his first name. I also know he is a man with a large heart for people without the gospel.

Thirteen days ago, I knew there was a role for our church in Botswana, but it still seemed fuzzy to me. Now, I know that our church is one of five North American evangelical churches that have an ongoing ministry in Botswana. Five churches for a country of 1.4 million people.

Thirteen days ago, I thought I would be entering a strange world. Now, I can say it all felt familiar – like this is the place ADBC is supposed to be. Don’t you imagine that must have been what Abraham felt when he came to the Promised Land? He had never seen it; but it felt like the place he was supposed to be.

If you gave God thirteen days, imagine what He could do in your life?

Thinking about people

I am still sorting out a jumble of thoughts from my Africa experience. The biggest one I trying to wrap my head around is people are people.

You may be thinking, "Duh," but let me explain. I have spent a lot of my life trying to understand culture - from high school Spanish, to Biblical Backgrounds, to leading a local church in a pretty unique cultural environment. Most of this effort focuses on how people are different. It's true even in Sumter - our micro culture makes us different than almost anywhere else in the USA.

I went to Africa ready to focus on the culture, but really got surprised. Some of the behaviors that were described to me as "African" were the same behaviors I saw when I was a pastor in the inner city of Louisville. Sure the pastor is more revered in Africa as the leader than in the US, but that is a question of scale. People still have basic needs of food, shelter, job and self-worth (Maslow was right!).

Thus the genius of the gospel - it is designed for the most basic human needs - forgiveness, love, nurture, purpose. It is for all times and all situations. God really is pretty smart.

Africa - Seventh Day

Tonight in my Bible Reading, I found these two verses:

Proverbs 19:21: Many are the plans ina man's heart, bt it is the Lord's purpose that prevails.

Isaiah 6:8 - Who shall I send and who will go for me. And I said, "Here am I. Send me."

This was our last full day in Botswana. The need here is so overwhelming. During our breakfast with Pastor Norman from Open Baptist Church, he told us that children are not valued in Africa - not until they marry and become adults. Old Naledi Baptist has broken that pattern. Every day we see children coming to the church to play. They see church as a safe place - a place of grace.

In every city in the world - including Sumter - there are places like Old Naledi. You might rightly ask why should our church invest here? Why not invest somewhere else? That is a question that must be asked and answered.

My response is this - there are many churches in the USA. Why pastor ADBC?

The answer to both questions is the same - I was called to ADBC and my sense is that ADBC is called to Botswana. There are only three North American churches that have strong partnerships here. Three! God gave us this connection and I believe He has more work for us to do.

What we accomplished this week: Fixed the gas and water lines at the feeding station. Bought and assembled shelves for a library for children to study in. Bought supplies to provide electricity for the church. Played with children. Assisted at the feeding station. Encouraged pastors. Celebrated with Naledi Baptist Fellowship in the Dedication of their new building. Shared the grief of a family who lost a loved one. Ministered to the sick. Encouraged pastors.

But most important is not what our team did - it is what God has done in us - and how He has expanded the faith of every member of our team.

Tomorrow - travel home.

Africa - Sixth Day

Today we went to visit a village where there had once been a church - but the pastor had a moral failure (it doesn't just happen in the USA) and now there is a building and not much of a congregation. We saw the unused ruins of an IMB garden project that isn't used because no one is there to show the people how to use it. The lesson - leadership first, building second. That's the Biblical model - first God calls Abraham and Moses - the land comes later!

We visited with a pastor - he invited us to go with him to pray with a sick man. We learned it is a sign that the pastor has done all he can when he invites an out of town pastor to come and pray. And if the pastor is from the USA - it truly is a validation of the pastor's concern. So we went to a traditional round tribal hut to pray with a sick man and his family.

We also took a side trip to see the church that Dr. David Livingston established 150 years ago - it was touching mission history.

This evening we participated in the youth service - and I acted out the story of Jesus calming the storm (Yes, ADBC'ers, the same story I preached on two weeks ago - God believes in recycling). The students seem engaged when the interpreter and I both laid down on the floor to show how Jesus was sleeping in the boat.

Best part of all - got to talk to Gina by phone and by Skype.

Tomorrow - I will having breakfast with Pastor Norman from Open Baptist - and trying to button up work here.

Africa - Fifth Day

Today we focused on getting the feeding station up and running. Vandals had taken the cooper pipe for the water and the gas. I toured the finest hardware stores in Gabarone and came away with a new appreciation for Lowes. We made four trips to the stores, but we got the feeding station up and running.

Many of the children are preschoolers. Imagine being 3 or 4 and making your own way to the feeding station to get lunch. Some are school age and came in their school uniforms - a simple white shirt and dark pants. The children ate a canned spam hash warmed up with a chunk of bread. This is because cooking was limited today because we were effecting repairs. Because of the damage, they had not had meals for the past two days.

Most of the children are orphans. They are being raised by grandparents or extended family members. About 40% are HIV positive themselves.

Late in the afternoon, we went back to the church for AWANA. The kids loved the races and games and they were taught a Bible story.

We went for Pizza tonight the church leadership team - Pastor James and three young men he has won to Christ and discipled. One, Julien, wants to study theology - he already has a master's degree. Pray for him

Big lesson of the day - North American Christians need a mission experience because dyou get out of the rhythym of your life and get into a whole different flow. Then God can reveal to you some portion of his truth you would never hear in the US.

Africa- Fourth Day

Hey - 4th Day.
We slept in till 9:30 after last nights big adventure - and then went to start work at Old Naledi. Scott, Mark, and Jason worked on trying to get the plumbing working at the feeding station. I tried to encourage Morudi James. Nadeli is a draining environment. Morudi James is a man with a very empathetic heart. He told us about 40% of the children at the Feeding Station are HIV Positive.

I also played some games with the kids - chess (yes, chess, with rocks and glass pieces) and soccer. I taught the Tuesday night prayer service - amazing to sing "What a Friend we have in Jesus" in Swetswana.

When my daughter was here in June, she made friends with a girl named Bareng. I found out today that her grandmother was the woman I helped bury my first day. Bareng mother died of AIDS - and now Bareng has lost her grandmother. This is the unfolding situation in Botswana. This is why our help is needed.

We have a great team - no complainers or whiners. Everyone is eager to serve and sacrifice.

Tomorrow we are scheduled to walk around the neighborhood to see the needs and opportunities.

Africa -Third Day

Get ready to laugh out loud - I came all the way to Africa and got stuck!

We took the church van to the Khutse Game preserve. The paved road ran out 90 kilometers before the park. The road got rougher, the sand got deeper and we bottomed out and put it on the frame. Before the day ended, the van wouldn't crank - then it would; the transmission pan was cracked and leaking and we towed the van back to Gabarone - 210 kilometers.

Amazing how God can use the unexpected for His purpose (I think someone has been preaching a message series on this). To get help, we had to go to a nearby African bushman village, where we saw things you would only see on National Geographic specials. There was extreme poverty. I saw whole families sitting around a bag of rice (?) and eating. I could see that would be their only meal of the day.

We went to see wild animals, but God wanted us to see something different. So far, this has been the most amazing thing I have seen.

What God is teaching in Africa - sense Him at work in each moment.