mclaren's leaders

In The Church On The Other Side, Brian McLaren reminds us that the writer of He 13.7 didn't say, "Consider your leaders and imitate their hair styles, speech patterns, and gestures." Instead he said, "imitate their faith". Good reminder.

McLaren then describes some characteristics of future leaders. Here are a few that I thought were excellent.

Personal authenticity - they will know who they are and what they stand for. They will not imitate others, they will maximize how God created them.

Team development - because they know who they are, they are also aware of who they are not and will build teams correcting for their limitations.

New approaches to training - because change is continuous, training must also be continuous. This requires new forms in addition to the static classroom environment.

Count the cost - the cost of leadership is everything. Here he quotes William Easum in Sacred Cows Make Gourmet Burgers:

Many books have been written on the process of transforming an organization. Most of them make far too much of the logistics involved. The process is simple; the sacrifice is often great. Transformation takes focus, tenacity, and a willingness to be crucified! Transformation is successful when God's people understand the high stakes for which they are playing. The problem with too many of our church leaders is that they no longer see ministry as a life-and-death issue. Too many clergy are professionals; too many laity see the church as just another association or club.

As John Wimber often reminded us, we must be committed to Christ, His Church, and His cause. The cost of that is our lives. The gain - the Kingdom of God!

Leadership is a matter of love and spirituality - "a place for spiritual sages, not just organizational technicians". He quotes Henri Nouwen's In the Name of Jesus: Reflections on Christian Leadership:

It is not enough for the priests and ministers of the future to be moral people, well trained, eager to help their fellow humans, and able to respond creatively to the burning issues of their time. All of that is very valuable, but it is not at the heart of Christian leadership. The central question is, Are the leaders of the future truly men and women of God, people with an ardent desire to dwell in God's presence, to listen to God's voice, to look at God's beauty, to touch God's incarnate Word and taste fully God's infinite goodness?

I thought these were great points. I guess my only disappointment was that he did not discuss leaders of the future having great faith which is where I thought he was going based on the opening comments. Oh well ... still good.

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