Everyone needs leaders. Life needs leaders. You and I will need to lead at some point in our lives. Leading of self involves being organised, getting out of bed, doing the next thing, working, resting, eating - you get the idea. Then there’s the grateful lives we lead as a result of the saving work of Christ for us. This means for Christian leadership there is something that is core to who we all are - leaders.

A disciple of Christ is trained to make disciples of Christ, and this means I need to keep learning (disciple = leaner) to lead by leading others to Christ. This our bread and butter as a church, as Christians. And it is why I would always maintain and defend this key concept of leadership development - it must be local.

What do I mean by that? Think of how leadership development happens as a function of discipleship, and that it is therefore highly relational.

Yes there are parachurch organisations that write books or provide platforms for leadership development for disciples of Christ - but they fall short of being part of our church context.

Yes there are Presbyteries, Committees Colleges, along with other church bodies that can provide material or other helps - but none of those have the high value of local relationships.

It is the local church and her relationships that are the core of leadership development in a church, and if this is not part of our church culture, then leadership development will be hamstrung by structures when it’s meant to be fruitful through local and close relationships.

Why would we try any other way? Why do we try any other way?

Discuss in this Make Leaders Monthly.

Make Leaders Article by Russ Grinter | Pastor & Teaching Elder

Russ is weak, but Jesus is strong (2 Corinthians 12:9-10). Russ gladly boasts of his weaknesses by preaching, writing, and speaking the gospel - because Jesus changes everything.