Generic Leadership?

I've been listening to these CD's from Willow Creek Community Church by Bill Hybles on the topic of church leadership. He's an evangelical pastor and has some really sound practical advice for church leaders. One of his suggestions is that pastors become "learning junkies" when it comes to reading books on leadership. So I took his advice and bought a book titled "The Leadership Challenge." I have just started the book, and I have some questions.

The book is not written from a Christian perspective at all. It's a generic book on leadership and teaches that leadership is a qualitity that is not specific to any field of application. That rubs me the wrong way. It seems to me that there must be something unique about Christian leadership. I have a hard time believing that leadership need not be Christian to be effective. Actually, I suppose being effective isn't necessarily being good. Even so, Christian leadership should be distinct not only in it's goal but also in it's means. Isn't there something inherent in the Christian understanding of leadership that would conflict with a secular understanding? Am I trying to make the world too black and white or am I just defensive about Christians offering somethign better than what the world can come up with apart from Christ.

Was Jesus a good leader? That's the question I"m going to be asking as I read this secular book. Would they consider Jesus a good leader according to their standards? We'll see...

Serving Beyond the Congregation

I am the adult advisor for the Synod youth board. This means I help a group of highschoolers from around the state plan a synod youth gathering in the fall. It also means I attend two additional retreats a year with them to do the planning. The youth at my congregation don't have a tradition of being involved in synod level stuff, mostly because many of the needs that synod events would meet our congregation is large enough to meet on its own. In addition my role as associate pastor means that I supervise the youth director which limits my connection with the youth of my congregation although I have gifts and passion in youth ministry. So two out of the three synod youth events that I attend each year(this is my first year) I go without youth from my congregation.

I just got back from a leadership training event that consisted of about 12 sttudents from across the state. It was much smaller than the leadership event my congregation will do with 25 students of our own next weekend. It was pretty mediocre in my opinion, but everybody seemed to enjoy themselves. My part was to lead the board meetings to help plan the fall gathering.

Over the course of the weekend God called me, or rather affirmed that I was in the right place. Part of me wondered if I was being a good steward of my time, and of my congregation's time since I belong to them first. But as I spent time with the youth, and realized how unfocused the program had been and how little time they had spent in prayer in the past I felt God saying that I was here for a reason. They discussed how prevalent mormanism in in thier communities. I grew up in Utah and am very familiar with mormanism and what it means to be a Christian in that context. Again I felt/understood God to be saying that I am exactly where I should be.

In addition I had a blast. I felt fulfilled and excited. I felt like my leadership was being used more fully. I think my time with the synod will be a blessng to me and to my congregation. I don't know how long God will want me in this position, but I hope it's for awhile and I hope I can do the job He's asking me to.

My church, my family

I'm a member of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA). I'm still figuring out what it means to be a member of a denomination. I confess each Sunday and believe in the universal catholic church. But I also think there is something important about being committed to the people of your church body that is part of the Romans 12 and 1 Corinthians 12 discussions of the Christian body. There's a specificity to the people in my church. It's not some generic, super-spiritual commitment to an abstract idea, but rather a real on the ground earthy commitment to flesh and blood people. This church is my family, and family is a mixed bag at best.

I'm thinking along these lines because I recently watch my church debate the issues surrounding homosexuality. Especially we were asking whether we were permitted to bless same sex unions and ordain or roster people in such unions. Personally I think scripture is clear on both issues that marriage is only permitted between one mand and one woman and should be a lifelong commitment. I think homosexual person should be allowed to be ordained, if God calls them to the ministry, but they should remain celibate. Either way, it was fascinating and rather moving to watch my church debate the issues. It made me think long and hard about what it means to be a member of this church.

I had to listen. That's what it came down to for me. As members got up to microphones and expressed views, even ones that I found terribly misguided, I was called by God to listen to them. They are members of my family, they are Christian persons, baptized believers and I couldn't refuse that they belong to me and I to them. You can't go away unchanged when you sit and listen to a fellow Christian. My opinions on the matter remain firm, but my heart is softer, and my understanding of Church is broader.

Thankfully my church decided to maintain the ban on the blessing of same-sex unions and refused to allow exceptions to our rule banning non-celibate homosexuals from the ministry. I'm very pleased with the results of the debate.

The Spirit has worked a change in me. The Spirit opened my eyes to see all the people who are part of me, who are also joined to the Body of Christ and are church with me. It's not pretty, the church has never been ideal. It's always been messy, and on the edge of fidelity. But in the end it's about the Spirit of God moving to keep God's people faithful to God. All through scripture it's the people of God messing up and going astray and God refusing to give up on them. God raises up new leaders, leads them out of slavery, gives them a land, frees them from captivity, provides for them missionaries and scripture. God will accomplish His purpose. I pray simply to be a part, however small, of His work in this church, in the universal catholic church and in the world.