Philosophy of Ministry
UNDER CONSTRUCTION
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Philosophy of Leadership
Leadership is an art, not a science. There is no perfect method of leadership, but instead leadership must flow from the leader like art from the artist. Leadership skills can be refined and parts of leadership can be learned, but leadership must come naturally. Leaders need to recognize their unique gifts and nurture those gifts for the benefit of the ministry and Christ’s Kingdom. As 1 Cor 12:7 says, “Now to each one the manifestation of the Spirit [spiritual gifts] is given for the common good.” The bible makes it clear that God calls us to use our gifts for the good of the community, so leaders must use their unique leadership abilities for the good of their ministry.
Leadership should be communal and diverse. No Christian leader can minister to every follower, but when working as a body of leaders, the unique gifts of all the leaders can work together to serve the needs of the community. In Matthew 6:7 Jesus sent out his disciples to minister in pairs, so we, too, should minister in community (Nouwen, 58).
Leadership should be mutual. John 1:14 says, “The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us.” Jesus lead his followers by living among them and becoming part of their lives. As Christian leaders, we must lead from within the lives of our followers. We must know those we minister to and become part of their lives. We must enter into deep relationships with each other and realize that we, too, are broken and sinful (Nouwen, 62). Then we can minister mutually, both reaching for the same God we desperately need and living life together.
Finally, Christian leadership must be for the glory of God. Christian leaders should not glorify themselves through authority, power, and pride, but instead lead as Christ did, through brokenness, powerlessness, compassion and servant hood. Leaders must make themselves lower than those they serve, humbly and lovingly sacrificing of themselves for the good of others. Christ glorified God by giving up his life; so too can Christian leaders glorify God by giving sacrificially of their lives to others.
Nouwen, H. J. M. (1989). In the name of Jesus: Reflections on Christian leadership. New York: Crossroad.
Philosophy of Evangelism
UNDER CONSTRUCTION
