Calling

One organization that I am a member of is the Colorado Career Development Association (CCDA) is a state affiliate of the National Career Development Association (NCDA), and a division of the Colorado Counseling Association (CCA). The organization exists to serve those who have an interest in career and workforce development issues in Colorado. I have found this to be good experience that has put me in contact with dedicated career counseling professionals.

On April 20th CCDA has invited Gregg Levoy to be the keynote speaker for its annual conference. Gregg is the author of "Callings: Finding and Following An Authentic Life" (Random House). The conference brochure says, "His writings and workshops focus on the idea that any significant change you want to make in your professional or personal life will align or re-align you with your passion and sense of purpose, with your deepest values, with a fit between who you are and what you do. This then is his definition of a calling. That calling could be to make a career change or creative leap, take on a new role or let go of an old one, launch a new venture, or simply make a course-correction in your life or work. Levoy's seminars take a creative approach to the challenges of listening and responding to those calls. The result of engaging your deepest passions-----and thus motivations-----will show up in your work and in your life as greater enthusiasm, creativity and health." Unfortunately I will not be able to attend because I choose to attend the City Impact Round table in Texas, but his description of calling is very compelling.

For leaders in mission knowing God's calling has always been an important motivation for getting involved in a mission effort, launching a new mission, or making a career decision. As a college student the call of Isaiah in Isaiah 6 was an important step for me to make in realigning my life and career with what I believe to be God's will for my life. How do we know God's calling for our lives? It begins with surrender to the Lordship of Jesus. As the good shepherd in John 10 Jesus goes before us and call us to follow, as sheep. "the sheep listen to his voice. He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out... his sheep follow him because they know his voice." John 10: 3-5.

From my experience it comes after we have made some decisions and begin to act on those decisions then God "confirms" His call. Isaiah writes, "you will hear a word behind you when you turn to the right or to the left, 'This is the way walk in it." Ephesians 2:10 provides assurance that because we are God's workmanship He will guide us to the good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.

I also believe that God's calling will always be consistent with our design. As we recognize our strengths, our interests, our spiritual gifts, and our abilities that are demonstrated through life, these are guideposts to know God's calling. John WP Oliver was my pastor when I was a college student. I met with him to discuss my future. He gave me some advice that I have never forgotten, "Discerning a need does not constitute God's call. In life you will be exposed to many needs but you will have to choose which need God intends for you." This took the pressure off of me and caused me to look to the Lord to direct me.

City Impact Roundtable - El Paso Texas

This is the first time I have attended the City Impact Round table. I decided to attend this year because of the invitation of Glenn Barth who serves as the convener. This year's focus is The Dynamics of Transformation, A Consultation for City-Reaching Practitioners. Glenn has recently agreed to serve as the president of the ministry that was founded by Jack Dennison known as CitiReach International. Sam Williams and Eric Swanson of Tango have been working with Jack to launch a "Good Cities" initiative which Glenn will lead.

Another reason I wanted to attend is that I am gathering information about city reaching so that I might use that information in resourcing the growing number of city reaching movements including the growing Denver Metro movement where I live. My interest has been growing because of my relationship with leaders from around the world who have been part of the Global Learning Community at the Lost Antler Ranch in Estes Park, Colorado. Another reason my interest has grown is because I also served as the lead facilitator in a Leadership Network Leadership Community on the Externally Focused Church that Eric was directing. I sense that God is working in the lives of the leaders and churches to bring about a new way of communicating the person, presence and power of Jesus Christ to the unbelieving world.

I have often thought that the Old Testament example of Israel when they were in exile is the example for the church in a "Post-Christendom" world. Therefore, the words of the prophet Jeremiah serve as a statement of mission for the church "...seek the peace and prosperity of the city to which I have carried you into exile. Pray to the LORD for it because if it prospers, you too will prosper." Jeremiah 29:7.

Leadership in Short Term Missions

I prepared a paper for a recent meeting of the Rocky Mountain Chapter of the Evangelical Missiological Society on "principles of partnership" that were important to the success of the Short-term Mission efforts of the US Campus Crusade for Christ. I hope to continue to develop this "case study" of a successful mission effort from 1980 through 2000. In sharing the story I hope that some of the lessons we learned can be instructive to the next generation of mission leaders. Here is the link to the paper:

http://www.christianfutures.com/shortterm.shtml

21st Century Leaders

In leadeship development circles there has been a great deal written about "Transactional versus Transformational Leadership." Is the movement to "transformational leadership" simply a cultural trend from modern to postmodern leadership or is this the leadership style that will be most effective in the 21st century? Another question, "Is there something lacking in the 'win-win' leadership strategies that misses the heart of God for people in relationship?" The next question then is, "How can I become a transformational leader?"

That has lead me to think of a three dimensional model of leadership. The two dimensions of leadership I was taught by Howard Hendricks was that a leader knew where he or she was going and could persuade others to follow. These two elements are related to having a clear purpose and then the power to move a growing number of people toward that purpose. Now I believe the unstated element that was always in the background now needs to be in the foreground. The third dimension is "presence." We have always discussed the character qualities of leaders but what about the way in which all of those qualities blend and are being used in light of the spiritual and emmotional health of the leader? What presence do we bring? Perhaps this is at the heart of the question about "vulnerablity and humility" in mission. Not simply changing our tactics in mission and restating our purpose but to bring the presence of the one we follow, the one who washed the feet of his disciples, the one who poured out his life so that we might live.

I have become more and more convinced that as leaders we need to be developing our sense of "self awareness," so that we always anticipate our "presence" as we move into different contexts of ministry. Secondly then we need to know how our "presence" contributes to our understanding of our purpose and any given time and place and to how our "presence" affects our "power" to influence, direct or manage those who we serve.

Leading from the Future

I just read an article by Jay Gary who is a long-time friend and now ministry associate. He is the Chairman of the Board of Global Service Office, directs the Christian Futures Network and is on the faculty of Regent University School of Leadership Studies. Here are some highlights:

"What has occupied your executive team's attention the past three years? Chances are you have been restructuring departments or re-engineering core programs for immediate gain, rather than regenerating your strategies or reinventing your organization for the future. It is said that on average, corporate management devotes 90% of their time on the "Inside and Now," leaving 10% of their energy to focus on the "Outside and Then."

That forward focus might be even less in the non-profit or small business sectors given that the urgent often preempts the important due to limited resources. While shoring up today's operations is vital and necessary, it is no substitute for creating tomorrow's programs. So, how can we lead from the future, rather than the past?"

Jay's answer is to develop "strategic foresight." He writes, "Planning develops strategies for present operations while foresight creates the framework for future actions, five to ten years out." When asked about the secret of his goal scoring success, Wayne Gretsky said,"I don't skate to where the puck is, I skate to where the puck is going to be." In times that are changing it seems to me that we should reorient our actions toward the future by cultivating foresight.

The Barnabas Ministries

Spoke today by phone with Dale Frimodt. Dale married Marlene Root. Marlene and I worked together here in Colorado as a part of the CCC International University Resource Team before she married Dale. Dale was a staff member with CCC as well and was a part of the "I found it" campaigns. Dale had a burden for pastors and started the Barnabas Ministries in 1977. The Barnabas Ministries is an interdenominational ministry seeking to serve the body of Christ by providing encouragement, counseling and consulting for Christian leaders, including pastors, church leadership and missionaries.

Dale writes, "In today's world, ministers, missionaries and other Christian leaders are all on the front lines of spiritual conflict. Even in the best of times, those in ministry can feel isolated and alone, overwhelmed with the demands of ministry, burned out, and experiencing relational difficulties with family, staff, or those with whom they serve. In America today...
1400 pastors leave the ministry each month,
70% of them say they have no one they can consider a close friend,
and almost a quarter will experience a forced exit some time in their ministry.*"
*Research by Pastor's Institute and Fuller Institute Study 1991

Dale has helped many in Christian leadership address personal problems in their lives, resolve conflicts in their churches, and get refocused for ministry. Dale has chaired a steering committee to offer a Care Givers Forum, which is an annual gathering of people from across the U.S. and elsewhere who are involved in the ministry of caring for professional Christian workers and their families. Find out more about Dale and the forum at their website http://www.caregiversforum.org/

Innovation and Leadership Styles

Of course any human enterprise requires leadership. In business there is a continuous stream of study on leadership. These studies often influence leaders in the church to create organizations that reflect the latest trends in business. Once structured a leadership style can actually become a part of the organizational culture of that church and over time it is simply reinforced by a succession of leaders. In rapidly changing times when new ideas are needed innovation of strategy can be implemented, but will not create the results hoped for. The problem was not in the strategy but in the leadership structure. What may be needed is innovation of management not strategy which could be much more difficult and even painful.

Since the failures of Hurricane Katrina relief efforts and with the threat of a global outbreak of the avian flu, there has been much discussion about crisis management. “In the complex and uncertain environment of a sustained, evolving crisis, the most robust organizations will not be those that simply have plans in place but those that have continuous sensing and response capabilities.” (Noria)

Noria created a comparison between two types of organizations, which reflect two styles of leading, which I’ve adapted this article.

Directive Styles:

1. Hierarchical
2. Centralized Leadership
3. Tightly Coupled (greater interdependence among parts)
4. Concentrated workforce
5. Specialists
6. Policy and procedure driven

Delegative Styles:

1. Networked
2. Distributed Leadership
3. Loosely coupled (less interdependence)
4. Dispersed workforce
5. Cross-trained generalists
6. Guided by simple yet flexible rules
   

From “Survival of the Adaptive,” Nitin Noria, Harvard Business Review, May 2006, pg 23

• Which of these leadership structures do you thinking would more likely accelerate innovation in a rapidly changing context?
• What changes would I need to make in my leadership style to create an environment for innovation?
• What changes would I need to make in the way in which I train or equip others to implement innovative strategies?
• Could I state the simple guidelines or flexible rules for leading in my organization?

I am not suggesting that one style is “good or bad.” We need both styles, but it is important to be aware of the impact on those we are leading. We then need to communicate why the structure we have chosen is appropriate to our situation. Finally, we should either develop in the leadership style that is needed or we should ask someone else to lead out of their strength. 02/04/2007

Birkman Leadership Styles

In my work in developing local campus ministry leaders with Campus Crusade for Christ around the globe, one of greatest lessons I tried to pass on was the importance of adapting a leader’s natural or preferred style of leading to the context of their ministry. Often younger leaders either tried to follow the leadership style of a more senior leader that they admired or reacted to a leadership style of a senior leader that had offended them. Often a cultural model of “leading” may have a great impact on developing leaders from among university students in one context but fails in another cultural context.

As a consultant, one of the tools I use is the Birkman Method. Roger Birkman has identified three styles of leading: knowledge specialists, directive managers, and delegative managers. A person may have an intense preference for one style or they could have a balanced preference. This affects their perspective on whether one style is “good or bad.” It may also affect their view on issues such as spiritual authority or decision making. (If you have your Birkman report you can find your natural or preferred style of leading on the Interview Guide top right column. The scores reflect the intensity of your preference with 1 being the least preferred and 10 being the most preferred.)

When we look at the Bible and see examples of leaders it is very easy for a person to pick examples of leaders that fit one’s own perspective. Of course when we look at Jesus we often see him fulfill the roles of a prophet, a priest and a king. I can compare these roles to Roger Birkman’s three styles of leading. A prophet is like a knowledge specialist bringing truth and wisdom to our lives which points us toward a future; a priest is like a delegative manager serving as our representative to a higher authority then ourselves, and who empowers and serves us to accomplish the responsibilities’ that we own; while a king is like a directive manager serving as a representative, of a higher authority then themselves, and uses their authority so that we might accomplish a shared outcome. Which style is right? I believe it all depends on what God’s purpose is for His people who are being led at that moment. The issue is to develop a flexible style of leadership in light of God’s purpose, our context and the people who God has asked us to lead.

Serving Leaders in Mission

Recently at a Global Learning Community at Estes Park I heard Sam Williams sharing about the future of his ministry and he repeated a statement that he had heard Bob Buford make which went something like, "At this point in my life the fruit of my ministry is growing on the trees of others." I felt as though that was what I wanted to be true of my ministry. Even though I still want to be directly involved in ministry locally when I think globally I want to be more involved in serving others who are leading in mission.

Since 1984 when I moved to California, I have seen myself as a part of a "global mission" labor force. Since then I spent most of the time living in the US, and I traveled to minister for various lengths of times in more than thirty nations in every part of the world. In 1989 when I moved with my family and became a resident of Manila, Philippines for two years, it changed everything but this sense of global ministry.

Because of that perspective on ministry when I think of leaders, I think of pastors, missionaries, staff members of mission organizations and professional volunteers in ministry. I believe that today leaders in mission should not be defined by place of ministry, position in ministry, or means of support. I desire to serve leaders regardless of national, ethnic-linguistic, and cultural background. I do think that leaders and their families who have been called to live "make their home for two years or longer" in a culture other than their original culture need additional services.

When I think mission I want my focus to be on those who are "crossing boundaries or borders" to advance the mission of Jesus Christ. Those who are going with the love of God to reach people on the "margins" of the gospel. In light of globalization I believe the distinctions of home and foreign missions are no longer as important, because the ability to adapt to and work in diverse cultures, to understand how to minister in different contexts and to collaborate in multicultural, ethnic or national teams are all a part of mission today whether at home or abroad.