The Most Powerful Function of Leadership Development

by: Mac Lake

Entering into a leadership development relationship with someone is both a high honor and a weighty responsibility. In essence, you’re saying to them “follow me; I’ll be your model.” The first thought that comes to mind when I read this phrase is “who am I?” I’m far from being a perfect leader. What qualifies me to say, “follow me”?

Yet leadership development is most powerful when it’s carried out in a modeling relationship. I have to remind myself that I’m not being a model of perfection, I’m simply modeling a pattern; a pattern for them to watch, to reflect back on, to learn from. The man who mentored me was a completely different personality than me. He had a far different leadership style than I do. Yet as I was able to watch him go through the ups and downs of day-to-day leadership, his influence became a pattern for me to learn from.

In 1 Corinthians 11:1, Paul told those believers, “follow my example as I follow the example of Christ.” Paul knew he wasn’t modeling perfection; he was modeling a pattern of striving towards a consistent walk with Christ.

“Follow me” includes watch me fail and admit it. It means watch me sin and confess it. Watch me make a wrong decision and correct it. Watch me have a bad idea and laugh about it. Take the pressure off yourself. Don’t try to be perfect, but do strive to be a pattern of seeking Jesus in a way that those you lead will want to emulate.

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Mac Lake

Mac Lake

Mac is a pioneering influence in the church planting movement. In 1997, he planted Carolina Forest Community Church (Myrtle Beach, South Carolina). In 2004, he began serving as Leadership Development Pastor at Seacoast Church (Charleston, South Carolina) where he served for over six years. In July 2010, Mac Lake joined with West Ridge Church to become the Visionary Architect for the LAUNCH Network. In 2015 Mac begin working with Will Mancini and Auxano to develop the Leadership Pipeline process. He joined Auxano full time in 2018. Mac and his wife, Cindy, live in Charleston, South Carolina and have three children, Brandon, Jordan and Brianna.

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comment_post_ID); ?> Thank you for this information. I'm going to use this article to improve my work with the Lord.
 
— Abel Singbeh
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comment_post_ID); ?> Thank you Ed for sharing your insights into the Church Growth Movement. I have my reservations with Church Growth models because it has done more damage than good in the Body of Christ. Over the years, western churches are more focused on results, formulas and processes with little or no emphasis on membership and church discipline. Pastors and vocational leaders are burnt out because they're overworked. I do believe that the Church Growth model is a catalyst to two destructive groups: The New Apostolic Reformation and the Emerging Church. Both groups overlap and have a very loose definition. They're both focus on contemporary worship, expansion of church brand (franchising), and mobilizing volunteering members as 'leaders' to grow their ministry. Little focus on biblical study, apologetics and genuine missional work with no agenda besides preaching of the gospel.
 
— Dave
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comment_post_ID); ?> Thank you for sharing such a good article. It is a great lesson I learned from this article. I am one of the leaders in Emmanuel united church of Ethiopia (A denomination with more-than 780 local churches through out the country). I am preparing a presentation on succession planning for local church leaders. It will help me for preparation If you send me more resources and recommend me books to read on the topic. I hope we may collaborate in advancing leadership capacity of our church. God Bless You and Your Ministry.
 
— Argaw Alemu
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