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While talking to different people, their reactions ranged from anger to inequality. Some were shocked; others saw it coming. Some wanted to mend the financial and facility problems; others only wanted to repair the blame. there have been many tears. Tears of thankfulness and tears of disappointment.
I meet with a little group of young leaders who are considering a career in church planting. We cite leadership and that we pray for every other. Last week I asked some people what leadership lessons they learned from us as we led through the crisis.
So let’s see the following four lessons which will help you if you’re facing a crisis in Christian leadership.
1. Communication
When leading during change and crisis, leaders must give their best in communicating. For us, that meant countless early-morning and late-night meetings, calls, sermons, and much more. We want everyone to know what’s happening before we made an announcement on Sunday morning.
This required us to clear our schedules and be available to inform the same story and answer equivalent questions over and over and over and over. this sort of over-communicating is time-consuming and emotionally draining, but it’s the only thanks to lead during change.
2. Honesty
Honesty and transparency about leadership mistakes will do more than self-defense, spin, and hype to revive leadership credibility. There’s a time for a leader to cast vision and a time to admit mistakes. Everyone suddenly starts to make assumptions that are well-meaning but misguided.
Since leaders make more decisions than others, they create more mistakes than people that make no decisions. When a leader humbly admits miscalculations and mistakes, people tend to be forgiving. When leaders make excuses and ignore reality, trust vanishes sort of vapor. When leading through change and pain, honesty really is the best policy.
3. Perspective
A major part of spiritual leadership helps people embrace a providential perspective regarding change and particularly the pain that always requires change. All week I attempted to urge people to ascertain that their local church community is a crucial part of life, but it’s not the center of life. There’s an enormous difference between church-centered lives and Christ-centered lives.
We would like the latter. I attempted to urge people to ascertain that albeit the church services are ending, they’re still married to the same person, and still have equivalent amazing kids.
They still have good friends and good jobs. But starting during a few weeks, they’re going to simply worship at a different address with a bigger group of people. God’s calling has not changed. it’s the work of the leaders to color a providential perspective during times of change.
4. Patience
I expected some people to react in instant anger once I told them Bethel Franklin was over. Some did. Some didn’t. I also suspected that a lot of these same people would cool down and be more rational and understanding during a few days. Leaders must exercise patience and let the holy spirit do whatever he wants within the hearts of his people.