Some thoughts on Leadership: with reference to Dallas Willard and the Acts 29 guys.

Dallas Willard, Hearing God: Developing a Conversational Relationship with God (InterVarsity, 1984):

To manipulate, drive or manage people is not he same thing as to lead them. The sheepdog forcibly manoeuvres the sheep, whereas the biblical shepherd simply calls as he calmly walks ahead of the sheep. 81

That resonates with some Acts 29 stuff on leadership which I reproduce here:\

- Leader’s define and defend the mission
- If my mission is fuzzy, I can’t fail.
- Leaders umpire—they decide what’s on mission
- Unless we have leaders over the mission there’s no way to stay on mission
- Leaders lead the mission (knowing that bad experiences will be all my fault)

Leader’s are called to:
- Teach people how to participate in the mission in a meaningful way.
- Connect every task to Jesus and the mission
- Say to the people: “I don’t have a job for you, I’m on a mission and I need you to join me. We’re going to kick butt and take names.”
- Call people rather than trying to "sell" them on the mission (but we don’t want to call because we don't want to depend on people—to need them—to feel like we’ll owe them)
- Say to the people, "I want you to follow me on this mission," because that’s what Jesus did. 

Leaders, they say, must have written philosophy of ministry arising from such questions as, "Who am I? What bothers me?"

Here's a stab at, a-first-draft-of-a-work-in-progress-of-a, philosophy of ministry for me:

Life is like a journey down a highway. We’re born and we set out for our final destination—the home God intends for us (heaven). The trouble is, sin has destroyed the bridge (for now) which was to deliver us there safe and sound. Where the bridge was, there is now a great yawning chasm at the bottom of which is destruction (hell). People come upon the chasm, expecting the bridge to be there, but find that it’s too late to stop, so they plunge off the highway of life into the chasm and they die.

I know the bridge is out. It’s just around the bend. People can’t see it from where I meet them. They have to take my word for it.

I don’t want them to drive into the chasm and die. I want to warn them about the bridge being out and to tell them about the way (Jesus) which will lead them to safety. This is what God has put me here for.

Everything else pales beside that fact. If I feed people, baptize their children, marry them, visit them in hospital and deliver pastoral care but neglect to warn them about the bridge being out, I’m failing them. Well fed, happily married people with baptized children can still plunge into the chasm where they expect the bridge to be. My job is warn them and help them to the way of safety.

We can have the best music ministry in the world, the best ACW, the best Altar Guild, the best Bible studies and Small Groups there ever were, but unless they’re all connected to Jesus and helping people to find the way to safety and home that He represents, we’re missing the point.

I know I am not responsible for the decisions people make...they may choose to ignore my warning. I am, however, responsible for finding ways to get their attention and telling them the bridge is out as convincingly and clearly as possible, using language they can understand. In order to do that I must live my life and present myself in a way that makes me credible—to maximize the possibility that they will stop, or at least slow down, so they can hear what I have to say.

...so, I ask myself, to where am I being called to calmly walk, and what should my simple call be?

Sayings from Acts 29 That Got My Attention

For the past few months I've been listening some MP3s of talks by Acts 29 church-planters.

Here are some interesting and pointed statements:

• Community is not the mission of the Church, it is from where the mission comes.


• Hospitality is to unbelievers so they can meet Jesus. Fellowship is for church people.


• Don’t invite people to church, invite them home for dinner (hospitality) and love them.


• Culture will define how we express our values rather than determine what they are.


• Spending time with a gay couple is better than going to an anti-gay rally. How else will we get them to know that God loves them?


• People should feel welcome in our churches but not safe.


• Make a pathway out of the church, not in.


• St Patrick invited people to belong before dealing with their behaviour and belief.


• What God calls us to do should scare us.


• We go to the culture through the Gospel, not the other way around.


• Risk losing people to stay on mission.


• “Heaven is better than hell. I’d like to see you there. Shame on me!”


• He calls for a church where sin is the problem, Jesus is the answer, the Bible is the truth.


• 80% of churches in N America are plateaued or declining.


• 3,500 churches close each year in N America.

On the Acts 29 Network for Lent

On my last trip to Regina I listened to some talks from the Acts 29 Network on my iPod. Acts 29 is an organization which supports church planters.

Much of what these assertive and energetic young men had to say applies to us because even though we were planted over a hundred years ago, we were planted to bear fruit.

Here is some of what they had to say.

Christology Of primary importance at the core of any church is its Christology—its theology about who Jesus is. We’d better have the right Jesus. For example, does our picture of Jesus include the whole, or is it just a snapshot including the things we find acceptable or comfortable about him? Is our Christology limited to a marginalized, humble Galilean hippy-like character with Anglican overtones? Does it include the sovereign, non-nogotiable, authority of the Exalted Christ? Is Jesus just an endearing character in a warm-hearted story, politely trapped within our arches, pews and stained glass, or is he the King Jesus of Revelation, judge and changer of lives? Is our Jesus big enough? Can we go to people grounded in the humility of the Incarnate Christ, and with the full authority of the Exalted Christ.

Jesus is the point. Jesus is the beginning, the middle and the end. We must use his name because if we just use the word “God,” people will import into it whatever false gods they have. When we say “God” nothing much happens, but when we say “Jesus,” divine energy breaks out around us. People are attracted or repelled and lives are changed. We must be dogged about Jesus.

The Cross The centrepiece of Christology is the cross upon which Jesus died in our place as a substitute for our sins. How do we deal with and stay away from sin? We get with Jesus.

Repentance Repentance is of critical importance. For us it is not enough to just live as Jesus lived. We have to do more because Jesus never had to repent and we do—constantly.

The Acts 29 Network people say we lack the courage to share our faith because our Jesus isn’t big enough and we lose our way as churches because we don’t repent enough.

The Bible The written word exists to reveal the Incarnate Word, Jesus. Unless everything we do, therefore; ACW, music ministries, prayer ministries, children’s and youth work, readers, cleaners, Altar Guild; everything; connects with Jesus Christ, we’re not being Biblical.

Community Creating and maintaining community is not our mission. Community (getting people connected with us) is not the goal, mission (getting people connected with Jesus) is. Our community is the crucible from which our mission must come. The goal is not more people in our community, it is more people in Christ.

For Acts 29 Lenten Reflection

• How might you allow Jesus to be bigger in your faith and life this Lent?


• From what must you repent this Lent?


• How can you allow the Bible to reveal Jesus to you anew this Lent?


• How can you be more in Christ than you are just in community this Lent?