THE LEADERSHIP HUB AND SPIRITUAL INCUBATORS

A while back I posted an article "The Executive Team." It was an attempt to put into language that some of your church leadership for whom "business think" is their default mode to begin to see how leadership in a spiritual organism functions. In discussing this with those in leadership who see a possible danger in using such terms, we reframed his somewhat differently.

In most churches the Lead Pastor is the ranking officer or as we sometimes say, "First among equals." This does not mean the Lead Pastor is the only leader that counts. It means because of the office he has been given and the gifts he has been given, he serves as the point man on the church's mission and in communicating its God-given vision. It is an "office" that carries with it a natural positional authority that is enhanced by relationship authority.

In my own church, however, there are three other officers who have a similar positional authority that is enhanced by relational authority. They are the Council President (i.e., the church lay leader of the church), the Chairperson of the Elders (who leads those persons particularly responsible for the spiritual health and faithfulness of the congregation), and the Chairperson of the Strategic Advisory Team (the group that helps us formulate a unified mission and ministry plan that keeps us true to our vision, and to help all groups evaluate their effectiveness.)

They are a form of "top" leadership which means they are the first to model Servant Leadership.
From their position, they have many groups or leaders answerable to them. From their relationships, they model both the servanthood and Spirit-guided team work necessary to be faithful and fruitful as a church.

We are now treating them as a LEADERSHIP HUB into which ideas, issues, concerns, dreams, problems and opportunities are channeled. Then in their regular dialogue they seek what part of the church structure is best suited to respond to this concern. It is a way for people throughout the church to know where first to take their thoughts and the ones that people can know will be accountable to see that these concerns are addressed or these dreams are fostered.

We are calling the places they are assigned to as THE SPIRITUAL INCUBATORS. In our next post we will attempt to describe that in a helpful way.

It's a new concept that is evolving with us as a church in our desire to be effective stewards of the Great Vision our Great God has given a Great Church. We'll keep you posted.