Bill Easums Observations

Over the years I have taught that it is more important to have a “to be” list than a “to do” list.  A “to be” list is a list of people you are mentoring to be more than they are at the moment.  I’ve found that it is best to keep the list to 10 or less so the mentor can spend quality time with each one.  By mentoring I mean simply hanging out with them, modeling what it means to be a leader.

The goal of a “to be” list is to move people along in their spiritual development. For example:

• a non-believer to a beliver
• a visitor to a participant
• a participant to a servant
• a servant to a leader
• a leader to a coach
• a coach to a paid staff position

Another way to view it is to mentor people up the leadership path. It goes something like this:

• Visitors- do not overlook the fact that fewer people will be joining organizations in the future and that one of the best ways to disciple a person is to involve them in a ministry. New Hope Christian Fellowship in Honolulu is one of the best at this.
• Apprentices in training – this includes potentially everyone in the congregation.
• Leaders of Committees . Almost anyone can lead a committee. All you have to do is call it to order, keep your mouth shut, and close it.
• Leaders of short term ministries like S.S. or VBS. At this point people need to become scouts, looking for potential new leaders, but they are seldom coaches.
• Leaders of major, on-going ministries like a small group system. It is not uncommon from here on for leaders to become scouts and coaches.
• Leaders of Systems such as Lay Mobilization
• Leaders of leaders – usually staff
• Leader of leaders – lead pastor

How do you mentor the new leaders in your future?

Bill Easum
www.churchconsultations.com
easum@aol.com

 My tribe just conducted a  a survey of 36,000 UMCs only to find what many of us have been teaching for over two decades.  Here is a quote from the report from the UM Portal survey.

“United Methodist congregations that are thriving have a few things in common—whether large or small, urban or rural.
A new survey shows United Methodist churches with the greatest vitality are marked by inspirational preaching, plenty of small groups and programs for children and youth, and a mix of both traditional and contemporary worship services.”

The good news is that now when people like me say these things they are backed up by excellent research. Lets look at those findings again:
Thriving churches of all sizes and locations have the following things in common:

• Inspirational preaching
• lots of small groups
• children and youth ministries
• both traditional and contemporary worship

Now if the truth were known, and the survey had separated thriving established churches from church plants, the study would have shown one more important thing that the vast majority of thriving church plants have in common- contemporary worship without traditional worship.  I also wonder if the survey had taken a deeper look into the stats if it would have shown that in the thriving churches contemporary worship was always growing and traditional was most stagnant or declining. I doubt if we will ever know that from the study. But could it be like the rest of the study- those of us who consult for a living already know the answer and like the four common denominators, we have been saying for decades that traditional worship is on the downswing and contemporary is becoming the new normal for thriving churches.

The problem is, just as many denominational officials and pastors discounted our cry for the four things in common, they seem to want to do the same with our cry for more contemporary worship and less traditional.  Churches are doing the same thing because in most of the dying churches we work with that do have contemporary worship they are still spending more money on traditional worship (even though they are watching it die) than they spend on contemporary worship.  Go figure.

The survey also backed up what we have been saying about denominational life. Here is what the survey said.

“Among the findings? The denomination has lost its theological identity, experiences a general lack of trust and accountability, and struggles with a perceived distance between the general church agencies, annual conferences and local churches.

“The central focus was on a sense of loss of mission definition and relevancy and an accompanying sense of loss of identity,” the report stated. “At the broadest level, the church’s struggle for an identity as a global church was widely discussed.”

Areas for improvement include:

• More clarity and understanding about the denomination’s mission, culture and values;

• Less perceived organizational “distance” between the general church and local churches;

• Better defined leadership roles and accountability, and improving trust “between the pew and leadership”;

• More standardized management processes and reporting systems”

Sound familiar?

Now, since I love my tribe, it is my deepest hope it will heed the warnings in this survey and seek to remedy the issues that are tearing the UMC apart.  There are islands of strength, as the survey shows.   The trick is for us to learn from these vital churches.

Recently I have been asked by a couple of people why the pastor should know what everyone gives.  As one person said, “Doesn’t that cause you to play favorites?”

It just so happened that the next day I am asked to read the galleys of Clif Christopher’s new book titled, “Whose Offering Plate is It?” This is a a sequel to his best seller “It’s Not Your Father’s Offering Plate.” As usual this new book is a gold mine of information and guidance on money issues for the church.  And one of the Chapters is strictly on the question of why a pastor should know what everyone gives.  You need to read this book if you have any doubts about this issue.

I’m not going to give away Clif’s insights.  But I am going to answer the question from my own experience.

Yes, every pastor or executive pastor ought to know what everyone gives for at least the following two reasons:

• So that no one is in leadership who isn’t adequately giving to the church.  For me adequate means 10%.
• So that I know how to approach the person about their spiritual maturity.  No one reaches spiritual maturity until they master their money instead of it mastering them.

Two stories should help here.

The first story is about a Dr. in my church years ago who came to me for counseling.  He wasn’t getting out of his spiritual life what he hoped he would.  I knew that he was no where close to a tithe. So I told him he never will get out of his spiritual life what he wants as long as he holds back his wallet from God. If I hadn’t known what he was giving, I couldn’t have counseled him biblically. Whatever I would have said would have let him down the wrong road and left him with unreasonable expectations about his faith.

The second story is about a young blue collar couple just getting but were tithing.  The wife came down with some form of cancer and the treatments were eating them alive financially to the point that she stopped going to the doctor. When I heard that I went to them and said, “Stop tithing for now. God will understand. You need your treatments more than God needs your money.” If I had not known what they were giving I could not have intervened. And my intervention helped save her life.

The fact that so many church people are so passionately opposed to their pastor knowing what they give says that there is something positive about the pastor knowing what people give.

Pastor it’s time you know.  There is no defense for you not knowing

Bill Easum
www.churchconsultations.com
easum@aol.com

This is a heads up about a great event coming September 9 called The Nines. This is its second year. The only change is that every video will be under 6 minutes and they will be from some of the best church leaders in the country – and yes I am one of the speakers. You can view this as an individual or they provide a package for viewing it in a group.   There is a free sign up or you can choose to get extra stuff at a nominal fee. Click here for the info.

Church planters spend hundreds of thousands of dollars on starting a new church; work 70-80 hours a week putting butts in the seats. And when it comes to spending a couple of thousand a year for a coach, they balk.

I can’t tell you how many stories I could tell about church planters trying to go it alone without a coach to save a buck.  The stories are legion.

One tried to plant without anyone to lead worship. Another tried to rent without someone responsible for the set up and take down.  Another tried to do a capital campaign without outside help. The list goes on and on and on.

The same is true for pastor trying to transform or grow a church.  You hear stories of these great mega pastors who do it without help. The problem is not everyone is a super hero. Most of us need the wisdom of people who have gone before.  And if the truth be known, most mega church pastors had a coach somewhere in their history.

What a shame it is to try to save a buck when a coach is an investment in your future.  A good coach can save you many times over what you invest in them.

I remember brining Lyle Schaller into my church in 1982.  It changed the whole direction of my ministry. Then there was the time I brought in Kennon Callahan.  Both of them had a part in the growth of the church I served for 24 years.

Folks, get a coach!

Bill Easum
www.churchconsultations.com
easum@aol.com

I just started reading “The Long View” by Roger Parrott and the title of the first chapter caught my attention and says so much about why United Methodism (and many other groups) is in deep trouble. The chapter title is “Lead as if you’ll be there forever.”  In such a fast changing world one of the worse practices on earth is the way United Methodist pastors are moved around every few years.  It didn’t matter on the fronteir when the itinerant system was created, but today, short term pastors are one of the primary reasons the UMC has declined to the point that it is producing short term, short-sighted, leaders.

Consider what happens when the congregation knows the pastor won’t be with them long:

1. Why should we listen to him or her when we know they will be gone in a few years?
2. This is my church and I’ll do what I please.
3. How do we know we can trust this person?
4. Well, it’s just another program de jure.

Consider what goes on in the mind of the short term pastor.

1. There’s no use fighting that battle; I’ll just wait it out and move on.
2. Why should I try to turn this ship around; the next person will just grow it back to where it was.
3. I can’t wait to get out of here and get a real church.
4. As soon as I move I can start preaching the same sermons over again.
5. I wonder where I’ll be sent next year (its only 10 months till moving time).

Pastors, if you don’t do anything else – LEAD AS IF YOU’LL BE THERE FOREVER!

Ever so often I read a book and say to myself  “I wish I had written that.”  So it is with Sticky Teams by Larry Osborne. It’s Larry’s best book to date and one of the best  books I’ve read on how to build strong, trusting Boards and Staffs.  Sticky Teams is a down to earth, no fluff, nuts and bolts book. It’s a quick read and practical to the bone.  Osborne shares many of his own mistakes and passes on the learning that came from them. I’ll say it again, “This is one book I wish I had written.”

Bill Easum
www.churchconsultations.com
easum@aol.com

I’m constantly asked “What’s the best curriculum for leadership development or Discipleship?” as if either one is something that can be taught and learned in a course. My response is always the same – “You are the curriculum.” And I often get a blank stare because in the West we think of everything as if it were a program that is taught rather than a way of life that is caught.  Discipleship is not a program to be taught; it is a trade to be learned by doing it.

When Jesus spoke the word “Disciple” he was referring to a person who was learning a trade from someone he considered a master at the trade. Disciples were apprentices. There was no curriculum or course to take.  Jesus just hung out with them. They learned from him by being with him and watching how he did things.  They were learning a trade- the trade of following Jesus and being like Jesus.

Jesus + Apprentice = a new trade- following Jesus.

So a better word for disciple today is apprentice- no baggage here. We all know what an apprentice is. It also helps if leadership development is understood as a relationship of respect and trust between a seasoned leader and an apprentice.

This means that discipleship takes place in the midst of ministry, not a classroom.  It takes place as an apprentice watches how the seasoned leader goes about the trade the apprentices wished to do.  The leader does; the apprentice watches; and they talk about it.  Then the leader does; the apprentice helps; and they talk about it.  Then the apprentice does; the leader helps; and they talk about it; Then the apprentice does; the leader watches; and they talk about it.  Then the apprentice becomes a leader and begins the process all over again with a new apprentice.

Coach, Scout, and Player

In order to think through the process one has to think in terms of “Coach,” “Scout,” and “Player.”  The mistake that most pastors make is they enjoy playing the game so much they never coach and pass the ministry off to another person.  They don’t see their role to be a coach and scout. They’re a player who does ministry which makes them too busy to either coach or scout.  So twenty years later they are still doing the same ministry and not making any advances in the Kingdom. However, if they lived as a coach and scout, they would always have an apprentice learning the trade of following Jesus from them and someday scouting and coaching for their own apprentices.

Reproduction and Exponential Growth of People and Church Are the Goal

So, if you want exponential growth, leadership development, and spiritual growth work toward every leader having four to five apprentices.  These means the leader can’t be burdened going to lots of meetings and overseeing multiply ministries.  They key role of a leader is to coach and scout. 

Leadership Path

Leadership development has two aspects. On the one hand it is learning how to follow Jesus – that is to be and live more like him. This is the spiritual side of discipleship. On the other hand it is learning how to lead others. This is the practical side of discipleship. 

On the practical side a farm system is necessary for apprentices to grow in ministry and reach their potential. The following chart shows one example of a “Leadership Path.”

• Visitors- do not overlook the fact that fewer people will be joining organizations in the future and that one of the best ways to disciple a person is to involve them in a ministry. New Hope Christian Fellowship in Honolulu is one of the best at this.
• Apprentices in training – this includes potentially everyone in the congregation.
• Leaders of Committees . Almost anyone can lead a committee. All you have to do is call it to order, keep your mouth shut, and close it.
• Leaders of short term ministries like S.S. or VBS. At this point people need to become scouts, looking for potential new leaders, but they are seldom coaches.
• Leaders of major, on-going ministries like a small group system. It is not uncommon from here on for leaders to become scouts and coaches.
• Leaders of Systems such as Lay Mobilization
• Leaders of leaders – usually staff
• Leader of leaders – lead pastor.

One of the most effective apprentice model is Wayne Cordeiro’s Fractal model in which every leader has four apprentices and their spouses and is responsible for their growth as well as their total spiritual well being.  You can search our website for “Fractal” to see it in more detail or you can find it described in my book Unfreezing Moves or in Cordeiro’s book Doing Ministry as a Team.

A Relationship of Mutual Respect and Trust

In mainline churches the practice of nominating people on an annual basis to some committee or task actually gets in the way of leadership development, apprenticeship and discipleship. The primary reason is that nominations are not based on trust between individuals as much as who the church can talk into taking the job. Often the person agreeing to do the job can’t wait until the job is over.

Instead, the apprentice model rests on two people forming a bond of mutual respect and trust and together working out the details of that relationship. Instead of “dialing for people” and twisting arms, which happens so often in the nomination process, the apprentice of discipleship model revolves around a Jesus like approach of inviting people into a relationship of trust. In that relationship people learn by watching, doing, and debriefing. Because of the respect and trust between the apprentice and the coach the apprentice is willing to open up and be vulnerable to the mentor.

If you are stuck with a nomination process, then avoid nominating your best people except for a couple of critical positions-finance and personnel.  Keep the best for coaching, scouting, mentoring, and apprenticeship.

Committees are Deadly

Committees hamper apprenticeship. No one is ever mentored or grown in a committee. In fact just the opposite occurs- people are bored to tears and mostly do it out of duty. So do the following:

• Drop as many committees as you possibly can. You’d be surprised at how little most of the people in your church care whether or not you have committees.
• Don’t prop up any failing committees or those from whom no one wants to lead

Teams are Better than Committees

 Committees are always put together by a leader and are never nominated.  The leader may be nominated, but not the team.  The individuals on the team join the team because they like the leader and the project.  They know before committing what they are getting into.

Take a look at the difference in teams and committees.

Committees                                              Teams

Committee Elected                                 Individually Called

Committee Nominated                         Leader Invites

Standing Group                                        Has An Ending

Maybe a Mission                                     Clear Mission

Someone Controls                                  Autonomous

Need Permission                                     Act On Their Own

Not Responsible For Action                 Responsible for Action

Not Connected                                         Connected

It doesn’t take rocket science to see the difference.

A Pipeline is Constantly Being Filled

Because every leader is scouting for potential leaders there is a constant stream of apprentices in the pipeline to leadership.  The coach of a major ball team doesn’t wait until the star player breaks his leg. Instead the coach always has scouts out looking for potential players.  No matter how good the players are on his team there are always people in wings just in case.

Another way to look at leadership development and discipleship is to think about the different farm systems in sports.  Every major pro sport team has a “not so pro” league from which they can select new talent for their team. In the same way a reproducing church always has more people than it needs in the pipeline learning how to follow Jesus and to serve in some capacity.  (Those who follow Jesus always serve in some capacity if they are physically and mentally able).

How do you insure you have a “not so pro” league from which to find apprentices and your future leaders?

Everyone leaves a legacy of some kind either good or bad. But what kind of a good legacy has the most impact on making a difference in the world?  A legacy of “who.”

Your legacy is not so much “what” you leave behind as it is “who” you leave behind.  Leadership doesn’t depend on how many followers we have. Leadership depends on how many people we equip to lead. Leadership isn’t how much a leader accomplishes in life. Leadership is about what we cause to happen in the lives of others.

That’s why in my book Leadership on the OtherSide I use the metaphor of a “spiritual midwife” to described the primary role of a leader.  Like a midwife, the spiritual midwife assists people in the birth of the gift God has given them.  The spiritual midwife knows that birthing that gift is a life and death issue. To live life without every birthing our God-given gift is like not living.

So who are you mentoring?

Bill Easum
www.churchconsultations.com