Leadership

Recently, I have been on the receiving end of phone calls, emails, notes, and one on one conversations from people in our church community affirming my leadership gifts and my vision for our team. I am humbled by these comments. It is always nice to hear that people appreciate what you are doing. I'm also not for the least minute tempted to think that I've done all this on my own. As soon as I start to think that I'm "all that" - that is when Solomon's words become very real "Pride goes before destruction and a proud spirit before a fall." So, in a rather public way, I want to give a shout out to some very talented people who make my life, and my leadership, successful. I believe strongly that I need to surround myself with people who are more talented than I am. One of the things I've learned about leadership is not to be intimidated with people who are smarter, more talented, or more creative than I am. Those are the people I try to draw around me. So - first off - my wife Jo makes me the leader I am today. She has the gift of discernment and she uses it. She is creative. She thinks in creative ways. She also keeps me grounded and focused and organized. Next - my co-worker Anthony. Before Anthony was on staff, when he was just a bass player on my team, I knew he had pastoral gifts and a creative streak. Now that he is on staff with me, he does lots of things that I'm not good at, and he does them really well. Really, really well. Wendy is one of the most creative people I've ever met. She "gets" what it means to connect people with God. She is never satisfied with the status quo. Wilf is our choir director. I've rarely met anyone with his grasp of musical knowledge, his ability to lead musicians, and his desire to be the church in the world. My Creative Planning Team (or A team). This is a team of mostly volunteers who think about things like video, drama, presentation, productions, graphics, and anything else creative that they can think of. I love to sit around with them and throw ideas on the table. When you have the right people sitting around a table doing that - where everyone has the best interest of the church at heart - magic happens. My Worship Teams. I learned long ago from playing with my buddy Gene, that when you have someone on stage with you who is better than you in every way as a musician, it makes you a better musician. I have great teams and great leaders for those teams. I can be gone on a Sunday and I don't worry about the quality of our services. Find good people. Find great people. Surround yourself with them. Iron sharpens iron.