Leadership in Community

It was clear to me that the national leadership summit of our partner church was a success because it presented the opportunity for some of the key elements of every vital organization. Practical teaching, opportunity for feedback and communication, and a good dose of unity and structure over the three days and nights that people were gathered. 

Our main speaker for the Leadership Summit.

First, everyone appeared to soak in the good teaching, given by a well-respected retired pastor from a neighboring country. He provoked the leaders to place value on partnership with their communities and to integrate that into the partnership with God and their families that is inherent in their ministry journey. Talk of this kind of partnership and valuing of the felt needs of the community is very CHE-like. He also focused on being content with what you have and using those things to their full potential. This encouragement struck an important chord much like another great CHE value of using local resources and doing what you can yourself. 

Sharing ideas in small groups.

A second helpful element of the leadership summit was the opportunity for all the pastors to provide feedback and ideas in small groups about how they can do these things and become more effective in ministry. Some of the biggest repeated ideas were their need for continuing education and strategy meetings like this one, and the need to educate their congregations about how they are integral parts of what the national church is doing, not outsiders looking in. As 98% of those in attendance were pastors, they also urged that there be a meeting like this where their wives could join them, since they are an integral part of ministry in their churches and communities.

A third powerful element of the meeting that I had underestimated was the time devoted to discussing the national structure and operation of the church. There was a pretty big structure change a few months before we arrived in country, and it was amazing to see how few of the pastors really understood the details of what the General Assembly had done. Plus, new structures of fellowship groups and action ministries had grown up since then, and so it was good for it all to be presented together and have questions answered. In addition, the long-term vision and plans from 6 years ago were read and discussed, which was great to give all the pastors a better look at the bigger picture of what the church is called to do. I think the result was a bigger buy-in by the majority of pastors and a desire and ability to bring the vision of the church back to their congregations.

-- El Padre