Andy Stanley has said numerous times, “LESS IS MORE – DO LESS & ACCOMPLISH MORE”. He is talking about the art of “doing what only I can do, and then delegating the rest”. Of course in order to delegate we must develop others.

By doing less and developing more – we can actually multiply our ministry efforts. We can go from one leader to 12 leaders by “DOING LESS & DEVELOPING MORE”.

But one thing we do as leaders is we try and DO BOTH. You can’t really DO BOTH effectively. You will either “DO MORE & DEVELOP LESS” or you will “DO LESS & DEVELOP MORE”.

Now for “Moses on Leadership”…

The next day, Moses took his seat to hear the people’s disputes against each other. They waited before him from morning till evening. (Exo 18:13 NLT)

THERE WILL ALWAYS BE A LOT OF NEEDS WHEN YOU ARE AROUND PEOPLE! SO, IT TAKES SYSTEMS AND STRUCTURES IN ORDER TO MAXIMIZE THE MEETING OF THOSE NEEDS. AS WE GROW SO WILL OUR SYSTEMS AND STRUCTURES.

If you are in leadership you will have days that feel like this one. When all you do is hear people’s “disputes against each other”.

When Moses’ father-in-law saw all that Moses was doing for the people, he asked, “What are you really accomplishing here? Why are you trying to do all this alone while everyone stands around you from morning till evening?” (Exo 18:14 NLT)

IF WE WANT TO GROW TO THE NEXT LEVEL THEN WE MUST LEARN FROM THOSE WHO ARE ALREADY AT THE NEXT LEVEL.

Jethro, wasn’t just a nosy father-in-law he was a successful business man who knew how to run a giant sheep herding organization. Who do you think Moses sat under all those years when he ran away from Egypt?

It takes humility to listen to others and genuinely receive their advice. It takes humility to place yourself at the feet of another, and you may even get a few kicks in the pants, but the results are wisdom, strength, and honor.

Now in these days when the disciples were increasing in number, a complaint by the Hellenists arose against the Hebrews because their widows were being neglected in the daily distribution. And the twelve summoned the full number of the disciples and said, “It is not right that we should give up preaching the word of God to serve tables. Therefore, brothers, pick out from among you seven men of good repute, full of the Spirit and of wisdom, whom we will appoint to this duty. But we will devote ourselves to prayer and to the ministry of the word.” (Act 6:1-4 ESV)

THE WORD OF GOD: WE MUST LEARN IT, LIVE IT, AND LEAD OTHERS IN IT.

If we as a community of faith-dwellers are going to be effective in the mission Jesus has given to us then we must be committed to learning the Word of God, living the Word of God, and leading others in the Word of God.

The Church is the ground and pillar of the truth. The Church must be the proclaimer of truth, the Word of God.

The Pastor is responsible for clearly and consistently proclaiming the truth of God’s Word.

The above passage represents a scenario quite common in every local church around the world. There are lots of needs, and there is a fraction who feel as though they are getting the short end of the stick. I know none of you out there have ever dealt with this, but believe it or not it is quite common:)

By the way, if you feel overwhelmed in ministry it probably means you are in involved with people. Because wherever there are people, there are lots of needs. And lots of needs can be overwhelming.

Which is why as the needs grow the systems we use to meet those needs must also grow.

As an organization grows, so much the infrastructure and systems.

The apostles state, “It is not right that we should give up preaching the word of God to serve tables.”

This doesn’t mean that “serving the widows was unimportant or even less important” but it does mean that “it would be wrong for the apostles to ignore what ONLY THEY COULD DO”, which is PREACH THE WORD AND CAST THE VISION JESUS HAS GIVEN TO THEM.

Since the needs of the widows were so important and the apostles cared deeply for them, they decided to be more strategic about the vision. They knew that if they were to best CARE FOR & LEAD THE CHURCH GOD HAD ENTRUSTED TO THEM, they would need to EQUIP OTHERS TO LEAD AND CARE FOR THE CHURCH, while they focused on doing what only they could do (receive the vision from Jesus, preach the word, and develop other leaders).

IT WAS ANTI-MISSION FOR THE APOSTLES TO FOCUS ON DOING INSTEAD OF DEVELOPING (other leaders to care for the needs of the widows).

Now these are the gifts Christ gave to the church: the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, and the pastors and teachers. Their responsibility is to equip God’s people to do His work and build up the church, the body of Christ. This will continue until we all come to such unity in our faith and knowledge of God’s Son that we will be mature in the Lord, measuring up to the full and complete standard of Christ. (Eph 4:11-13 NLT)

This piece of Scripture lays out a simple groundwork for church leadership, health, and growth. God gives gifts (who are actually leaders) to the Church. These leaders (who are gifts from God) have an INTENSE RESPONSIBILITY & ROLE.

“Their responsibility is to equip God’s people to do His work and build up the church, the body of Christ.”

To simplify: the Pastor’s role is to EQUIP GOD’S PEOPLE TO DO HIS WORK & BUILD UP THE CHURCH.

Currently, as the Lead Pastor of TheDC.tv my role is to EQUIP THE STAFF TO THE LEAD THE CHURCH.

Jesus gives leaders to the church, not to do all the ministry, but to equip others to do the ministry.

Pastors must be “equippers” if they are to best care for and lead the church God has entrusted to them.

Rick Warren says, “COACHES ALLOW US TO GO FURTHER FASTER.”

In the church world (and any arena of leadership) If you want to go to the next level then you must learn from those already at the next level. It takes humility to admit that there are those who are further along, I mean really admit it to the point where you are seeking wisdom from them. Not just copying fancy programs, but learning the culture behind the programs.

The #1 Problem for every Leader is “ME” – I am the lid for this organization. And until I humble myself and learn from the wise leaders around me (I may have to first locate and link up with other wise leader) I will never grow past my current lid and neither will the organization that I lead.

If you feel stuck as a leader there is hope, your organization can change, your church can change, your staff can change, but IT STARTS WITH YOU. Put yourself at the feet of another and start learning. You will grow.

Seeking wisdom from another is accepting the reality that “I don’t know everything”. It is so hard to admit that because of pride, but when I do I am freed up to truly learn and grow.

The #1 Problem for Every Leader is that we DON’T HUMBLE OURSELVES AT THE FEET OF ANOTHER. This has a couple of layers to it:

1. We don’t LISTEN TO JESUS AND DO EXACTLY WHAT HE SAYS. Jesus gives the dream. He is the dream master, and leaders are the dream casters. The vision Jesus gives must be received otherwise everything else tanks.

2. We don’t listen to WISE LEADERS AROUND US. We don’t even seek to intentionally place ourselves under the tutelage or guidance of other wise leaders. Because of pride, laziness, and deception we fall into the trap of doing it alone and eventually trying to do too much, and consequently accomplishing very little for Jesus, getting burnt out and frustrating everyone else around us. Man, I know what that is like:)

• So I can brag on what Jesus is doing through them & in them. Seriously, people repeat what gets praised. If you want your team to repeat something, then praise them for it. But be genuine and authentic about it. Praise that is dis-genuine will be taken as a “slick trick to manipulate” them.
• So other leaders and pastors know that every team has its ups and downs but great leaders learn to trust their staff and lean on them during times of distress and turmoil, but especially during times of growth and winning! To win we must build up those around us and rely on them, great leaders entrust great levels of responsibility to reliable leaders around them.

Here is a recent letter to my staff:

Hey DC Staff,

I am so proud of you and how Jesus is working in your hearts.

Thank you for trusting Jesus enough to bring your best every Sunday at TheDC.tv – Every Sunday is the Super Bowl for Jesus!

Thank you for loving this city enough to invest in leadership development and visiting Northway Church so we can learn how to go to the next level!

Thank you for being humble enough to listen and learn from those further along than we are. You will always find someone further along so instead of getting jealous we should just learn and grow from them.

Thank you for investigating and interrogating. If we want to learn from those at the next level then we must put ourselves at the feet of those at the next level.

Thank you for being real in your spirituality. We can only reproduce who we are, not who we wish we were.

Thank you for inviting your friends, family, neighbors, and co-workers to meet Jesus at TheDC.tv. Nothing else matters. Followers Fish!

Thank you for putting your families first, because healthy ministry requires healthy families. Be loyal to your families; Jesus is! Thank you for doing ministry with your families! Family and ministry go hand in hand, they don’t compete, they complete one another!

Thank you for supporting your pastor no matter what and truly investing in the vision Jesus has given to him. Every vision caster (lead pastor) needs a team of vision carriers. Thank you for carrying the vision Jesus has given to me and this church! Behind every great leader is a team of great leaders.

Thank you for giving financially. Thank you for giving cheerfully, regularly, and sacrificially.

Thank you for submitting to Jesus and His vision for the church. Nobody seeks after Jesus, HE SEEKS US, and we submit to Him.

Don’t grow weary “inviting your friends to meet Jesus” in due time we will reap a harvest.

Can’t wait to bust through the next growth barrier on October 11th | REHAB MY LOVE LIFE | www.theDC.tv

Investing your wealth into the mission of Jesus is never easy but it is always worth it. Thank you for sacrificing for the One Who sacrificed for us!

Inviting your friends to meet Jesus is never easy, but it is always worth it!

We aren’t inviting people to church, we are inviting people to Jesus through the church. JESUS IS THE VISION, CHURCH IS THE VEHICLE!

Number 5 (leaders initiate painful conversations) seems to be one of the hardest lessons to embody in leadership, but I believe it is mostly because of number 6 (leaders don’t let feelings dictate the mission).

Often times we are not so much afraid of the personal pain in our own lives it is the pain we may cause in another person’s life that we shy away from. We are so afraid of offending someone that we will shirk our biblical responsibility of sharing truth (in a loving way) with them. Usually we don’t want to offend them because it means they may not be “the president of our fan club” anymore and we don’t like rejection in any form.

As leaders we must not let feelings dictate the mission. We must not sway or serve from the vision Jesus has given to us in order to pamper someone’s ego, protect someone’s insecurities, or even protect someone from pain!

If Jesus says to do it, then we must do it, even if some people get their panties in a wad!

As leaders we must be more committed to “following Christ” than our “fear of offending others”.

We will not let the mission of Jesus suffer because we are afraid to hurt someone’s feelings. People’s eternity is at stake. God would rather we feel a little sadness on earth than a lot of torment in hell.

I would rather hurt someone’s feelings and remove them from a ministry role they don’t belong in than leave them there and cause countless souls to suffer eternity in hell. When we allow someone to remain in a ministry role they don’t belong in because of a lack of “giving their best to Jesus” then we are allowing the mission of Jesus to be sabotaged.

This doesn’t mean that “only perfect people can serve Jesus”. Actually, if we had to be perfect then nobody would be in ministry to Jesus. We serve because of the cross, not because of our own good deeds, merit, or performance. But Jesus does expect excellence and He will do whatever it takes to bring that about in our lives even if it means allowing a little pain (possibly even a lot of pain).

We can’t be so afraid of offending someone that we sabotage the mission of Jesus.

It isn’t our goal to offend people, but the cross can be offensive, and we don’t need to apologize for that. I know Jesus never did!

I realize that I may get a few less Christmas Cards in the mail this year because of this one! As leaders we must be willing to clearly explain the expectations of our organization (in this case the church of Jesus Christ) but then we must have the courage to call people on the carpet. We must be willing to take off our “cute and cuddly” papa bear suit and hold people accountable to the standards of Scripture.

We must be willing to call out “a lack of excellence in any area” as soon as we see it! Even if it means offending someone, hurting someone’s feelings, or firing a staff member! Here is how the deacon Stephen dealt with this (and he was speaking to the entire nation of Israel):

“You stubborn people! You are heathen at heart and deaf to the truth. Must you forever resist the Holy Spirit? That’s what your ancestors did, and so do you! (Act 7:51 NLT)

You deliberately disobeyed God’s law, even though you received it from the hands of angels.” The Jewish leaders were infuriated by Stephen’s accusation, and they shook their fists at him in rage. (Act 7:53-54 NLT)

Stephen had to call the nation of Israel on the carpet. Imagine being this leader! Imagine being the guy who after thousands of years of Messianic preparation in the nation of Israel has to come onto the scene and declare, “YEAH, UMM YOU MISSED IT. NOT ONLY DID YOU COMPLETELY MISS IT, BUT YOU KILLED GOD’S SON. YOU KILLED YOUR OWN MESSIAH.”

Stephen knew that this was not going to be well received. That should be a great lesson for every young preacher (actually old ones too:) – that we can’t gauge our sermon preparation or sermon delivery on how well people receive it or even respond to it. Our responsibility is to be loyal to Jesus more than the crowd!

If as a preacher and biblical communicator you are never saying anything to cause tension, to cause people to get upset, to get people to walk out then you aren’t communicating the message of Jesus (not all of it)! Seriously, quit being a bible preacher and take up ballet or something:)

Stephen was willing to be DISLIKED BY THE MANY IN ORDER TO BE LOYAL TO THE ONE – JESUS CHRIST! As leaders we have to be more concerned with our loyalty to Jesus than our “fan status” with the crowd. As a pastor or church leader you aren’t called to be liked by everyone but to be loyal to the ONE – JESUS CHRIST!

When I first planted the Dialogue Church I thought that great leaders needed to greatly liked. That is a lie; and no where to be found in Scripture. I don’t need to be liked in order to lead. I need to be loyal to Jesus in order to be a leader for Jesus!

Then they put their hands over their ears and began shouting. They rushed at him and dragged him out of the city and began to stone him. His accusers took off their coats and laid them at the feet of a young man named Saul. As they stoned him, Stephen prayed, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.” He fell to his knees, shouting, “Lord, don’t charge them with this sin!” And with that, he died. (Act 7:57-60 NLT)

After Stephen’s one sermon, he was stoned. Stephen was willing to preach a very hard sermon, say some very hard things, and initiate an extremely painful conversation (to the point of death) but in the end JESUS STOOD UP TO RECEIVE HIM INTO THE KINGDOM!

The crowd hurled stones at Stephen but Jesus honored him by standing up! WOW!

We have to stop creating excuses for why people step down and start creating an expectation for people to step up!

It takes courage to confront and communicate through conflict!

Every time we attempt to reinforce the vision it will be painful, but that is the price we pay as leaders! The reward is seeing people become hardcore followers of Jesus! Nothing else matters!

I don’t care if we have 10,000 more people in our church next year if we aren’t leading them to become “hardcore followers of Jesus Christ”!

The Great Commission is not “go into all the world and get people to sign up”. It is to go and make disciples, baptizing them, and teaching them everything Jesus has taught us!

Focus is intentional not accidental. Nothing for God happens on accident, only on purpose.

It is naive and silly to think that the spiritual enemy of our souls, Satan, doesn’t want to get his foot in the door of our churches. He will do whatever it takes to distract us, even with good things, just as long as we aren’t lifting up Jesus above everything else!

This fall there will be plenty of opportunity to be distracted from the mission of Jesus and what He has called us to. No hobby, no job, no family picnic is more important than ALTERING SOMEONE’S FOREVER!

Sometimes we can get distracted from the mission of Jesus by being “keepers of the aquarium” instead of “fishers of men”. Jesus said that we would become fishers of men, not keepers of the aquarium.

As a pastor my job is not to keep people from leaving but to call people to excellence, to challenge people to give 100% to Jesus Christ.

In ministry there is always a pressing issue, and there is always a priority issue. The pressing issue (the crisis right in front of you) is not always the priority issue (the call of Christ on your life). Don’t let the pressing issues get in the way of the priority issue.

Every Sunday we do battle with the forces of darkness, and every Sunday there will be distractions, but leaders push through the distractions and lift up Jesus no matter what. Maybe it is the coffee machine freaking out, possibly the guitarist just broke a string, or the sound guy is late, or the host team is smoking on the front steps:) – leaders push through the distractions, constantly reinforce the vision, and continue to lift up Jesus no matter what!

Sometimes a church member will want to push a pet program on you, but if it is not 100% in agreement with the vision Jesus has given to this church through the lead pastor, then it is only a distraction (regardless of how passionate this person is about it – they may leave; but I would rather have a selfish, disgruntled church member leave than have Jesus leave our church).

The VISION OF JESUS IS NOT FOR SALE (thanks www.AnthonyMilas.net)