Leaders are Servants

“You’ve observed how godless rulers throw their weight around, how quickly a little power goes to their heads. It’s not going to be that way with you. Whoever wants to be great must become a servant. Whoever wants to be first among you must be your slave. That is what the Son of Man has done: He came to serve, not be served—and then to give away his life in exchange for the many who are held hostage.” Matthew 20:24-28

According to Marcel Schwantes, in his podcast Future of Leadership, "The No.1 reason employees quit is because the people charged with ensuring their success don't care enough to meet their needs as valued human beings." I have been thinking about this quite a bit. Ken Blanchard, a management expert, says, "Great leaders realize that their No. 1 customer is their people. If they take care of their people, train them, and empower them, those people will become fully engaged and gung-ho about what they do. In turn, they will reach out and take care of their second most important customer--the people who buy their products or services--and turn them into raving fans."

This turns our management paradigm upside down. Instead of staff serving the head of staff, the head of staff's number one job is to serve the staff. Only then will the staff be fully able to serve the congregation.

So, what might that look like in the church? First, the head of staff's primary job should not be meeting the needs of the congregation. Often evaluation of senior pastors revolves around what they are doing for the congregation instead of what they are doing for the staff. Serving the staff could look like ensuring they have all the tools they need to succeed in their ministry. Do they have the personal support of the lead pastor? Are they protected from outside influences that distract them? Do they have the budget for their ministry? Is their time valued in such a way that they are not asked to do things that are not in their ministry area? Is vision well communicated? Are expectations clear? Do they have the education they need to succeed in their area? Do they know they are valued and appreciated? Do they get mentoring? Do they get constructive feedback?

If staff gets their needs met, it creates a culture of meeting the congregation's needs. Schwantes suggests, "stripped down to its basic and most practical form, leadership has always been and will always be about meeting the needs of people and developing them to their fullest potential."

Maybe this seems like a backward paradigm, but it fits with the model of Jesus' work with his disciples. His ministry with the public is used as a teaching tool for his disciples, and he leverages his ministry by twelve times. It also creates a path for the succession of his ministry.

Inspire and motivate your staff by mentoring, coaching, and providing them with the tools to succeed, and they will motivate and inspire the congregation.