Tim King Leadership

Christian Leadership is contextual. A short while ago I received an email from an old friend in New Zealand. In the email he was bemoaning the fact that we had been talking about leadership in churches for over a decade, yet leadership had made very little difference. He felt that perhaps we needed another model or better still get back to good old pastoring, where the pastor looks after one church for a lifetime. I have written before on how I love looking at the Christian job websites and look at those jobs that are advertising for pastoral positions. When the recruitment committees of churches are looking for a new pastor, the last thing they are looking for is a leader. They are looking for someone who can solve a problem or be an expert in a particular area of ministry.             The one thing that all Christian Leaders have in common is that they breathe, all the rest is just contextual, one size does not fit all....

Christian Leadership is the same across every culture. I have not long been back from a highly successful trip to Malaysia. I had the privilege of lecturing too top pastors and Christian leaders at a master class. These men and women are doing great things for the cause of Christ and their churches are meeting many needs in their respective communities. I met with Malay, Chinese and Thai leaders, spoke with them on a daily basis, and preached in a few churches. The one overwhelming impression I came away with, was that the concept of Christian leadership is very different within these cultures. While western culture and western Christian leadership processes are evident in some churches, these are primarily attended by young people- who are attracted to the music and youth image. The vast majority of churches are made up of a good mix of youth and families and older people, in other words the churches are a good reflection of family and society. There are many great Christ...