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Challenges facing tomorrow’s church leaders

Roger Helland

“Most Christian churches try to have a positive impact upon society and individuals,” researcher George Barna writes. “The big question is whether what they are doing is working. If the conclusion is that their efforts are not producing the desired outcomes, then the big challenge is whether they are willing to change their strategies to maximize their potential.” There are at least seven key challenges facing tomorrow’s church leaders.

The challenge of postmodernism The postmodern worldview values community and feeling, relative truth and experience. The saying “to each his own” could be the motto. The community decides what’s true, and truth is relative to that particular community. The relentless barrage of visual stimulation through music videos, movies, television ads, computer games and Internet web sites entices people to live in “virtual reality” – a mixing of fact and fiction, where reality constantly changes and is redefined. MTV, Madonna and the movies Groundhog Day and Field of Dreams are examples of a postmodern worldview. It will take leaders who understand this postmodern culture to effectively lead the 21st-century church. The church no longer holds a competitive edge in society. It is seen as just one among many spiritual choices. The challenge in this postmodern society is how to lead people into actual reality based on absolute biblical truth and community. In such a society, churches must model truth, not just preach truth. This can occur through building relationships and through offering multi-sensory experiences using the creative arts and media. Churches must be authentic and relevant, and must create environments where people can experience God and spiritual community. The challenge of discipleship George Barna’s research reveals that a majority of Christians do not have a plan or a passion to become more devoted followers of Christ. When you ask believers to identify the most important thing they hope to accomplish in life, only 20% mention anything related to spiritual growth, and only 15% indicate that following Jesus is what defines spiritual success. Our churches are filled with members and attenders, but we lack dedicated disciples. Yet, Jesus is not looking for fans but followers. It is far too easy for our churches to be in the business of providing worship services and Christian programs and not be in the disciple-making business. Yet, the biblical mission of the church is to make disciples. Bob Buford states, “What you measure is your mission.” Do we measure discipleship? If we primarily measure attendance and offerings, then that is our mission. If we mainly measure how well the worship and preaching went and whether our children’s and youth programs keep families in the church, then that is our mission. Effective leaders for the 21st century must develop disciplemaking churches that go beyond preaching, small group Bible studies and using “discipleship curriculum”. Leaders must be devoted disciples first in order to lead others in discipleship. The challenge of mentoring and leadership development There are many pastors but not many mentors. Church leaders often do the ministry themselves, while God’s people come and watch or at best “volunteer” to serve in church positions to help the pastor. I believe that God’s method of ministry multiplication is through mentoring and leadership development. Leaders must build others up, especially the next generation, if they want to see the Kingdom of God advance. The fruit of effective leadership is not developing more followers but more leaders. Church leaders need to spend more time mentoring other leaders, and training those leaders to go and do likewise. Paul exhorts, “You have heard me teach many things that have been confirmed by many reliable witnesses. Teach these great truths to trustworthy people who are able to pass them on to others” (2 Timothy 2:1-2, New Living Translation). The challenge of lay mobilization and gift-based ministry God calls all believers to be functioning parts of the body of Christ and to serve according to their spiritual gifts. The body builds itself up in love when every member does its part. It is not enough for leaders to recruit “volunteers” to fill positions. Rather, leaders should invite, equip and mobilize people to “do church as a team”. Often we offer a range of programs – children’s, youth, small groups, music and so on – and then “recruit” volunteers to run and “serve” in those programs. Because we feel pressure to fill the positions, we often do not consider whether people have the passion or the gifts to serve in these areas fruitfully. Yes, people in our churches teach and preach, lead small groups, do visitation, serve in Sunday school and sing on worship teams. But we must go beyond that and mobilize people through teams formed around people’s passion, spiritual gifts and personal styles. This is not just doing “lay ministry”. Imagine doing church as a team – where everyone serves with a specific role and responsibility. Imagine a children’s ministry team comprised solely of people who have a passion to disciple children, with each member assigned to a particular role, such as administration, teaching, music, drama, crafts or shepherding. The challenge of community and spiritual formation If Barna is right, the majority of Christians do not make personal spiritual formation their top priority in life. They, like most people, make financial security, good health, a good marriage and being a good parent their top priorities. These are not wrong, but they are not God’s top priorities. He wants believers to follow and become like Jesus. He wants believers to belong and serve in community where they can best grow into Christlikeness. It is not enough to attend church, read the Bible, pray, join a small group and serve in church ministry. These can become religious activities with little direct bearing on one’s spiritual growth. Christ intended the church to be a place of community where spiritual care and spiritual formation occur. By “community”, I mean a gathering of people who experience togetherness in their journeys with God, who reach a place of vulnerability and authenticity. This is not merely getting into a small group or having “fellowship” after the service. God created people to be in loving and safe relationships. Unfortunately, churches can be places where people are strangers in the crowd, safe from each other, settling for teaching, worship and superficial small group experiences. Spiritual formation best occurs in community, not in isolation. Individualism and isolation are the marks of our society. However, spiritual formation is “a process of being conformed to the image of Christ for the sake of others” (M. Robert Mulholland Jr., Invitation to a Journey: A Road Map for Spiritual Formation, InterVarsity Press). God cultivates the fruit and gifts of the Spirit in believers for the benefit of other people, with love heading the list. The extent to which we love is the extent to which we are spiritual. Paul flatly declares, “The only thing that counts is faith expressing itself through love” (Galatians 5:6, NIV). The challenge of leading from the heart as a servant Leadership is both art and science. Much leadership literature deals with secular principles and skills. They are all helpful. However, effective 21st-century church leaders will also require a set of spiritual skills. They must lead from the heart in dependence on God and brokenness, as servant leaders who empower others to fulfill their God-given destinies. Above all, they must walk with God and be devoted to prayer. Richard Foster remarks, “All who have walked with God have viewed prayer as the main business of their lives.” Many church leaders lead from the head with information, ideas and plans. These are necessary but inadequate. Churches need more than methods. People long for leaders who are authentic, who express their hearts, who honestly share their weaknesses and who serve the people’s needs before the program. The challenge of worship and evangelism Church leaders face the challenge of how to wrestle with worship and music styles to reach lost people. Yesterday’s styles and methods will not necessarily work today. As leaders and churches get older, the tendency is to do what they have always done because that is what used to work. Inspiring worship and music should touch the heart and open channels for experiencing God in a way that mere words or teaching seldom do. In one of his surveys, George Barna found that “three-quarters of all adults, and 92% of all churched adults said that it is very important to them to worship God”, yet “most of those adults do not always feel as if they experience the presence of God during church worship events.” The secular world appreciates the power of music. Should the church do any less? Excellent music will enhance the total worship experience and will also connect with “seekers” to set the stage for the presentation of the gospel. It will help draw people to Christ. Therefore, 21st-century churches must establish inspiring worship as a core value along with such things as good Bible teaching, prayer, holiness, excellence and love.

Our purpose in meeting all of these challenges is evangelism. Churches must be about the Father’s business to seek and save those who are lost. As Bill Hybels often declares, “Lost people matter to God.” We live in a very busy secular society that largely views the church as irrelevant. This poses monumental challenges for the church. Yet Jesus said, “Go and make disciples of all nations – and surely I will be with you always, to the very end of the age” (Matthew 28:18-20). Today’s church leaders must face tomorrow’s challenges – but Jesus is with us.

Roger Helland is senior associate pastor at Garden Valley Community Church in Kelowna, B.C. and the author of The Journey: Walking With God, The Revived Church and Let the River Flow.

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Last modified November 30, 2001.

© 2001 Mennonite Brethren Herald.
Published by the Canadian Conference of MB Churches.
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