Leadership Covenant

Leadership Covena= nt

Spiritual Leadership

The biblical record of the earliest church, the historical precedent of every denomination, and the current expe= rience of growing churches all indicates that churches will only grow if leaders s= tep up to embrace a serious spiritual discipline. We can every resource, and develop great programs, but if the leaders are not spiritual leaders<= /b> the church will fail to thrive. Therefore, this is the covenant of expectat= ion for every member of a Council or Board.

            The Seven Acts of Spiritual Leadership:

v&nb= sp;    Dai= ly prayers of intercession.

Start with the present moment and remember every single individual (friend or stranger) that came within your notice within the past 24 hours. Pray for e= ach of them.

Accountability:    <= /span>The pastor will ask you about this discipline in every council or board meeting, and from time to time ask you to highlight your insights in small groups or congregational worship.

v&nb= sp;    Dai= ly Bible reading.

Alternate reading portions of Luke-Acts, the Gospels, the Epistles, or the “Vis= ion Lectionary” that focuses on all the great visioning experiences of the Bible.

Accountability:  &nb= sp; The pastor will ask you about this discipline in every council or board meeting, and from time to time ask you to highlight your insights in small groups or congregational worship.

v&nb= sp;    Wee= kly participation in a cell group.

Participate in an accountable small group for prayer, affinity, learning, and intimate sharing (P.A.L.S.) every week of the year with no exception except for heal= th and required business trips. Even then, arrange for long distance communica= tion with the small group.

Accountability:  &nb= sp; Your participation in the small group will be publicized in the church, and the covenant of that small group will be appended to the minutes of the Council= or Board.

v&nb= sp;    Wee= kly participation in congregational worship.

Participate in worship 52 weeks of the year, with no exceptions other than health and required business trips. Even then, arrange for long distance communication with the worshiping congregation.

Accountability:  &nb= sp; The pastor will invite the entire board or council forward in every wors= hip service to join him/her in the Prayers of the People, and from time to time each member of the board or council will be invited to pray from the contex= t of their own prayer life.

v&nb= sp;    Reg= ular involvement in a hands-on outreach mission.

Personal activity with some mission or ministry beyond the church membership, locall= y, regionally, or globally in which you personally interact with the people you are trying to reach.

Accountability:  &nb= sp; The pastor will call you forward to commission you through laying on of hands, = and on a rotating basis call forward a board or council member in every wors= hip service for laying on of hands and congregational prayer for your conti= nuing mission service.

v&nb= sp;    Int= entional mentoring relationships.

Selective, intentional relationships that grow new leaders by helping people discern a= nd receive spiritual gifts, and guiding people to discern personal calling.

Accountability:  &nb= sp; The pastor will keep a confidential list of people being mentored by the counci= l or board members and discuss with each leader how the person being mentored can continue to grow.

v&nb= sp;    Adv= anced financial giving.

Make financial contributions that are at least ten times the average membership donation to the church on a weekly or annual basis.

Accountability:  &nb= sp; The average weekly giving of church members will be published within the church, along with the commitment of leaders to give at least ten times more. The treasurer will report confidentially to the Pastor if a leader fails to ful= fill the minimum commitment.

These standards of sp= iritual leadership are not extraordinary. These are the normative standards for leadership accepted by our ancestors in the ancient church and at the beginnings of our own denomination. Yet these are the primary expectations for council or board leadership. All management obligations are secondary.

            Management obligations for board or council leadership demand specific skills that can= be learned by anyone.

            The Five Commitments of Senior Management:

üSen= sitivity and loyalty to the DNA of the congregation.

Readiness to model and mentor the core values, bedrock beliefs, motivating vision, and strategic mission of the church.

Accountability: &nb= sp; The pastor will routinely lead board and council members in introspection, confession, and repentance.

üReg= ular conversations with community leaders about the future.

Intentional conversations with leaders in social service, health, business, government,= and religion in order to discern the trends and pace of change in your primary mission field.

Accountability: &nb= sp; The pastor will expect regular updates in every council or board meeting about = the community leaders and continuous learning that you experience. <= /span>

üAbi= lity to read and interpret demographic and lifestyle segment data.

Constant attention to National Census and the research of other public sectors into = the trends and diversity of the public in the primary mission field.=

Accountability: &nb= sp; The pastor will lead the board or council in regular review of the diversity of micro-cultures in the mission field.

üAbi= lity to align the church to its core mission.

Clarity and rigor in avoiding any sidetrack through program or ministry leadership = that might take the church away from achieving its primary mission.

Accountability: &nb= sp; The pastor will lead the board to identify and confront any “sacred cow” or “controller” that diverts or manipulates the congregation from its true purpose.

üCou= rage to establish the cost of discipleship in behalf of the church.

Faithfulness to pay the price in changing attitude, heritage, lifestyle, leadership, organization, budget, and property for the sake of following Jesus on the r= oad to mission.

Accountability: &nb= sp; The pastor will annually lead a visioning retreat for the board or council to discern where Jesus will be in the years ahead, and count the cost to join = Him there.