ARE YOU CALLED OR COMFORTABLE?

ARE YOU CALLED OR COMFORTABLE?

If you choose to remain under someone with low leadership capacity, be sure you are called are not just comfortable because you are inhibiting your own growth.

[I want to be careful not to belittle any leader, or allow anyone reading this to start down that road. That’s not the purpose of this post, nor is it right. As long as you are serving, you have an obligation to honor that leader & serve with your whole heart.]

Poor leadership can manifest itself in many, many ways (each of which leads to many other challenges):

1. Unclear vision.

2. Poor communication.

3. Indecision.

4. Complacency.

5. Pride.

The list could go on and on. Have you served under a poor leader? Are you serving under one now? Doesn’t it kind of make you feel like you’re about to head over a cliff?

I have served under poor leaders, and I truly hope I never do again. Why? Because whenever I am under a poor leader, I am inhibiting my own growth potential.

I want to be everything God made me to be, and I want my ministry to be everything it was meant to be. I think we all do. However, as you’ve red many times, everything rises & falls on leadership. In other words, you and your ministry will only rise to the level that you and your leadership team are able to take it.

That’s why personal development is critical! It’s critical, too, that your churches senior leadership is capable & growing. Your church will only rise to the level which your churches leadership is able to take it.

As I have opportunity to coach young leaders, speak around and interact with churches through what we do here, I often find children’s ministry leaders that are frustrated, feeling like they are bumping up against the proverbial leadership cap placed on the church (and them) by their pastor.

When I encounter someone like this, I try and convey that their frustration with leadership:

i. Does not give them the right to complain about or undermine leadership in any way, nor does it give them the right to do anything less than their best in their ministry.

ii. Does not mean they should give up trying to cast a vision for children’s & family ministry, or stop trying to put forward initiatives that they believe in (and align with the overall vision of the church).

iii. Does not mean they may abdicate their responsibility for their own personal growth in the area of leadership.

After awhile, however, serving under poor leadership can get old…really old! So when you’ve done everything you can to communicate, to lead up, to lead your area well, to live with the leadership you serve under…basically, just make it work…then I recommend them answer one question:

1. Am I called to this position, or am I just comfortable?

I hope (and assume) that you are in a position that you felt called to when you accepted it. So are you still called to be there? The answer very well may be “yes”, and there are a number of reasons that God may want you in that role:

A. He may be doing something in your own life (remember, our lives are not about our ministries or anything else, but rather about being conformed to the image of Christ – Romans 8:28-29…everything works together for good, but that “good” is becoming more like Christ).

B. He may be using you in to accomplish something in the lives of others – or the “life” of another (I often think of the missionaries who spend decades of seemingly fruitless labor, only to see one of their few converts have great impact in the region).

C. He may be using the circumstances to prepare you for something in the future (remember Joseph?)

If you answered “yes” to being called to the position you serve in, even under poor leadership, then you need to stay.

However, the answer may also very well be “no”. This is usually very difficult to discern and I would encourage you to seek trusted counsel in coming to this conclusion. But if the answer is “no”, then why are you staying?

It might be that you’re just too comfortable. No, you don’t like the leadership. It’s a pain to serve under. It limits your ability to grow yourself or your ministry. But pursuing other options would simply be incredibly uncomfortable. From a practical sense, uprooting families, acclimating to new teams, in many ways starting from the ground up. Who wants to do that? But what we are saying, when we conclude that we are no longer called to this position yet decide to stay, is that we are willing to place comfort over calling.

And we all know that’s not the right thing to do.

As I write this there’s so much more to be said about this, but simply can’t in a single post. Perhaps we’ll revisit this in the future. If you are struggling with this, let me encourage you to find wise counsel to discuss this with. If you don’t have anyone, feel free to message me via our Facebook Page & I will be happy to try and encourage you. I have been far too comfortable a couple of times, and I wish I had had the courage to follow my calling instead of settling for comfort. My hope is that you will find exactly where you are supposed to be and serve there with all your heart.
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