As a pastor, you need to be able to put together projects efficiently and effectively. Whether you are starting a new church, planning a new ministry, opening a new building – or just preparing for next weekend’s services, you need to mobilise people on a common task. That’s leadership in a nutshell.
Nehemiah, a great biblical model of leadership, had a monster project on his hands when he returned to Jerusalem to help rebuild the wall of his ravaged city, Jerusalem. And he did it. How he tackled that project can give us insight on how to handle our own ministry projects. When we look at his rebuilding plan, seven key principles he adhered to become clear.1. The principle of simplification
Nehemiah kept his plan simple. He didn't randomly assign jobs; he didn't create a whole new organisation; and he didn't force any complex charts.
He kept his plan very simple. He organised around natural groupings of people already associating together, such as the priests, the men of Jericho, and the sons of Hassenaah. The point is: don't create an organisation if you don't need it. If an organisation already naturally exists, try to work through it and with it. Sometimes a new leader comes into a situation, and the first thing he does is start changing the whole organisation. Think: If it ain't broke, don't fix it. The simplest organisations are strong organisations.
2. The principle of participation
It’s a pretty simple rule: work with those who want to work. Amazingly, a lot of leaders never learn this principle. They spend all their time trying to corral the lazy and the apathetic, instead of working with those who want to work. I call that corralling goats.
Look at what Nehemiah did. He got almost everybody involved in the building of the wall. He had the clerics, the goldsmiths, the perfume makers – men and women, city and country folk. Everybody was moving bricks and making mortar.
But there was one exception. "Next were the people from Tekoa, though their leaders refused to help." (Neh. 3:5 NLT)
Nehemiah’s response was to ignore the shirkers.
In every situation you’re going to have workers and shirkers. Nehemiah just ignored the latter and focused on those who were willing to work. He didn't lose sleep, get bitter, or waste time trying to corral them. If you're a leader, don’t worry about people who don't want to get involved. Focus on those people who want to get involved.
When I first started Saddleback, I didn't know this lesson. Every time we planned a project, a work party, or an event, people would show up, yet I would still be disappointed by all the people who didn’t show up. God finally showed me that I should get excited about those who came!
3. The principle of delegation
When you're organising, you should make specific assignments. Think about what would have happened if, after Nehemiah's pep rally when he got everyone excited, he then said, "Just go start working wherever you want to work." That wouldn't have worked!
Instead, Nehemiah divided the wall into sections when he did his midnight ride. He kept it simple, and then he delegated specific assignments.
When you delegate:
- Break down major goals into smaller tasks. When we started Saddleback, I made everybody a committee of one. Each of us had assignments. One person managed the printing of the bulletins while another set up the nursery. Everybody had a specific task.
- Develop clear job descriptions. Your workers deserve to know what is expected.
- Match the right person with the right task. The wrong person in the wrong task causes chaos. It causes all kinds of motivational problems. Delegating is more than just passing off work. You need to understand what the task is all about and what the person is good at, and then get them together.
