As the staff at The Door Church continues to strive to fulfill the mission that God has for us, we are working to develop structure within our organization that will allow us to minister effectively and efficiently. As I stated in part 1 of my blog Leadership Lessons from Designed to Lead, we are all leaders. Regardless of age, location and context, we lead people toward that which we believe is most important. The elders want to empower our staff to lead to the best of their ability and with their hearts aimed at TDC’s mission:
To see lives restored with the gospel for God’s glory.
God is a God of order, and thus leadership constructs, so long as they are developed with intent to glorify God and edify people, are life-giving. As we lead in the different areas in which God has us, I want to share a simple framework from Designed to Lead that is useful to all organizations. It is based on three principles: Conviction, Culture and Constructs. Let’s take a look at each.
Conviction / Culture / Constructs
Conviction is what drives you. It’s what you think about when you wake up and it is what you invest most of your energy and thought life on. (You may not even know your conviction, but if you were to look at your life from an outside perspective, it would be quite clear.) Conviction is either God-made or man-made, and I don’t think I need to tell you which one works best. Conviction keeps us focused, on point, and oriented in the right direction. As a church, I pray our conviction is to see lives restored with the gospel for God’s glory. By the way, I know we repeat this over and over again. That’s on purpose. I am trying to reinforce our conviction. Our mission drives everything we do. What is your primary conviction?
Culture is what a community of people believes and invests in. Merriam-Webster defines it as the “set of shared attitudes, values, goals, and practices that characterizes an institution or organization”. TDC leadership is convicted that we need to develop leaders to accomplish our God-given mission. We want to be a group of leaders growing leaders. And let me clarify something: I do not mean that we seek to be noticed or powerful. Leadership is, if Jesus is our example, humbly serving those you lead for their good and God’s glory. When you hear “leader”, think servant. With that caveat in mind, you could say we hope to foster a leadership culture. When we truly understand that Jesus came to die for us, it will cause a gospel revolution resulting in a leadership culture of people who cannot help but share the good news. Who are you leading and serving?
Lastly, we need to develop Constructs. The systems, processes, trainings and programs that help us effectively mobilize our family to minister to each other and the world. It is a vital role in effectively developing a leadership culture, as constructs hold up the efforts of an organization like the framing of a house. We will go beyond asking for leaders: we will clearly communicate the mission of role, equip them through training, and then give them the freedom to execute while supporting their efforts through prayer, practical support and feedback.
We believe Conviction, Culture, and Constructs are vital to the faithful execution of TDC’s mission. We wanted to share this concept for two reasons: 1) it is helpful to know the leadership philosophy of your church and 2) you might find these principles helpful in your vocational life.
Remember, you are a leader. Remember that you have been entrusted with the greatest news the world will ever know and the grace we all so desperately need. It is an honor to be on mission with you.