Tag: Instructional Dynamics

The predominant image of leaders in Jesus’ time – not very different from our own time – was that they were egocentric, oppressive, and...

Discipleship of the emerging leader is as crucial as a lion nurturing his offspring or a father his child, but it goes deeper than a father to child relationship. It is much broader than teaching skills or fine-tuning character. Malcolm has written a letter that goes straight to the heart of discipleship and what emerging leaders need from those more experienced leaders.

George relates the similarities between today’s prolific churches with the characteristics of the churches depicted in Acts. Churches that rapidly multiply today have certain things in common: Money is not a necessary component, nor are particular doctrine or liturgy, buildings, degrees, big meetings, or eloquent speakers. They require no church practices except what Christ and His apostles required.

The goal of teaching someone to climb mountains is more than teaching mechanics of climbing. The teacher equips the student with all the nuances of safety and planning as well as appreciation of the splendor at the top. God empowers all believers to serve with their gifts and not just to listen to teaching. Teachers must help keep the body of Christ in balance, and George urges teachers not to get so wrapped up in brilliant teaching as an end in itself, but to realize it is the means for the Body to be equipped to use their spiritual gifts to serve.

Chinese Christians have become adept at finding solutions by relying upon the Lord. Partners with them should be encouraged to bring tools rather than providing solutions. These tools in the hands of Chinese leaders may provide the means for devising suitable approaches to the challenges they face. Brent says mentors that model godly character traits help to build solution-finding leaders.

What makes a better teacher: the ability to ask the right questions or having all the answers? Is it better to be the “Bible Answer Person” or the one who encourages the learner to think? Remarkably, Jesus only answered three of the 307 questions He asked. Why was that?

Harvesting fruit is only possible when the branches abide in the vine; leaders can only bear good fruit when they abide in Jesus (John 15:4). George outlines the characteristics that a small church needs to have in order to flourish after planting. When leaders heed certain New Testament guidelines, churches multiply rapidly, inexpensively and with little or no ongoing help from Western missionaries.

It is not a question of which way the wind blows. Theological education must be reconceived again and again in order for it to remain relevant and on the cutting edge. There are no magical solutions or formulas that give us the answers, but some pointers to spur the discussion are suggested here. Paul Cornelius argues for a reinvention that demands changes in how curriculum is viewed and developed.

Hindsight may be 20/20, but wise leaders also use tools to keep sailing forward in the right direction. They may not have huge binoculars like a seaman, but they do have assessment tools to understand how leader development training is affecting their organization – if it causes a positive effect or a negative effect. Tom discusses the importance of evaluating the effectiveness of leader development events. He notes that discussing reactions, learning, behaviors, and results helps organizations to analyze the actual worth of training, thus holding the organization’s rudder to good stewardship and accountability standards.

Last week I had two meetings in as many days regarding two proposed leadership training efforts aimed at Christians in China. Both were well thought through and grew out of decades of China experience. As we looked at the various offerings already available to church leaders in China, the question that emerged in both cases was, “Is this really needed?”