Christ And Missional Leaders

The purpose and aim of this book is to develop an appropriate leadership model for missional churches. This implies a positioning of this book within the broader theology of mission and a consensus on the theology of the Missio Dei, originating at the 1952 conference of the International Missionary Council in Willingen, Germany. In this approach to the theology of mission, mission is understood as the work of the Trinitarian God, and the church is privileged to participate in God’s mission. It is against this background that the growing consensus on missional ecclesiology challenges leadership models developed for a different time and a different kind of church (with less or no emphasis on the missional character of the church). The aim is to reflect theologically on the role of leadership in the missional church. What kind of ideas about power, authority and leadership are appropriate for a missional church? New missional challenges demand new ideas about missional leadership. Church organisation and leadership reflects a theological position – there is a strong relation between ecclesiology and church organisation. The nature of the church provides the framework to understand the character of the church. What the church is determines what the church does. The church organises what it does and agrees on rules that regulate ministries and organisation. Issues such as the way the church organises and governs what it does, and thus church leadership, need to be answered against this background and understanding. Church polity and organisation, as well as leadership, must reflect the identity, calling, life and order of the church. This book, therefore, addresses life in the Trinity, participation in the Missio Dei and contours of the missional church as the point of entry to develop leadership insights. It contributes towards the development of an appropriate model of leadership for missional churches, because although recent developments in the theology of mission comprehensively addressed the area of missional ecclesiology, there is a gap in the development of a leadership model based on the concept of authority in the missional church.

In The Missional Leader, consultants Alan J. Roxburgh and Fred Romanuk address two questions: "How do we do missional?" and "What does missional leadership look like?" Drawing on their many years of experience, the authors show readers how to bring God's word into the community outside the church's walls. They focus on how to lead missionally on the ground, in the local setting, even amid leaders' experience of massive change within the church and in the wider world. The challenge for many church leaders is that they are not equipped to lead a church in shifting from a consumer model of church to one that is missional. They were trained in a Christendom mindset--to meet the needs of the church's members. This book assists leaders in shifting from dominant models of leadership rooted in strategic planning--with mission and vision statements, desired outcomes, measurements along the way, and determined goals. It provides a praxis for beginning where people are, rather than where the leader wants them to go. Roxburgh and Romanuk give frank recognition to the fact that the shift from a consumer model to a missional mindset will almost certainly be stormy, disruptive, and disorienting. This is not a book of quick fixes and slick slogans, but one that sets out a comprehensive and in-depth treatment for a different way of leading. The Missional Leader is a critical commentary that needs to be read in the light of today's realities.

The teachings of Christian leadership have been dominated by a focus on the influence of a leader on its followers. Samuel Deressa's new book, Leadership Formation in the African Context, highlights how an African concept of community and holistic approach to ministry provides a biblically sound approach to understanding leadership formation and practice in this new age. This book links the issue of missional leadership with the life of the congregation. It provides theological and practical insights into how we can understand leadership formation in contexts where churches are engaged in the Missio Dei as a community of believers.

Many pastors and church leaders have heard the term "missional" but have only a vague idea of what it means, let alone why it might be important to them. But what does it actually mean? What does a missional church look like and how does it function? Two leading voices in the missional movement here provide an accessible introduction, showing readers how the movement developed, why it's important, and how churches can become more missional. Introducing the Missional Church demonstrates that ours is a post-Christian culture, making it necessary for church leaders to think like missionaries right here at home. Focusing on a process that allows a church to discern its unique way of being missional, it guides readers on a journey that will lead them to implement a new set of missional practices in their churches. The authors demonstrate that living missionally is about discerning and joining God's work in the world in order to be a witness to God's kingdom on earth.

Leadership-In-Community is a spiritual formation curriculum designed to provide a theological and practical foundation for Christian leaders committed to the mission of God in a vastly changing world. It engages new or seasoned missional leaders in the foundations of missiology, leadership theory, and leadership practices and tools. The curriculum explores three inter-related themes that build effective missional leadership: the missiology, community, and ethics of missional leadership. These themes are explored through spiritual formation practices based upon Lectio Missio, an expansion of Lectio Divina, including mission-related practices. Using Lectio Missio, small groups of leaders read and study Scripture, pray, dialogue, meditate, journal, and participate in experiential learning. These disciplines of spiritual formation are the basis of missional leadership training and development. Endorsement: In our experience, actual people rarely match up to the way they are perceived by others. However, Lee Carter defies what is typical. Leadership in community beautifully describes the lessons he has taught and modeled for us to follow. This book is grounded in Scripture and perfectly describes the benefit of the ethics and missiology of community leadership. Each chapter provides memorable lessons we are attempting to model to this day in Latin American churches, just as he has done for us in Bible League International. ─ Dr. Rafael Serrano, M.Div, Ph.D Author, Senior editor, the Palabra de Dios para Todos (Bible League International) and Nueva Traduccion Viviente (Tyndale Publishers) This book will help form your heart for long term leadership through the disciplines of lectio missio. Many leadership authors will say that personal growth is key for development as leaders. At the heart of Christian leadership is a necessary process of values clarification. Lee Carter provides a Bible-based curriculum for personal growth to be used by small groups of leaders. If you go through the process outlined in this book, the community God has called you to lead will deeply thank you. ─ Dr. Yancy Smith Author of The Mystery of Anointing: Hippolytus' Commentary on the Song of Songs in Social and Critical Contexts, Senior Director of Translation Services for Bible League International About the Author: Lee Carter received his Doctor of Strategic Leadership from Regent University and currently serves as Executive Vice President of Scripture Engagement at Bible League International (Chicago) supporting long-term strategies for sustained church growth. His vision is to equip missional leaders in the global Church and missional movements with healthy leadership perspectives and effective models that foster thriving organizations and communities that are witnesses of the goodness of Jesus Christ.

In this volume the third book in the Missional Church series eminent missional church expert Craig Van Gelder continues to track and contribute to the expanding missional church conversation, inviting today s brightest minds in the field to speak to key questions concerning church leadership.