Leaders Develop Other Leaders – Conclusions

Barnabas, of New Testament fame, was someone who understood leadership development.

He is mentioned twenty-nine times in Acts. He is first encountered in Acts 4:36 and is depicted as a man of generosity. Luke also notes that his name means “son of encouragement”.

This was evident as Luke unfolds the story of the Apostle Paul, beginning with Barnabas “vouching” for Paul’s Damascus Road “conversion” before the Apostles (Acts 9:27). Barnabas emerges again in Acts 11:24, when he travels to Tarsus looking for Saul.

We could review the various aspects of Barnabas and Paul’s relationship, but we can see the nature of that relationship in how Luke writes about them, particularly how he mentions them by name.

In Acts 11-13, Luke writes exclusively of Barnabas and Saul, with Barnabas appearing to be in the “lead” role in their ministry partnership.

Beginning in Acts 13, the sixteen times they are mentioned together, four of those occurrences mention Barnabas first, and the other twelve have Paul named before Barnabas.

Whether this is intentional or not is unclear, but either way, Luke clearly sees Paul taking the lead in their relationship. We note that Barnabas does not leave the “partnership”, as they serve together in Pisidian, Iconium, Lystra, and Derbe.

Only later, in Acts 15, do they part company and serve separately. The picture painted by Luke is of a gracious leader who sponsored and mentored Paul, served alongside him in ministry, and was comfortable seeing Paul excel in the primary leadership role on their ministry team.

What Barnabas Teaches Us About Leadership

There are two reasons why I find Barnabas’ behavior to be amazing!

First, society in the United States places a premium on strong charismatic leadership, bordering on the adulation of leaders.

This is true in the church as well. When asked, most Christians explain that they attend their church because of the pastor's message. Most of the mega churches in the United States are constructed around “celebrity” Pastors.

Barnabas was a leader who eschewed celebrity leadership ideas. He was more concerned about advancing the Kingdom of God and recognizing the giftedness and leadership capacity of others.

Second, in my years of ministry experience, I have noticed a large number of Christian leaders who lead because they need to lead.

They look for leadership opportunities. They put themselves forward and need and want to be recognized by others. This is in contrast to the large number of biblical leaders who felt themselves unworthy and had to be coaxed by God into leadership roles (Moses, Gideon, Saul, David, Jeremiah, Isaiah, Paul …..).

Leadership appears to meet a deep seated needed to be valued, appreciated and significant. This kind of approach does not lend itself to the development of other leaders, especially when they gain greater influence.

Barnabas seems to have no problem with Paul’s development as a leader and growing influence. This is evident in his sponsoring Paul, serving alongside Paul, and defending the ministry with Paul.

Barnabas is an example of the kind of leadership we need in our children’s ministry today.

We should actively seek out gifted emerging leaders and be willing to promote them, serve with them, and celebrate their ministry development.

We should rejoice when they become greater, even if we become less. Maybe there is a “Paul” serving in your children’s ministry or a child in the ministry itself. Barnabas reminds us that there is no greater joy than seeing the success of another.

Leadership Lessons from Moses, Jesus, and Paul

Over the last few weeks, we have surveyed Moses, Jesus, and Paul as leaders who identified and developed emerging leaders. 

From that brief overview, we can gather some specific elements in this crucial area of leadership.

• Teaching skills to emerging leaders – one of the primary roles of any children’s ministry leader should be equipping others for life-changing children’s ministry. 
• Giving emerging leaders ministry assignments – great KidMin leaders need to give appropriate ministry assignments to emerging leaders. 
• Debriefing ministry assignments – it is essential that we evaluate ministry experience. What is working in the small groups? What media/curriculum is working? This list is long and essential to the development of an effective children’s ministry team. 
• Investing in the spiritual life and character formation of emerging leaders – We are looking for emerging leaders with a calling and gifts to influence children. Effective children’s ministry will flow from personal godliness. Therefore, it is essential to build into the spiritual lives of leaders serving in the children’s ministry. 
• Calling, preparing, and co-ministering with emerging leaders, having emerging leaders “shadow” and learn – There is no greater leadership development tool than shadowing. Doing ministry together, evaluating together, praying together, and committing to see others thrive as ministry leaders. 
• Encouraging emerging leaders to become the leaders God intends – We can encourage children’s ministry leaders to discover and exercise their giftedness. 
• Mentoring emerging leaders, providing practical counsel and guidance – KidMin leaders have challenges in ministry and life, and need a leader who can offer biblical counsel, guidance, and encouragement.

Although this list is not exhaustive, it is a great starting point for leaders who are committed to identifying and developing emerging leaders. 

Effective Leaders Identify and Develop Emerging Leaders

Unfortunately, many children’s pastors are occupied with issues related to facilities, security, curriculum, video technology, and various program elements. We may have forgotten that we are not called pastors for nothing.

Our calling is not limited to pastoring children but pastoring those who are leading with us in ministry. 

To state it another way, if we want to disciple children (Matthew 28:1-20), then we are called to disciple emerging leaders. Effective leaders identify and develop emerging leaders. Nowhere is this more important than in a church’s ministry to children.

Today, there are a number of gifted leaders who are influencing large numbers of people towards God’s purposes. However, they are not invested in identifying and developing other leaders.

As they age and come to the end of their leadership life, there will be a void. This leadership vacuum can be filled when leaders recognize that a key element of their leadership effectiveness is to identify and develop other leaders.

Krysten Norkaitis was nine years old when I met her. She stood out during that summer because her swim team activities were so extensive that the chlorinated pool water gave her flowing platinum blonde hair a kind of green tint.

She was an energetic girl who showed leadership among her elementary school peers. I felt honored to be her children’s pastor. She was active in the children’s ministry, especially our summer ministry programs.

Thinking back over those years brings a smile to my face, all these years later. When we moved to Poland as missionaries, Krysten was one of the children we missed, and thankfully, over the years maintained a distant relationship. Krysten’s life took her to Whitworth College and on to the mission field with YWAM in Argentina, where we tracked her progress with pride. 

When we returned from Poland, we reconnected with Krysten, and she eventually joined the staff of Every Generation Ministries. She oversaw our work in Latin America, drawing on her Spanish language skills, and eventually took responsibility for all of our children’s worker development programs worldwide.

She worked with leaders on five continents and then joined the leadership team that managed and led EGM. When I stepped down as the President of EGM, Krysten was a key leader who continues to lead EGM. In the last few years, she has taken even greater leadership, developed additional skills, and is now developing other key leaders in the ministry.

God allowed me to be a small part of identifying Krysten as a leader and being part of her development. She is now doing the same. Effective leaders identify and develop other leaders.