Leadership Training

I have had one of those morning spent in pursuit of assignment completion that are frustrating. I suspect that what happens with my church assignments is as follows: The education committee meets and has some good ideas for training focuses and assignments. They invite speakers and ask them to suggest assignments. The speakers provide very thoughtful questions. The committee then realises that these need to be marked and so put in a word limit. The student must then wrestle with thought-provoking questions and provide answers within the word count. At one point today that had me needing to answer 44 sub points at 10 words each. I've obviously had to mash them together and it feels unsatisfying!

However!

I have been wanting to set up leadership training for one of my societies all year and have been struggling with the format. Knowing that it was an assignment question, I held my guns and today I have it. I'm not sure how generally useful it would be, but for my people here in Mitchells Plain, this is what I need. So, my seminar will be:

Passion for Christ and ministry.  This is the foundation for Christian leadership. This theme would include Christian disciplines and the development of Christian character and integrity.

Working with a vision. This is an important part of team ministry. This theme includes understanding the vision of the church (MCSA and society), fitting the particular ministry into the scope of the vision, making a plan to achieve the vision.

Building a team of volunteers. One is only a leader if one has followers. This theme includes recruiting volunteers, providing for training, organising volunteers and motivating them.

Communication Skills. No one exists as an island. This theme includes communicating with the leader above, with peers, with the ministry team and with the broader community.

Admin and organising skills. The key word here is responsibility. The theme includes keeping an appointment book and timekeeping, attending meetings or apologising, keeping records, good financial governance, rosters and delegation. 

(with thanks to Rev Ian France who put these as requirements in an advert for a children's pastor and  where they suggested themselves to me as topic headings!)