Leading a Healthy Church Culture - Lesson 4

So we've been talking about remembering our leaders, and we've moved from there to discuss some of the challenges in the 21st century of leading that I believe that Christ-centered leadership addresses, and we'll get to that in a while. Before we do that, I'd like us to launch into a case study called “The Shadow of a Leader.” This is not a true story; it's a fictional story, but you may recognize some of the characters as we go along. I’ve asked Tim if he would read this for us.  Let's follow along as Tim reads. 

TIM:  The shadow of the Leader.  “The crowd listened attentively as the program began. This celebration was organized to recognize Dr. Robert Avella and his 20 years of successful ministry. In addition, Dr. Avella was to be ordained as the President of the Grace of God denomination in the country of Acadia. Praise for Dr. Avella was deserved in many ways. Dr. Avella had been a young, gifted Christian leader. He had been a consistent voice for integrity and change in the church and in his community. He had founded the Fishers of Men Ministry, FMM, as a ministry of equipping church leaders to reach their own people. Everyone rose to their feet as Dr. Robert Avella was announced as the new President of the Grace of God denomination. The charge was given for all to awaken from their slumber and make the Grace of God denomination in the shadow of a great leader.  No one in the audience would disagree with the impact of Dr. Avella’s ministry. But one person was overheard to say, “If Fishers of Men Ministries is shadow, then the Grace of God denomination is in trouble,” a cruel assessment, looking back.  Few would say that Robert, as everyone had called him in 1990, was the same person who was on the platform in 2010. Mary and Sergio, the only two members of the original Fishers of Men Ministry Team, left the celebration and talked about how Robert and FMM had changed. The first years of FMM were exciting. At the time, Robert was 45 years old. He’d grown up with a father who ruled with an iron hand.  Because Robert was adventurous, he often was harshly punished as a child. In fact, he could never forget his father's most often used words, “You fool, can't you do anything right?” Robert was also ridiculed by others when he was growing up because of his intelligence. He could still remember times of great loneliness and rejection. When he became an adult, he was driven to make a difference. When the opportunity came, he started FMM.  Even though he now enjoyed a great deal of success, there was always a nagging sense of self-doubt and insecurity. Early on, Robert was a team player and inspired others with his vision and encouragement. Churches welcomed FMM's evangelism training, which proved ideal for those who were eager to reach their friends for Christ. As FMM grew under Robert's leadership, he was invited to travel and teach and in the process became a sought-after conference speaker. It wasn't long, however, before the early signs of big boss sickness began to appear. At first, no one seemed to notice. There was no objection when Robert took a large office. After all, this is common among church leaders in Acadia, as is the privilege of a car and a driver. Mary and Sergio could not help remembering, however, that Robert had previously lived a humble and simple life.  Also, no one seemed to think it strange when Robert spent less time with the FMM team. As pressure on his time increased, the spontaneous prayer times gave way to weekly chapel sessions always led by the director, who by now was always addressed as Dr. Avella. The difficulty of seeing Dr. Avella without scheduling an appointment should have been a danger sign. In fact, a policy was put in place restricting access to Dr. Avella. As Mary and Sergio discussed the past, they agreed that they should have been more forthright with Dr. Avella, who seemed to change after the embezzlement took place. Looking back, they could see how he had lost all sense of trust in others and willingness to delegate.  He instituted a policy insisting that he approve all ministry and financial decisions. This action resulted in many delays and many lost ministry opportunities. Instead of encouraging new ideas and initiatives, Dr. Avella no longer tolerated deviation from his directives. Those offering a different opinion, both staff and board members, suffered in many ways, ranging from loss of face to being fired. Morale began to decay in all the departments at FMM.  Promising young leaders left as quickly as possible, hoping to find an atmosphere that offered more acceptance and support. It was then that Mary and Sergio realized that their original sense of community with their friend and brother probably was lost. Mary and Sergio were forced to conclude that Dr. Robert Avella had fallen guilty to misusing the power of his office. It had become a means for self-fulfillment and advancement. Both agree that fellow Christians, including the two of them, did not help this struggling man of God as he was distracted from Christ-centered leadership and received more and more expressions of worldly honor.”

Thank you, Tim. What I'd like to do is have you divide up into groups of three and discuss those three questions at the bottom of the page. How would you describe Robert Avella's early leadership? How would you describe his later leadership? And perhaps the most important question is the last one. So divide up your time so you make sure and get to the last question. What explanations can you give for some of Robert's actions as a leader? And there are clues throughout. But I wonder if you three could gather, and we’ll take about 8 minutes on this, so you'll have to move pretty quickly, but just kind of rehash the story a little bit and then jump into those three questions, if you would. Maybe we'll take as much as 10 minutes, but work through those, please, if you would.