Delegation

A staff pastor laments relying upon other people to contribute to his success, “I’ve worked really hard….  I’ve utilized principles and people to help cover [my] weak spots.”

Using ministry principles, tactics, and volunteers to cover “weak spots” is something every successful pastor does. It’s important to know your strengths and to build on them, but it is equally important to know your weaknesses and to either avoid them or compensate for them. Rick Warren (Saddleback Valley Community Church) and Bill Hybels (Willow Creek Community Church) aren’t youth leaders or office managers. They hire people to do what they don’t do well and don’t have a passion for. There is solid biblical support for this.

In Acts 6, we learn that the need for the fair distribution of food to widows in the Jerusalem church was needlessly burdening the Twelve Apostles and distracting them from the ministry to which God had called them and for which they were uniquely gifted: teaching, prayer, and leadership. Rather than becoming personally involved in the situation they delegated responsibility (vs. 3) and authority (vs. 6) for meeting this need to seven men, likely under the leadership of Stephen (vs. 5). This enabled the Apostles to devote themselves unhindered to prayer and “the ministry of the Word.”

We read that, as a result of this decision, “the word of God spread. The number of disciples in Jerusalem increased rapidly…” In other words, the Apostles divided the work and doubled the outcome.

Delegation Divides the Work and Doubles the Outcome

Giving people significant responsibility is not a matter of covering your “weak spots.” Viewed positively, it is a matter of authorizing them to perform tasks that contribute to the success of the entire ministry. Everyone wants to feel like they are making a significant contribution to a cause that is bigger than they are. Your job is to inspire people with a God-given, biblical, and realistic vision for an outcome that is desirable and preferable to what they have now, and to train and mentor them so that they can accomplish that vision with you and with one another. Follow this basic process:

1. Let them see you do it.
2. Explain to them why you did it that way.
3. Let them try it with you observing.
4. Talk to them about their experience
5. Let them try it again (never alone).
6. Reward their success.
7. Authorize them to continue performing those tasks, reporting to you.