5. Make everything you do about people.
In your first year of church leadership you want affirmation. You’ll get noticed at the right time. It’s surprisingly easy to invest so much time into vision and strategy, planning and organizing, finance, communication, solving problems, and designing events that there is little time left for people. Don’t let that become a habit.
All those things are good and necessary, just don’t forget the reason you do them.
Look at your calendar every week and make sure you see appointments and availability to meet with people you are helping get through their struggles and mature in their faith.
The larger your church gets, the more challenging it can be to have time for people. (As crazy as it sounds, but it’s real.) It’s the danger of becoming an event planner with a theological degree.
Never forget, it’s all about people.
6. Pursue Jesus like your life depends on it.
Always remember the moment you surrendered your heart to Jesus; it keeps your leadership real, fresh, and alive. Your testimony never gets old; it’s the foundation of your leadership and reminds you of why you do what you do.
With that said, your faith not only reminds you of your past spiritual experiences but also carries you into the future. What is God saying to you today? That’s one of the most important questions a leader can ask.
Pursing Jesus daily is vital for your soul and your first year of church leadership. There will be times when you feel spiritually dry. That’s normal, and it will pass if you refuse to allow that to create drift and distance between you and God.
“Love your family in a way that they still love the church many years down the road.”
This article about the first year of church leadership originally appeared here, and is used by permission.
