Understanding the Strategies in developing the right Leader for Successful Ministry.

SUCCESSFUL SUCCESSION PLANNING:

(1) (a) Identify and mentor your successor: For “Founders” or first-generation leaders, this guarantees the success and continuity of the Church.

(b) Do not just mentor one person, rather widen your range of
PROTEGE: As an African proverb goes “we do not put all our eggs into one basket”.

(c) Develop strong succession structures: There is no better breeding ground for chaos in a church or organization than where there are no well-defined structures. In the area of leadership selection, perhaps nothing else guarantees greater order than an acceptable and workable Constitution.

The qualifications and procedures must be clearly defined and made known to the constituents. Thereafter, everybody, especially those in leadership, must give due respect to the terms and provisions of the Constitution.

The vision of the church/organization must be very clearly spelt out.

(d) Develop a strong, vigilant leadership: Constitutions are drawn and ran by people. It stands to reason that if a Church does not have a strong, vigilant membership, especially its leadership, some self-seeking, manipulative leader could take them for a ride.
As it is often said, “the price of liberty is eternal vigilance”.

For a succession plan to be ‘successfully’ executed the following things must happen:

(a) Work with people who share the vision.

(b) Entrust the work, as Paul suggests to Timothy, to reliable persons. Those so entrusted with the work must possess the right training and qualification.

In other words, standards must be set such as what the Apostles did by stating categorically that the one to replace Judas must possess a specific level of experience; So, one of the men who have accompanied us during all the time that the Lord Jesus went in and out among us, beginning from the baptism of John until the day when he was taken up from us—one of these must become a witness with us of his resurrection (Acts 1: 21 – 22).

God had the survival, maintenance, sustenance and expansion of the Created Order in mind when he committed his handiwork to the care of humankind (Genesis 1: 28 – 30).

In terms of succession planning, the matter is also not alien to the Bible: Joshua took over from Moses, Elisha from Elijah, and Jesus also committed the task of ministry to the Apostles.
This means that, in God’s economy and timetable, succession is important for the continuation of ministry.

(e) Give the Holy Spirit His rightful place in leadership selection: The Holy Spirit was very instrumental in the selection and calling of various leaders in the early Church. His leadings and promptings must be followed. The prophetic voice must not be excluded but subjected to the various tastings within the organization.

Leaders should not abuse the trust God and their constituents have placed in them by perpetuating themselves in office.

It was stated by Hans Finzel that “people’s replacement should be seen as the ultimate completion of their leadership”.

Like David, may we live to serve God’s purposes in our own generation and also gloriously pass on the baton of leadership when our own race is run.