“Who can we get to lead the evangelism committee this year? How about Sheila? She’s so friendly.”

“We just can’t get enough leaders. Seems like we’ve asked everyone in the church.”

“Do you think we can get David to oversee the worship committee this year? I think it’s his turn.”

Sound familiar?  Too many churches approach leadership development in a haphazard sort of way. They may not realize there are potential leaders hiding in the pews or even disguised as “ordinary” volunteers. The trick is learning to recognize them – and then preparing them for the leadership role God has already designed for them to do.

Leadership development begins with a plan. These seven steps will help you discover new leaders in order to release the hidden talent you didn’t even realize was there!

Step 1: Identify gifted leaders—Look for people who have demonstrated leadership qualities in their home, work, and personal life. Tools such as spiritual gift inventories can be helpful to surface leadership gifts, but the best confirmation may be what you observe in real life settings.  

Step 2: Enlist leaders personally—Approach potential leaders with a personal invitation to consider a serving opportunity. Make sure they understand the position and its importance. Carefully go over the responsibilities—time frame, goals, requirements. Set the bar high enough for them to realize the importance of the ministry.

Step 3: Equip your leaders—Develop a core training plan dealing with spiritual growth as well as regarding the job responsibilities. Effective leaders understand the church’s mission and vision and how their responsibility fits into the big picture. Plan ongoing training throughout the year.

Step 4: Empower your leaders—Jesus gave his disciples authority to drive out evil spirits and to heal every disease and sickness (Matthew 10:1). We must give leaders authority, a reasonable budget, training, and then turn them loose. Leaders will thrive under a permission-giving system but will often burnout or wear down under a controlling system.

Step 5: Engage leaders in significant ministry—High performance leaders want to make a significant contribution to the kingdom and make a difference in the lives of others. Reduce the number of meetings and increase hands-on opportunities to serve God. Evaluate your overall structure to see how well you’re engaging people in ministry.

Step 6: Encourage your leaders—Volunteer leaders need to be encouraged. Personal notes and affirmations—both public and private—build your leaders up and allow them to enjoy their work.

Step 7: Evaluate your leaders—Finish the process with an evaluation system for your leaders and their teams. How did they do on the goals set for the year? What can they do differently next year? Specific program evaluations and personal feedback will help improve leadership skill and ability.