Today is a very special day for my. On August 26, 2002 I walked into the offices of INJOY Stewardship Services for the very first time to work for my hero John Maxwell. Well, it is 17 years later and I still work for what is now INJOY Stewardship Solutions owned by Joseph Sangl.
17 years is a LONG time to be in the capital campaign and generosity business. In fact, I counted today and could only come up with between 15-20 in the entire industry with more tenure. It may be more but that is all I could come up with. I am very proud of the longevity God has blessed me to have.
It has truly been an honor and blessing to serve his bride and pastors. Also, I know you may think I’m crazy but I love capital campaigns as well!
One of the fascinating things about what I do is I only talk to growing churches. Church leaders who are not building, paying off debt, or expanding facilities or ministry do not return my attempts to connect.
After 17 years and literally thousands of conversations with people who are advancing Kingdom-minded mission and vision, I have a good insight on what makes a highly successful pastor or church leaders.
The following are 17 Habits Of Highly Successful Pastors and Church Leaders, one for each year I have been at INJOY Stewardship:
- Highly Successful Pastors and Church Leaders Are Not Communicators – They are preachers. Highly successful preachers do not give talks. They deliver messages given to them by the Ancient of Days for a specific group of people about the issues of their lives at this point and time in human history. Preachers abhor TED Talks with a bible verse.
- Highly Successful Pastors and Church Leaders Have A Wide Range Of Weekly Attendance – There is little correlation between congressional size and the approval and favor of God in a pastor’s life. Thousands of pastors are leading churches with less than 500 in attendance who are doing incredible things. Many times a pastor will say, “I’m only running 300 (or 200 or 100). I know you talk to a lot of bigger churches.” I respond in a multitude of ways to encourage them. For example, if they are in a small town of say 12,000 people, I remind them that from a percentage standpoint they are larger than Andy Stanley. I also say, “You are 3X the size of the average church in America. You have 300 people showing up to hear you every week. I can’t even get my wife and daughter to listen to me half the time. You’re doing something right.”
- Highly Successful Pastors and Church Leaders Are Often Deeply Afraid Of Failure – I recently spoke with a pastor who had been at his church over a decade. He felt his upcoming project was a referendum of his leadership and would determine if he stayed another decade. I felt such compassion for him and ensured him we would not let him fail. This type of conversation is the norm when you have developed a level of trust with pastors.
- Highly Successful Pastors and Church Leaders Are Optimists – They have great faith in what God can do. They lead with “Yes”. Successful pastors and church leaders ask “Why not?” rather than “Why?” They embrace possibility thinking.
- Highly Successful Pastors and Church Leaders Surround Themselves With Talented People – John Maxwell was spot on when he wrote about The Law of the Inner Circle which teaches those closest to you determine your level of success. I see so many pastors limited by lay leaders who simply do not have a clue. I have a litmus test. If a lay leader says, “Now pastor, we don’t want to get ahead of God”, he has to get off the board. Just being honest.
- Highly Successful Pastors and Church Leaders Come In All Different Forms – The great leaders I have met come from all parts of the country, have varying levels of education, are different ages, different races, dress differently, some have hair while others don’t, various denominations, rural and urban, and communicate differently from the platform. There is no cookie-cutter outward appearance of successful pastors and church leaders.
- Highly Successful Pastors and Church Leaders Want To Get Better – They are continual learners who want to get better at their craft. Successful pastors and church leaders are constantly reading books, listening to podcasts or audio books, and getting personal coaching.
- Highly Successful Pastors and Church Leaders Are Broken And Humble – To the level a person is broken is the level at which God can use them. Successful pastors and church leaders do not strut. They walk with a limp. They have tender hearts. They weep. They are compassionate. They care.
- Highly Successful Pastors and Church Leaders Are Accessible To The People – They smell like sheep. The green room is not the residing place of successful pastors. The lobby and altar are.
- Highly Successful Pastors and Church Leaders Have Calloused Knees – They are men and women of prayer. They have a communion with God which is uncommon. Quiet times are non-negotiable.
- Highly Successful Pastors and Church Leaders Embrace The Gift Of The Gap – Successful pastors and church leaders realize there is a significant gap between their competencies, budgets, network and experiences and what God has called them to do. They realize this gap can only be closed by God’s supernatural intervention. In other words, if God does not come through, they don’t know what they are going to do. This forces pastors to press into him. The result is greater faith, trust and intimacy with Christ.
- Highly Successful Pastors and Church Leaders Ask For Help – This is where people like me come in. There is a biblical value of partnership. I have seen hundreds of churches tell me they are conducting internal campaigns to “save money” or “we can do it ourselves.” I revisit their website two years later, click the About Us tab, select Staff/Leadership/Our Team, and often read the words “Interim Pastor”. Successful pastors and church leaders embrace help and know they do not have to carry the load of ministry by themselves.
- Highly Successful Pastors and Church Leaders Are Fun – Highly successful pastors and church leaders are people people. People are attracted to them. They are delightful to be around. Highly successful pastors and church leaders lighten our load. They lighten mine as well. Nothing excites me more than looking at my daily calendar and seeing I have three scheduled calls with pastors who need to raise money. When that happens, I’m going to have three great conversations, make some new friends, and have a very, very good day.
- Highly Successful Pastors and Church Leaders Are People Of Great Character – The greatest gift you can give your congregation is not a great sermon but a humble, broken and contrite heart before God. I have spoken to many pastors whose talent took them to a place where their character could not sustain them. Failure was inevitable. Just because you run 10,000 does not mean you will have long-term success. Work on your character as much or more than you work on your message and weekend service.
- Highly Successful Pastors and Church Leaders Are Under Increasing Pressure – YouTube and podcasts have not done pastors many favors. The average church attender can go home and with a few clicks listen to Steven Furtick, Craig Groeschel, Louie Giglio or some other great speaker. They then wonder why their pastor does not communicate in a similar manner.
- Highly Successful Pastors and Church Leaders Love the Bible – They cherish the Book, Old Testament and New Testament. Highly successful pastors and church leaders know the only thing which changes a human life for eternity is the Word of God. They love the Book. The Bible is the greatest leadership book ever written. Contained in its pages are the words of life. The Bible is the spoken Word of God in print. Successful pastors and church leaders know this.
- Highly Successful Pastors and Church Leaders Love Jesus – He takes a special place of preeminence in their lives.
It has been a great 17 years serving pastors and church leaders. I can’t wait for the next 17!!!!
My book Timeless: 10 Enduring Practices Of Apex Leaders is available for purchase. If you have ever wanted to become the leader God created you to be, this book is for you! By combining leadership lessons from biblical heroes like Jesus, Daniel and Joseph, along with modern day leaders like Bill Gates, Nick Saban, Kobe Bryant and multiple pastors, Timeless will equip and inspire you. This book is not to be read alone. Discussion questions are included in each chapter allowing you to develop those in your circle of influence. Click HERE or on the image provided and order your copies TODAY.