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The Senior Pastors Dilemma Zone or man-to-man?

by Regi Campbell

TABLE OF CONTENTS
3 Preface: A painful picture 8 Chapter 1: The outsourcing of disciple-making 10 Chapter 2: Its turned around backwards 13 Chapter 3: What Jesus did 16 Chapter 4: They do what you do 18 Chapter 5: The end of isolation 20 Chapter 6: You have what it takes

2012 | Regi Campbell

PREFEACE

A painful picture

PREFACE
A painful picture
Like most committed Christians (and all serious Jews), going to the Holy Land was on my bucket list until last November when I finally went. Among the hundred or so folks on the trip was a young guy whod become a Senior Pastor just a few months back. We started talking as we traveled around. Hed heard about the mentoring I was doing and started asking me questions good questions. I shared as much as he would listen to and he said hed like to have me come tell his church staff what I had told him. People say things like that all the time. Yeah, lets get together sometime and Id love to hear more about that. Nice ways to exit a conversation on a positive note without hurting someones feelings. But he followed up after the trip and invited me to actually come do it.

The church he was called to had over 2000 members and a nice set of buildings. I had actually attended the church years ago and always thought it was pretty strong. When I arrived, I was ushered into a meeting room for lunch and to share the Radical Mentoring model with the staff in their Monday meeting. After being introduced and making a few introductory comments, I asked them to take out pen & paper and write down the name of a person they were personally investing in for spiritual purposes. Not a single person could write down a name. I thought Maybe they didnt understand the question. So I repeated myself. Nothing.

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The outsourcing picture of disciple-making CHAPTER PREFEACE 1 A painful

In that uncomfortable moment, it hit me. Theyre playing zone.

Todays church demands zone

These committed church staff people have their unique roles their zones. They work hard mind you.this isnt about effort. Theyre prepared when Sunday comes. They put tons of effort into their programming. And they pray for their ministries. But theyve been trained, en-cultured, led, paid and rewarded for playing zone. Let me back up for the non-sports people. Zone means theres an area of the field or court thats your assignment. Your job is to go to that zone and

be responsible for it. Whatever happens in that zone is up to you. If someone comes into your zone, youre on him. But when he leaves your zone, you can relax. Youre responsible for helping out with the zone(s) adjacent to yours if theres a problem. But your first and foremost responsibility is to play your zone.

Back to our staff meeting

The music guy.his zone is the choir and the musicians. Hes selecting the music, ministering to the choir, leading rehearsals and bringing it on Sunday morning. If someone in the choir has a crisis, or if a non-believer slipped in, the music guy is all over it. Hell connect individually because he loves Jesus and hes all in for Him. But his job is music. The music zone. The youth pastorso obvious to pick out with the hip clothes and haircut. His zone is the high school group. Hes got

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The outsourcing picture of disciple-making CHAPTER PREFEACE 1 A painful

to have cool music, a hip talk, videos the whole she-bang to get more and more kids to show up. He wants to create buzz so more kids will come and hear the Gospel. His motive is pure as pure as anyones. But his method is to create environments. Zone. Childrens ministrysame thing. Senior adults. Same. Middle school. Same. Business administration, Education, Middle schoolsame. Zone. And you Senior Pastor.Zone is what youve been taught to play. No matter what your vision might be, Christian culture, especially in the U. S. of A, dictates you play zone. How so?
The Sunday sermon Its the
2012 | Regi Campbell

Staff leadership Meetings

to lead, and theres staff development. The deacons, elders, vestrywhatever its called in your church. Meetings arent optional and they shouldnt be.
Outside association Theres your

Lay leadership

denomination, association, region, counselwhatever hierarchy you may be under. Meetings, conferences, areas of influence.
Community Most pastors

take some role in the community they serve. Boards, committees and such. All these are zones. Places where you are one-to-many, not one-on-one. Dont get me wrongtheyre important. Necessary. But theyre zone.

centerpiece of todays church. Its non-negotiable. Its got to be good. Its what everyone looks forward to. What everyone feeds on. Its your bread and butter.

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The outsourcing picture of disciple-making CHAPTER PREFEACE 1 A painful

Introducing.man to man!
There IS another way to play. Man to man. When you get your assignment, that man is your responsibility. You track him. Sometimes youre right up on himtouching him.feeling his every movement, anticipating his next move. Sometimes you lay back a little and give him room. You never take your eye off him. Hes your man until the play is over or theres a change of possession. You get a good bit of man to man work. But its crisis based. The sick and dying, the marrying, the fighting (which is the marrying.just a little later on), and the angry. When its broke, they call you. You go manto-man and do what you can. But rarely are these the people who can lead and grow your church.

Going out on a limb

Im going out on a limb to offer you a perspectivea new perspective. Im not in your circumstances. Never have been. But through my friendships with Andy Stanley, Bryant Wright, Joe Wittwer, Paul Jiminez and other Senior Pastors, Ive learned a few things. Zone without man to man comes apart. The hearts of ministers become calloused. The spiritual work theyre called to starts to feel secular. The man-to-man feels like spiritual ambulance work, taking it out of you without refilling. You need to see fruit from your labors.we all do. You need to see life changeto see the power of God released in a transformational way in A life. In A family! Seeing the hand of God reach into an individuals life through you is fuel. Fuel that will propel you to lead others in His work. Fuel that will propel you to handle your zones for yearsand with excellence.

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The outsourcing picture of disciple-making CHAPTER PREFEACE 1 A painful

In this short ebook, Ill bring a fresh perspective on the next-generation church and the role of the new Senior Pastor. Im going to encourage and equip you to lead your church into playing both zone AND man-toman. Its both/and, not either/or. Relax. Im not talking about another church program. Im talking about a way of life. A way of life Jesus modeled and told us to emulate. And know Im not just another guy telling you how to do your job. I want for you what Jesus wants.a vibrant church thats a light on a hill in the place youve been called. This isnt about changing everything in your church. Not my place. Not my job. Above my pay grade. What I will do is offer a fresh but challenging perspective on leading your church to not just make disciples,

but disciple-makers. It will surprise you how simple this challenge is to explain and to do. You just have to want to bad enough to trust the process and the God-man who created it. May I have your attention for about 13 more pages?

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NOTES

CHAPTER 1

The outsourcing of disciple-making

CHAPTEr 1
The outsourcing of disciple-making
Im a student of Jesus, not of church history. But what Ive concluded is we lay people outsourced disciple-making to you church guys a long, long time ago. In Jesus day and in the first century church, everyone was in the game. The line between clergy and laypeople was blurry if there at all. The Apostles? Yeah, they were different. They had been with Jesus. They were there at Pentecost. They had a special job.to tell the world what they saw with their own eyes. And they were killed for doing it.
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Andrew was crucified on an X shaped cross Peter was crucified upside down on a cross Paul was beheaded in A.D. 66 These guys werent done away with for teaching what Jesus taught. They were killed for testifyingfor telling people that Jesus, a human being. came back from the dead. That happening set Jesus apart from any and all religious figures past, present and future. Jesus divinity was essential if Jesus teachings are going to matter to the world for the rest of time. Early on, we see the church as a flat organization with little hierarchy, few people who werent everyday doers of the Word. That was the power of the early churchso many people were committed, involved, evangelists, servants.disciplemakers.

James was executed by King Herod in A.D. 44 Philip was crucified in A.D. 54 Matthew was executed in A.D. 60 James (Jesus brother) was stoned to death in A.D. 66

CHAPTER 1

The outsourcing of disciple-making

But somewhere along the line..

Things changed. I dont know whose fault it was. Because certain people where chosen, most of the people who were called (which is all of us) laid down and went to sleep. Let the pastor do it. Let the church do it. They have special gifts. Theyve been trained. Theyve been to seminary. Im a plumber, or school teacher, or business guy. What do I know? The other sidethe clergy welcomed it. It made their calling that much more important. After all they WERE chosen. They were set apart for vocational ministry. So they jumped in with both feet to do the work of the Gospel.

Years go by. Church leaders take on more and more, letting lay people off the hook for anything other than volunteer service, mostly on Sunday morning. Lay people compartmentalize their faith, thinking Sunday is the only day being a Christfollower matters. Church leaders strive. giving it all theyve got. But participation without involvement breeds cynicism. And little by little lay people think Well, let them do it. I give money to the church. They get paid and after all, what else do they have to do between Sundays? And thus the disconnect.

Pressing the reset button.

Pastors have to reboot. Press the reset button. Reframe disciple-making and get lay people involved again. The why is clear. The how is a challenge. But youre up to it. Keep reading.

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CHAPTER 2

Its turned around backwards

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CHAPTER 2
Its turned around backwards
Before Martin Luther and since Martin Luther, pastors have preached and taught Gods Word with the goal of making disciples. That preaching, along with millions of lay people living and sharing their faith created something like 2 billion professing Christians. Of course God through His Holy Spirit really did it, just so you know Im not confused. Anyhow, weve landed here in 2012 with a huge problem. We have a nation (maybe a world) where pastors are less and less impactful in their sermons and were making fewer disciple-makers. Some people come to church regularly, some sporadically. Life change seems to come very slowly if at all. Radical transformations are rare. And the further you get from the staff, the less enthusiastic people seem about the work of the Gospel.

I think part of it, and I mean a big part of it stems from the way pastors have approached preaching AND disciple-making. Here I go.

Which comes first?

The starting point is always Gods Word, as well it must be. But the when and how Gods Word is explained and applied to peoples lives has gotten switched around and is falling fallow. Sermons start with a Scripture and the pastor spends the next minutes explaining what that Scripture means, the principals God intends to reveal, and finally, how those principles can be applied to peoples everyday life situations. It might flow like this..

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Truth

LIFE

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Its turned around backwards

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The communicators (e.g. preachers) in the fast-growing churches do it backward. But the lack of information isnt our problem. They start with the life situations people face. They surface issues and the feelings we experience in life. Then, and only then do they bring truth from Gods Word to the specific situation, explaining the answer and how to live it. People dont buy solutions to problems they dont have. When you start with the problem the felt need and help people connect the answer in a personal way, theyre more open to a solution. Theres more openness to the Good News when people see the specific relevance to their lives and situations.
2012 | Regi Campbell

Traditionally, weve taken the Scriptures, developed curriculum, created classes, sat people in rows and taught them how to be disciples of Jesus. Ive been through a bunch of those classes and Im sure I learned something. But the lack information isnt our problem. Weve got millions of learn-ed Christians who live like everyone else in our culture, divorce at the same rate as our culture, and never share their faith or make more disciples.

Jesus did the opposite.

He walked through life with his disciples.not preaching at them. He used the things of everyday life to teach them about the Father and about the Faith. Food, flowers, taxes, houses, riches, offerings, sickness, death, government authorityHe used real life things and situations to unpack the Scriptures and work the Truth of God into His disciples. He started with

Same thing applies to how disciple-makers get made.

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Its turned around backwards

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the situationwhat they saw, heard, felt, smelled, and tasted. And then He brought God in a relevant way. It was transformational, not just informational. He started with life and used the real world pain and pleasure of life to engraft the Truth.

Absolutely. Is this messier and less predictable than sitting folks in rows and teaching from a curriculum? Yes it is. Is it more effective? Unquestionably. Its what Jesus did. How can we miss?

LIFE

TRUTH

We make disciple-makers by living life in close proximity for a period of time, introducing the Truth of God a little at a time at just the right time. Do we have an agenda? Absolutely. They have to know and agree in advance. Is there a list of things we want them to grasp? Yessiree. Do they know theyre expected to pass it on to othersto do for others what were doing for them?

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CHAPTER 3 1

The outsourcing What Jesus did of disciple-making

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CHAPTER 3
What Jesus did
When Jesus started His public ministry, the church wasnt peripheral to Jewish cultureit was central. Religious schools WERE the public schools. Their commandments were the laws people were governed by, sans those imposed by the Romans. The roles and responsibilities were set by Levitical law. A Senior Pastor would have known exactly what to do. But Jesus saw that years and years of religious practice had led to playing zone. To rote repetition of the most sacred worship. And to a lot of hard hearts. With His insight and power, Jesus could have focused on reforming the church. He could have staged a revival. (and you could argue He did a little of that with His teachings in the Temple.) He could have launched a re-education program for the Pharisees and Sadducees. He could have even created His own competing Temple down the road, taking some of

the best and brightest Jews with Him to go do it right for the glory of God. But instead of creating all that conflict, instead of trying to change all those minds, instead of forcing closedminded people out of their zones, He chose a different strategy. A unique strategy. And it worked big time. Jesus just went out and quietly selected a small number of men and invested in them as a group. He cast a big vision and required total commitment. He created a community of which He was a part. He took them deep into the Scriptures AND to the issues of life as they experienced them together.

Dont miss this.

1. He didnt take anyone away from the Temple. He and His

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CHAPTER 3

What Jesus did

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guys still participated. It was both/and, not either/or. 2. He didnt change anything at church. Not directly or immediately. But over time, what He did changed everything. 3. He didnt ask anything of anyone. Didnt add to anyones workload in the Temple. He just did His thing with these guys and the Kingdom of God burst onto the scene as a result. Rabbis in Jesus day selected their disciples and taught them intensely every day. They were Templecentric and focused on the Torah. More and more Torah. Less and less people and life. Dos and donts. Ceremony and sacrifice. Rabbi Jesus wasnt a revolutionary. He selected His disciples and taught them intensely too. But He brought the truth

of God to life in these 12 guys lives by showing them God and teaching them Truth as they did life.together. Instead of trying to change culture, He created new culture. He created a culture of humility, servant leadership, compassion, generosity, acceptance, learning, community, devotion, evangelism, prayer.and above all, love!

Lets look
at what Scripture tells us about what Jesus did. 1. Jesus was on purpose. He said I have come so they might have life and have it to the full. John 10:10b. He picked disciples and poured into them so they and all those who would come after them could have life and have it abundantly. We know that kind of life can only be lived as a disciple of Jesus.sold out, all in, disciple AND disciple maker.

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What Jesus did

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2. Jesus was selfless. What He did with and for the disciples was over and above what was required of Him in the Temple. He sacrificed for it. He had no house. He put disciple-making ahead of His extended family. He said it was more important than burying a dead dad, plowing the fields or even saying goodbye to family. 3. Jesus carefully selected a few men. We dont know His criteria, but we do know He prayed long and hard about whom He would pick. There were at least 72 disciples sent out at one point (Luke 10:1). But only 12 were His guys. 4. Jesus picked them only for a season. We dont know why He waited until He was three and a half years from His crucifixion before He engaged them. We do know there was a point when

He graduated them and sent them out. (Matthew 28:19-20). 5. Jesus had a multiplication agenda. When He said Follow me, He finished with and Ill make you fishers of men. He didnt say Ill make you a good disciple. He said Ill make you a disciple-maker. Big difference in the ask. And a big difference in the result downstream. Make disciples and you add to the church. Make disciple-makers and you multiply the church. 12 guys + 2000 years = 2 billion believers. 6. Jesus prayed. He prayed with His guys. He prayed for His guys. He taught His guys to pray. Prayer was a cornerstone of all He did with them. 7. Jesus brought the Scriptures to life for His guys. He explained them along the way. He didnt teach them Genesis to whatever. He showed

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CHAPTER 3 1

The outsourcing What Jesus did of disciple-making

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them what the Father showed Him. Little by little, using the things and events of life to make it stick. 8. Jesus was committed to the group. And He required a high level of commitment from them. They showed up for Him. They showed up for each other. They showed up for the Father whom they were all working for. After He graduated them, they kept working together to build the Kingdom of God. They became the pillars of the church. Not the old church. Not the church of rote, rules and ritual. But the church of Jesus Christ. The church of love, grace, compassion and mercy. These men became the pillars of the kind of church you want to lead. The kind of church you can start within your church. One that can transform your church from the inside out. I believe it starts with you.

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CHAPTER 4

They do what you do

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CHAPTER 4
They do what you do
We learned this in parenting a long time ago. You can talk to your kids til youre blue in the face. They may or may not do what you say. But its a lot more likely theyll do what you say if they see you do it first. Its human nature. When the leader in an organization does something, it encourages the followers to do it too. The turnout of volunteers from companies who build houses for Habitat for Humanity goes through the roof when the executives show up. Their participation validates the deal and gives followers permission. Same is true in church world.
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Pastor comes to the Monday morning prayer group, more people come. They do what you do. So when a Senior Pastor starts mentoring a group of men, he does two things at the same time. 1. He personally equips a small group of men to go and do the same he makes more disciple-makers. Over time, his group becomes the nucleus of a tribe of men who are all in for Christ and for His church. 2. He models disciple-making for everyone else in his church. His actions speak louder than the words of a hundred sermons. He puts feet on his prayers. He gives others permission. He shows that disciple-making is important. Most

Should a Senior Pastor start raising his hands high over his head during worship, others will start raising their hands. When a Senior Pastor goes on a mission trip, the number of people who sign up for mission trips goes up. When a Senior

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They do what you do

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importantly, he shows hes willing to go man to man, not just zone. Dont underestimate the power you wield here, Senior Pastor! Granted it may not be right. People may be practicing a form of preacher worship when they do what you do. People want to make the invisible, intangible God into something/ someone whos visible and tangible. To some degree, like it or not, youre it. You didnt ask for itin fact you dont want it. But its there and its going to be there. Unavoidable in this life. Unavoidable until heaven when we all see the glory of the One True God! But for now, you have this influence because youre Gods man in your church.the man who, to the people in your church, most closely resembles God. You can preach against this every week. Or.you can use it for Gods

glory by blazing a trail and encouraging them to follow you down it. What better trail than one of becoming an intentional disciple-maker?

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NOTES

CHAPTER 5 1

The end outsourcing of isolationof disciple-making

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CHAPTER 5
The end of isolation
You have one of the loneliest jobs in the world. Youre constantly drowning in a sea of people. Yet youre most often floating alone in that ocean of humanity. The people God sends into your life are usually needy. They need you to marry them. They need you to bury their relatives and make everyone feel better about their passing. People come to you when theyre lost, hurt, sick, angry, broke, depressed or all of the above. Wouldnt it be awesome to connect with some healthy people for a change? Wouldnt it be amazing to connect with men just like you? Men who have wives, kids, jobs, aging parents, and noisy neighbors?

Wouldnt it be freeing to engage with some guys without the wife factor? You love your wife like Christ loved the church. Not questioning that. But come ondont you yearn for a place where you can be a guy, with other guys. A place where you dont have to think through the lens of what shes thinking or feeling? Wouldnt it be refreshing to have a place where you could be you? Can you remember you? Wouldnt it be freeing to be able to take off the robe of being a pastor and get relationally naked with carefully chosen guys who face the same stuff you face? Im not ignorant of the line you dont think you can cross in sharing your personal stuff with other guys in your church. But Im also not ignorant of how badly we men need to connect in an authentic, genuine, transparent and vulnerable way with other guysguys who are trustworthy

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The end of isolation

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and who covenant to confidentiality with everyone else in the group. Senior Pastors think they can only be real with other pastors. But then when you get together, no ones willing to talk about real stuff. To get relationally naked for fear of what their colleagues will think, or worse, what theyll say to others. The masks go on. The souls stay separated, vulnerable for the enemy to tell his lies and tear down what God has built in His chosen sons. So you end up alone. Lonely. Disconnected. Wearing a mask. Dying for male friends who understand. Friends who wont try to fix you. But wholl just love you and be there for you.
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in your church. Ill even say its o.k. to hold a few things back. But think how it would feel to have guys who feel you. Who know you know your heart. Guys who understand you and accept you just as you are. Ive spent the last 30 years in ministry. Ive been sold out to Jesus, serving multiple churches and outside ministries. Ive formally mentored 96 men and a lot more than that informally. Ive been intentional. Ive helped over a dozen people over the line of faith. But what Ive learned in the last little while is that intentionality over time leads to isolation. When youre out there in your zone, youre isolated. If you dont slow down and let others in, youre dangerously alone. You have no accountability. God wants to love you through friends, but you dont

I know this is scary. I know theres some places you just wont go in being open with guys who serve

NOTES

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The end of isolation

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make time for them. You dont allow them to know youto know whats going on in your head or your heart. Well I have a counselor. Counselors friendship stops when they no longer get paid. You need friends who will feel you, not fix you. And that takes confidentiality. Time together. Road miles being real. Transparent and vulnerable. Will you risk it? Will you?

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NOTES

CHAPTER 6

You have what it takes

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CHAPTER 6
You have what it takes
Senior Pastors face a lot of fears when they think about becoming a disciple-maker and mentor. I know the Scriptures, but Im not a counselor or a coach. And Im not looking for more kids to raise. I cant get that involved in just a few peoples lives. I must serve the whole church! I cant add anything else to my calendar or Ill be divorced.
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Let me take these one at a time. And know Im not trying to sell you on anything. Its up to you and the Lord to decide if leading your church into making disciple-makers is what God wants you to do.

Point: I know the Scriptures, but Im

not a counselor or a coach. And Im not looking for more kids to raise.

Counterpoint: Mentoring a group of

young men from your church isnt group counseling or coaching. Its reading books and discussing them. Its memorizing a Scripture or two each month. Its praying for each other. Its trying new, creative ways to relate to your wife and kids. Its developing some authentic friendships with real guys who really love Jesus. And remember, these are guys you will hand pick. Dont pick men who have big problems or whore

What will I say? What will we talk about? Im good on the platform, but around a kitchen table for three hours? Is this truly wise for me to undertake, in view of the job I have and the responsibility I carry?

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looking for a dad. Pick guys who want to become disciple-makers and mentors themselves, and wholl be ready to go after a year with you.

platform, but around a kitchen table for three hours?

Counterpoint: All thats been

laid out for you. Go to www.radicalmentoring.com and register. The whole process including short videos of instruction are there. If you can manage your Netflix queue, you can create your own mentoring track on this website. And your monthly agendas are there to download and print. You can get instructions that are very detailed, sort of detailed and very general. Homework handouts, book recommendationsall there. All free.

Point: I cant add anything else to

my calendar or Ill be divorced.

Counterpoint: Drop something.

Delegate something. Do whatever you have to do to free up one night a month for a year. If your wife believed shed end up with a more loving, more available, more sensitive husband, shed demand you find the time to do this. And from the churchs standpoint, if its important enough for Jesus, how can you not find time? Its for the good of your lay leaders. And its for your own good. Your own growth. Your own spiritual health.
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Point: Is this truly wise for me to

undertake, in view of the job I have and the responsibility I carry?

Point: What will I say? What will

we talk about? Im good on the

Counterpoint: Its more wise than

smart. What did Jesus say about confounding smart people? Its wise

NOTES

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You have what it takes

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2012 | Regi Campbell

because youre personally developing key leaders for your church. Youre modeling the very thing Jesus did when He walked on the earth. Your staff will get uber-interested in making disciple-makers when they see you do itwhen they start hearing stories of life-change flow from you and your group. A Senior Pastor of a 7000 member church in my area has led groups like this for 45 years while preaching each week and leading a staff through consistent growth. He told me hed have a hard time deciding between the pulpit and these disciplemaking groups if he was forced to choose. And dont overlook the value of reading some carefully selected books, doing relational assignments with your wife, and connecting in community with guys who love you and love Jesus big time. Pick the cream of the cropguys who can lead. Guys who can join your team. Carry your church to the next level.

NOTES

CLOSING

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Closing thoughts
I know this strikes you as off-beat. Youve been trained to preach. To shepherd. To minister. To lead. This seems like its beneath your pay grade. This seems like something for your discipleship pastor to consider. I get all that. But I want you to do it. One time. One group. One season. Thats it.
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I double-dog dare you to pull together a group to mentor into disciple-makers. If it doesnt blow your hair back, Ill be shocked. Because day after day, week in, week out, I continue to hear how God is showing up when experienced Christ-followers empty their cup into the cups of younger men. Lives are being changed. Marriages are being saved. Leaders are being prepared. Churches are being strengthened. I double-dog dare you to go man to man.

I want you to try it. To risk it. To sample it for your church.