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Kingfisher Leadership

1st February 2019

Kingfisher Leadership news Leadership and Culture

Every organisation, no matter the size change the trajectory and total life of or complexity, has its own culture. By the church. ‘culture’ we mean the underlying   beliefs, assumptions, values and ways The role of the leader in shaping of interacting that contribute to the culture: unique social and psychological environment of an organization. First, leaders set direction and cast Culture also includes the vision. The focus of church organization’s vision, values, members on the future of the norms, systems, symbols, church is vital. If the vision is language, assumptions, focused inwardly, it will not Culture: beliefs, and habits. take long before the culture of The way “Organizational culture is a the church is selfish and we do set of shared assumptions that inwardly focused. If the vision guide what happens in statement calls for great things organizations by defining sacrifice in reaching the around appropriate behavior for nations, the culture will begin here. various situations (Ravasi & to reflect an expectation of Schultz, “Academy of sacrifice in all things. Management Journal”, 2006) Second, leaders shape culture through the use of language Leaders are vital to the creation and and terminology. Whether it is in the communication of their workplace pulpit, in the vision statement, on culture. Every leader in a church-based church signage, etc., language impacts ministry would like to believe that the the way people behave, what they culture that they are creating and value, and ultimately what they begin communicating comes straight out of to assume and believe. Often, the the pages of the Bible, but the truth is church will begin to use the language that culture in the local church is more the pastor uses. complex than that. 1

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As the key leaders of the church or

group speak the same language and emphasise the same terms, the church members will come to care and think about those ideas. After a few years, the church or group tends to reflect the leadership. Be intentional about the things you emphasise. Third, the way the pastor responds in critical moments in the life of the church shapes culture. For instance, when a pastor responds to a crisis with a calm confidence in God’s sovereignty, the people will learn from that. These are great moments to disciple the people and shape the culture of the church. Fourth, leaders shape culture by what they praise and what they rebuke. If leaders celebrate baptisms, the church will learn to value baptisms. Leaders get to define “the win.” Define this carefully, because if you value the wrong thing as a leader, the church may follow. If evangelism is praised and gossip rebuked by the leadership, the members will begin viewing evangelism and gossip in ways consistent with those actions. Fifth, leaders shape culture through personal example. A church is unlikely to develop a culture of mission involvement if the leaders of the church never get themselves. Leading by example is one of the most powerful ways to shape the culture of the church. Servant leadership encourages others to serve. Missional leadership encourages others to be mission-minded. To be a

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1st February 2019

disciple is to be a “learner.” The teacher can shape the behaviour, values, and beliefs of the learner in significant ways through example. Sixth, leaders shape culture through the power of persuasive personal influence. There are great moments of influence that occur in the context of hospitality and meals, for example, the story of Zacchaeus. After eating together and being around Jesus oneon-one, Zacchaeus pledged to give half of his possessions to the poor and pay back four times what he extorted from others. If you are a leader, don’t underestimate the persuasive power of your personal influence. The Power of Community A final method for shaping the culture of your church or group is through the power of community. There is a tipping point at which people in the church/ group will adapt to change, and the tipping point is when they see people in the church/group that they trust support the vision. Researchers call these people “key stakeholders,” (I call the ‘catalyst people’) - those who hold influence over others in the organisation. Peer influence is powerful in shaping culture. The values that we hold are one of the greatest influences in culture. The values that we hold define what our church considers important more than anything else. Values are what drive behaviours and programs. All-toooften, however, the stated values that

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church considers important more than anything else. Values are what drive behaviours and programs. All-toooften, however, the stated values that we have - Kingfisher, for example, has seven Core Values that are stated in our Newcomers’ Information Pack and can be found on our website - are not necessarily the real, actual values that we live by in the church. In other words, our current values are not necessarily our ‘official’ values. As Andy Stanley has said, “What gets rewarded gets repeated.” So even if a church has the espoused value of healthy conflict, yet conflict is regularly ignored or swept under the rug, people in the church will pick up on the underlying—even unstated—value: conflict is not welcome here.Current values reflect how the church actually behaves, not just how it ought to behave. Here is a good way to identify the church or group’s current values: “Our church/group does_____________ because we value _________________.”

1st February 2019

Although traditions play a big part in the formation of culture, culture is by no means a static, set-in-stone thing. It is moulded, added to, subtracted from, and as the Israelites found to their cost (see Judges 2:10 - 13), a God-honouring culture can degrade very quickly. Leaders have a particular responsibility to understand the culture and maintain and develop it in a God-honouring way, so that the core values are lived out in each generation.

For each of us to consider: Culture is not just a set of rules carved in stone. It is a living, growing, deepening force for good or evil…our assumptions, our values, our language, shaped by our history, our triumphs and our failures. In the light of this, how has the culture in our church/group changed: • For better • For worse over the past few years?

In the first blank, put any program, strategy, or behaviour your church/ group practices. In the second blank, put the value that’s driving whatever you wrote in the first blank. The first blank is WHAT you do. The second blank (your values) is WHY you do it.

•

What have we let slip and now tolerate that we never used to?

•

What would it take to ‘reclaim the ground’?

•

What values do we claim to have that we no longer, in reality, put into practice? 3

Kingfisher Leadership

1st February 2019

New resource now available:

Now available in printed book form from our website (www.kingfisher.org.uk) resources page - 40 encouraging statements your loving Heavenly Father wants to say to you, His child.