Last week at our staff off-site we did a little exercise where we identified some things we each needed to stop doing and start doing. It's really pretty simple. We all have a tendency to pile up a bunch of things that we think are necessary for us to do and it keeps us from doing the things we really need to be doing. So every once in a while we all need to put together a stop/start list - what are the things I need to stop doing and what are the things I need to start doing.
As a leader I've had to realize that you come to choke points where if you don't make some decisions to strategically let go of something you become the bottleneck that slows the organization down. Over the last several months God has been telling me to let go of some things and trust my staff more and let them do what I know in my heart they can do - LEAD! So we've been making some shifts behind the scenes that would enable them to do more of the things they do best so I can do more of what I need to be doing.
Today I sat in staff meeting and listened to some of the decisions our team is making and I was so proud of them! They're making decisions that will enable us to reach more people. They're making decisions that will enable us to create better environments for people to encounter God and engage in community. They're making decisions that will raise the bar on excellence in our ministries to a whole different level. And they made many of those decisions without me!
But you know what? It felt good! It felt REAL good to sit there and not have to worry about those decisions. It felt real good to know that I could walk out of that staff meeting today and concentrate on hearing God for our next sermon series (which, by the way, is going to be an incredible series that is going to help lots of people in a big way...more on that later). It felt real good to stop doing those things so I could start doing what God wants ME to do.
So, what do you need to stop/start? Take a minute and make yourself a "not-to-do-list" and then just see how God frees you up to be who he really wants you to be!
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