PASTOR-MINISTRY LEADER RELATIONSHIP

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1 PASTOR-MINISTRY LEADER RELATIONSHIP Someone has aptly said, The nice thing about teamwork is that you always have others on your side. In effective Royal Rangers outposts, the pastor and the outpost coordinator are a team. They are on each other s side in order to accomplish the mission to evangelize, equip, and empower the next generation of Christlike men and lifelong servant leaders. The Team Owner and Coach Royal Rangers teaches its leaders to view the pastor in the same way a professional football player would view a team owner, and the associate pastor (or whomever has direct oversight of the Royal Rangers ministry) as the team coach. The pastor of the church is the team owner of Royal Rangers. The pastor is the key that opens the door to establishing or strengthening the Royal Rangers ministry in the church. The attitude Royal Rangers leaders have is that they are an extension of the pastor s vision a vision that includes the evangelism of today s boys and the discipleship of tomorrow s godly men. The Team Captain The outpost coordinator, then, is viewed as the team captain the one on the field with the other players, or outpost leaders. A good team captain does four things well: He develops the strategy with the owner and the coach behind the scenes. He calls the plays (makes the week-to-week operational and leadership decisions in the outpost and consults the owner and coach when needed). He gets the right players on the field (with the assistance of the pastors, he recruits good leaders to fill positions within the outpost). He gets the ball to the right players (he assigns positions and responsibilities to the people who have the right talents to accomplish the job). 1

2 Outpost Coordinator, Your Job Is Very Important! If your pastor has appointed you to be the outpost coordinator, then congratulations are in order! Yours is an extremely exciting and important position. In fact, it is the most important position in the Royal Rangers outpost. You bear the responsibility of maintaining the pastor s trust and confidence in your leadership and integrity, and the responsibility for the Royal Rangers ministry s effectiveness in evangelism and discipleship. Of course, you cannot do this alone. The pastor and his staff will support you, as will all the other Royal Rangers leaders. Together you are a team with a very important mission a mission with eternal consequences! The outpost coordinator and the pastor are a team. The healthier their partnership is, the more effective the outpost will be. The outpost coordinator is appointed by the pastor to serve the Royal Rangers ministry as the team leader. Qualities of an Effective Outpost Coordinator Royal Rangers was established in 1962, and has since become a global ministry. Through years of close observation, many qualities of effective outpost coordinators have been identified. These same qualities will help all leaders to grow and to support the team leader so that the outpost is effective. If you are a pastor, this section will help you understand the value of choosing an outpost coordinator wisely. A Man of Prayer and Commitment If there was ever a time when we needed men and women of prayer and total commitment, it is today! Be fully devoted to your spouse, family, work, pastor, church, and ministry. Our world is lacking men of commitment. Commitment requires selfdiscipline, to finish the race; determination, to start things and see them through; and responsibility, to be a person people can count on. A Strategic Planner The importance of being a well-organized leader cannot be overemphasized more so if you are the outpost coordinator! As strategic planner; the outpost coordinator is responsible for developing an annual master calendar, blending the plans of each 2

3 group into one, assembling and leading an A-team of leaders, coordinating an effective communications system in the outpost (face-to-face meetings, newsletters and/or a Web site), and developing an annual Royal Rangers outpost budget, in conjunction with the pastor. A Trainer, Mentor, and Fun Leader As a trainer, the outpost coordinator believes in training for himself and for all the outpost leaders. Training makes or breaks the outpost! As leaders grow, they naturally grow the outpost. An effective outpost coordinator will encourage and facilitate opportunities for the leadership of his outpost to attend Rangers Ministry Academy training. In addition to formal training, the outpost coordinator understands his role as a mentor. He walks alongside the leaders of the outpost and encourages them when they are down. He gives them pointers that will help them solve problems and perform at their best. And, yes, at times, he lovingly corrects them. The outpost coordinator job is not all business! Royal Rangers is a ministry to boys, and they want things to be fun and exciting. Conduct outpost events with enthusiasm. Plan exciting council fires and achievement ceremonies. Vary the location and kind of camps, trips, and outings you plan. Build memories by thinking and planning outside the box. Require yourself to make things extraordinary and different. Remember that Royal Rangers is bigger than your outpost, so be a team player. Involve your outpost in other church events and outreach; involve your outpost in organizational events, like district events, the National Camporama, etc. A Model The outpost coordinator models the use of the Royal Rangers uniform. The ministry allows four different kinds of uniforms. As the outpost coordinator decide, in consultation with the pastor, the style of uniform that is best for your outpost. Set a goal and be the model for how the other leaders and boys can look. Encourage them to strive toward the goal. Studies show that boys who are uniformed are more disciplined (which every leader is interested in), more motivated (to earn advancements, to remain in the outpost, to grow as leaders, etc.), more likely to invite friends to the outpost (since they are readily identified as a member of a unique and challenging group), and less intimidated by social and economic differences. 3

4 A Representative and Promoter The outpost coordinator represents the outpost and the church at organizational meetings, conferences, banquets, and camps. He honors his leaders and pastors privately and publicly using appropriate medals, awards, or memorabilia. He communicates consistently with his pastor, with the leaders, the parents, and the boys. He plans activities to highlight Royal Rangers like father-son breakfasts with men s ministries, awards ceremonies, community-wide open house nights, among other events. A Visionary Noted Christian writer John Maxwell says, A leader must know the way if he is to show the way. God will develop a vision in you as you learn to listen to your pastor s heart and to God s heart. Open your eyes and look all around you! There are millions of unsaved boys. How many do you want to reach? Who will you target first? How will you do it? Talk to your pastor and make it a matter of prayer. God wants to reveal to you a vision for lost boys more vivid than your imagination can conceive. Don t settle for less than a God-vision for the boys in your community and beyond. With such a vision, you will be a passionate leader and others will find it a joy to follow you on the journey. Does the list of qualities we just reviewed make the outpost coordinator sound like a superhero? Well, good news. No one person will have all those qualities. But that is why you have others you can share leadership with team leadership. Build a strong Outpost Committee inviting people who will shine where you do not. Don t be afraid to acknowledge your limitations and invite others to complement you with their strengths. Outpost Coordinator, the Pastor Needs You The pastor and the outpost coordinator are a team! Successful outposts have this common strand the outpost coordinator and all the Royal Rangers leaders enjoy and are deeply committed to healthy church ministry relations. They view themselves as an integral part of the ministries the church offers families. Royal Rangers leaders joyfully submit to pastoral leadership. God has given your pastor a biblical mandate of reaching your community and the world with the gospel a charge he or she takes very seriously. To accomplish that vision, your pastor has chosen to adopt Royal Rangers to evangelize boys and young men. As outpost coordinator, your pastor trusts you to be the boy s ministry expert, to lead this ministry loyally in a manner that is in keeping with his or her vision, and to do so in a way that produces spiritual fruit. 4

5 Royal Rangers leaders must understand that the pastor needs them. He or she is seeking to build effective church leadership teams for all the ministries of the church. The pastor wants the team of Royal Rangers leaders to be loyal and successful. Building such teams is no easy task. The pastor cannot reach all the boys in your community alone, and for that reason, he or she needs you, as the outpost coordinator, to lead the team of Rangers leaders. Together, your goal is to be the most effective team in fulfilling the mission of evangelizing, equipping, and empowering the next generation of Christlike men and lifelong servant leaders. Pastor, the Outpost Coordinator Needs You With strong pastoral support, Royal Rangers soars and reaches its highest potential. The outpost coordinator is charged with the responsibility of developing the ministry, and is empowered to do so when the pastor properly expresses his or her support for Royal Rangers. But what does pastoral support mean in practical terms? Pastoral Support for Leadership Vision A vision for Royal Rangers is defined when the pastor and the outpost coordinator clearly see what the outpost should be and do. This requires relationship. The outpost coordinator must know his pastor s heart. The vision for Royal Rangers must be intertwined with the pastor s overall direction for the church. What is the pastor s vision for the church, and where does Royal Rangers fit into it? As the Royal Rangers leaders receive pastoral direction, they will understand the value of what they are doing and how they are contributing to the well being of the church and the fulfillment of its purpose. When a pastor points the Royal Rangers ministry in the right direction and paints a clear picture of where they should go and what they should accomplish on the journey, the foundations of the ministry are strengthened. Pastoral Support for Leadership Recruitment Once vision is defined and communicated, the next logical question is, Who is going to accompany the outpost coordinator to make the vision a reality? He cannot take the journey alone. Author John Maxwell says, A vision should be greater than the person who has it. Its accomplishment must be the result of many people bringing many resources to the job. This means that workers (Outpost Committee members, commanders, and assistant commanders) must be identified and recruited. 5

6 Successful recruitment is preceded and bathed in prayer. The fields of lost boys are ripe and it is biblical to pray for harvest hands (Matthew 9:37,38). As you do, God will be faithful and provide. In addition to prayer, recruitment requires assessment. Ask these questions: 1. What is needed? This is an assessment of needs. 2. Who in the church is available? This is an assessment of assets. 3. Who is able? This is an assessment of a candidate s ability 4. Who is willing? This is an assessment of a candidate s attitude. 5. Who gets things done? This is an assessment of a candidate s accomplishments, his or her track record. At this point, a word to the wise is in order. Experienced outpost coordinators never approach a potential candidate without first checking with the pastor. Not only is this common courtesy, it is also smart. The pastor may have already approached the person about serving in another capacity, or may know of reasons why this person cannot or should not serve. Pastoral support in identifying potential leaders and recruiting them (one-on-one or in a congregation setting) will provide Royal Rangers with the human resources needed to make the ministry strong. Pastoral Support for Leadership Placement Recruiting leaders is only half the battle for the pastor and outpost coordinator. When leaders have been identified and approved, their skills must be assessed so they are placed in the outpost where their strongest talents can be expressed. This creates a win-win situation for the outpost and for the person. Your goal, then, is threefold: (1) to spot ability, which is accomplished by building relationships; (2) to place ability, which is accomplished by dialogue with the candidate; and, (3) to improve ability, which is accomplished by training and mentorship. Ministry adds value to people s lives and to the Kingdom! As the pastor and outpost coordinator work together, they will properly place individuals so their skills are maximized for their own good, to reach the lost, and to train and encourage believers. Pastoral Support for Leadership Training When a potential leader s ability has been identified and the person has been properly placed, improve that ability with training. Volunteers will perform to their level of training and no higher. For this reason, it is vital that finances be designated to train your Royal Rangers leaders. 6

7 In addition to formal training, it is vital that the outpost coordinator mentor the outpost leaders. Royal Rangers nationally certified instructors will do a terrific job training leaders, but the leaders in your outpost will need your wisdom when they have questions, doubts, personality conflicts, misunderstandings with boys or parents. And you will need to guide them through these times as their mentor. Pastoral Support for Leadership Appreciation Like all church volunteers, Royal Rangers leaders need the pastor to express appreciation for their efforts. Let them know their service is making a difference everyone wants their life to count for eternity. Express this privately and publicly, and do it often. Remember, what gets rewarded gets repeated! If your church is going to be successful at evangelizing, equipping, and empowering the next generation of Christlike men and lifelong servant leaders, a key reason will be there is a great relationship between the pastor and outpost coordinator. If they are there for each other and supportive of each other, there are no limits to the great things the Royal Rangers ministry can do to positively impact young men for Jesus Christ. Outpost coordinators, support your pastor, and help him or her carry out the vision God has given him or her for your church. If you do, you and all the Rangers leaders of the outpost will know that your ministry to boys is contributing significantly to the health and well being of the church in its mission to reach the community and the entire world. 7