Where do you get leaders? It’s a question I’m asked all the time and one you’ve probably wondered about. Do they just walk in off the street? Does God deliver them to our doorstep? Am I looking for them? Do I need to be looking for them in a certain way?
To find fresh leaders, there are two big ponds that you need to fish from:
1. Free Agent Pond
- Free Agents are ready-made leaders.
- They have some ministry background.
- They may have some business leadership background.
- They’re called by God to plant a church or start a location.
- They will get in the game and make an immediate impact with their skills and talents.
You should always be looking to identify, recruit, and get these leaders on your team (through networking, college conferences, social media, etc.).
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While Free Agents can help, you need a multitude of leaders in ministry, and that's where the Farm System comes in.
2. Farm System Pond
- The Farm System is where you're raising up leaders within your teams, your churches or your networks.
- These are people sitting in your churches today who are leading and contributing in your context now.
- They have your DNA and can be your next generation campus pastors and church planters if you help them.
- What do they need from you?
- Language about what it looks like to grow as a leader in the Kingdom
- License to go ahead and do that
What kind of language are you developing for them? Are you actually giving them license?
The challenge with the Farm System is that they take longer to develop. But if you’re patient, you will produce loads of new leaders.
Patrick O’Connell is passionate about helping people start new things for the Kingdom. He serves as Director of NewThing. Patrick has served in the U.S. Army, graduated from the University of Illinois at Chicago, and received a Master in Missional Church Movements from Wheaton College. He’s married to Nancy, and they have three great kids. He likes to run, read, and hang out with friends and family.