Tom Cannon

“There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus.” (Galatians 3:28)

If you really want to build an effective leader, who walks in the likeness of Christ, then you need to “root out” all forms of nepotism, bigotry, gender bias, racism, and personal favoritism that exists in your life. Failure to do so, will earn you the fitting reputation of an unfair leader, and cause the people in your church, or ministry, who are not “numbered among the favored ones,” to lose heart, and 1) leave the church, or 2) develop a “who gives a rip attitude,” because they figure they don’t stand a chance to earn legitimate place of ministry anyway, since those positions are always filled by people you have pre-selected.

Credibility is a strange thing; it can take years to earn, but only a moment to lose. And whether you like it or not, people are determining the level of your credibility every day, based upon the decisions you make, as a leader, and the fairness with which those decisions are carried out. So be careful what choices you make, as a leader, because they are revealing who you are much louder than your words, and by them, people know how fair you are to those you lead.

Example: If you consistently exclude women, or minorities from places of equal ministry opportunity, then you can expect a certain label to be attached to you, as a leader. You may not like it, and may even protest how that tag is unfair, but if your leadership choices never include women or minorities in substantial places of leadership, then you have no one to blame, but yourself, because your choices have revealed your heart. Words are cheap, and over the course of time, you will be judged by your actions, more than the cheap words you speak, as a leader. So watch your actions, and your words, because people are watching you.

It is important to note, before moving any further, that people can easily see right through your “flimsy” explanations for making the decisions you make, to exclude people by gender, race, age, non-family connection, or any other determining factor. And don’t be self-deceived; you are only fooling yourself if you think otherwise. If the “other” person is always “better” qualified, or if the end result of every leadership appointment consistently excludes minorities, non-family members, certain age groups, or the “opposite” gender, then you better examine your heart, because the end result is the end result, and that’s what people will judge you upon.

It also must be noted, that “substantial” leadership positions do not include the nursery, janitorial maintenance, ushering, or teaching children. Through the ages, even the most biased people have tried to make themselves look good, by hiding behind that smokescreen. But it didn’t work then, and it won’t work now. If you refuse to include non-family members, the “opposite” sex, minorities, or certain age groups, in places of legitimate leadership in your church, it won’t be long before your church will have a problem with your lack of credibility.

Keep it simple: The best way to ensure fairness, for all of your church members, is to be fair. Wow! That’s deep, isn’t it? Not exactly, but in it’s simplicity, it can be a very helpful recommendation for you, if you will heed it, and do it.

Through the years, I have heard leaders try to convince their colleagues, or church members that they are not gender bigots, or racists, with way too many words. The problem they encountered, in making their arguments, of course, was the fact that their actions failed to belay their words. If you only put Sister Sally in charge of the nursery,  two black women in charge of the kitchen, and a Hispanic man over maintenance, that only confirms the fact that a problem exists.

When I hear someone try to explain their fairness like that, I am certainly not fooled by it. In fact, nobody is; except maybe, the person doing the explaining themselves. How can a leader, be so self-deluded?

Do yourself a favor, and take an honest look at the people who occupy all of your leading positions of ministry; are they all members of your family, non-women, non-minorities, or of an “acceptable age”? If they are, then you shouldn’t question the label you have been given, by those who examine your choices, and put two and two together. Maybe its time you did the same.

Note: If you have no minorities, or legitimately qualified leaders among the list of typically excluded people, then that’s another thing. I am not trying to legislate affirmative action in your church, or cause people to become angry with you. Affirmative action is not what I am trying to stimulate – rather it is FAIR actions. You are the one, as a leader, who will have to answer for the decisions you make, but know this; if you really want to build credibility, then your decisions need to be fair.

If you have qualified non-family members, women, minorities, and people of various ages, but you still choose the same exact “type” of people for positions of leadership, that you always do, then your credibility wasn’t lost, it was foolishly thrown away, by the faulty decisions you consistently make.

What kind of positions should be included in fair leadership decisions? Every kind of leadership position imaginable, including: Senior Pastor, Youth Pastor, Associate Pastor, Christian Education Pastor, Outreach Minister, Evangelism Pastor, Family Care Minister, Small Group Director, Visitation Minister. Every position of significant leadership that is made available to one – should be available to all. Unless you have women, non-family members, minorities (etc.), filling leading positions in your church, then you need to examine your heart, and your motivation.

If you have such people equally qualified in your church, then you need to give them the position that matches their qualifications, without discrimination. And when they are appointed to equal positions, they need to be given equal pay, equal opportunity, and equal respect. Fairness demands equality. And credibility is built upon a combination of the two. To be completely fair, you cannot treat one person better, or differently than another. If Christ has truly made us equal – which I believe with all my heart that He has – then every decision we make, every hire, and every appointment must be based on that belief. To do less, is to lose credibility, and expose something within our life, that needs to be changed.

Excerpt from Keys to Effective Leadership, by Tom Cannon. Available through our website bookstore, or from numerous online bookstores, in printed format, or ebook format. For Nook, please visit BarnesandNoble.com. Thank you, and be blessed, as you build credibility, and honor God in His work.