{"id":32209,"date":"2022-09-10T16:00:42","date_gmt":"2022-09-10T21:00:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/sermons\/3-things-to-remember-when-youre-following-someone-elses-vision\/"},"modified":"2022-09-10T16:00:42","modified_gmt":"2022-09-10T21:00:42","slug":"3-things-to-remember-when-youre-following-someone-elses-vision","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/sermons\/3-things-to-remember-when-youre-following-someone-elses-vision\/","title":{"rendered":"3 Things to Remember When You\u2019re Following Someone Else\u2019s Vision"},"content":{"rendered":"
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By Daniel Darling<\/em><\/p>\n

I always hated sitting on the bench. I made the varsity team of my small Christian school basketball team my freshman year, but I spent most of the first two years riding the pine while more talented players got all the minutes.<\/p>\n

The only time I got to play was when our team was so far ahead they could afford to go easy on the other team.<\/p>\n

I hated it for a few reasons. First, I wanted to be in on the action. Who doesn\u2019t? After practicing hard all week, I wanted to get out there and use what I learned.<\/p>\n

Second, my ego told me I could do way better than the players the coach had in the starting line up. It probably wasn\u2019t true, but I told myself it was.<\/p>\n

Third, bench players seemed less important and got less praise from the fans. Nobody really cheered you on for setting a pick in practice or helping the starters perfect their offensive strategy during the week. There seemed to be no glory in sitting.<\/p>\n

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And yet many years later I have come to realize the value of sitting on the bench. It allowed God to humble me, to be satisfied with not being in the spotlight, and to learn how to trust the one calling the plays.<\/p>\n

Ministry provides much of the same opportunity to be freshly humbled by God. Though I\u2019ve led a church as senior pastor, I\u2019ve also had seasons where I was not the leader and was in a position of supporting someone else\u2019s vision.<\/p>\n

Currently, in my professional role and in my role at the church, I\u2019m in a secondary position\u2014helping shape the culture but listening to, supporting, and submitting to someone else\u2019s leadership.<\/p>\n

Along the way, here\u2019s what God is teaching me.<\/p>\n

1. Leaders need humility <\/strong><\/h3>\n

The first few years after my senior pastorate were an adjustment for me. I was used to being the one responsible for casting vision and leadership at my church and now I had to figure out how to sit in church and not dwell on how I would do things differently.<\/p>\n

I didn\u2019t always do this well and my wife became a weekly sounding board, absorbing my many critiques.<\/p>\n

Later when I joined the staff of another church I realized how valuable those pew-sitting, bench-warming days were for me. Our ambition and gifts rightly motivate us to want to lead God\u2019s people, but we can easily grow a sense of leadership entitlement.<\/p>\n

God uses seasons of humility to remind us that no matter what positions we hold, we\u2019re under God\u2019s leadership. We\u2019re not really that big of a deal.<\/p>\n

2. Leaders need shepherds <\/strong><\/h3>\n

When you\u2019re the senior pastor of a church, you\u2019re almost always giving<\/em> ministry rather than receiving<\/em> it.<\/p>\n

That isn\u2019t to say senior leaders aren\u2019t always learning and growing listening\u2014they are. And preaching every week meant I first had to preach to myself. Overall, though, leadership is usually output.<\/p>\n

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See also  Video: Activating Men for Leadership in the Church<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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But being in an associate role or attending a church without serving in leadership has allowed me to be shepherded in ways I didn\u2019t realize I needed. I\u2019ve been the recipient, in this season, of good preaching, personal pastoring, and community life in ways I haven\u2019t experienced before. It\u2019s been wonderful.<\/p>\n

One concrete example: For the first time, in a very long time, I\u2019m able to engage in singing and worship with my family in ways I wasn\u2019t able to while serving as the main teaching pastor. It\u2019s been a season of spiritual refreshment, nourishing my soul.<\/p>\n

3. Leaders need opportunities to follow <\/strong><\/h3>\n

Perhaps the most formative lessons I\u2019ve learned in this time in my life are the lessons I\u2019ve learned from following the vision of another leader.<\/p>\n

It can be hard for us who are accustomed to casting vision, creating ideas, and expecting others to execute them to follow someone else\u2019s leading. But it\u2019s good for us.<\/p>\n

The call to faithful followership is not optional in the New Testament. All of us, regardless of our roles, are called to listen and learn and come alongside the callings of others in the mission of the church.<\/p>\n

All of us are called to set aside our preferences and priorities and pet peeves for the sake of our brothers and sisters.<\/p>\n

This has been good for me. I have learned, by watching, what shepherding looks like up close. My pastor has modeled for me what difficult, messy, and labor-intensive leadership looks like.<\/p>\n

He\u2019s not just someone preaching on Sundays (he does that faithfully and well). He\u2019s someone who\u2019s involved in the lives of those he\u2019s called to lead. By watching and following him, I\u2019ve had an opportunity to both observe and grow in my own leadership capacity.<\/p>\n

All of us, ultimately, are called to \u201csit on the bench\u201d in ministry life. Whether you\u2019re the pastor of the world\u2019s largest megachurch or a faithfully obscure member in your congregation, you\u2019re not the star of the story.<\/p>\n

Jesus Christ is the only hero in our congregations and all of us are called to set aside our preferences and desires and egos to follow him. He alone is worthy.<\/p>\n

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Daniel Darling<\/h2>\n

@dandarling<\/strong><\/p>\n

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Dan is the director of the Land Center for Cultural Engagement at Southwestern Seminary. He is the bestselling author of several books, including The Characters of Christmas<\/em>.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n