Missional leaders make disciples who make disciples. They are committed to multiplying leaders in the Church who are actively engaged in the mission of Jesus. These leaders come in all shapes, sizes, ages, personalities, and gift mixes. During this past year as I’ve traveled to several places around the world, I’ve had the privilege of meeting so many passionate and gifted individuals. I’ve learned to appreciate both the variety and quality of leaders that God is raising up among us.
After his resurrection, Jesus appeared to his disciples and said, “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth” (Acts 1:8). Jesus entrusted this mission to a group of fishermen and tax collectors, and he called them to lead others in being a credible witness to the Gospel in their setting.
Today, in a similar way, missional leaders are being sent by God to join his mission in the world, each one empowered by the Holy Spirit to be witnesses to the life of Jesus. As we work in partnership with local churches and national leaders around the world, Multiply is committed to developing the next generation of missional leaders, so that the Gospel will continue to spread to the ends of the earth.
Recently, I’ve been inspired by Sam Arcaño, our partner in the Philippines. Along with several other leaders, Sam has been faithfully making disciples and planting churches among university students. After years of successful student ministry in Baguio City, they are now focusing their efforts on a place called Brooke’s Point on the island of Palawan. They are not only preaching the Gospel among the thousands of university students there, but they are focused on raising up new missional leaders. With the development of a youth outreach center and an extensive campus ministry, people are finding hope and transformation in the Gospel. As young disciples are being multiplied and developed in faith and in Gospel witness, Sam has a vision to establish a training center for disciple makers who will spread throughout the country. Together, we are being invited to join in God’s mission in the Philippines.
One of the ways that we are partnering with Sam is by providing a training curriculum known as Missional Leadership Training (MLT). Sam and his team have been very enthusiastic about using MLT as a tool to develop the next generation of missional leaders in the Philippines. I am encouraged by the fact that we are able to produce practical resources that are meeting the felt needs of our partners in places like the Philippines. (For more about how MLT is empowering global leaders, read the story on page 4.)
Another encouraging example comes from Africa, where one of our key partners has effectively transitioned out of one mission assignment in order to take up another one. After several years of multiplying disciples in Malawi, Safari Mutabesha is now returning to his home country of Congo to do the same there. In Safari’s absence, another gifted and growing missional leader by the name of Shadreck Kwendanyama will continue the work of overseeing the network of churches in Malawi. In order for missional leaders to multiply, we continually need to let go of our responsibilities and pass them on to others, no matter how challenging that transition might be, for us or for them. We have much to learn from leaders like Safari and Shadreck.
In our North American church context, sometimes we are too slow to trust young leaders with responsibility. We have endless resources for developing leaders and we require extensive training before we ever send them out on a specific assignment.
In other parts of the world, we see a very different leadership challenge. Especially where the Church is growing fast, resources are limited, and the need for leaders is staggering. Often, new believers become new leaders instantly. As soon as they place their trust in Jesus and receive the Holy Spirit, they are preaching the Gospel, discipling others, and gathering them together in new churches. Their need for further training, and their desire for it, may be very apparent, but the opportunity for it is not always available.
This is why I am encouraged by the recent success of Missional Leadership Training. Together with our global partners, we are finding new ways to bring meaningful training to church leaders who need it. This is a collaborative effort. As sisters and brothers in a global family, we have so much to learn from each other.
As well, in the post-COVID era, we are seeing the revitalization of our Mission Training Programs. Together with local churches in North America, we are exploring new ways to entrust young leaders with mission assignments that give them purpose, identity, and a new sense of calling.
One program that has been re-envisioned is FOCUS Internship, which was hosted recently by our Central Canada team at Fort Garry MB Church in Winnipeg, Manitoba. During the first stage of training, every participant was actively engaged in local mission. Eventually, each one was given opportunities for witness and for leadership, whether in a local or global context. This internship has become a primary pathway for equipping, training, and discerning long-term global workers. (For more about FOCUS and other Mission Training Programs, read the interview on page 6.)
I have recently been challenged by an author and psychologist named Dan Allender. In his book, Leading with a Limp, he writes about how our weakness, and even our reluctance, can be a gift that God uses. He writes, “Doubt is the context for surrender. And flight is the path for obedience. When we’re reluctant to lead, doubting ourselves and our call, we are ripe for growth as a leader.”
In some ways, all missional leaders lead with a limp. Even when we—like Jonah—try to run away from the divine call, God has a way of throwing us off the boat and finding a large fish to swallow us and spit us onto the shore where we are called again into service. After all, as Paul wrote, most of us are not wise by human standards, nor particularly influential, but “God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong” (1 Corinthians 1:27). Remember, it’s God’s mission, not ours.
In my own journey, I have come through seasons of burnout, self-doubt, and (maybe too) much reflection. In fact, every leader that I have known well has shared in hushed tones similar things swirling inside their hearts and minds. We have an opportunity today to create space and systems of support and development for a new kind of leader. Let’s commit ourselves to both learning from, and serving alongside, our brothers and sisters around the world. Together, let’s develop a new generation of healthy missional leaders for this great invitation that Jesus has given us to be his witnesses to the ends of the earth.
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