What Navy Seals Can Teach Us About Church Leadership - Part 5: Cover and Move
“Put simply, Cover and Move means teamwork. All elements within the greater team are crucial and must work together to accomplish the mission, mutually supporting one another for that singular purpose" (p.121, 122).
The mantra of Cover and Move finds its way into the church when we begin to talk about various ministries. When the youth group becomes a separate entity from the church, or the outreach team becomes the exclusive domain of "those called to that kind of ministry," the church looses the bigger picture. In my ministry I have watched the youth group become separate. One fun way we solved this challenges was for the youth to become knit back into the greater mission of the church and have them serve on Sundays. We made cool T-Shirts that said, “here to serve you.” This gave visitors and regulars a visible connection and great opportunity to meet our youth and visa-versa.
The beauty of the small church is that silos are more difficult to build, and easier to dismantle when they are spotted. The Children's Pastor, who everyone knows, can stand up on a Sunday and share about the power of what Jesus is doing with the kids and how it is clearly connected to the greater vision and mission of the church. The worship leader can cast vision for a new youth worship team to get started. The missions/outreach teams can talk about how everyone is a missionary right where they are.
As the pastor or leader of a small church it is easy to try and cast vision for all aspects of ministry. Your church needs to see the entire team working together for your common purpose. Good leaders are always looking to unlock the potential in others.
“The beauty of the small church is that silos are more difficult to build and easier to dismantle when they are spotted.”
It is the job of the pastor to inspire a cohesive mission at every level of ministry. Rather than five ministries who have five different missions and goals, each of those ministry leaders must know and understand how they fit into the greater vision of the church. Subconsciously church attendees sense a disconnect. But when all ministries are following the same stream a single destination is clear and felt.
LEADERSHIP CHALLENGE:
Do a personal review of each area of ministry. Ask yourself if the leaders, volunteers, and vision of that ministry is tied into the greater vision of the church. If the youth group, for instance, feels like a different church all on its own, maybe it is time to restructure and cast a vision that draws them into the fullest expression of the church at large. Do you have your Children's Director, or Women's Pastor talk about the wins in their ministry in front of the congregation? Do Sunday attendees know what is happening with your Missions Team, or Men's Ministry? It is your job, as the pastor, to communicate on a Sunday that 'We have each other's back, we are accomplishing the mission, and we are doing it as a team!' What a great moment to invite seat warmers to become history makers and embrace the incredible vision of your church. Remember, to always look for opportunities to unlock the potential in all your leaders through your from-the-front validation of them and their ministry.
Full credit for the "laws" in this series are exclusively given to:
Willink, J., and Babin. L. (2015) Extreme Ownership: How Navy Seals lead and win. St. Martin's Press, New York, NY.