Jesus had a ministry that lasted only 3 years, yet he made a global impact that has spanned centuries. Yes, he was the Son of God, yes he was on a divine mission, and yes he had a calling to do something specific, but that isn’t why he was so effective in his short ministry. If he would have missed this leadership secret, there is an argument to be made he would have not had the same impact he did. So, what is this not-so-super secret?

Jesus’ secret to being effective in his short 3-year ministry was not his calling, not his personality, not his mission. Jesus’ secret was his ability to develop a highly effective team around him so that he could focus on the things only he could do.

A ‘Chance’ Encounter

Let’s start by looking at the story of Jesus meeting the Samaritan woman at the well (Jn 4:1-43). Jesus has sent the disciples into the city to get some supplies while he rested at the well outside the city (vs. 6). While he was there, a woman from Samaria came to get water. Jesus strikes up a conversation with the woman that reveals the woman’s difficult relationship history but also reveals Jesus to be the Living Water and the Messiah (vs. 7-26).

It is at this point the disciples return and the woman runs off to the city to tell people about the man she just met at the well. It is through this ‘chance’ encounter that the people of Samaria believed in Jesus as the ‘Savior of the world’ (vs. 42).

Being Mission -Minded

As we see throughout Jesus’ ministry, he was very mission-minded. He focused on the calling he had on his life and turned his attention to the things that he needed to do in order to maximize his impact during his three years of ministry.

In this instance with the Samaritan woman, it is important to step away from the details of the moment and take in his interaction with the disciples as well.

As pastors, our biggest issue is often being concerned with the immediate needs that are right in front of us rather than waiting for the strategic moments that are mission-critical for the calling we have on our lives.

In this instance, the immediate need was that Jesus and his disciples were in need of supplies…particularly food. They had just traveled from Judea to Samaria, which could have been a 2-3 day trip depending on the pace they kept. Which, if you have ever traveled with a bunch of friends, it is seldom a quick pace.

Jesus, being sensitive to the Holy Spirit, knew it was necessary for him to be at the well. So, he decides to delegate to the disciples the task of going into the city to get supplies while he remains at the well to see what the Holy Spirit is orchestrating. We know how the story turns out, but let’s take a look at the results of Jesus’ decision to delegate.

Scripture tells us the Samaritan woman goes into the city and sparks a two-day evangelistic crusade in the city of Samaria, which was an incredibly strategic location for that area of the world for Jesus to reach.

The supplies that were needed for them to continue on their journey after they left Samaria were secured.

The disciples learned two very important lessons. First, they learned the Kingdom of God works as a collective rather than in factions. They were about to reap a harvest of souls they had not labored for, and rejoice because the Kingdom of God was advancing. They learned it didn’t matter what part they played in the process, as long as they were playing a part.

The second lesson they learned was accepting people regardless of their own baises and prejudices. The Samaritans were a group of people who were half Jewish and half Assyrian as a result of the Assyrian conquest in 721 BC. The Jews over the centuries after chose to shun and despise the Samaritans because of the Gentile half of their lineage. So, it would have been difficult for the disciples to go into the city because of their prejudices. For them, it would not have been a pleasant experience, especially since they had to do it on their own without Jesus. This supply run, though, would have provided them with a stark contrast of themselves against Jesus’ love and acceptance of the Samaritans they were about to witness. This second lesson would have changed their hearts and prepared them for their future missions to spread the gospel to Samaria and the outermost parts of the world.

Since Jesus was mission-minded and obedient to the Holy Spirit, he was able to do what only he could have done at the moment, he provided valuable lessons for his disciples that would carry over into their own ministries after he was gone and accomplished the immediate need of getting supplies while making an eternal impact. All because Jesus delegated something he could have done himself.

Why You Should Develop a Highly Effective Team

Now, just pause before you start just handing out tasks and projects to your team so that you can wait around for the Holy Spirit to prompt you for the next woman at the well moment. Allow me to unpack what this should look like for us as modern-day pastors responsible for whole churches, ministries, and communities of people.

What made this moment, and so many other moments like it, possible for Jesus and his disciples? It was Jesus’ dedication to developing an effective team. Jesus understood his sole mission wasn’t to go to the cross and lay down his life. That was only part of his mission. The other part was to train a group of disciples ready to face the rigors of spreading the gospel to the world.

The question for us today as pastors is, are we equally committed to developing a team as Jesus was, or are we really only focused on getting the work of the ministry done that results in church growth?

For many of us, we are so focused on getting things done that we simply do not have time for developing our teams. If we do have time to prioritize people over tasks, then we put it towards church members, prospects, or people in our community we are trying to evangelize.

When you look at Jesus though, who did he spend most of his time with? His disciples. He told them his most intimate stories and teachings, he shared memorable moments with them on a regular basis, and they saw him in ways the crowds didn’t. If we are following the example Jesus set for us, one of our top priorities every day should be to develop our team to be highly effective. There are three other reasons I want to give as to why you should spend your time developing your team.

You Have Limited Time

How many hours do you have in a day?

Me too!!!

In fact, that is exactly how many hours in a day we all have. 24. There is no way of getting around it. It is our one nonrenewable resource, and unless Marty and Doc discover time travel soon, this isn’t changing for any of us.

I am sure you have heard someone say at some point, “you have the same amount of time as the President” or someone else famous. Implying that if they can get everything they can get done in a day, then you should be able to do the same.

C’mon, why are you being so lazy, pastor!

Well, this is actually a misleading way of thinking. Do you have 24 hours like everyone else…yes, of course. However, the President also has teams of people around him that are able to get things done for him that he gets credit for. The President doesn’t have to make meals, take out the trash, run his kids to soccer practice, or even write out his speeches. All of those things are done for him for the most part, which is why he is able to get so much done in a day.

For the rest of us, we have to realize that time is our limitation. I would argue more so than finances. You have a finite number of hours in your day, and unless you can develop an effective team and delegate things to them, you are stuck with always being behind on your task list and never getting enough done.

You Have Limited Attention

Do you ever have days that are full of interruptions? Someone is knocking on your office door, your phone rings…your other phone rings, you have to run home real quick because you forgot something, an issue arises that you have to stop what you are doing to handle it.

As a pastor, it is easy for our days to just get out of hand with interruptions. Often these days leave us frazzled and overwhelmed and contribute to the growing mental strain we are seeing in ministry leaders across the country.

I know I have days where I have sat down at my desk around 4 or 4.30 and I am so scattered in my thoughts because of all the interruptions in the day that I simply close my computer and say, “I think I am done for the day”. Not because I was able to accomplish so much, finished a project, or felt the freedom to knock off early because of my stellar performance during the day.

No, I am just done. My mind is all over the place and I can’t focus because so many things have happened through the course of the day.

This is a sign that you are doing too many things and that too many people are reporting to you directly. You only have so much attention to give. Your ability to focus on something is directly tied to the quality you produce. If you feel your sermons have been lacking lately, it is probably because you aren’t focusing enough during your preparation because you are being interrupted too much.

Your attention is limited and there are a finite number of things you can focus on in a given day. You need to develop a team to carry the load, problem solve, and manage the number of people in your faith community.

You Have Limited Assignment

Jesus was called to save the world through his sacrifice on the cross. But, in his three-year ministry, he had a limited assignment focused on reaching Jews almost exclusively. There are a few instances where he reached out and impacted Gentiles, but those were few and far between moments. He understood his assignment was to reach the Jews, and the assignment of his disciples and Paul would be to reach the Gentiles. Jesus stayed in the lane of his assignment and allowed others to serve in their lanes.

As a pastor, you have a specific assignment. This is something that needs to be defined by you and God, your board, or whatever entities within your church structure that get to speak into your assignment in the role you serve in. Whatever the role is, there are limitations to it. If there aren’t and you have complete autonomy and no accountability, then you should be concerned and start building those structures immediately for your own good.

Most of us, though, when we step into a pastoral role, have a specific assignment. Regardless of what your specific assignment is, there are tasks and projects necessary for the ministry of your church that someone else needs to do other than you. You can’t do everything.

When you focus on developing an effective team, you can focus on your assignment, excel in your areas of expertise and gifting, and carry out the responsibilities only you can do.

How to Develop a Highly Effective Team

Okay, so now that it is clear why you need an effective team, it is time to learn how you go about accomplishing this. The one thing to remember when you are focusing your attention on developing an effective team is that most members of your team want to be developed by you. As their pastor and leader, they have already made the choice to follow you. Particularly your pastoral staff members.

Whether they are younger than you or older, most pastoral staff members are looking to learn and grow from their leader. As their pastor, they are hungry for your wisdom and knowledge. One of the greatest complaints I hear from pastoral staff members is that their lead pastor just tells them what to do without investing in their growth and development.

Even if mentoring, teaching, or investing in other leaders isn’t a strong area of yours, you can still develop your team by being relational and giving as you train. Follow these 5 steps and before long you will have a highly effective team carrying the ministry with you, impacting lives, growing your church, and providing you with the margin necessary for you to live your dream life in ministry.

Own Your Role

If you want your team to be highly effective, you have to set the tone and own your role as a productive leader. If you are always shaking hands and kissing babies, then that is what your team will focus their attention on doing. Which will leave no one except the administrative staff (if you have any) actually doing productive work.

Every staff position, including every pastoral staff position, has responsibilities of productivity. When you sit down for an hour’s worth of productive work, is it efficient and fruitful or do you spend time meandering around waiting for a distraction? Is your staff waiting on you to get something done for days and weeks before they can get their stuff done?

Are you pushing off responsibilities and tasks because a ‘meeting came up’ or you ‘have to go deal with an issue’? There is some grace for that, but when this is happening all the time and you are the bottleneck for productivity, then your team sees that and will either behave in the same way or will leave and serve under a pastor who understands how to truly labor for the Kingdom of God.

When you own your role as a productive leader, you inspire your team to do the same in their areas of ministry. Not only that, but you also set precedence. When you have a team member who is showing signs of laziness and you have to call them in on their productivity, you know that you have set a standard you can call them up to.

Create a Productive Culture

Being effective is the result of being productive. This is why all activity isn’t created equal. All of us have seen leaders, maybe even some of your staff members, who seem like they are always busy but don’t seem to get a lot done. In those moments we are left baffled with the conundrum of seeing activity but not seeing productivity.

When you create a productive culture, though, then every person on the team, as well as any new hires you bring on, immediately understand that they have the option of getting things done and enjoying the fruits of their labor or finding themselves looking for a new place to serve.

Please, do not misunderstand me. I am not speaking about being in a high-power, high-stress, high-octane ministry environment. I am speaking about a ministry culture that values getting the most out of every hour of work so that every hour of play can be maximized for life fulfillment and Godly glorification.

As the pastor, taking the time to create a productive culture within your pastoral staff, administrative staff, and even volunteer teams will be giving them the freedom to enjoy the life they have chosen to live while serving at your church. When roles and responsibilities are clarified, communication lines are clear, accountability is an expectation, and conflict is handled in a God-honoring way, then stress levels drop, anxiety melts away, and stuff gets done.

Most importantly, the work of the ministry is done and the Kingdom of God advances, resulting in church growth and community impact. Which is exactly what all of us are focused on accomplishing.

Transform Your Team

One of my favorite things to do on the leadership side of ministry is building a team around me. Some of us inherit teams, while others of us have the privilege to build a team. Then, there are others of us who just long to have a team. Wherever you are on the continuum, you have the opportunity to transform the team around you.

Just like Jesus, this is one of the major parts of your ministry responsibilities. If you desire for your efforts to be multiplied and carry on long after you are gone, then your ability to transform your team is paramount.

You may have some superstars on your team who you need to invest in, develop, and empower to fulfill their own callings in their lives. At the same time, you may have on your team who need to move on and find a new ministry assignment to be successful in. Either way, it is up to you as the leader, to be intentional about the growth, development, and transformation of your team members.

Once you have owned your role as a productive ministry leader, and you have a productive culture in place, then you are ready for your team to be transformed through growth, position realignment, or moving on. Once your team has transformed into one that works well together, collaborates with one another, and carries one another through challenging and difficult times, then there is nothing the Lord can’t use your team to do.

Oh yeah, and by this point, you are beginning to live your dream life. Your church and ministry are growing while you are investing a healthy amount of time and energy into your family, personal well-being, and your future while still serving in ministry in a powerful way.

Motivate Powerfully

One of your primary roles as a pastor is to motivate people to action. Whether you are motivating people to give their lives in surrender to Jesus, or you are motivating them to sacrifice and fulfill the Great Commission, you are in the business of getting people to take action.

This goes for your team as well. Even the most loyal and self-motivated individuals need to be motivated from time to time. For your team, the more you take time to motivate them and cheer them on, the more they will accomplish for the advancement of the Kingdom of God and the growth of the church.

This means you need to know your team and understand how to motivate them collectively as well as individually. Your approach to motivation has to go beyond “because it is your job”, “because I told you to”, or “because that’s ministry”. Do the work as their leader and take the necessary time to dig in and understand how to best motivate your team.

Empower for Change

So far we have hinted at delegation as a part of developing a highly effective team. However, delegation is relatively shallow in scope. When you delegate, you are handing off tasks for the sole purpose of getting them done. Your team’s boundaries of responsibility and decision-making can’t exceed the accomplishment of the task you have delegated.

However, in order to have a highly effective staff, you can’t just delegate. Instead, you need to empower them to make the changes that are necessary for the growth of the church and the advancement of the Kingdom of God.

Now, this is where many pastors get anxious. We really struggle with delegation, and the thought of empowering a team for change is almost out of the question for most of us.

But, if you have followed the four previous steps of owning your role as a productive pastor, creating a culture of productivity, transforming your team, and powerfully motivating them, then you will have a team you have no issue with empowering for change. You have done the hard work developing a highly effective team. Then when you step away to go on vacation, or you are sick, or you get invited to speak on the mission field, you can know without a shadow of a doubt that you have a powerful team ready to handle whatever comes.

Conclusion

God has designed a dream life for you as a pastor. Very few pastors ever live their dream lives because they are buried under tasks, deadlines, issues, and drama. It is time for that to change for you, and the key to making that happen is to develop a highly effective team.

With these simple steps, you can expect to start to see a transformation within just a few months, and this time next year your life and ministry is going to be completely different if you can commit to investing in the development of your own highly effective team.