The COVID-19 crisis taught leaders that significant change often occurs when least expected. To lead effectively through such transitions, leaders must adapt quickly by reestablishing their spiritual center to encourage others to move from crisis to Christ. Drawing from my experience as a pastor and executive director, I have identified five essential principles—the five P’s—that help leaders regain their spiritual footing after facing unexpected shifts.
1. Process What Has Happened.
Change creates a unique opportunity to discern God’s will for a leader’s ministry, clearing away the non-essential to expose what truly matters. To grow through these moments, leaders must process what occurred, evaluating the causes and lessons learned from the experience. This reflection establishes benchmarks of understanding that allow them to move past the season of transition and into the next phase of leadership. This process remains vital for post-pandemic church reestablishment.
2. Pivot With a Purpose.
While processing evaluates the past, the ultimate objective is pivoting toward the future with a renewed perspective. Successful leaders who thrive during seasons of change are those who apply newfound knowledge to the latest phase of their ministry. This proactive approach is instrumental in reestablishing local church identity.
Pivoting comes from understanding the purpose of what has taken place and then learning all that you can from the difficult season. The leader should seek out truths, and then lean into what has been learned to gain the most from the pivot moment.
3. Prepare for the Future.
As leaders reestablish their spiritual center in their leadership, they can begin to prepare for the future that God has for them. This preparation season is a short window of opportunity to advance the kingdom ministry forward at a faster pace. There is a tendency for many leaders who have gone through a crisis to rest during this stage of reestablishment. Instead of pausing, many times God wants to advance the future-forward.
I read some time ago a sign that said, “The future is now!” Now means not waiting but advancing up the spiritual field to take back what has been lost during the crisis and gain ground for future ministries that God has planned. Preparation is not about waiting, but wanting what God wants in his timing.
4. Prioritize Needs.
Reestablishing a leader’s spiritual center allows the leader to embrace the vision that God has for the ministry. Are you a leader or have known a leader that was so driven that they drove in the wrong direction and lost their way with Christ? Prioritizing what is important to God, his people, and then self, will enable the leader to be a follower of Christ and not a driver of Christ.
There are many former Christians who felt pushed rather than lead into the presence of the Lord, and God uses crises in the church to make clear what his priorities are supposed to be. Do not get trapped in what has been and miss what God is saying what should be. Prioritize the needs that God has called the leader to focus on as you recenter your spiritual life.
5. Propel God’s Dreams.
What has been lost in a crisis can be regained in Christ. God is a forward-moving God. He is never stagnant or backward leaning. He is a God of second, third and fourth chances because he wants you to progress. What are the dreams that he has for you? What is the vision he has for your ministry? Do not allow a challenging situation or season to define who you are as a leader. Instead, enable it to propel you forward into the dreams God has planned for you.
The best days of your ministry are not behind you. The good old days are not as good as the days yet undiscovered. Unwrap what God has for you, your ministry, and the lives that will be impacted through your ministry. Dream dreams again and become the leader God has called you to be.