I remember fondly the TV series Heroes, where Peter Petrelli was told that if he saved the cheerleader, he would save the world. What a joy to have such a simple way to save the whole world – just to save one person. But if you are a Leader in the body of Christ, and you want to grow your church or ministry, let me tell you the key. It’s not save the cheerleader, save the world. No – it is this:

GROW THE LEADER. GROW THE GROUP.

If you want a living church to grow, grow the elders. If you want a church to grow, grow the pastor. It’s that simple. It is not any more complicated than that. So many churches are putting finances and effort into doing a lot of things that will not produce growth. That is why churches are not growing – because pastors are not growing. It really is that simple. IF A CHURCH IS NOT GROWING, THE PASTOR IS NOT GROWING. Trust me when new people come to a church, they can very quickly tell the difference between a pastor that is growing, trained, able to teach the Word, able to flow in the Spirit, able to handle problems and situations and one that isn’t. A great Facebook advert or a great website will never take the place of this. Do what you can to get competent at leading and pastoring yourself and if you are leading leaders, invest in them.

John Maxwell says that if a church stops growing, it is because the leadership has stopped growing. He says “Leaders determines the level of an organization”. That is the truth. If your church has stalled at 100 for example, that is because your leaders and your leadership can handle 100. Change so you can handle 200 you will eventually reach 200. That involves change and development – positive and radical change, which is why so many people don’t do it.

When the leaders grow, the growth around them is automatic. Weak leaders shrink organizations, strong leaders grow organizations. Everything comes back to leadership.

Selah.