I want to take a moment to honor my pastor! He has been a dear friend and mentor for years, but more recently, I have been privileged to to sit with him, hours on end, every week. That he would block out his schedule to spend time pouring into me is an hour. Pastor Gunn is truly a spiritual giant in my eyes! I learn so much in these meetings! We talk marriage, fatherhood, preaching, pastoring, leadership… and more. He encourages me to dream, and mentors me into seeing dreams turn to reality.
I am honored to have been invited by him to help lead The Power Company Kids Club, years ago. Serving as the Chief Operations Officer alongside him has been an amazing journey! The more time that I spend with him, the more clear it becomes to me, why our ministry has been thriving for 30 years, with no sign of slowing down!!!
While there is no space here to share with you the many lessons learned from our standing 3-4 hour meeting, every week… here are 4 Leadership Lessons that I have learned (and am learning) from my pastor, and that I would recommend EVERY pastor embrace:
SLOW DOWN:
Ministry is tough! A lack of pace causes many ministers to bail out, burn out, or sell out. Pastor Gunn reminds me how necessary it is to rest, enjoy my family, make my off day…. A DAY OFF. Every leader had to slow down during Covid, but when the world opened back up, we forgot how healthy it was to have a rhythm to life and ministry.
KNEEL DOWN:
There are so many books on leadership, but perhaps not enough on humility and servant leadership. Pastor Gunn models humility and bold leadership. He leads our board with wisdom and discernment, but will not hesitate to jump behind the wheel of a bus to pick up a bunch of kid. He’ll preach for thousands across the nation (and beyond), yet stop to pick up a piece of lint in the hallways of our campus, and not wait for someone else to come and vacuum. A leader who knows how to kneel will always stand tallest!
BRING IT DOWN:
There’s an old saying, ‘Leaders are readers!’ That is true… but not just for books! More and more, I have learned (still learning) to ‘Read the room!’. There are times when we as leaders want to make sure that everyone under the sound of our voice needs to be made aware of our intellectual prowess – but to what avail? I’ve heard PG speak to millionaires, and I’ve heard him speak the same truth to children in a relevant way that they would hear it. Holding a Master of Divinity degree, and completing a PhD, this is a lesson that I must keep ever before me… If they can’t understand what you are saying… how will they stand firm in what you are saying?
NEVER DUMB IT DOWN:
The message (gospel) and the mission – when either is lessened, our days are numbered. Pace, humility, and contextualization should never be championed at the expense of what makes us…. US! For 30 years, our work has been spiritual, relational, and intentional. I’ve seen PG say no to dollars if it would mean censoring our message or changing our mission.
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