My top 5 leadership takeaways
from the sbc's annual meeting in nashville
The purpose of my comments is not so much to report on all the business and resolutions of the SBC’s Annual Meeting as it is to draw out some leadership principles which I believe are relevant to pastors and local churches. As you read through these, it might be helpful to evaluate your own leadership in light of these five observations.
1. Good leaders build bridges. It is far easier to alienate non-Christians from Christians than it is to build bridges toward healthy, deep rooted, life-transformation in Jesus. The old adage that “Baptists are known more for what they are against than what they are for” is a sentiment often reflected in secular media. While Southern Baptists have historically been a people tethered to the Word of God, relying upon and accepting it as the very Word of God, how we live out and speak the message of Jesus needs to be filled with grace and love. While we must not be ambivalent about sin, we must look for ways to have continuing dialogue with our lost neighbors without being judgmental or unnecessarily harsh. (If you would like to see an example of what I am talking about, see the resolution on abortion here. Do you think it builds bridges?)
2. Leadership must be marked by honesty, transparency, and accountability. It was evident during the convention the messengers had insufficiently answered questions related to the actions of the Executive Committee in regard to sexual misconduct allegations and investigations among clergy and leaders and what the SBC is doing about it. Consequently, the messengers voted to not only have a third-party independent investigation, but also stipulated that a new committee be appointed by the new SBC president, independent of the Executive Committee, to report the findings of the investigative body at the 2022 SBC Annual Meeting in Anaheim, CA. It was a clear signal that the messengers did not trust the Executive Committee to manage their own investigation. Broken trust takes time and work to rebuild. (For a discussion of this task force, click here.)
3. Leaders value and work toward unity. Unity is hard work…but worth it! The SBC is comprised of some 46,000 autonomous churches, over 1,100 autonomous Baptist associations, 42 autonomous state conventions, and almost a dozen autonomous SBC related institutions. And at the SBC annual meeting there were almost 16,000 autonomous messengers. Personally, I think it is a miracle that we can do anything in unity! Yet unity is important, for it directly impacts our effectiveness with the gospel (John 17:20-23). Together we can do more.
4. Real leadership involves listening to followers. On more than one occasion, the messengers at the annual meeting redirected the Executive Committee. Messengers reminded the Executive Committee that the purpose of the Executive Committee is to serve the churches, not visa versa. It would have been easy for Executive Committee leaders to be resistant, but on more than one occasion they rightfully demonstrated a posture of listening to those they serve and adjusting their plans to the desires of the convention. An example of this was in the Executive Committee’s recommendation of five strategies to focus on until 2025. The messengers were not resistant to these, but demanded there be added a sixth strategy: Endeavor to eliminate all incidents of sexual abuse and racial discrimination among our churches. (To see the six initiatives of Vision 2025, click here.)
5. Wise leaders make prayer a priority. Corporate prayer and intentionally seeking God has a significant impact upon our discourse with one another. At the start of the convention, I was pleased when a motion was made to slow down the agenda that more time might be given to prayer in light of the seriousness of the business to be discussed. Messengers overwhelmingly voted to adjust the well planned out schedule to give more time to praying for our convention and the myriad of issues we are facing. During the remaining business sessions there were also times of focused prayer. In my opinion, this helped diffuse some matters that could have led to divisive dialogue.
Have a comment? I'd love to hear from you! Email me at dom@swmba.net.
1. Good leaders build bridges. It is far easier to alienate non-Christians from Christians than it is to build bridges toward healthy, deep rooted, life-transformation in Jesus. The old adage that “Baptists are known more for what they are against than what they are for” is a sentiment often reflected in secular media. While Southern Baptists have historically been a people tethered to the Word of God, relying upon and accepting it as the very Word of God, how we live out and speak the message of Jesus needs to be filled with grace and love. While we must not be ambivalent about sin, we must look for ways to have continuing dialogue with our lost neighbors without being judgmental or unnecessarily harsh. (If you would like to see an example of what I am talking about, see the resolution on abortion here. Do you think it builds bridges?)
2. Leadership must be marked by honesty, transparency, and accountability. It was evident during the convention the messengers had insufficiently answered questions related to the actions of the Executive Committee in regard to sexual misconduct allegations and investigations among clergy and leaders and what the SBC is doing about it. Consequently, the messengers voted to not only have a third-party independent investigation, but also stipulated that a new committee be appointed by the new SBC president, independent of the Executive Committee, to report the findings of the investigative body at the 2022 SBC Annual Meeting in Anaheim, CA. It was a clear signal that the messengers did not trust the Executive Committee to manage their own investigation. Broken trust takes time and work to rebuild. (For a discussion of this task force, click here.)
3. Leaders value and work toward unity. Unity is hard work…but worth it! The SBC is comprised of some 46,000 autonomous churches, over 1,100 autonomous Baptist associations, 42 autonomous state conventions, and almost a dozen autonomous SBC related institutions. And at the SBC annual meeting there were almost 16,000 autonomous messengers. Personally, I think it is a miracle that we can do anything in unity! Yet unity is important, for it directly impacts our effectiveness with the gospel (John 17:20-23). Together we can do more.
4. Real leadership involves listening to followers. On more than one occasion, the messengers at the annual meeting redirected the Executive Committee. Messengers reminded the Executive Committee that the purpose of the Executive Committee is to serve the churches, not visa versa. It would have been easy for Executive Committee leaders to be resistant, but on more than one occasion they rightfully demonstrated a posture of listening to those they serve and adjusting their plans to the desires of the convention. An example of this was in the Executive Committee’s recommendation of five strategies to focus on until 2025. The messengers were not resistant to these, but demanded there be added a sixth strategy: Endeavor to eliminate all incidents of sexual abuse and racial discrimination among our churches. (To see the six initiatives of Vision 2025, click here.)
5. Wise leaders make prayer a priority. Corporate prayer and intentionally seeking God has a significant impact upon our discourse with one another. At the start of the convention, I was pleased when a motion was made to slow down the agenda that more time might be given to prayer in light of the seriousness of the business to be discussed. Messengers overwhelmingly voted to adjust the well planned out schedule to give more time to praying for our convention and the myriad of issues we are facing. During the remaining business sessions there were also times of focused prayer. In my opinion, this helped diffuse some matters that could have led to divisive dialogue.
Have a comment? I'd love to hear from you! Email me at dom@swmba.net.