Miami, Florida, United States…[Libna Stevens/IAD]
Armed with the success that the church in Inter-America has had with its steady influx of new members every quinquennium, church leaders and administrators from the entire territory of the Inter-American Division gathered for a new paradigm of leadership training, in Miami, Florida, on Mar. 12-13.
The Leadership Conference brought the three executive officers of every church headquarter office, more than 300 people representing 114 unions, conferences and missions, together to review leadership practices and the effect they have on the church.
Focused on more of a Servant Leadership style like Jesus exercised while on earth, church officers who have been serving the church for years, as well as the newly elected, reacquainted themselves with the Seventh-day Adventist fundamental doctrines, the duties expected from each church officer, team building and leading, strategic planning, church governance, financial policies, conflict resolution, global mission, funding the mission and more.
Church leaders also met in discussion groups at different times during the two-day session to review what was presented and exchange ideas on how to better lead the church in their respective territories.
Bringing together the entire leadership of the IAD territory, a first, was a decision that the administration of the division wanted to make sure took place, says Pastor Israel Leito, president of the church in Inter-America.
Although training at the union level has been going on during the past 10 years, according to Pastor Leito the decision to do one together seemed a more efficient way to do it all at once, instead of repeating it 15 times throughout all the union territories.
“It’s good for the diverse leadership of the church of he IAD to come together so we can listen to each other, learn to know each other personally and instead of staying within each union [territory], to get a division view instead of a union view so that we can move together as a whole,” says Pastor Leito.
This leadership conference was all part of a follow-up on an action the General Conference took to emphasize Christian leadership as a result of a survey done by Andrews University. The survey showed that there will be great challenges for the church in the 14 years. By the year 2020, it is expected that most of the church leaders would have 10 or less years as Seventh-day Adventists at the lower level church organizations, says Pastor Leito.
“This is very frightening and therefore the church is emphasizing it greatly to train and have constant on-the-job training for leadership, to make sure that the Adventist culture is kept as we move on with the church,” he says. “This was the reason and the great need to help people to understand what Seventh-day Adventist leadership is all about.”
To follow that, Pastor Leito says that continuing education on leadership training will be provided through satellite viewing and through the internet.
As far as the impact that is expected from this leadership conference, Pastor Leito hopes it can have a fast effect as those who attended return to their territory and passed on what they’ve learned to local church leaders.
“We have very good leadership in the territory, we have very conscientious Christian leaders out there, but there are so many with no formal training in leadership and administration. Therefore, we are bound to make horrible mistakes, and we treat the church as we would treat a factory worker, or a farm worker and the church is to be treated differently. Therefore, we are emphasizing this issue of servant leadership instead of king and master.”
Pastor Leito and his colleagues are joining efforts to move the church in the right direction so it can adapt to the changing environment in which it lives. However, there are still some challenges which are facing the church. One of the major issues the church is facing today, is that leadership in the past was mostly based on information control.
“Whoever had the most information usually was the one who would rise to the top,” says Pastor Leito. “We were choosing our leaders based on their experience and expertise, but that has changed dramatically. Leadership today is chosen not so much on control of information because much of the information can be readily found don the internet.”
Pastor Leito says another challenge is to create a church environment which encourages laypeople working in government, industry and business to apply their every day skills to the furtherance of the church.
For Pastor Norbert Kancel, who has served as president of the church in French Guiana since 2005, receiving training in the conference brought more of a sense of responsibility.
“I’ve learned to have a wider vision in the work of God,” Pastor Kancel says. “I think that my work will have a new direction as I serve the church differently, serving the church with investment.”
That new direction is just what church leaders at the Division headquarter office is hoping to see soon, according to Pastor Leito.
Plans are underway for another leadership conference before the year 2010.
For more information on the Leadership Conference, it’s seminar speakers and presentations, log on to www.interamerica.org.
