The Bible says that leadership in the church is a great work for a person to aspire to (1 Tim. 3:1). We’re glad you are pursuing leadership here at the Vineyard because we know that our church will only be as strong as the leaders in it. Therefore, we take leadership development very seriously.
The Seven Step Vineyard Leadership track.
(1) Become a regular, consistent, attender at RBV. This is very important because that is the only way you will know the direction that the church is moving. We find that if everyone is pulling in the same direction, we make the most progress in doing what God would have us do as a church body.
(2) Join a core group and become an integral part of it. Almost all of our leaders come from our core groups. This is where people use their spiritual gifts to minister to others. It is also where we get to see how consistent, faithful, and gifted for ministry a person is. A commitment to Jesus also means a commitment to his people.
(3) If you are not sure about what spiritual gifts you have, take the spiritual gift test at giftstest.com/test (select “Assoc. of Vineyard Churches” for denomination). This will help you discover areas where God may have gifted you for ministry. We believe that God has a plan for everyone and we want to equip you to fulfill that plan.
(4) Begin serving in a ministry here at RBV. We believe that God has a ministry for every single person at the Vineyard, and only when everyone is doing what God has gifted them to do will this church be all that it can be.
(5) Take the Ministry Training Class. This class is an overview of what the Bible teaches about how to pray for and minister to others and is mandatory for anyone interested in leading in any capacity at RBV.
(6) Begin giving financially to the church in order to help fund God’s work through RBV. Over the years we have found that money is a god in America and faithfully giving helps to break the hold that money has on people. We feel strongly that giving is an important discipline for any Christian to develop, but even more so if you are a leader and participate in ministries funded by the church.
(7) Take the Core Group Leadership Class. This class focuses on what a Christian leader looks like, biblically speaking, and also on the nuts and bolts of leading people God’s way.
We’re going to be offering the Ministry Training Class and the Core Group Leadership Class on a quarterly basis, though they will be staggered (first quarter MTC, second quarter CGLC, third quarter MTC, and fourth quarter CGLC). Look for dates soon!
And we’re going to be encouraging and requiring any of our current leaders to take these new classes in the next year so that we make sure everyone is on the same page with our mission, vision, values, and methods of doing kingdom ministry, something we believe everyone is called to participate in because it is centered on the value of serving.
If you have any questions, feel free to chat with one of our pastors (Dawn, Wes, Niki, Dan, or Luke).
