Church Leadership in the Rural Church

I pastored for some years amongst the thick forests of Michigan’s Upper Peninsula. One thing I learned in that rural and remote area is that good local church leaders did not grow on those trees. Not any of them. The men there were hardy and resourceful to be sure: loggers, potato and dairy farmers, truck drivers, diesel mechanics, rural businessmen, and all around handy-dandy guys. I learned a lot from them and saw them accomplish some amazing things. But church leadership is another kind of thing. You need spiritually mature, pastorally inclined men for that job.

As I look back on it now, I am grateful God did provide some men over the years who made excellent local church leaders. I learned a lot about developing men, not always through the success stories. And looking back from the span of some thirty years of experience, if I had to do it all over again, I would approach it in a different way.

Number one, I would emphasize discipleship more and provide more opportunities for one-on-one and small group discipleship for men. I have come to see that leadership development is not a stand-alone task. Leaders are best grown out of a strong discipling culture. And then secondly, I would temper my expectations. Excellent local church lay leaders can be somewhat rare in many rural locations. Rather than expecting a plethora of men just chomping at the bit to be leaders in the church, I would instead look for a few “Timothys” to train and develop.

In my rural church experience, I ran into a number of obstacles as I sought to find and develop church leaders. A lot of men were not inclined to seek leadership, or simply not available. Some had an aversion to learning, some were inhibited by a matriarchal culture, some were very insecure about stepping forward, and many were busy with family life, rural vocations, and time-intensive hobbies and projects. It was more the exception rather than the rule to see a man step forward to show promise as a potential leader. What should we do about this?  

I have noticed in the Scriptures a very strong discipling relationship between the Apostle Paul and Timothy. At some point, I gained an appreciation for this relationship. Can it be used to guide us in developing local church leaders? Trial and error is certainly part of the process, not every potential leader makes it to the finish line. But I draw from this relationship between Paul and Timothy some guiding principles worth thinking about as we seek to develop leaders for our local churches.  

1. Take the long view (Acts 16:1-5).
Paul and Timothy’s relationship began when Paul saw something in Timothy as a very young man. That relationship continued on for a very long time. We may have constitutional leadership slots to fill in our churches, but developing leaders in the relational and cultural context of the rural church can take time – in many cases years, not months. I would rather have those positions be unfilled than to put the wrong kind of men into positions of leadership.  

Another thing I have learned is the key to constructive church leadership and a healthy church is the quality of men who are appointed to leadership. No way around that, biblically or practically. So, we must give leadership development enough time so that the right kind of men can emerge.

As pastors we are wise to develop warm and unguarded relationships as we search for our Timothys. We are building for a better future by preparing better leaders. Timothy’s development unfolded over many years as he learned from Paul. 

2. Be an excellent example (1 Corinthians 4:17).
As time went along, Paul eventually spoke of Timothy as one who reminded others of himself. He trained Timothy in “his own image and likeness” so to speak. We should live before our men as godly examples. We should open our hearts and lives to them to teach them how to live and lead. This also speaks of time and relationships. To develop better leaders, we must be the best we can be. Imitation is a big factor in leadership development.

3. Pass on a ministry mindset (Philippians 2:19-24).
Paul passed on to Timothy (and Timothy embraced) a heart and concern for the Lord’s work. That’s the kind of church leader we want to raise up, someone devoted to the health and well-being of the body of Christ. What can we do to breathe in this kind of spirit into potential leaders in our churches? How can we inspire men to be all in for the gospel and the Lord’s work? These are questions to ponder.

When I was a young rural pastor, I never suggested we bring in a consultant, nor did I have any big long-range planning meetings. But sometimes I went to the governing board and said, “Will you let me try this new initiative with a few people to see what can be done? I think there is potential and here’s why.” Can we teach and model a hopeful vision for reaching people through the local church? Can we infect our potential leaders with this spirit?  

4. Give them ministry assignments (1 Thessalonians 3:1-2).
From the earliest days of Paul’s association with Timothy, he began to direct him into ministry. He sent him here and there, with assignments to build up Christians and churches. We can easily make the mistake of thinking church leadership is a matter of reading the right book or working through the right curriculum (nothing wrong with these things), but church leadership is doing and serving among people. What assignments can we gently give to our potential leaders in the work of the church? And what preparation, teaching, and feedback will help them thrive in their assignments?

Can we pray for and look for some Timothys to develop for church leadership? I think we all agree that finding such men – finding the TIMOTHYS – is often THE BIG CHALLENGE! And as we identify such Timothys, I think we can find and/or design helpful training materials. But the key is to invest in them over the years, sharing our lives and ministries. We can take them with us into the work – make pastoral visits together, take them along for speaking engagements, apprentice them on the church board, teach them to prepare a Bible lesson or lead a group, pray with them, and share the gospel together. Let’s continually ask the Lord to give us such men (Matthew 9:35-38).

I remember a young man from years ago – he was a friend and very much a rural guy. I got to know him well (we worked on some outside-of-the-church projects together). I saw that this young man was very smart and knew his Bible. One weekend I had to go out of town and asked him if he would teach my Sunday School class the day I had to miss. (We all know how hard it can be for rural pastors to find substitutes when we have to be away!) At that time we had two adult Sunday School classes; this one was for our younger adults – not a big class, just a few young adults. He said, “Oh man, I don’t know about that! I’ve never done anything like that. That would really be something.” He was totally dubious about doing it. He had grown up in the church, he had strong biblical knowledge, he knew everyone in the class, he lived a faithful, growing Christian life, but no one had ever challenged him to develop his gifts as a leader.

So I began to work with him, starting with that first assignment. We made a lesson, later more lessons. We read together, prayed together, did ministry together. Years later he developed into a sought-after teacher of God’s Word. He never went to Bible college or seminary, but in time he became an elder and actually quite a good lay preacher. (He’s been preaching and teaching now for over 40 years!) He even served churches as an interim pastor a few times.

God will give us Timothys. What will we do with them? What a gift to the church is the patient investment of a pastor into the development of local leaders for the small-town and rural church. Pastor, can you find a few Timothys? If you don’t have them, can you begin to ask God for them? Can you then develop warm relationships, discipling relationships with such men, and over time develop some long-term, godly leaders for the local church? It is a gift that keeps on giving.