LIBERTY UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF DIVINITY
Assignment Title: Stages of Christian leadership
Course: CHMN 699 - Internship
Student: Kristine Sage
Date: January 29, 2022
Professor: Dr. Joel Breidenbaugh
Stages of Christian leadership
Below we’ll work our way through the four stages of Christian leadership: discernment, growth,
maturity, and multiplication. Don’t think of the stages of leadership development as linear. While these
stages tend to intersect with certain life stages, leaders experience aspects of these stages throughout
their lives.
Discernment
The discernment period is most prominent in the early years of ministry and during transitional
periods. It’s the time when leaders wrestle with God about their calling. Sometimes they try different
roles as they sense a specific ministry fit. It’s usually a time of great excitement and energy—of both
highs and lows. But leaders never reach a stage where they don’t need to discern God’s will in ministry.
They will wrestle with God’s direction their entire lives. Even if they’ve settled into a specific lay or
professional ministry role, leaders will continue to search out new ministry contexts and new visions of
future work. The process of ministry discernment is an ongoing part of life. It’s important during the
discernment period for leaders to find godly counsel that will help them seek God’s will and learn from
others who have served in a similar role.
Growth
Again, church leaders should never have a period in their ministry where they are not developing
their character and skills. In the development period, leaders take stock of the training and experiences
they need to fully embrace God’s call on their lives. In a sense, leadership development is simply
another step in the discipleship process. For some leadership roles, this development occurs most
effectively informally—through mentoring and lay training experiences. This informal process is often
done within a church community, particularly when a leader is preparing for a lay ministry role.
A seminary or a Bible college can also be a part of the development pathway for Christian leaders. Most
seminaries are designed to prepare leaders for professional ministry roles (such as pastors, missionaries,
and church administrators) who need a more specialized training regiment. Some seminaries also offer
training in Christian leadership or marketplace theology that’s designed to equip men and women who
don’t work full-time in ministry. With the advent of the internet age, leaders have access to Christian
higher education without leaving their current ministry contexts. Highly informative, actionable
theological education, such as Logos Mobile Education, is available anywhere on the planet and on
nearly any topic.
This specific development stage, characterized by learning and growth, extends long after any period of
