Curriculum

The Learning Environment  

Lead Academy will aim to provide an environment where participants can:

  • Develop a gospel-shaped imagination of what leadership in the way of Jesus looks like;
  • Have space both to internalise and integrate information in an unhurried way;
  • Reflect on experience, grow in self-knowledge and take responsibility for their own ongoing learning.
  • Receive and give feedback in community.
  • Identify, name and explore ways of developing their unique giftedness
  • Practice newly acquired skills in role-playing situations.

The Academy will aim to creatively balance the “what” of leadership (creating vision, developing a sense of direction, building alignment with the direction etc), the “how” of leadership (how to actively listen, how to communicate, how to give feedback, how to manage conflict etc), and most importantly, the “who” of leadership (the person I’m becoming). 

The Academy is NOT a series of lectures. It is a greenhouse, offering different modes and methods of learning to enable our leaders to become highly skilled and deeply formed.

The Power of Together 

The Academy will run in 2 year cycles with a maximum of 30 students in each cohort. Each cycle will include two six-day learning intensives per year, over two years (four in total).

These intensives will take place at beautiful off-site retreat venues, intentionally created to inspire growth, togetherness, and fresh ways of learning.

All accommodation, meals and learning together will take place at this venue, enabling the formation of a learning community, where life-long friendships can emerge!

We believe that these intensives will truly be some of the very best days of their lives!

The Curriculum

Leading Like Jesus: A Christ-centered Theology of Leadership

What does leadership in the servant-way of Jesus look like?

We believe that we need to explore “the art” and “science” of leadership within a clear biblical/theological context of Christ as the example and model for our leadership. It cannot be taken it for granted that participants will do this integration of theology and leadership on their own.

Leading Church in South Africa in The 21st Century 

  • The Context
  • The Challenges
  • The Opportunities

The Calling and Cost of Pastoral Leadership

  • Understanding the high calling of pastoral leadership
  • Dealing with the cost of calling
  • Pastor, leader or both?
  • Understanding our primary gifting and what that means for us

Pentecostal Leadership

  • Pentecostal theology – what is it exactly?
  • Unpacking the role of the gift of faith in our leadership
  • Understanding the power and danger of anointing

Self Leadership

  • Leading ourselves to a healthy, sustainable and fruitful life
  • Developing a rule of life that honours God
  • The pastor’s drug: learning to deal with adrenalin
  • The importance of understanding our EQ (emotional quotient)

Character Formation: Becoming Like Jesus

  • Understanding the character and life of Christ
  • The importance forgiveness in pastoral leadership
  • The power of learning to listen (to God and others)
  • Prayer
  • Rhythms of life
  • The lost practice of confession: why and how to do it

The Art of Leading Together

  • Navigating marriage and ministry and the models of leading together as a couple
  • Learning to build a healthy staff and volunteer team
  • The power of encouragement for a team
  • How to have crucial conversations

Strategic Leadership and Problem Solving

  • Understanding strategy and how it affects everything
  • Learning critical thinking skills & how to solve problems

Preaching

  • Understanding context, worldview and who we’re trying to reach
  • Ways of developing and structuring sermons for maximum impact
  • Contextual hermeneutics – how to understand the historical and textual context of the text
  • Developing a healthy, balanced, preaching diet for a congregation
  • Effective Vision Casting
  • Public speaking: tips, tools and tricks (body language, mic technique, voice projection)

Structuring of Church Services

  • Developing an imagination for life-giving services and environments – what does a life-giving service look and feel like in different contexts and cultures?
  • Service planning and programming – understanding flow and momentum
  • The importance of song selection and its effect upon the service
  • The role of platform communicators
  • Basic liturgies for weddings and funerals

Production Enviroments 

  • Understanding the principles and importance of the different production elements
  • Sound, lighting, visuals, acoustics: how they affect the culture, growth and life of the church

Cultivating a Strong Church Culture

  • How to understand the culture, context and community of your church’s area
  • How to build and cultivate a Kingdom culture in the life of a church
  • Learning to define and develop a church- specific culture

Building Church 

  • Guest retention and integration of new people
  • Media and marketing: how and why?
  • Learning the basics of project management
  • Creating and managing events well
  • Structuring a yearly calendar that builds momentum into the life of the church

Effective Pastoral Care 

  • Understanding healing
  • Learning the key skills of healthy pastoral care
  • Caring for people well: building capacity and training and systems
  • An introduction to mental illness and addiction

Scripture: A Deeper Dive

  • Reading the Bible for all its worth – how to get the most out of your Bible
  • Reading the Gospels to see Jesus
  • What’s so amazing about Scripture?

Theology That Matters 

  • What is the Gospel, really?
  • Our identity in Christ and why that matters to leaders
  • The person and power of the Holy Spirit
  • The spiritual power of unity in a church
  • Why money matters so much

Theological Topics For Today 

  • Pastoral integrity in an AI world
  • Sexuality and gender identity
  • Racism and Prejudice 
  • Ancestral worship and African spirituality

Understanding The AOG Group

  • Group Values, DNA and Theology

Governance

  • Board and Elder Selection
  • Governance models and legal compliance
  • How to run a great Board meeting

Finances For Church Leadership

  • Understanding income statements, balance sheets and cash flow statements
  • The art and science of budgeting