A journey of a thousand kilometres begins with the first step. Whether you travel by foot, or car, or plane – it all begins with the first step. Moving that one foot in front of the other. Starting that engine in your Toyota Camry. Booking an airline ticket with Flight Centre. It all begins with the first step.
All CRCA pastors are being encouraged to establish a coaching relationship for themselves to move ever closer to living a life worthy of their callings as Christian leaders in the church. But where does one start? What are the steps that one takes to establish this coaching relationship? What is the first step?
Anyone who has been in a coaching relationship realises that the first step in being coached is to identify the need. Shortly after I was engaged to be married to wife Jeannie, I wanted to build her a ‘hope chest’. At least, that is what we called it in Canada. This chest was to be a large wooden box with a hinged lid in which Jeannie would store all the gifts people would give us in the months leading up to our wedding. I wanted to make a cedar chest, knowing that it would be a really good place to store blankets, sheets, and/or other linen. But I had no idea how to build this box! I needed some coaching. Someone to tell me how to cut, glue, and assemble this cedar ‘hope chest’. Identifying the need led me to speak to our neighbour across the street. He was a carpenter who knew a thing or two how to build things from wood. And over time he coached me step by step how to build this box. This box that Jack built would not grace the front cover of any woodworking magazine – it was very rudimentary, but I had built it. And it all began with me identifying what I needed. I needed my neighbour to coach me in how to build a wooden box.
So that is the first step: identify the need. In the CRCA we have made this first step an easy one. We have identified the need – areas where our pastors need to be coached. In our denominational research, speaking with churches and church leaders, and through our church health survey work, we have noticed some patterns emerge. We have identified four areas where there is growth needed among our pastors, church leaders, and even churches in general. These are the areas of loving relationships/community, growing disciples, multiplying leaders, and reaching the lost/evangelism. We also recognize that if movement is going to take place in any or all of these areas, our pastors need some coaching. These identified needs are not an exhaustive listing of needs among our pastors. Every pastor has unique needs and he would do well to receive assistance in those areas of felt need. But the four areas we have identified are generally true; these are real needs in our churches and among our leaders where movement is necessary if we are going to be live out our mission and vision: to be a church reforming to reach the lost for Christ.
The first step is to identify the need. The second step is to decide what kind of coaching relationship you will enter into? And who with? Would it be a ministerial peer, a pastor in a neighbouring congregation (CRCA or other)? What about an elder in the church, or a wise and mature member of the congregation? Would you set up a coaching relationship with a professional counsellor? You need to decide what type of coaching is best for you at this time of your life and ministry. Talk with your board of elders or church session. Speak with some of your colleagues. Get some advice. In my first congregation I was so blessed to have George, a wise and older member of that church, coach me in my first years of pastoral ministry. I was only 25 years of age when I began fulltime ministry, and besides my youth, I had so little pastoral experience. But regularly George would meet with me – in person, on the phone – and his godly coaching helped me navigate those uncharted waters early on in ministry. That’s the second step: who would be that person that you will establish a coaching relationship with? Who would be like George to you?
The next step is to decide with your coach what shape this coaching will take. In the CRCA we again have made this step very simple by developing a series of questions that can be asked of you in your coaching relationship. This is all outlined in the coaching initiative we have called SHIFT. There are two questions for each of the four areas identified. In your coaching relationship, the coach would ask these questions of the coachee. If one decides to have a peer coaching relationship, these questions would be asked of each other. The coachee is to give a rating on a scale of 1-10 how they would rate themselves in each of these areas. It would soon become apparent through the lower ratings where the need is the greatest. The coachee is asked to consider what they could do to see movement in one or more of these four areas. What could they do to raise the score by 1 over the next 30 days? It is all about movement.
Perhaps the coachee has no idea of what they could do to improve their ratings, and that is where the coach can be of great assistance. The coach could offer ideas, discuss options, or together the coach and coachee could decide to pick up one of the resources suggested by SHIFT to stimulate growth/movement in the areas identified. An action plan needs to be established and in subsequent meetings between the pastor and his coach, progress can be monitored, encouragement given, and prayerful support offered. If the ratings do not improve the action plan(s) need to be reviewed and other options explored. The end goal is movement, to see a real shift of pastors moving ever closer to living a life worthy of our callings as Christian pastors and church leaders.
As these steps are taken to establish a coaching relationship and give it shape, a few other steps along the way are crucial to an effective coaching relationship. It is important to have a clear understanding of what is expected in this coaching relationship. While a formal written contract is not required, it is essential that both the coach and coachee establish the frequency and length of the meetings, and for what duration of time. My suggestion is that initially the meetings are monthly, and that you make a commitment for at least 6 – 12 months, with a review after that initial series of meetings. The duration of time needs to be long enough to secure movement and establish good practices. But if these meetings go on and on without a review, or an end-point, the initial purpose for this coaching relationship can easily be sidestepped by other irrelevant issues or conversations that are routine and no longer focused.
In addition to establishing upfront the expectations of the coaching relationship, at the end of the duration of time decided, the coach and coachee need to do a review of the coaching relationship. This review will look at the results expected and the progress made. At this point the coach and coachee would discuss about bringing this coaching relationship to a closure or recommitting for another length of time. If the coaching relationship is brought to a closure, this does not mean that ongoing learning and/or coaching is no longer required. We are lifelong learners, and there are always blunt edges in our ministry skills and our lives as Christ-followers that need to be sharpened. It is critical that a continuing learning plan is discussed and committed to. If the coaching relationship is renewed, then again the steps above need to be taken. What is the identified need? What shape will this coaching take? What are the expectations of this coaching relationship? And so the journey continues!
The Bible puts it like this: “As iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another.” (Proverbs 27:17) That is the real blessing/benefit of a coaching relationship. To find out more about SHIFT and how you can establish an effective coaching relationship go to http://ministryformation.com.au/resources/shift.
