Multiplying Leaders Exponentially, Oscar Muriu

Oscar Muriu is the Senior Pastor of Nairobi Chapel, Kenya. Under his leadership, Nairobi Chapel has grown from a 40-person church to a network of 30 churches with more than 14,000 worshipers coming every week. Muriu is an effective and passionate developer of leaders. Here are excerpts from his talk, "5 Convictions of Leadership Development."

1. The more harvesters, the greater the harvest.

Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few;therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest.” Matthew 9:37-38 ESV

As Jesus pointed out to his disciples, the problem was not the size of the potential harvest, but the lack of harvesters. Leaders must be convinced that an essential focus of their leadership is raising up more leaders.

2. Surround yourself with younger leaders.

So even to old age and gray hairs,O God, do not forsake me,

until I proclaim your might to another generation,your power to all those to come.  Psalm 71:18 ESV

• Leaders must always be thinking of the next generation.
• Surround yourself with younger leaders.
• We must build a leadership engine that outlives us.

3. Identify the budding leaders around you and take them to the Lord in prayer.

Moses heard the people weeping throughout their clans, everyone at the door of his tent. And the anger of the Lord blazed hotly, and Moses was displeased.Moses said to the Lord, “Why have you dealt ill with your servant? And why have I not found favor in your sight, that you lay the burden of all this people on me?Did I conceive all this people? Did I give them birth, that you should say to me, ‘Carry them in your bosom, as a nurse carries a nursing child,’ to the land that you swore to give their fathers? ... I am not able to carry all this people alone; the burden is too heavy for me....Then the Lord said to Moses, “Gather for me seventy men of the elders of Israel, whom you know to be the elders of the people and officers over them, and bring them to the tent of meeting, and let them take their stand there with you. Numbers 11:10-16 ESV

• Moses already had 70 leaders who were near him.
• Some of your best leaders might be right under your nose.
• Who are your "70," your up-and-coming leaders?
• Leaders must identify potential leaders.
• Develop your "Hit List"
• Pray that list of leaders into the ministry.

4. Instill the five loves into your budding leaders.

And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’The second is this: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these.”And the scribe said to him, “You are right, Teacher. You have truly said that he is one, and there is no other besides him.And to love him with all the heart and with all the understanding and with all the strength, and to love one's neighbor as oneself, is much more than all whole burnt offerings and sacrifices.” Mark 12:30-33 ESV

• Love the Lord with all your heart (Character)
• Love the Lord with all your soul (Conviction)
• Love the Lord with all your mind (Comprehension)
• Love the Lord with all your strength (Competence)
• Love your neighbor as yourself (Compassion)

5. Never do ministry alone.

Now when they saw the boldness of Peter and John, and perceived that they were uneducated, common men, they were astonished. And they recognized that they had been with Jesus. Acts 4:13 ESV

• Always take someone with you.
• Let younger leaders learn by observing you.
• Who will you take with you?

The more harvesters you have, the larger  your harvest will be.

Here's my big takeaway. What's yours?

I need to develop a "Hit List" of potential leaders and pray them into the ministry. I have started that list.

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Note: I filled in some of the gaps from my notes with help from Tommy Bowman, Paul Alexander, and Paul Steinbrueck. Much gratitude to them. You can click on their names to access their blogs.