A good quarterback usually hands the football to someone else who is responsible to gain yardage. He will either hand off to a running back or pass to a receiver.
As a leader, always be looking for things you can hand off to someone else—and not just the awful jobs you don’t want to do. Like a good quarterback, hand off the tasks which will develop the talent in your “receivers.”
You are developing the gifts of God in them; let them take credit for the “winning touchdown.”
I hear people say, “Well, it’s a shame, but as the organization grows, you reach the limit of people’s capabilities. You have to fire them and get others in order to progress any further.”
No. That is inconsistent with the Word of God. Growing ministries or businesses do not have to reach the limit of the staff’s capabilities.
Blend your willingness to make every educational opportunity available to the people who work for you. Encourage them to develop their natural gifts and talents, and then entrust them with additional responsibilities as the Lord gives you direction.
You will see them grow into newer and larger arenas of responsibility than ever before. And as they grow, your organization will grow from within.
Excerpt permission granted by Harrison House Publishers
Mac and Lynne Hammond are senior pastors of Living Word in Brooklyn Park, Minnesota, which they started in 1980. Many outreaches and ministries have launched from Living Word since that time, including Maranatha Christian Academy, a Pre-K through grade 12 school with nearly 900 in attendance, and Living Free Recovery Services, a licensed outpatient treatment program.
Most recently, Mac and Lynne have launched a vision to plant fifty churches across the globe in the next five years. As of August 2024, nine churches have been planted in the Dominican Republic, Ireland, Venezuela, Bolivia, Colombia, and Guatemala with construction underway for seven more churches in El Salvador, Ethiopia, and the Democratic Republic of Congo.
Prior to becoming a pastor, Mac was a pilot. He served in the Air Force, served two tours of duty in Southeast Asia, and was honorably discharged in 1970 with the rank of Captain. Between 1970 and 1980, Mac was involved in varying capacities in the general aviation industry, including ownership of a successful air cargo business serving the Midwestern United States. A business acquisition brought the Hammonds to Minneapolis, where they ultimately founded Living Word. Currently, Mac is the host of The Winner’s Way and The Winner’s Minute broadcasts and the author of several internationally distributed books. Mac is broadly acclaimed for his ability to apply the principles of the Bible to practical situations and the challenges of daily living.