Tension
Let me share one of the realizations or revelations I've come to in recent weeks. NCC is getting more and more complicated. As you add more personalities to a staff you better expect more tension. It is normal and natural.
The tectonic plates of our church structure are shifting as we go from individuals working with individuals to departments working with departments. I am committed to keeping us a movement, but you have to add systems and policies and charts to keep things organized. You can't make case-by-case decisions every time. You have to set precedent and create policy so you don't make the same decision over and over and over again! And the danger is depersonalization. So you live with this tension: task-orientation versus people-orientation!
We just added our fourth location. And here is what I'm coming to terms with: more locations = more tension! As a multi-site church, we have a two-dimension organizational chart. We have a horizontal and vertical dimension with our point pastors and ministry coordinators. That is challenging. It is often confusing and frustrating. But it is what it is. And if we continue to launch more locations, we'll experience even more tension.
So here is what I've come to terms with: I need to embrace the tension. It will never go away. In fact, it is actually a sign of health. In musical terms, it is the tension of the string that makes music.
No tension,no music!
The tectonic plates of our church structure are shifting as we go from individuals working with individuals to departments working with departments. I am committed to keeping us a movement, but you have to add systems and policies and charts to keep things organized. You can't make case-by-case decisions every time. You have to set precedent and create policy so you don't make the same decision over and over and over again! And the danger is depersonalization. So you live with this tension: task-orientation versus people-orientation!
We just added our fourth location. And here is what I'm coming to terms with: more locations = more tension! As a multi-site church, we have a two-dimension organizational chart. We have a horizontal and vertical dimension with our point pastors and ministry coordinators. That is challenging. It is often confusing and frustrating. But it is what it is. And if we continue to launch more locations, we'll experience even more tension.
So here is what I've come to terms with: I need to embrace the tension. It will never go away. In fact, it is actually a sign of health. In musical terms, it is the tension of the string that makes music.
No tension,no music!
2 Comments:
Interesting food for thought mark. I'll probably need to unpack this one a while before I truly decide how much I agree with the idea that tension is a natural part of the process of sustaining growth, and indeed of health. I'm certainly not saying it is not a factor, but I don't know if it truly is something we have to continually live with.
Joseph,
It's definitely not tension all the time :) But I'm convinced the tension never goes away and it is part of "counting the cost" of growth and leadership.
I do think tension is normal, natural, and healthy. It's sort of like stress. There is bad stress--distress. And there is good stress--eustress.
For what it's worth, I also believe that truth is found in the tension of opposities--like Grace and Truth or free will and the sovereignty of God.
Mark
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