Lessons learned from my Mars Hill experience!

Due to what’s currently going on with a lawsuit being filed, and Mark Driscoll starting a church in Phoenix on Easter Sunday, I felt it would be good to repost this, which I originally posted on October 8th of 2014.

Hopefully we can all learn from what happened in (and with) Mars Hill Church and aquire a heart of wisdom in our respective callings, ministries and churches. 

“Then I saw and considered it; I looked and received instruction.”

Proverb 24:32 ESV

For the record, I regularly pray for Dave Bruskas, Sutton Turner and Mark Driscoll as well as many of the pastors and leaders I had the joy of working with during my years at Mars Hill; praying for repentance, reconciliation, restoration and healing!

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I spent eight years as a pastor at Mars Hill Church, both in Seattle and here in Orange County CA where my wife, Susan, and I now live. There were some good-to-great things that happened and some sad/bad things that happened during those eight years. I have reflected a great deal about my years on staff since leaving. I want to share four lessons I’ve learned (and continue to learn) and am applying to my current leadership responsibilities and opportunities.

These observations are mine, and mine alone. Some may not agree with my conclusions and they are certainly welcome to their opinions. These observations form an acrostic for ACTS.

One more thing before I jump into the ACTS. The observations and lessons learned came mostly from my experience at Mars Hill; but as I read about what’s currently going on in Christian leadership as well as what I’m learning in my coaching of leaders at other churches, I’ve come to understand that my experiences at Mars Hill are not unique.

What I saw first-hand while on staff at Mars Hill is still happening in other churches and Christian ministries around the country/world.

If I have one regret, it is that I didn’t speak up more often and sooner than I did.

1.  ACCOUNTABLE

There were numerous situations and instances where top leaders had almost no accountability in their lives and ministries.  They had it on paper, but not in practice. The tough questions were not asked. There wasn’t a willingness to defer to others on staff who had experience and wisdom. A certain degree of pride and arrogance set in and ruled a lot of the time. There wasn’t an openness to being genuinely accountable to others for attitudes and behaviors that were sinful and harmful.

2.  CONFESSIONAL

Sin was committed over a number of years (in clear violation of I Timothy 3, Titus 1 and I Peter 5), but that sin was not adequately owned and confessed.  There was a good amount of excuse-making and blame-casting. We didn’t have a confessional culture where the leaders who were confronted accepted responsibility for their sin.

3.  TEACHABLE

Top-level leaders were not open to receiving honest inquiries from other pastors on staff. Decisions were not discussed but rather announced with very little dialogue or input. There was a defensiveness when an idea or direction was questioned or challenged.  Asking good questions, listening well and being on the hunt for new and better ideas and ways of doing things was not a part of the culture.

4.  SUSTAINABLE

The pace of ministry and functioning in crises mode a good deal of the time, due to hurried and last minute decisions without time to think through and adequately process things, resulted in a lot of exhaustion and an unhealthy work-life balance.

The speed at which things happened and the lack of time to make better decisions was an unsustainable model. The principle of Sabbath was very much absent with people working insane hours at an unsustainable pace.

There were many on staff who experienced, or were on the verge of, burnout a lot of the time. We survived on the adrenalin rush, which hurt and harmed people. The pace and the work environment was unsustainable, unhealthy and unwise.

As l live my own life as a leader and as I coach other leaders, I am much more aware of doing what I can to make sure there is:

1.  Good and genuine accountability, coupled with vulnerability and transparency.

2.  A clear value in keeping short accounts, with sin being quickly confessed and owned.

3.  An attitude of being teachable and open to new ideas and ways of thinking.

4.  A culture of pacing that is realistic and sustainable, resulting in good morale and joy.

It is my prayer that the Lord of the Harvest will use these simple observations to convict, convince and correct leaders who may be heading down an unhealthy road and prevent them from making these same mistakes again!

As always your feedback is welcome! Use the section below to make a comment!