DEVELOPING PROBLEM – SOLVING SKILLS: Leadership Conflict And Crisis In Ministry

A General Overseer of a church ordained his younger brother as a pastor in his church. The had been together for years, but after the ordination, the younger brother started having other ideas about ministry. He started displaying some antics until he took away 8 out of ten churches of his elder brother. This led to crisis and serious conflicts. Another pastor ordained 25 deacons in the church and those deacons constituted themselves into power brokers that precipitate lots of crisis that has bedeviled that church till date.

Conflict and crisis have become the bane of many small, medium sized and large churches today. And because the are not being properly handled, the have dealt disastrous blows to the health, physical, numerical, spiritual, material, financial and extension growth of church. That is why resolution of conflicts and crisis management must be a skill every leader must possess in the church and ministry of today.

A. BIBLICAL FOUNDATION – III John 9, 10; Numbers 16: 1-3; Acts 13:6-12; Gen. 13: 5-9.

Diotrephes usurped authority and position in the church; Korah, Dathan and Abiram stood up to Moses and whipped up sentiments; Paul and Barnabas had sharp disagreements over an associate; Moses was criticized by his senior siblings and Abraham had to settle the conflicts between him and Lot. Conflicts exist in the church whenever there is serious disagreement, acrimony, contention, unresolved arguments, opposing views and strives.

1. Conflicts and crisis among and amidst church leadership.
2. Conflicts and crisis with associates and under leaders.
3. Conflicts and crisis among groups, departments and sections.
4. Conflicts and crisis among pastors, leaders, deacons and elders
5. Conflicts and crisis between churches, another church or group of churches.

Conflicts can be internal or external. Conflict is normal, natural and neutral. It is only wrong handling that leads to crisis of great proportions and stagnate things.

B. SOURCES OF CONFLICTS AND CRISIS IN MINISTRY – Acts 6: 1; Psalm 23: 4.

Yes, I quite agree that there are people that are difficult, hard to please, critics, users, disenchanted, rebels, traditionalist, pretenders and domineering in churches and they can do cause conflicts, however, most conflicts emanate from the failure of leadership.

1. When leaders break trust with people – scandals, immoral, misappropriations, lying.
2. Relations and family members as associates
3. Wrong foundation of starting the church crisis.
4. Surrendering authority to foundation members and partners.
5. Treating serious issues with kid’s gloves
6. Double standard in dealing with cases
7. Secrecy about financial matters.
8. Ordaining too many associates
9. Surrounding yourself with disloyal, double – faced and disenchanted people.
10. Vengeful transfers, injustice in administration and favouritism
11. Incapable, ineffective and incompetent pastors/ leaders.
12. Failure to teach and emphasize the balanced word of God and enforce discipline.
13. Machinations of the devil through misunderstanding and misinterpretations

It is always my contention that outside persecution doesn’t kill churches, it is only internal crisis that does. Crisis is an effective strategy of Satan to incapacitate churches; when you are so focused on them, you forget outreach.

Recommended Reading
The Heart And Hurts Of A True Spiritual Leader
Top Ten Lessons from the Life of Eve
Christian Journey:Purpose Of Trials

C. HOW CONFLICTS ARE BEING HANDLED IN MINISTRY

Historically, man church leaders have not been prepared adequately to handle conflict and they have snowballed into crisis that engulfed in the churches.

1. Fearfulness, jittery and panicking.
2. Cold wars and holding malice
3. Ignoring – pretending as if they don’t exist
4. Going to mountain to pray ‘fall down and die’ prayers.
5. Fire to fire in the pulpit and pews – civil wars – open conflict. using administration
6. using administration and executive fiat to decree solution.
7. Inability to confront that leads to much damage.
8. Surrendering leadership to lower forces.
9. Factions, camp and divisions among the people.
10. Keeping silent – hoping it would go away by itself.

No matter what you do, conflicts will come in ministry; it all depends on how you handle them. If you don’t stop the drizzle, it will soon become a flood. Conflicts have snowballed into raging fire of crisis that has consumed the peace, progress, growth, expansion, vitality, spiritual health and leadership of many churches. It leads to continuous manifestation of disunity, cold wars, suspicion, grudges, malice, infighting, envy, jealousies, abuses, strives, bickering and every evil work in the church.

D. RESOLVING CONFLICTS AND CRISIS IN MINISTR – Phil. 1:8, 10; Col. :13-15.

Conflict is natural, combat is optional. Take the option of resolving conflicts in ministry. The best way to solve many problems is to confront them.

1. First seek for God’s help, assistance and guidance.
2. Don’t be ashamed to ask for outside ministerial counsel and help
3. Repent of your own anger, mistakes and weaknesses.
4. Confront the issues with wisdom, humility and frankness.
5. Admits your faults and apologize, where possible.
6. Initiate the contact. Call people to make things right.
7. Compromise on opinions, not on principle. Be flexible with everything accept the truth.