ENGAGE – AC3’S LEADERSHIP PATHWAY

If you have a desire to grow and develop your leadership gifts at AC3, Engage may be your next step!

A prominent church leader once made this motto famous: “The Church is the hope of the world, and its future rests in the hands of its leaders.” While we know that the grace of Jesus is the hope of the world, and that the Church’s future rests in the hands of the One who promised it would endure (Matthew 16:18), the pastor was certainly right about this:

At the core, leadership development is of critical importance to the Church.

The future belongs to those who show up for it. And if no one in a local church is developed and trained to overseer that Church in the future, it cannot prevail. So, Paul taught the critical importance of succession of Church leadership to his young apprentice when he said: “what you have heard from me… entrust to reliable people who will in turn be able to pass them on to others.” (2 Tim 2:2)

ENGAGE Leadership Pathway puts the goal of a prevailing, sustainable, cross generational church at the heart of AC3’s culture. And we are excited to see, since its inauguration in 2024, 25 new young leaders unleashed into the life of AC3, taking up the mantle of our mission to reach and to teach.

We are especially excited about the relational backbone of ENGAGE. Too often developing leaders is exclusively a knowledge dump affair. Obviously, knowledge is required to understand the Church before one can lead the Church. But ENGAGE begins with a relationship between a mentor and a mentee who are paired to travel the leadership development journey together.

ENGAGE is built on this relationship, where, in one-on-one meetings, the mentee is loved and challenged in their growth and in the deployment of their gifts in the Church. These mentees gather monthly with a group of leaders and other trainees in exploring how the Church ought to be led. Mentees are also challenged with monthly personal assignments that push the boundaries of their spiritual habits and knowledge in order that they open their heart to the call of Jesus, to expand their maturity in being like Jesus, and to grow in their followership of Jesus.

In the end, the goal of ENGAGE is that young leaders experience the Church in new ways so that they are prepared to lead and shepherd the Church in new ways.