by Rev. Dr. Ben Haupt

30 years ago this week, I met my wife. We were both delegates to a 4H leadership conference at the Indiana State Fair. How Indiana of us! It was fun to think back to those days meeting Celina for the first time and all we’ve traversed together since.

But that anniversary also has me thinking about my leadership journey. In many ways in elementary and high school, I didn’t have much by way of self esteem. I certainly wasn’t what one might call a “born leader.” Instead, I was shy, not at all a sports guy and therefore not so sure of myself. I played sports, of course, like every kid at my school, but I was singularly awful! I started one basketball game 8th grade year because a classmate was sick, but two minutes after the opening tipoff the coach benched me pretty much for the rest of the game (or was it the rest of the season?). In high school, I ran track freshman year. I finished dead last in every race I ran, except one when I finished second to last. Growing up in Indiana (the home of Hoosiers and Rudy), sports were pretty much everything. Since I was bad at sports, I was pretty much nothing. Teasing from classmates didn’t help matters. At some point, my parents hung a poster in my room that said, “I know I’m something because God don’t make no junk!” Many days I didn’t believe that.

That’s where leadership training came in.

During high school, for who knows what reasons, I had the opportunity to be trained as a leader through 4H, Jr ROTC at my high school, in a youth leadership program through the Chamber of Commerce, and even as a leader in my local congregation. Each of these leadership training opportunities built me into an unlikely leader. The trainers in each of these youth leadership opportunities told me that I had what it takes to be a leader. It was a transformational experience to be told that I was a leader regardless of whether I thought of myself that way. Slowly I began to believe what they were telling me. If I have in the past or will in the future accomplish anything of lasting value as a leader it was because leaders went before me and convinced me that I have what it takes.

I strongly believe, therefore, that leaders are not born but made. I believe that leadership education can be transformative even for unlikely leaders. I certainly believe that leadership training can transform pastors and local congregational leaders to accomplish Christ’s mission to the world. I’m excited to explore how PLI might partner with unlikely leaders to shape the future of Jesus’ church. If you have an idea for how you think PLI and our leadership training might benefit you, your pastor, or your congregation, shoot me an email. I have a huge heart for unlikely leaders!

After all, it was Christ our ultimate leader who made unlikely leaders out of fishermen, prostitutes, Roman centurions, Gentile business women, Jewish religious leaders, a persecutor of the church and even sinners like you and me. In baptism, Christ continues to take the most unlikely and make them into forgiven, redeemed, purpose-filled leaders for His kingdom and His mission. Praying for Him to raise up even more leaders in His harvest fields!