Spiritual midwife
A while back I attended a conference with Bill Easum and he shared the spiritual midwife metaphor for leadership. I've been pondering it for quite a while. Here's some of Easum's notes about being a spiritual midwife, his metaphor puts the emphasis not on what the leader accomplishes but what the leader helps others accomplish with their life.
1. Primary role is to provide an environment in which Expectants are encouraged to give birth to the potential within them.
2. Spiritual Midwives take most of their leadership clues from the expectant.
3. Spiritual Midwives work primarily with people who expect to be more than they are.
4. Spiritual Midwives spend most of their time with those most likely to carry on the vision of transformation.
5. Spiritual Midwives never ask the expectants if they wish to give birth; it is assumed. The same is true with how they relate to the church.
6. Spiritual Midwife leadership is an event that involves more than one person. Think of all the people involved in the birth of a child.
7. Spiritual Midwives exercise a strong nurturing presence before, during, and after the birth.
8. Spiritual Midwives give the new birth back to the expectant and do not take care of them.
9. Spiritual Midwives are grown, not born or made.
10. Spiritual Midwives lead by authenticity and influence.
11. Spiritual Midwives embrace change because they know it is the prelude to growth.
12. Spiritual Midwives are always servants.
13. Spiritual Midwives have a Bible in one hand and a pom-pom in the other.
14. Spiritual Midwives work in teams.
15. Spiritual Midwives void the following like the plague:
a. Barrenness - churches that refuse to grow and give birth to new ministries.
b. Abortion - churches that give birth to something new and then kill it before it has a chance to grow
c. Stillbirth - churches that spend enormous energy giving birth to a program that is already dead.
I'd read these once before. You're giving me a timely reminder: Next week I kick off a Neighborhood Group. It's part walking thru life together, part taking the Gospel to our neighbors. A "Spiritual Midwife" is a good metaphor for how I want to lead the group.
Posted by: Bald Man | August 19, 2004 at 06:04
I believed that God had spoken to me that "I am a Midwife" and then this was confirmed by a man of God who didn't really know anything about me. Also at the beginning of the year, I began meeting with two ladies and the connection had to be divine (we can't even understand it," we discovered that we are all encouragers, exhorters, have a gift of counseling (of course it continues to be cultivated), but the same man of God called me a cheerleader and I have never been called that, but what is a cheerleader except for an encourager, exhorter. I see alot above that tied both of these things together and much of the above fit me to a tee. If you have any other information pertaining to the above subject, please e-mail me. Thanks and God bless.
Posted by: Nene Tone | August 22, 2006 at 08:54
Interesting. The last two metaphors of abortion and stillbirth seem very similar. There are definitely subtle and sometimes obvious differences between the two. This can be and has been a huge point of disagreement amongst the leaders of our own church. Some would say (of a ministry that no longer exists) that it should have never been started while others would say that they killed it before it was getting good. It takes a lot of honesty and confession of motives in order to really flesh that out. It seems to me that these two have a lot to do with perspective.
The example of barrenness is also interesting because it has a lot to do with perspective.
I like the metaphor a lot. Thanks for sharing it with us. I will definitely refer to it.
Posted by: Chris Macedo | September 28, 2008 at 19:30
Interesting. The last two metaphors of abortion and stillbirth seem very similar. There are definitely subtle and sometimes obvious differences between the two. This can be and has been a huge point of disagreement amongst the leaders of our own church. Some would say (of a ministry that no longer exists) that it should have never been started while others would say that they killed it before it was getting good. It takes a lot of honesty and confession of motives in order to really flesh that out. It seems to me that these two have a lot to do with perspective.
The example of barrenness is also interesting because it has a lot to do with perspective.
I like the metaphor a lot. Thanks for sharing it with us. I will definitely refer to it.
Posted by: Chris Macedo | September 28, 2008 at 19:30
All three of my children were delivered by a Nurse Midwife. Nurse Midwives deliver babies in a hospital so you get the best of two worlds - medical technology and personal attention. Reading your blog prompted me to think of some more comparisons between Nurse Midwives and Spiritual Midwives. I really like the concept of Spiritual Midwives. Thanks for this post.
-patient
-kind
-non-traditional/ counter-cultural
-remembers you after the baby is born
-good listeners
-answer a lot of questions and calm fears
-stays with you through labor or gives you space if you want space
-calm and peaceful
-has goal of healthy birth but flexible about the labor process
Posted by: Sara | September 29, 2008 at 16:59