[This is a series designed to bring you into the the unique APE stories of each writer on this blog. We hope each one of you can find a little of your APE story inside of one of us. Read the other stories]

I had never thought of myself as a planter, let alone an apostolic leader.

I came of age as a spiritual leader in something of a “mega” campus ministry at Central College. It was the late 90’s, and the seeker-sensitive movement was gaining traction. In the space of a few short years, our InterVarsity chapter had grown from about 100 to averaging over 400 students a week (over 25% of the campus). We had the best worship band on campus, thoroughly relevant teaching, a compelling vision to grow, and a culture of invitation–we soon outgrew our room and had to find a different place to meet. I remember the crowd gathered for my first talk as a staff with InterVarsity. The room sat 625, it was standing room only, and I realized I was way over my head!

Go Plant

Three years later, ministry was still humming along. Our chapter was running about 350 students, we had seen more than 40 students come to faith over the course of the year, and our community had hosted a 24.7 prayer room for an entire semester (over 2,500 hours). On the outside, we were one of the largest, most fruitful InterVarsity chapters in the country, but on the inside, I was frustrated, tired, and restless. Was any of this effort making a real difference in the lives of students? Were students actually being transformed or just entertained? How long could I keep running the machinery of this ministry?

I remember talking with my mentor, Jason, about the year, and he suggested I should consider a new assignment to try start something new on a different campus nearby–I’d never thought about leaving my alma mater (I still love that place!) but he saw what the ministry was doing to my soul. Though I’d not realized it fully; he saw with clarity that I needed a change and that I should try my hand at planting.

I’d never once thought about planting elsewhere, but as I hit the pavement at a new campus, God started to confirm Jason’s words. Though I’d never had the language for it, as I planted a new chapter and started reflecting on my history as a student, I began to see that my leadership had always been marked what you could call “apostolic instincts”:

• At least as much due to arrogance as vision, I suggested to my freshman small group of six guys that we should disband and try to start three new groups in our own neighborhoods on campus. A buddy and I decided to start a new bible study in a men’s dorm on the stirring topics of the coming apocalypse foretold in the first three chapters of Revelation and how to date according to Song of Solomon (no joke).
• Sophomore year, I found myself starting a handful of mini-bible studies for my non-Christian friends across my dorm. I remember using the last scene of The Matrix–the one where Neo explodes the agent–as one of my key lessons about how Jesus overcame Satan’s temptation in Mark 1!
• As a junior, I helped start a men’s accountability network called “David’s Mighty Men”, after our first year, I again decided we should disband our group of ten and launch five new groups across campus.

As I struggled through the first year of a brand-new plant on a brand-new campus (with the shadow of my mega-chapter 15 miles down the road!) God started to bring something to life in me that I now recognize as an apostolic gifting.

The Apostolic Stirring

I still have so much to learn about what it means to be an apostolic leader, but since I started “planting” five years ago at William Penn University, I’ve had the distinct privilege to try and architect planting movements across Iowa and now the Central US (Iowa, Kansas, Missouri, and Nebraska). I’ve made a ton of mistakes along the way (some of which I’ll share about in this blog!), but I have learned some things about what it means to be an apostolic leader (at least on our best days!):

• Apostles are responsive to the person and work of Jesus. For all our plans, drive, and initiative, what’s most important in our leadership is that we recognize and respond to what Jesus is doing.
• When we see God on the move, apostles do all we can to add fuel to the fire–catalyzing moments into movements. We believe every seeker, every Christian, every community, and every network is pregnant with possibilities: seeds that carry within them a forest.
• Apostles are compelled to innovate for the sake of what is not yet–rather than starting with what is, we being with what isn’t: we carry a unique bias for the unreached places, the untried idea, and the unconsidered alternative. We’ll do anything (however risky or uncertain) to break new ground.
• Apostles architect culture to reinforce the movement. Since we’re often “translocal”, one of the primary ways we influence is through the kind of “movement environment” we create: what we celebrate, the stories we tell, the ideas we resource, and the people we platform.
• Apostles are always looking to empower others to do what they are doing. Instead of creating a “wheel” where every spoke leads to them, apostolic leaders try to create an interconnected “web” where the network is the expert.
• Apostles are fundamentally a sent and sending people. We lead because Jesus, the original sent one, has sent us–we lead on the authority of an integrated and embodied life. Further, we are constantly sending: resources, ideas, and people. We refuse to cling to what’s not ours and release everything at our disposal for the mission of Jesus.

So, what about you? What traces of “apostolic instinct” can you find in your past? How would you describe the marks of apostolic leadership?

[This is a series designed to bring you into the the unique APE stories of each writer on this blog. We hope each one of you can find a little of your APE story inside of one of us. Read the other stories]

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