After awhile without writing, I felt the need to get back to it… only to realize I needed to finish Part 3!  The truth is, inviting people to our team (Pt. 1) and allowing them to share the experience (Pt. 2) can almost be easy for some leaders, especially those who are extroverts and natural “includers.” The true test of leadership, and the test of how well you as a leader have prepared those you lead, is when and how you release them into their calling.

WHEN is a big deal!  We have to be aware of how important timing is, the effects it can have on the experience, and impression it leaves on us for the rest of our lives.  I’ve seen people be released into leadership to early, only to be set up for failure because they aren’t prepared.  It’s easy to talk about the success of Paul and Timothy, but Paul also had an issue with timing in letting John Mark join his team before he was ready (Acts 12:25). The other side is waiting too long.  Proverbs 13:12 says “Hope deferred makes the heart sick.”  No one wants to keep hearing that their time will come “some day” only to never have that “some day” come.  The leader must be wise with the “when.”

There is a lot to be said in HOW you release leaders as well. The book of 1 Timothy is practically a leadership manual mixed with practical advice and encouragement.  Paul didn’t just send out Timothy to a random city and say “good luck!” He set him up in Ephesus and transferred authority to young Timothy.  You can’t tell me that it didn’t speak volumes to Timothy that Paul continued to invest in him.  It wasn’t just planted and left, but it was planted and mentored through for success.

And the last thing is to remember that it is our role as leaders to be seeking what is God’s plan for THEIR lives, not what makes our own lives easier. Timothy was obviously extremely talented and could have been highly valuable if he would have stayed with Paul, but Paul was more concerned about Timothy’s calling, and ultimately the advancement of the Gospel, than he was about his own comfort.

Leaders must call people up, share their platform to develop those around them, and release them in the right time, the right way, and to the right place.