Problem with outsider-designed curriculum:
- Many leaders depend on foreign training material.
- Outsiders lack a full understanding of local culture, language, history, and context.
- Curriculum from one place rarely fits another (like Saul’s armour didn’t fit David).
Value of local ownership:
- Example: Asian church leaders treasured a book written by one of their own, even if “better” foreign books existed.
- Locally created resources = greater ownership, relevance, and effectiveness.
Approach to leader development:
- Don’t provide a finished product—equip leaders to design their own.
- Teach principles that are biblical, holistic, practical, flexible, and actionable.
Models (5C and 4D) help leaders:
- Articulate what they already know intuitively.
- Expose gaps in current practice.
- Provide a systematic, holistic framework.
- Legitimise relational/spiritual aspects (not just academics).
- Stay adaptable to culture and context.
- Offer a way to evaluate life transformation, not just knowledge.
Encouragement to leaders:
- Start designing learning experiences, the smallest ones.
- Don’t wait for perfection—experiment, adapt, share what works.
- Growth comes through practice.
- Healthy leaders build healthy leaders—and that can change nations.