Leading Change.

Bobby is the lead pastor of Chapel in Florence, Alabama. Chapel is a growing contemporary church that Gospel-centered, Word-based, Spirit-empowered, and discipleship-focused. 

He has led the church through a transition from the founding pastor of 35 years to his leadership and revitalization. He has navigated the pitfalls of leadership succession and transition and has lived to tell about it! He loves to help other leaders and pastors navigate transition by sharing his lessons and experience with those who want to honor God through their leadership.

Here is some of his leadership philosophy.

Leadership is not a science but an art. It begins with a genuine care for whom you are following—Jesus—and a genuine care for who you are leading. Leadership is awakening the possibilities within other people and then helping them to achieve those possibilities. Leaders cast vision by awakening the organization to what God desires and what the future will look like.

Leaders add value to those they lead. Value is given by giving people your time, your resources, and your knowledge. As a leader, you can add value to others by sharing your life with them so that they can see that what you say is authentic and truly matches your life. You can connect people to other people you know who have the resources and knowledge to help them become who they desire to be or to do what they desire to do. You can also add value by sharing successes as a team but also taking the responsibility for failures or losses.

Leaders create environments where other leaders and followers can grow and reach their God-given potential. Leaders design and implement structures where people can flourish in their giftings and talents. Leaders must also oversee that structure to maintain the efficiency of the structure and the health and balance of the people within the structure.

Leaders set a standard and then help develop people to grow in order to reach that standard. Leaders must set goals organizationally and also for individuals and then do everything within their power to help those people obtain the standards that are set.

Here is his philosophy of preaching & teaching.

I am a teacher. I don’t believe teaching is something that you do. I believe it is who you are. I preach and teach through the sermons I teach, the co ee conversations I have, the way I value people, the way I live my life, and the way I love my family. I believe Jesus taught not just by the words He spoke but by the way He lived His life and interacted with people.

I approach the Bible with a very high view. I do not view it as just a resource to living a better life but as our main revelation of who Jesus is. Every time I speak I want to make Jesus known and challenge myself and others to be more like Him. Our purpose after being saved is to become more like Jesus in every area and every day (Romans 8:29).

When I preach I don’t just want to tell the story of Jesus, His purpose, and His ways; I want to bring Him to life to the people I am teaching. I aspire to connect each person I am teaching to the Word of God by connecting them to the heart of the story and how they t into the redemptive plan of Jesus. As people we have multiple senses so I try to use as many senses as possible to connect people to the Word. My approach tends to focus on the mind rst and then the heart or the emotions.

I believe the greatest teachers are the ones who help lead people to a conclusion rather than giving them their own conclusion. It falls in the line of the old proverb: if you give a man a fish he will eat for a day, but if you teach him how to sh he will eat for a lifetime. I desire to teach in a way that motivates the people I am teaching to become hungrier for Jesus and His Word. I also believe that good preachers preach like lawyers, while great preachers preach like witnesses. I desire to preach like a witness.

I personally believe that the church’s purpose is to make disciple-making disciples. When I teach, I challenge people to become greater disciples, and I am becoming a greater disciple-maker by weaving discipleship throughout my message. I also interweave the vision of the church, the redemptive work of Jesus, and the grace of God into every message.