When God Births a Movement

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To be successful, movements need the talents of strategists, catalysts, and activists.

Summary

In this article, David Broodryk, the Director for Accelerate Global and the Director for Global Urban Ministry for New Generations, describes three key roles or giftings that are needed for a movement to thrive:

  • The Strategist
  • The Catalyst
  • The Activist

These same roles and giftings are needed in networks and partnerships as well.

The Strategist: They help us identify the right types of activities and priorities to focus on. By themselves, their plans and strategies fail to move forward.

The Catalyst: They are great at starting things and bringing the people and resources needed to get something started. Alone their efforts are often unsustainable.

The Activist: They keep things moving and provide the emotional energy and passion needed to sustain a collaborative effort. Alone, they can lose focus and direction.

Alone these leaders usually see marginal results. Together, leaders with these different gifts can see powerful movements form.

David also discusses why these roles are often overlooked.

Reflection Questions

  • Which role or roles best describe you?
  • Think back to an experience where something never took off. Which of these roles might have been missing?
  • Which members of your network might fit these roles?
  • How might you encourage individuals with these gifts to be more active and visible in your network or movement?

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