Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,
Nearly everyone in the corporate world has heard of Lean, which comes from the Toyota Production System, and which dramatically accelerated the performance of Toyota and countless other companies. Due to its impact, Lean has spread from automobiles to aircraft to nearly every industry. But it is not so well known and even less practiced in nonprofits and NGOs, let alone churches. In our article What Christian Leaders can Learn from Lean, Professor Don Pope of Abilene Christian University and I identify and explore seven similarities between the principles of Lean and Christianity. These similarities reveal that Lean has discovered some fundamental truths about growth that are already familiar to believers. Because of this, Christian Leaders should not consider Lean something foreign or only relevant for business, but can readily accept and apply Lean in their work (whether a business, ministry or church). Furthermore, we argue that Lean reminds Christian leaders of these biblical principles for spiritual growth that they may have forgotten or neglected.
I hope and pray:
- You will find this insightful analysis to be another evidence of the manifold wisdom of God gifted to us in the Bible.
- It will also encourage you and others to embark on a Lean transformation journey in your work.
- You will renew your walk with God by strengthening the Christian parallels in your life
I’ll be glad to hear your feedback.
Blessings,
Andrew