Part 2 in series “What I’ve Learned as a Leader” by Steve Long, Catch The Fire Toronto Ambassador
How Our Culture Evolved
The first person I heard say, "culture eats strategy for breakfast," business leader Eric Peterson, who has since become a friend of mine. He spoke to the leadership team of Catch the Fire World on culture. The backstory is four years ago, John and Carol Arnott, our founding pastors, merged the two organizations they oversaw as apostles. Partners in Harvest was a large gathering of independent churches that loved revival. It was a relational network of churches and ministries that was global. The Arnott's also oversaw a smaller network of Catch the Fire branded churches, of which Toronto was the "mother ship." John And Carol made the decision to join both networks to become one. After six months of bringing leaders together from each group, prayer, strategies, etc., a new group to be called Catch The Fire Partners was about to emerge. Catch The Fire Partners would be formed as an apostolic network, led by an apostolic team, called Catch The Fire World. We gathered the apostolic team for a week to discuss strategy and implementation. Duncan Smith, whom John and Carol asked to be the President of this new group, brought in some business leaders to help us in the process. Eric Peterson was one of them. He and his wife, Cindy, own the largest fireplace company in the western half of the USA. His success comes from being a savvy businessperson and a person who listens to the Holy Spirit. to Holy Spirit. Eric said to us the culture of Catch The Fire Partners will be the culture of Catch The Fire Partners would be more important than the strategy. We should be focusing on building people rather than a well-run organization. That phrase "culture eats strategy for breakfast" got to me, as I love strategy. But here is a godly business leader saying something else is more important. That got Sandra and I thinking, so we began talking with our leadership team here in Toronto about culture. We had several staff meetings discussing developing a culture of people to look and behave in a way congruent to what God has given us here at Catch The Fire Toronto. The list of kingdom values, character, and integrity topics was long. We needed to simplify this. We tasked a team to clarify what Catch the Fire Toronto's culture should be based on the feedback from our staff, and what they were hearing from God in that season. The team was headed up by leaders:
Gordon Harris (School of Ministry Director)
Lillian Brown (Supernatural Director)
Jonathan Clarke (former Worship Pastor)
Natalie Gingerich (Staff Care Director)
Ben Jackson (former Executive Director)
Dallas Wigston (Worship Pastor)
Our Cultural Values
Our Culture Team came up with seven statements our staff, our leadership, and hopefully everyone who is a part of our church family, lives by. For almost everyone reading this blog, this will be your first time seeing the seven statements in writing. Most likely, you will have heard these cultural values shared via our sermons and, more importantly, seen in action by our leaders and staff. Reading the list below, I hope our church family feels "this is us!"
Stay humble, be teachable. We put off all forms of pride and arrogance, seeking to elevate one another rather than ourselves. We are teachable, embracing curiosity, growth, and a life of learning. We prefer to ask questions rather than assume we have the answers. We are selfless and supportive, giving ourselves in service to one another.
Do the right thing. We demonstrate integrity, choosing godliness over comfort. We take accountability for our decisions. We are unafraid of ownership and apologize when we make mistakes. We are willing to be seen. We practice transparency, authenticity, and consistency. We resist compromise by consistently checking the purity of our motives.
Care about people. We proactively build relationships within our team. We use clear and kind communication, considering and validating the feelings of others. In conflict, we keep the relationship bigger than the problem. We foster environments of warmth, care, and connection with one another. We extend compassion and generosity in all of our interactions. We believe the best in one another, intentionally cultivating trust rather than withholding.
Get there together. We accomplish more together than we can apart. We honour the value and expertise each person brings. We seek to understand one another, recognizing the uniqueness and diversity of each person. We practice inclusivity, making space for every team member to be known and celebrated. We celebrate cultural diversity. We win or lose as a team.
Be clear, eliminate confusion. We leave no room for confusion in our communication. We pursue mutual understanding. We are polite and courteous in our interactions and committed to building a safe and caring environment. We always demonstrate respect and value for each other in moments of confrontation. We communicate fully to enable understanding, trusting each other to handle the truth.
Hold nothing back. We exude passion for God and His Kingdom. We care deeply about our mission, rejecting apathy and embracing passion. We take bold risks to fulfill the vision even at the cost of our personal comfort and security. We pursue creativity and innovation, overcoming the fear of failure. We stay positive, hopeful, and solution-oriented. We pursue excellence and care about the details, desiring to do everything well. We have fun and take time to celebrate victories, failures, risks, and each other. We question behaviours and decisions that are inconsistent with our vision and values. We commit to brave and honest communication.
Stop and pray. Our team exists only by the direction and grace of God. Therefore, we stay sensitive to the Holy Spirit and submit to his leadership in everything. We seek after the heart of God and make decisions based on hearing his voice. We approach every situation with prayer and thankfulness. Catch the Fire Toronto is what we are today because of these cultural values. They are all Bible-based, exemplified in the life of Jesus, and taught and modelled throughout our Bible.
This is who we are and seek to be. Culture eats strategy for breakfast!
Steve Long is the former Senior Leader of Catch the Fire Toronto. He and his wife Sandra led the church for 16 years and have been on staff since 1994. They now function as Ambassadors on behalf of the church. He is the author of several books, including The Faith Zone and My Healing Belongs to Me. Steve and his wife Sandra serve on two apostolic teams; one for the City of Toronto and Catch The Fire World. They live in Oakville, Ontario, Canada.
