New Heart Nation Issue 1 | Page 14

LEADING FROM THE HEART Why these Australian Pastors hold national conferences that bring about a Heart Revolution Why hold a conference on the subject of the Heart Revolution? Well, for some time the Lord has been speaking quite loudly to us about implementing a strategic cultural shift within our own church at a leadership level that will ensure a significant impact upon the heart of our entire church culture. The depth of what God does in the heart of leaders holds the greatest promise for the transformation of the church. As cultural architects, leaders have the privilege of creating a culture that intentionally carries people in the direction of building community in a manner that fully reflects the core values articulated by Jesus. There can be no doubt that Jesus called His disciples to do life together in community from the heart and not from a functional, performance-based paradigm. This lies at the heart of Jesus’ prayer for supernatural oneness in John 17. The core value of ‘living from the heart’ reflected in the entire body of Jesus’ teaching was powerfully juxtaposed against the prevailing religious paradigm of His day that placed the focus upon outward appearance. As we have journeyed together in church life we have reached the conviction that we must relentlessly battle against this inevitable drift into a functional performance culture that looks good on the outside but which lacks the centrality of really doing relationships with one another from the heart. Page 14 If the leadership cu