Leadership Development Isn't Staffing. It's Multiplying Disciples.

Our Road to Elevate series continues with a conversation for every pastor who feels like they're the only one holding their ministry together. Darrel Girardier sits down with Roger Severino, Brentwood Baptist's Minister of Leadership Development, to talk about how churches of any size can intentionally identify, equip, and send the next generation of ministry leaders, a conversation you'll get to dig into further at the Elevate Church Conference on September 21 and 22, 2026. Roger and Darrel work through why leadership development is bigger than training staff, the five characteristics Roger looks for before he asks anyone to lead, and what he calls "the filling holes problem," the trap that keeps ministries stuck reacting instead of developing leaders ahead of need. They close with what ten residency cohorts have taught Brentwood Baptist about giving young leaders enough runway to actually grow. In this episode, you’ll learn: - Why leadership development is bigger than training staff members: Roger defines it as identifying, equipping, and deploying people into spiritual service, whether that's a staff role or a Sunday morning volunteer post - The mind shift every minister needs from Ephesians 4:11-12: whatever your role, you're in the people-development business, and your ministry area is just the context where you do it The five characteristics Roger looks for before he asks someone to step into leadership: character, competencies, commitment, calling, and culture - What Roger calls "the filling holes problem," and why waiting until a ministry spot is empty to look for a leader keeps churches stuck in survival mode - Why leadership development isn't about delegating what you don't want to do. It starts with modeling the work yourself, then giving away even the things you enjoy - What ten residency cohorts have taught Brentwood Baptist about how much runway young leaders actually need to grow into their own ministry - Why stretching the residency from one year to two years didn't require more upfront teaching. It required a longer on-ramp to hands-on ministry The three questions Roger tells every church to answer before starting a residency: what do you want them to know, who do you want them to be, and what do you want them to do Meet the Guests - Roger Severino is the Minister of Leadership Development at Brentwood Baptist, where he oversees the church's ministry residency and has walked with 10 cohorts of residents through two years of hands-on ministry training. - Darrel Girardier is the Executive Director of Ministry Resources at Brentwood Baptist, where he oversees the team and resources that help equip pastors and ministry leaders across the church.