LESSONS FROM A PARKING GARAGE WALL. Why Christian Leaders Were Never Meant to Lead Alone.

LISTEN

A few years ago, I had the privilege of helping plan the very first Leadership Summit for the Association of Christian Administrators (ACA) in Phoenix. It was an exciting season—vision meetings, speaker calls, schedule drafts, sponsor conversations, prayers over details both big and small. We weren’t just organizing another conference. We were asking the Lord to knit together Christian school administrators from across the country into something deeper than a professional network. We were praying for community. What we didn’t know at the time, however, was that one of the most powerful lessons about community would happen after dark, and it involved a parking garage wall.

When we began planning that first Leadership Summit, the burden was clear. Christians who happen to be school administrators often serve in isolation. We knew there were plenty of us in the profession. The struggle was finding a way for us to connect.

School administrators carry weighty responsibilities—academic leadership, parent expectations, financial pressures, staff morale, government regulations. They make decisions that affect thousands of students and families. However, many of them feel alone in those decisions. Public school administrators are accustomed to having district networks and state associations. These are all important, but for those school leaders who profess Christ as the source of our leadership, there are very few opportunities to connect.

We wanted the Summit to be more than breakout sessions and keynote speakers. We wanted it to be a place where leaders could exhale. We desired a place where they could say, “You too?” and hear, “Yes, we’re walking this road together.” That kind of fellowship doesn’t happen automatically. It requires intentionality and sometimes, apparently, a small amount of adventure.

After a long day of meetings (i.e., finalizing room layouts, reviewing technology set-ups, rehearsing the flow of sessions) a small group of us headed back to the hotel. We were tired but encouraged. The event was coming together beautifully. The Phoenix air had cooled just enough to make walking pleasant. We chose what we believed was the most direct route back to the hotel. Confident. Decisive. We were, after all, leadership summit planners.

About ten minutes into our walk, we realized something was off. The street signs didn’t look familiar. The hotel lights were nowhere to be seen. The GPS on someone’s phone seemed determined to reroute us into increasingly questionable alleyways. What had begun as a purposeful stride slowly turned into a collective, “Wait! Are we sure this is right?”

Now, you have to understand something about school administrators. We are used to being the ones with answers. We solve problems. We direct traffic. We handle crises. We do not get lost. However, there we were. Eventually, we spotted what looked like a shortcut through a parking garage. It seemed simple enough—cut through, come out on the other side, and we would be right at the hotel. Except we weren’t.

We exited the garage only to find ourselves facing a chest high concrete wall separating us from where we needed to be. We could see the hotel lights just beyond it. So close. At this point, laughter had replaced frustration. There’s something about shared incompetence that builds rapid bonding. Someone suggested we could walk all the way back around the block. Then someone else—whose identity I will protect for the sake of future credibility—looked at the wall and said, “Let’s just hop it.”

Now, being former coaches and well past our prime athletes, we of course thought this was a no brainer. After some awkward climbing and some strategic dignity preservation, we made it. We dropped down on the other side—slightly less dignified, slightly more disheveled, but laughing harder than we had all week. As ridiculous as this may sound, something meaningful happened in that moment.

Why That Night Mattered

Leadership can be lonely. The Christian walk in a public school can be lonelier. There is a unique weight that comes with shepherding both minds and souls. Administrators are expected to have composure, clarity, and confidence. They are often the steady presence others rely on. However, who steadies them?

That night in Phoenix, climbing a parking garage wall, we were reminded that we need each other—not just for professional advice, but for shared fellowship. We need spaces where…

• we can admit we’re unsure.

• we can laugh at ourselves.

• we can ask for help.

• we can be encouraged without posturing.

  
  

Christian fellowship is not merely a pleasant add-on to leadership. It is essential. The New Testament vision of leadership is never solitary. Even the Apostle Paul traveled with companions. The early church functioned in community. Ministry was shared. Christian school administrators especially need community.

• We make decisions about curriculum that shape worldviews.

• We address cultural issues that require wisdom and courage.

• We counsel families in crisis.

• We pray over students carrying challenges far beyond their years.

No one should bear these burdens alone.

Community Is Built in the Unplanned Moments

Interestingly, the most meaningful moments at conferences are rarely the keynote addresses. They happen:

• in hallway conversations.

• over late-night dinners.

• during shared prayer in small groups.

• while climbing concrete walls.

  
  

When leaders share unscripted moments, authenticity emerges. Masks drop. Stories are told. Wisdom is exchanged. Trust forms. That trust becomes the foundation for future support. Community cannot be manufactured, but it can be cultivated.

The Deeper Spiritual Reality

There is a powerful theological dimension to the notion of community. This necessity is not merely pragmatic; it is profoundly Biblical. In Ecclesiastes 4:9–12, Solomon wrote, “Two are better than one… For if they fall, one will lift up his fellow…And though a man might prevail against one who is alone, two will withstand him…a threefold cord is not quickly broken.” That is not simply poetic sentiment; it is theological anthropology. God designed His people for shared strength. Christian administrators who attempt to lead in isolation are functioning contrary to that design.

The Apostle Paul’s imagery in 1 Corinthians 12:12–27 stresses this idea further. The church is one body with many members. “The eye cannot say to the hand, ‘I have no need of you.’”  A school administrator cannot say to fellow leaders, “I have no need of you.” When one member suffers, all suffer together; when one is honored, all rejoice together. That principle extends beyond a single local congregation. Christian leaders across schools and regions are still members of the same body.

In Hebrews 3:12–13 believers are commanded to “exhort one another every day…that none of you may be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin.” Leadership carries unique temptations—discouragement, pride, isolation, fear of man. Without regular exhortation from other mature believers, even faithful leaders can drift. Daily encouragement is not optional; it is protective.

Consider Galatians 6:2. “Bear one another’s burdens and so fulfill the law of Christ.” Administrators bear heavy burdens—enrollment pressures, staffing decisions, disciplinary cases, doctrinal controversies. The text does not say, “Each leader should privately manage his load.” It commands shared weight-bearing. The law of Christ—love expressed in sacrificial service—is fulfilled when leaders help carry what would otherwise crush someone else. For Christian school administrators, this has direct application.

• We need doctrinal sharpening (Proverbs 27:17).

• We need accountability against discouragement (Hebrews 10:24–25).

• We need prayer support in spiritual warfare (Ephesians 6:18).

• We need perspective when decisions feel overwhelming (James 1:5).

  
  

Community is not a leadership accessory. It is a spiritual safeguard. ACA exists not merely to provide professional development but to provide support and encouragement to those Christians in school leadership positions. A summit can equip leaders with tools, but fellowship equips leaders with boldness. It is boldness that sustains long-term faithfulness.

Final Reflection

When we planned that first Leadership Summit in Phoenix, we prayed God would build community among Christian school administrators. He did…

• through sessions and speakers.

• through prayer and planning.

• through strategic vision.

• through a concrete wall in a parking garage.

If you are a Christian school administrator reading this, hear this clearly. You were never meant to lead alone. Seek out fellowship. Invest in relationships. Show up to gatherings. Stay for the conversations. Be honest. Laugh often. Sometimes the most important leadership lessons happen not at the podium but in the parking garage.

ACA is here to help, to support, and to encourage you as you do God’s work for kids! If you would like more information regarding this group of believers, please click on this link: https://www.nationalaca.org/.

Mark Hedger, is the current Superintendent at Strafford R-VI Schools and director of the MO chapter of ACA. He can be reached at markh@straffordschools.net 

If You Want Support on Your Journey

·        Subscribe for free at www.victoriouseducator.com  for encouragement and resources.

·        Check out our new book: Taking Jesus to School: The Fruit of the Spirit on Display.

·        Join our Facebook group for community, prayer, and support.