Staff Management
They didn’t teach me management skills in seminary. But I wish they had, because as the leader of a church I needed them badly and it’s a shame I had to learn them on my own. So I thought I would pass on some pointers. Point Number One: If you can’t measure it, it will […]
Tough Questions
I received a post from person on our advanced leadership forum inquiring what questions he should ask while at a search committee interview for a new church position as lead pastor. Here is what I said. What is their vision for their church? How many pastors have they had in the last 20 years? Why did the […]
An Eye-Opening Thought
Why is it that churches will borrow money to build buildings, but they shudder at the thought of borrowing money to hire staff? After all, staff are more important to discipling people than buildings are. Yet when I recommend to churches that, if they can’t afford to hire the staff they need, they should borrow […]
How Do You Measure Success for Your Church?
Welcome to 2013. How are you going to measure the success of your church this year, and every other year, for that matter? Worship attendance, finances, Sunday school and/or small group attendance, the number of baptisms, the number of new leaders raised up? What if I told you that even though these are all important, none […]
Man Was Not Meant to Be Alone
“God said, ‘It’s not good for the Man to be alone; I’ll make him a helper, a companion.’” I’m sure you’ve read this verse before. I know I’ve read it time and time again. But now that my wife has passed away, I read this verse differently. I’ve come to know personally what it means to be […]
More on Leadership
Following up on my last post, I want to consider further the importance of conviction for effective leadership. Consider this quote from Martin Luther: “Here I stand. I can do no otherwise. God help me.” Or what do you think allowed Nelson Mandela to give hope to the people from his confinement? Or what kept […]