Focus Groups
Some churches still find Focus Groups helpful in identifying the ministry needs of the market place. Here is my take on Focus Groups. The purpose of a focus group is to identify the attitudes, concerns, issues, hopes, dreams, and needs of the group of people you have brought together for the focus group. From this […]
Mentoring is Different Than Friendship
Mentoring is all about eliciting the hidden potential in others, and challenging their self-perceptions. Many people think that they must first establish a friendship with another person before they can mentor. In fact, establishing a friendship often blocks your ability to mentor. First, friendship by its very nature accepts a person as they are. It can blind the mentor […]
Growing One Micro-Culture at a Time
The New Testament model of church growth had little to do with converting individuals or assimilating members. It was all about reaching micro-cultures for Christ. A micro-culture is a definable, describable demographic or lifestyle segment. The apostles targeted Ephesus, Corinth, Philippi, and other cities … and then different neighborhoods, economic and professional groups, and so on. […]
Keys to the Spiritual Life
Too many churches confuse program management and spiritual life. When modern Christians are asked about their spiritual journey, they proceed to list all the offices they have held and committees they have served. They think the components of spiritual life are about protecting heritage, disseminating information, supporting salaried staff, or managing institutions. No way! The […]
Hopeful Leadership
One of the most powerful things a leader can do is offer hope to the congregation and community, but this is more than mere optimism. A recent book from the business sector is Putting Hope to Work: Five Principles to Activate Your Organization’s Most Powerful Resource (Praeger, 2006). Inspired, I adapt the principles for church life. Possibility: […]
The Ministry of Distractions
I made a comment at a recent seminar that the only way pastors can reach the unreached is to get out of the office. Seemed to me like a no-brainer, but I repeatedly heard comments like, “Get out of the office and do what?!” The answer is to “Get out of the office and get distracted!” […]