Focus Is the Name of the Game
One of the major problems pastors have is either the inability or lack of desire to focus on what’s important. Case in point. Yesterday, a pastor of a 150-member church told me he was exhausted from working so many hours a week. My response: Pastoring a church of 150 members isn’t a full-time job, and […]
Staff Configuration
I’m on my way to a Vineyard church in the Northeast. They are bringing me in to help them reconfigure their staff for the growth they are anticipating. Presently they are growing and opening new campuses in the area, so the stress on staff is growing also. I will meet with each staff person and […]
62 Ways to Connect with the Unchurched
In order to connect with the unchurched you have to have three ingredients: a knowledge of God’s word, a good relationship with unchurched people, and the ability to make the leap from a world of organized faith to a world of searching faith. Most clergy and some laity have the first ingredient. However, very few clergy ever […]
Mandela
My heart is sad this morning. My mentor and hero Nelson Mandela is back in the hospital. He needs our prayers. Of all the people who have earned my respect he tops them all. Even though I never met him he influenced my life over and over. He showed me there is always hope if […]
The Fine Art of Coaching Small Groups
Coaching appears to be the “next” big thing when it comes to church leadership. It seems almost everyone either (1) wants to be a coach, or (2) wants to be coached. The fact is, everyone needs a coach, but a great teacher doesn’t necessarily makes a good coach. Indeed, being a great practitioner of a […]
Power and Authority
From our Advanced Leadership Forum While studying sociology years ago, I remember studying the difference between power and authority. My shorthand distinction between the two would be that power is about having the ability to make others conform to you will even against their will. Authority emerges when one so consistently demonstrates they have the […]