20 Life and Leadership Lessons Learned From Reggie Joiner

1. God doesn’t use perfect pictures. He uses broken people.
2. God wants to tell the story of redemption and restoration in every family.
3. God’s story of redemption in a parent’s life gives a child a front row seat to the grace of God.
4. The environment you want to create is one where no matter how far people might stray they want to come back
5. People will never believe you love them if they feel you don’t like them
6. Your legacy matters most with the people closest to you
7. Nobody has more influence in the life of a child than a parent
8. A parent is not the only influence a child needs
9. Two combined influences have a greater impact than just two influences
10. 100 years from now, the only thing that will matter in the life of a child is their relationship with God
11. Every child needs another voice saying the same thing a loving parent would say.
12. People will not believe they are significant until you give them something significant to do
13. Fight for people not with them
14. Push others into the spotlight
15. Change isn’t an option
16. Strategic steps beat random programs
17. The problem with needs based ministry is there’s no end to human need
18. Your strategy ultimately determines the success of your ministry.
19. Teach Less For More
20. Focus on who you want to reach, not who you want to keep

The post 20 Life and Leadership Lessons I Learned From Reggie Joiner appeared first on Carey Nieuwhof.

Dealing The The Pressure Cooker Reality of Ministry

I read an article by Carey Nieuwhof and wanted to share it online. It details the biggest mistake/struggle a longtime minister has made. He described it as “knowing how to handle the pressure of ministry.” Here are some exceprts and major points from his post:

Ministry brings pressure that seems to be unique to the calling. I love ministry and am so thankful to have been called into it, but with it comes pressures that is well, just different. Here’s my theory as to why ministry is such a pressure cooker for many. Ministry combines three areas of life that are intensely personal:

• Your faith
• Your work
• Your community

Because of that, it gets confusing. 

• What you do is what you believe.
• What you believe is what you do.
• Your friends are also the people you serve and lead.

Throw your family into the mix (because they believe what you believe and are friends with the people you/they lead and serve) and bam — it’s even more confusing. Due to this, things that normally happen "at work" very seldom stay "at work." The pressure can lead to problems that impact your home, your life, and even your faith.

Here are six habits that have helped me learn to handle the pressure of ministry well:  

1.     Understand the perfect storm of work/faith/community: Church world is the only place I know of where what you believe is what you do and the people you serve are also your friends. You need to understand this. Understanding why something is emotionally confusing is the first step toward untangling the confusion.

2.     Find friends who aren’t in your church or organization: Be friends with the people you live with and serve, but find some friends you can talk to about anything.

3.     Don’t base tomorrow’s decisions on today’s emotions.

4.     Seek a Christian counselor.

5.     Develop a devotional life that has little to do with work: One of the casualties of serving in the church is your devotional life. You get too busy or you "cheat" and make your sermon or lesson prep your devotional time as well. Don’t. God loves you for who you are, not for what you do.

6.     Develop a hobby or interest outside of work.

My Role As Executive Pastor

Recently, I read a blog and saw a leadership video on the role of Executive Pastors. Being in that role of I have often been asked, “What does the executive pastor do?” According to Dr. David Fletcher, there are three different kinds of Executive Pastors: Overseer of operations, Ministry Strategist, and the Second-in-Command.

                                

My pastor, Rick Frie, explains my job as, “being responsible for everything that happens outside of the worship service (except for building and grounds).” With that being said, the overseer of operations (writing checks, maintenance of facilities, dealing with insurance) is outside of my job description and I rarely have to do anything with that. The closest responsibility I have to that role would be my involvement as an ad hoc member of the finance team, but my role is for ministry and budget oversight responsibilities.

For my is a combination of the Ministry Strategist and the Second-in-Command. I work with the pastor to clarify and fulfill the vision God has given him for our church. My duties include goal setting and constant evaluations, while overseeing ministry and church functions to free the pastor to shepherd the church. Oversight of our spiritual development, ensuring that we have a process and measurement system in place. When the Senior Pastor is out, I am the one held accountable for the daily operations of the church, staff oversight, filling the pulpit, etc. Additionally, I oversee our spiritual development, small groups, missions, evangelism, discipleship, and assimilation of lives into our church family… and other tasks assigned by the pastor. For example, I have been responsible for three capital stewardship campaigns in my time at First Baptist Jenks, with a fourth campaign looming as we are preparing to expand our children ministry facility.

I am not sure that there is an ideal job description for all executive pastors, but I do believe the key is to make sure the person in that role understands his job. Equally important is for the Senior Pastor to provide his executive pastor with the authority to fulfill the responsibilities he has been given and will be accountable for. Another key component is for everyone on staff to understand what that job entails and the how that affects working together as a team.

For me, I find great joy in being able to preach (about 8-12 times a year on Sunday mornings) and weekly on Wednesday nights. I love the leadership development aspect of my job. God has given me an outlet for my passion of missions, being able to oversee that area of the church. I thoroughly enjoy being able to critically think about our ministry strategy and evaluate how we are doing.

While there are times where the executive pastor role can stretch you, it is in those moments where I find my effectiveness increase as I naturally depend more on God. And be sure about it, God is the source for anything good that comes from my job performance. He provides the ideas, strength for execution, and a heart to fulfill His mission in my ministry setting!

3 Basic Hiring Requirements (a starting point)

A few years ago I published a post called, "The C's of Hiring Church Staff/Pastors." Today I had a conversation with a buddy of mine that reminded me of this post and he gave me chemistry in a new way, Charisma. Here is a review:

1. Chemistry – are they the type of person you want to spend time with
2. Character – are they the type of person you want to be like personally, in your marriage and family, walk with Christ
3. Competence – are they the type of person you want as your lead pastor in areas of service, theology, past work, maturation, church growt

There are many other requirements (personal walk with God, Call, Commitment, Communicator, etc.), but these 3 cannot be overlooked. Many thanks to Jacob for the talk.

11 Helpful Tips for Mission Trips

I read this article today and found it helpful and interesting, so I am sharing an abbreviated form of it here. For the full article from the original source, click here for Jeremy Parks post.

1. Know the difference between Missions vs. Ministry: Ministry is about loving people. Missions is about loving people so that His kingdom might expand into the hearts and minds of people. Mission teams usually need to be about missions, not ministry.  

2. When in Rome, Eat as the Romans Eat: Eat what you are given, when you are given it. Never refuse, make faces, joke about, or make a big deal of what’s offered, it is typically their very best they have to offer. Eat like your grandmother was serving you your meal.  

3. Flexibility: You’ve go to go with the flow in regards to your schedule, job changes, tasks, and inconveniences… go along and get along.  

4. Just accept it: Don’t critique the choices that the missionaries make: food, shopping, clothing, schooling, driving, how they spend their money, how they educate their children.

 5. Don’t be high maintenance: Consider not going if you are diabetic or hypoglycemic, an extremely picky eater, if you must have air conditioning, or if you are a vegans, vegetarians, and gluten-free eater… leave your diet at home too!  

6. Minister to the missionary: Financially, personally and vocationally, do whatever you can to encourage others. Remember that you could very well be the only American Christian they see and spend time with all year, always be a source of encouragement to them.  

7. Practice your testimony. Be able to share your story in 3-4 minutes.  

8. Learn the Language: Make an attempt to learn the basic of communication with nationals, whether through gestures common to the people or through some basics words, but do it without constantly asking the missionary.  

9. Partner: Unless you possess a special set of skills that is needed in a variety of locations, find a missionary, a strategy, and a people group with whom you can partner for a few years.  

10. Think: Show a willingness to use creativity and the wealth of resources we have in the United States in order to present high quality work and projects.  

11. Learn: Most missionaries are forced to use out of the box techniques for reaching people for Christ, pay attention to what they do and apply it to your work back home. Go with your cup empty, not full!

Dealing With Your Critics (2 of 2)

10 Tips for Dealing with Critics: 

1. Determine if it is Constructive or Destructive
2. See the critic, not criticism – some people mean to help
3. Guard your attitude – don’t let the beat-down beat you down
4. Check yourself (spiritually) – be angry and do not sin
5. Prove the critic wrong in time – this comes from my competitive nature
6. Concentrate on your mission – don’t get distracted from what God has called you to
7. Change your mistakes – if there is truth in the criticism
8. Find the truth in the criticism – Even if there is just a hint of truth, typically you can learn from anything
9. Own your mistakes – don’t ever blame others or pass it off on others, own whatever mistake you made and apologize for them
10. Thank whomever criticizes you – if they meant well, you will affirm them; if they were being a jerk, you can kill em' with kindness

Dealing With Your Critics (1 of 2)

It really disgusts me when I hear preachers with nothing better to do than to pick on other preachers. As a former staff member of Prestonwood Baptist Church in Plano, TX, I received a great deal of criticism from other pastors, seminary professors, and other seminary students. They really seemed to enjoy telling me how wrong we were for the size of our building, budget, and how we did church. It was always amusing to me to hear such criticism, because it was coming from people who had never been to Prestonwood and knew nothing about anything we actually did. Pastor Jack Graham, Mike Buster, Todd Bell and the other leadership were (are) godly men who wanted to reach that region for Jesus. Although thousands of people came to Christ during my years there, critics remained. Focus is the key to successful ministry and dealing with critics. We are called to preach the Gospel, not fight with other people who claim to know Jesus but do not like us. Perry Noble preached on this subject and cited advice from Rick Warren, Pastor of Saddleback Church, who gave him 3 insights for dealing with critics: 1. Out-love your critics. 2. Out-live your critics. 3. Out-fruit your critics. May we out-love, out-live, and out-fruit those who have nothing better to do than waste time criticizing others instead of fulfilling the calling Christ placed upon their lives. Mark 9:38-41 states, “John said to him, "Teacher, we saw someone casting out demons in your name, and we tried to stop him, because he was not following us." 39But Jesus said, "Do not stop him, for no one who does a mighty work in my name will be able soon afterward to speak evil of me. 40 For the one who is not against us is for us. 41For truly, I say to you, whoever gives you a cup of water to drink because you belong to Christ will by no means lose his reward.” May our focus be on Jesus and what He has called us to!

10 Tidbits of Advice Related to Raising Pastor's Kids by Tiffany Cooper

10 tidbits of advice gathered over the years related to raising kids in the ministry (By Tiffany Cooper) via Leading and Loving It.

1. Allow your children to do things other kids aren’t allowed to do, it’s a perk as a PK. Examples: Let them run around the church, play with the toys or play the drums when no one else is there. Let them enjoy special privileges.
2. Accentuate the positives of ministry; the positive should overshadow the negative. Guard your attitudes and words.
3. Celebrate events and holidays on days when we are “ministering/working”. Don’t forgo the fun!
4. Don’t force your kids to do something just because people expect it... You know your kids, they don’t.
5. Be Authentic. Your kids will know if you’re one person at church and one person at home. Whenever I have the chance, I quiz PK women. One question is, “Why do you love God and live for God today?” Over and over again they say it’s because their parents were the same person at home and church, they were the real deal.
6. Offer your kids the same grace you offer to others (Kay Warren).
7. Your kids need to know that they are the priority before the ministry. Be diligent to tell them often and show it always. Ministry is our high calling but our family is our highest calling.
8. Use ministry as a teaching tool. Andy Stanley, pastor of North Point Community Church, brings home appropriate ministry topics to discuss with his children. He uses these topics to teach his children about ministry and life.
9. Family Time. Craig Groeschel, pastor of LifeChurch.tv, blogged, I rarely work evenings. The evenings are family time. I also try not to compromise my day off with church needs. My husband and I also protect our evenings and day off. Of course, there are occasional meetings or events that need to be scheduled.
10. Have Fun! Find ways to add fun in your family. Many times it’s the small things throughout the day that make a huge impact.

Your Turn: Do you have a tip or advice to pass on to the rest of us?

Francis Chan's Tremendous Example

“Christian famous” pastor quits his church, moves to Asia
By, Eric Marrapodi, CNN

He pastored a 4,000-member church in California. He was a sought-after speaker at major conferences, wrote two best-sellers and launched a DVD teaching series.

Then he abruptly resigned and left the country.

But in Francis Chan’s unexpected journey there apparently is no hidden scandal, no money trail, and no ‘other’ woman.

“I just want to disappear for a while,” he said in late September as he prepared to leave Cornerstone Community Church in Simi Valley, California for an undisclosed location in Asia.

Before selling his house and packing up his wife and three children, Chan was becoming “Christian famous” in Evangelical circles.

“Even in my own church I heard the words, ‘Francis Chan’ more than I heard the words, ‘Holy Spirit’,” he said.

That was a big part of the reason he walked away at the peak of his professional career.

“I think there has been too much emphasis on me. I want to be used by God, but I think we have this desire to make heroes out of people rather than following God and the Holy Spirit.” For the rest of the article, click here.

Later on in the article it says, "His fame was straining his work as a pastor." Note that his church was continuing to grow, he did not have a problem delegating, or caught in some scandal. He simply viewed his image as detracting from God, so he walked away for a season. It is my hope and desire to make Jesus famous, and now there is an example to make sure He is always more important than me!

Relocation Highlight

Recently, our church underwent a complete relocation. My favorite part of the new building is the entrance. When you walk in, you see a picture of "Jesus Loves You!" in the form of Him embracing children. It demonstrates our focus on families, children, and the mission of Jesus at First Baptist Jenks. Recently, the company that we used for our artwork focused on the work. Here is a highlight of it:

Apologizing Well

This is an old post from Scott Hodge worth reading. I thinking admitting when you're wrong is a key aspect of leadership. Although we all want to avoid mistakes, they are bound to happen, and when they do we need to own them! Here is the article:

Apologizing has become somewhat of a lost art, don't you think? And to a large degree it's understandable because no one likes to admit failure - it's humiliating and when done well, there's no room for pride to stick around. Which is why it's so hard to do! Yet.....you know this as well as I do...apologizing well is one of the most powerful gestures we could ever show another human being.

So here's five quick thoughts on how to do it well.

1. Acknowledge your failure.


"I have failed you. I've let you down. I have done wrong."

2. Acknowledge the impact of the failure.

"I have failed you....and as a result, I know I've caused you a lot of pain....I've put you in a very precarious position.....I have hurt you."

What NOT to say: "I'm sorry you were offended by what I did." NO. That sucks. Take responsibility.

3. Tell them you're sorry.

"I've failed you....and I know it has caused you a lot of pain....and I just want you to know that I am truly sorry."


4. Commit to change.

"....and I'll do whatever I can to make sure that never happens again."

5. Be Quiet.

This is where we get into trouble. Because the tendency is to add on:

"I'm sorry....it's just that..."

"I'm sorry....but I didn't mean it!"

"I'm sorry...it's just that you..."

No. Don't make excuses. Don't complicate it. Don't qualify it.

Be Our Guest

When I opened up this email, it struck a nerve with me immediately. It told me that although I was not a part of what was going on with Direct Buy, I could participate… but only for a short while. The main take away for me what how I do not belong, probably the opposite of what was intended to be communicated, but nonetheless it was the message received.

From the start of my time at First Baptist Jenks I have communicated that we have guests, not visitors. The term visitor represents someone that does not really belong. “Visitor” screams of a disconnect between us and them, and is an unfriendly word we need to avoid. When a visitor comes to your house, you stand at the door and listen to what they have to say until you deem the conversation to be over. When a guest visits, you welcome them in, offer them your choice seat, and offer a beverage or even food.

To give credit where credit is due, Disney taught me this through one of my first first employers and their coined phrase, “Be our Guest, Be our Guest…” In church life (and business), we should all strive to make those who grace us with their presence feel like welcome guests, not visitors.

In short, the language we use matters… may we use the right words!

FASTING AND PRAYER By Pastor Rick Warren

WHAT IS FASTING?
Fasting is a spiritual discipline that is taught in the Bible. Jesus expected His followers to fast, and He said that God rewards fasting. Fasting, according to the Bible, means to voluntarily reduce or eliminate your intake of food for a specific time and purpose.
"When you give up eating, don't put on a sad face like the hypocrites. They make their faces look sad to show people they are giving up eating. I tell you the truth, those hypocrites already have their full reward. So when you give up eating, comb your hair and wash your face. Then people will not know that you are giving up eating, but your Father, whom you cannot see, will see you. Your Father sees what is done in secret, and he will reward you." Matthew 6:16-18 (NCV)

WHY FAST?
There are many good reasons, and even health benefits, for fasting. However, our the 40 Days is for three primary reasons:
1. Fasting gives you more time for prayer. You can use the time you'd normally spend eating as time in prayer for what God wants to do among us during this Campaign.
In the Bible, fasting is always connected with prayer.
"While they were worshiping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, 'Set apart for me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.' So after they had fasted and prayed, they placed their hands on them and sent them off." Acts 13:2-3 (NIV)
2. Fasting demonstrates the depth of your desire when praying for something. It shows you that you are serious enough about your prayer request to pay a personal price. God honors deep desire and praying in faith.
"Declare a holy fast; call a sacred assembly. Summon the elders and all who live in the land to the house of the Lord your God, and cry out to the Lord.” Joel 1:14 (NIV) "Even now," declares the Lord, "return to Me with all your heart, with fasting and weeping and mourning." Joel 2:12 (NASB)
3. Fasting releases God's supernatural power. It is a tool we can use when there is opposition to God's will. Satan would like nothing better than to cause division, discouragement, defeat, depression, and doubt among us. United prayer and fasting has always been used by God to deal a decisive blow to the enemy!
"So we fasted and prayed about these concerns. And he listened." Ezra 8:23 (Msg) "God says, "Is not this the kind of fasting I have chosen: to loose the chains of injustice and untie the cords of the yoke, to set the oppressed free and break every yoke?" Isaiah 58:6 (NIV)

THE IMPORTANCE OF FASTING
Often in the Bible, God's people fasted immediately before a major victory, miracle, or answer to prayer. It prepared them for a blessing!
• Moses fasted before he received the Ten Commandments.
"Moses was there with the Lord forty days and forty nights without eating bread or drinking water. And he wrote on the tablets the words of the covenant--the Ten Commandments." Exodus 34:28 (NIV)
• The Israelites fasted before a miraculous victory.
"Some men came and told Jehoshaphat, "A vast army is coming against you from Edom, from the other side of the Sea. It is already in Hazazon Tamar" (that is, En Gedi). Alarmed, Jehoshaphat resolved to inquire of the Lord, and he proclaimed a fast for all Judah." 2 Chronicles 20:2-3 (NIV)
• Daniel fasted in order to receive guidance from God.
"So I turned to the Lord God and pleaded with him in prayer and petition, in fasting, and in sackcloth and ashes." Daniel 9:3 (NIV)
"While I was still in prayer, Gabriel, the man I had seen in the earlier vision, came tome in swift flight about the time of the evening sacrifice. He instructed me and said to me, 'Daniel, I have now come to give you insight and understanding.'" Daniel 9:21-22 (NIV)
• Nehemiah fasted before beginning a major building project.
"When I heard these things, I sat down and wept. For some days I mourned and fasted and prayed before the God of heaven." Nehemiah 1:4 (NIV)
• Jesus fasted during His victory over temptation.
"For forty wilderness days and nights he was tested by the Devil. He ate nothing during those days, and when the time was up he was hungry." Luke 4:2 (Msg)
• The first Christians fasted during-decision making times.
"While they were worshiping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, 'Set apart for me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.' So after they had fasted and prayed, they placed their hands on them and sent them off." Acts 13:2-3 (NIV)

TWO CAUTIONS
1. Remember that fasting is not "earning" an answer to prayer. God cannot be blackmailed by human effort. God wants to answer our prayers and He answers out of grace. Fasting simply prepares us for God's answer.
2. Fast only if your health allows it at this time. If you are able to do only a partial fast - do it in faith and God will honor your intentions.

40 Days of Prayer & Fasting

Our (First Baptist Jenks) 40 Days of Prayer and Fasting Begins tomorrow, here is an online copy of the guide:

40 Days of Prayer & Fasting (For our Relocation)
Wednesday, August 4 – Pray for Dependence (John 15:5)
Thursday, August 5 – Pray & Fast for Unity (Ephesians 4:1-3)
Friday, August 6 – Pray for Love (1 Corinthians 13)
Saturday, August 7 – Pray for our Community (Matthew 25:31-46)
Sunday, August 8 – Pray for Church (Mark 8:27-30)
Monday, August 9 – Pray for Boldness (John 14:12-15)
Tuesday, August 10 – Pray for Kindness (Romans 2:4)
Wednesday, August 11 – Pray for Sanctification (John 17:17)
Thursday, August 12 – Pray & Fast for Greater Things (John 14:12)
Friday, August 13 – Pray for our Foundation (1 Corinthians 3:11)
Saturday, August 14 – Pray for Preparation (1 John 5:14-15)
Sunday, August 15 – Pray for Blessing (Isaiah 43:19)
Monday, August 16 – Pray for Protection (Luke 10:3)
Tuesday, August 17 – Pray for Action (Matthew 7:24-27)
Wednesday, August 18 – Pray for Fruit (Galatians 5:22-24)
Thursday, August 19 – Pray & Fast for Repentance (Titus 2:11-14)
Friday, August 20 – Pray for Proof (James 1:22)
Saturday, August 21 – Pray for Perseverance (James 1:12)
Sunday, August 22 – Pray for Baptisms (Matt. 16:18-19)
Monday, August 23 – Pray for Effectiveness (1 John 4:9)
Tuesday, August 24 – Pray for Finances (1 Corinthians 16:1-4)
Wednesday, August 25 – Pray for Marriages (1Corinthians 7:1-5)
Thursday, August 26 – Pray & Fast for Freedom (Romans 8:1)
Friday, August 27 – Pray for Resolve (Matthew 18:19)
Saturday, August 28 – Pray for Wisdom (Proverbs 1:7)
Sunday, August 29 – Pray for Salvations (Matt. 16:18-19)
Monday, August 30 – Pray for Righteousness (2 Corinthians 5:21)
Tuesday, August 31 – Pray for Giving (2 Corinthians 8:3-5)
Wednesday, September 1 – Pray for Endurance (Matthew 11:28-30)
Thursday, September 2 – Pray & Fast for Life-Changes (Ephesians 2:8)
Friday, September 3 – Pray for Graciousness (Romans 8:32)
Saturday, September 4 – Pray for Offering of Self (I John 4:10-12)
Sunday, September 5 – Pray for Strength (Joshua 1:9)
Monday, September 6 – Pray for Prayerfulness (Philippians 4:4-7)
Tuesday, September 7 – Pray for Holiness (Romans 12:1-2)
Wednesday, September 8 – Pray for Evangelism & Discipleship (Matthew 28: 19-20)
Thursday, September 9 – Pray & Fast for Service (1 Peter 4:10-11)
Friday, September 10 – Pray for Peace (John 14:27)
Saturday, September 11 – Pray for Power (Matt. 16:18-19)
Sunday, September 12 – Pray for Impact (2 Corinthians 4:5-6)

47 Best Church Practices

I found this series interesting and have wanted to share it. Mark Waltz shares his "47 Best Church Practices," and I wanted to share the overview with you. You can find all the article here: Mark Waltz

#1: Create Your Own Best Practices | Feb 12, 2010
#2: Pray | Feb 11, 2010
#3: Vision… Say It Again… and Again | Feb 10, 2010
#4: Learn from the Marketplace | Feb 9, 2010
#5: Get Unstuck | Feb 8, 2010
#6: Follow-up | Feb 1, 2010
#7: Plan the Understated | Dec 17, 2009
#8: Don’t Just Fix It | Dec 17, 2009
#9: Listen to Complaints | Dec 17, 2009
#10: Imitate Jesus’ Attitude | Nov 18, 2009
#11: Value Your Volunteers | Nov 10, 2009
#12: Expect New People | Nov 9, 2009
#13: Make Room | Nov 5, 2009
#14: Get Dressed! | Nov 4, 2009
#15: Tell Stories | Nov 3, 2009
#16: Diversify | Oct 27, 2009
#17: Create a Schedule | Oct 23, 2009
#18: Surprise Your Guests | Oct 22, 2009
#19: Think “One Chance” | Oct 12, 2009
#20: Team is More than Task | Oct 9, 2009
#21: Hang a Sign | Oct 8, 2009
#22: Everyone Can Greet! | Oct 7, 2009
#23: Stock Toilet Paper | Oct 6, 2009
#24: Answer the Phone | Oct 5, 2009
#25: Be in the Moment | Sept 24, 2009
#26: It’s Not About You | Sept 24, 2009
#27: Bust Up Your Party | Sept 24, 2009
#28: Brew Good Coffee | Sept 22, 2009
#29: Meet Them Where They Are | Sept 22, 2009
#30: Use Real Language | Sept 20, 2009
#31: Build a “I’ve Been Here” Space | Sept 21, 2009
#32: Don’t Forget the Kids | Sept 21, 2009
#33: Thank Your Guests | Sept 21, 2009
#34: Serve with Friends | Sept 11, 2009
#35: Have Fun | Sept 8, 2009
#36: Smile. Just Smile. | Sept 3, 2009
#37: Say “No” Creatively | Sept 1, 2009
#38: Ask for Feedback | Aug 20, 2009
#39: Make Everyone a Host | Aug 17, 2009
#40: You’re Always On | Aug 13, 2009
#41: Keep It Clean | Aug 12, 2009
#42: Never Assume | Aug 11, 2009
#43: Let ‘Em Lead | Aug 7, 2009
#44: Information Matters | Aug 6, 2009
#45: Understand Base Fears | Aug 5, 2009
#46: Names = Value | Aug 4, 2009
#47: Read Body Language | Aug 3, 2009

iPulpit

Today I had the opportunity to meet with Richard Carver, Owner and Senior Art Director for Little Mountain Productions. While we meeting to discuss design and themes for our new children and preschool areas, he introduced me to something new, something awesome, something I have to have… the iPulpit! Basically, you insert your iPad into the pulpit and preach from it directly. The good news for all the tree huggers is that it will eliminate the need to print on paper. For those who are easily distracted by the flipping of notes, that is gone too. For those who love technology, it allows us to maximize what is out there while having a crystal clear screen to read from.

Ed Young's Lifestyle Debacle

Ed Young is in more trouble about his lifestyle and company… ahem, church expenses. WFAA in DFW is reporting about his lavish lifestyle and company expenses. He has issued a response through his public relations firm – no, not a joke – denying any wrongdoing and shifting the blame and focus from himself to WFAA.

If Ed cared about transparency, he would disclose everything. Instead, he is playing the PR game to transfer attention from himself to WFAA. In his public response during a Saturday night church service, he talked about his salary and home as if it was all proper. He never disclosed his salaries (church + $ generated from work for the church + royalties + etc.). His lifestyle is ridiculous and he could/should learn a bunch from Francis Chan about giving to the need. Instead, he lives a lifestyle of extravagance (7,820 sq. ft. home, 1.1 million dollar condo, 8 million dollar leased jet).

Many argue the point, but I agree that his lifestyle is a detrimental issue to his legacy and immediate influence. The problem is that money is a root of all kinds of evil. This situation is sad for The Church, and can undo so much good Fellowship Church has accomplished.

If he is innocent of any wrong doing and is truly above reproach, transparency is his option. If he is guilty, repentance and transparency are his options. Either way, he should man-up and let the truth of the situation set him free… after all, what should a role model for such a huge church have to hide?

The natural response is to ask me if I do the same thing as an associate pastor of a much smaller church; which I do not. However, my family still lives in a starter home, we drive Hondas, and thus avoid question generated from a lifestyle of extravagance. Also, the information about my salary (and any other staff member at my church) is fully and readily available to any church member who requests it.

Here is another post on the subject.

Book Review: Transforming Children Into Spiritual Champions by Barna

As a minister, Transforming Children Into Spiritual Champions is the best parenting book I have ever read. Not only would I recommend it for anyone who works in a church, I would strongly recommend it to parents as well. We have a tendency to pawn off the responsibility of our children’s spiritual formation onto the church, when that is in fact anti-biblical and anti-productive.

Barna lays the groundwork for this work by establishing clear facts through research. From there, he lays down a Scriptural mandate for how God instructs us to raise our children. Then he provides solutions to the problem areas.

Not only that, the book also points out of failure to measure the effectiveness of our children’s spiritual development and just assume church’s are doing a good job, while giving quantifiable means by which to measure that process. Herein lies the true nugget of this book, it constantly provides solutions to real problems that come with raising Spiritual Champions.

For me, this is a book that will affect the way I do ministry in the future. It will cause me to think through the biblical role of the church and the biblical role of the family. While reading this book, I kept thinking I had read parts of this before. It would appear that Family Driven Faith (by Baucham) mirrored this book (written 4 years prior to his) in regards to philosophy and practice, although never specifically cited (Baucham did cite other Barna works).

Anyway, if you liked Family Driven Faith, you will love Transforming Children Into Spiritual Champions.

Athens Trip – March 2010, Day 7

Today we started off in Monastiraki, which is the major tourist spot in Athens, to grab a quick lunch and a couple of things for our family. After a short period there, we hiked up to Mars Hills to a time of Bible study, prayer, and reflection. It was fantastic to have such great reason to praise God and to talk through our trip. For me personally, I also enjoyed working on my sermon for Sunday from that key place in Greek Christian history… hopefully, the message will be as inspiring as Paul’s unknown God message!


Anyway, once we finished our time at Mars Hill, we made our way to Holargos. Today was different at our main campus because the students were receiving their marks or grades. Due to “report card day” they did not have the usual sports programs, but we were able to talk to the kids and say our goodbyes for now.


At 5:00, Sophia (the primary basketball director) drove us to a school we had never been at before to allow us to lead basketball with those children. The kids in this program were in 2nd and 3rd grade (7-8 years old – younger than our normal group). Unlike the other school, all of the parents came with them and we had a brief time to meet all of them. It was fun playing with the younger kids, and being able to lead the entirety of the session. We were not expecting to be given the reigns in this school, but we were elated to do so – we will definitely have to think through some age appropriate drills for next time!


Another cool thing about today was that our friend from America that has recently moved here joined us today; his name is Ryan. He has a very good heart and great mind for how to Shine in this country. We are excited to see how God uses him here and what will come of our newfound friendship. Fortunately, we were able to introduce him to Sophia, and he might even be able to enroll his own children in the sports academy of Holargos! It would be incredible for them to have an ongoing relationship with the workers and municipality – please pray this works out!

Ryan was also able to meet Bill. We stopped by Bill’s restaurant and introduced them to one another. Bill has a very busy schedule, but we are hoping he makes time to study the Word with Ryan and develop a friendship with him as well – please pray for this too! Our time with Ryan today, playing with children, introducing him to our friends, and dialoging about our work here encouraged our hearts greatly. It is our hope to continue this partnership and watch what happens!

Whenever I return home, I will do a summary of our trip. As a final prayer request, please pray that God would bless us with a safe and uneventful trip home. God is good, and He is definitely moving here!

Athens Trip – March 2010, Day 6

Today we started by going to my favorite place in Holargos, the local tennis club. For whatever reason, I find it to be extremely relaxing and enjoyable. The main worker there, Helen, remembered me when I came in and even asked if Christy was with me – pretty cool that she remembers her too! We visited for a little bit, but had limited conversation as the club was extremely busy. (Whenever we walk from one place to another in town, we have been trained to constantly pray for those we come in contact with, Raymond taught us that!)


Next we went to visit another friend over lunch, someone we had the opportunity to share with last May. As we came in, he was excited to see us (he knew we were coming). We spoke briefly before we ate, but spoke for a good amount of time afterwards. Long story short, he not only remembered our previous conversation, he had been thinking about it and reading his Bible. After going through the plan of salvation and what it means for Jesus to be Lord of your life, he thought about it and asked Jesus to be his Savior and Lord! This was so exciting!!!

Something else of note today happened on our way to the municipality, we saw a group of teenagers reading and passing around a Bible. We had no clue what they were saying, but we do know it was a Bible and we also know they were reading and talking about it. In the same way that God worked in the man’s heart in the restaurant, he can work in these teenagers lives as well! He is so faithful and so able to break through anywhere at any time through anyone for anyone! God is so much better and capable than we can imagine. The Holy Spirit is always at work in the hearts and lives of people, we just need to instrument who declare His glory and exalt Jesus.

After our incredible experience, we went to the school we work at and played basketball with the kids. Usually we will run drills or participate with them, but due to cold weather they typically cancel… However, today there were about 14 or so kids who showed up, “because they knew we would be there.” HOW AWESOME IS THAT!


Anyway, we played with them for a little over 2 hours and then had to leave… because Jamie got his lip all busted up! One of the kids accidently hit Jamie’s lip with his head going to a ball. Fortunately, we were able to get some ice from a local music café and stop the bleeding. The poor kid who messed Jamie’s face up felt terrible and profusely apologized. Jamie kept trying to reassure him it was not big deal and not to worry about it, but the guy still felt bad.


For dinner, we returned to the restaurant we ate at the other day with our friends Kostas & Catalina. Believe it or not, we order the goat again, with some pork as well. It was a good dinner and a fantastic day. God is good!!!


There are 3 other things you need to know about this day that are quite funny:
1. Jamie wore shorts today. He has been bound and determined to do so since we first decided to come, and today he did. Never mind that it was below 50* all day (except for 15 minutes, maybe). It was so cold, the sports academy in our municipality cancelled the programs… but Jamie wore his shorts. To his credit though, we did see 2 other people in shorts, in a city that has more that 5 million people! (Notice the heavy coats and scarves the people are wearing next to Jamie... who is in his shorts)


2. We saw a dude with a man purse or as Jerry Seinfeld calls it, a European carry-all!



3. Jamie got his tail whopped by a 10 year old… (ahem, suffering for Jesus) then proceeded to eat an orange in a quite humorous way.


(Goat, it's what's for dinner)
(A health club with an interesting name, Gym N' Tonic)
(The tennic club)