In an interview conducted by The Christian Standard, college president Bryce Jessup said that the key to his stellar run as a leader boiled down to one line: “Dream a dream and build a team.”
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It was a special opportunity to go fishing with an old friend. As we shared our time on the water, he brought me up to speed on his battle with prostate cancer. “Right now the numbers are good,” he said. “But soon I will have received all the radiation and hormone treatment that is allowable. Things might well change then.”
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I read the following recently: Life is made up of moments .| Moments create days. | Days create months. | Months create years. | Years create life. | Lose the moment and you lose Life.
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Here in Indiana, the NFL is big. To be sure, there are a fair share of Bears fans. And on any given Sunday you’ll see some Packers jerseys or Steelers hats dotting the worship gathering. But, by far, the dominant colors are blue and white. This is Colts country. And our “favorite son” is still Peyton Manning.
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I’m old enough to remember the classic TV show, I've Got a Secret. Running on CBS television from 1952-1967, it featured a panel of celebrities who tried to determine a contestant’s “secret” – something that was unusual, amazing, or humorous about the person. The show is long gone, but keeping secrets is not a game.
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In a recent coaching group I asked the participants what topics they’d like to discuss. While there was much interest in addressing major themes such as casting a compelling vision and leading cultural change, there were also requests for the more mundane yet essential subjects. Things like hiring/firing, staff reviews, working with a board, and budgeting.
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I was asked in a recent coaching group about how to deal with the tension found in many churches between those who want to remember the past and those who want to dream of the future.
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In my three-and-a half decades of pastoral leadership, I was blessed to witness a church grow from 50 to 2300. While in the early days I was able to lead the church with a staff of one (me!), it wasn’t long before I discovered that the demands and responsibilities of a growing church had moved beyond my capacity. That meant hiring staff.
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One of the greatest privileges of pastoring is the opportunity to say “yes” to folks. Good things. God things. And because of that, I want to say yes to everyone. They are so eager for my time. They so value my attention. They so seek my counsel. I hate saying “No” to any of them.
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One of the greatest joys in ministry is working with a great staff. But if there are challenging staff situations, it can also be one of the biggest frustrations in church leadership.
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In my previous post I outlined some characteristics of an unteachable person. Now I’d like to offer the flip side to that and provide some characteristics of a teachable person.
To begin with, teachability is not so much about competence and mental capacity as it is about attitude. It is the desire to listen, learn, and apply. It is the hunger to discover and grow.
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When it comes to leadership, the debate often rages between nature and nurture. That is, are leaders born or made?
I’m of the opinion that, while there may not be an actual “leadership gene,” there are some men and women who seem to be naturally predisposed to lead.
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I don’t know where I read it, but this statement has stuck with me for, literally, years. “Every great sermon is a function of both inspiration and perspiration.” The inspiration is God’s business. He provides the material. The perspiration is our business. We have to communicate that material.
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One of the ongoing challenges of being a pastor is the never-ending demand of preaching. Though in my 3 ½ decades of church leadership I never tired of the privilege of preaching, I found myself all too often struggling with the responsibilities of preaching.
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I look at this picture and wonder, “Who were those kids?!” Hard to believe that was us – Gwen and me – on our wedding day 42 years ago. We just celebrated another anniversary and the occasion prompted me to do some reflecting on lessons we’ve learned along the way that have helped our marriage not only survive but thrive.
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So, it’s really going to happen! Your church board has okayed it and you’re actually going get an extended time off for a study and renewal break. Now what? Let me offer you some thoughts that have come out of my own experience.
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Periodically I’m asked what the “secret” was to my 35-year run as pastor of Fellowship Missionary Church. And, to be sure, my first response is always, “It was by God’s grace. I had no greater vision than most, and I had no greater strength than most.”
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I was privileged to lead a wonderful church for nearly 35 years. That I was able to do so, however, is tragically rare. The majority of those who shared my vocation did not share my celebration. Indeed, the median tenure of pastors is 6 years. It’s not just that pastors move on from their churches. Many of them move out of ministry completely.
The fact is, pastors today are in peril.
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Every pastor knows the feeling. The news may have come via email, phone, or second-hand conversation. A key family is leaving your church. They may already have found another church, or they may just be beginning the search process.
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After 40 years of pastoral ministry, I’ve come to see that these two realities are inevitable: 1. People will leave the church. 2. It will hurt when they leave.
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