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Tag: leadership (Page 9 of 15)

Outreach Doesn’t Work

August 8, 2023 / / 0 Comments

If you’re a church going person then this will likely hit you hard. You probably won’t like these words. And there’s a chance you might be put off by some of what I’m about to say. That doesn’t change it from being true however.

Not liking getting a speeding ticket doesn’t make it so I don’t have to pay for it. It just means I don’t like the harsh realities that stand before me. Sometimes the truth hurts. And lest someone pull a Bible verse out of context speak the truth in love please read what that’s about. It has nothing to do with calling out a misinterpretation or a misunderstanding. Ok with that out of the way, here we go.

I’ve read far too many articles, social media posts, how to bloggers, podcasters and more on the topic of outreach. I’ve heard people ask for the best outreach strategies. Today I read a question about what are the most effective outreach strategies your churches have done.

Sorry friends you’re asking the wrong question because outreach won’t work.

I say this as a former mission and ministry coordinator. I was an outreach pastor. I do outreach events, although very limited few of them. I slowed that way down when I realized I had it backwards.

Outreach does not work!

Look think of it this way. Who is going to come to a church’s outreach event? I mean who attends your VBS? Easter Egg Hunt? Block party? Normally the ones that come are the ones that have a predisposition to the gospel. They’ve already heard the message. Will you get to connect with someone who doesn’t have a church home currently? Maybe? Possibly. But are they people who don’t know Jesus? Are they people who have limited knowledge of the workings of God in their lives? Probably not.

The people who come to church events, even the cool outreach ones, have some acceptance factors built in toward the church already. They’ve already been in a church before. You might be shuffling people around from one church to another. You might gain another face or two. But where are they coming from? Probably, if stats hold true they’re from another church down the road. The church that just got a new pastor or whose pastor isn’t cutting it for them anymore. That’s not the purpose of outreach.

Outreach doesn’t work because it’s not for the purpose we think it is.

Churches tend to want some silver bullet type of outreach strategy. We try to find the one thing that will work across all spectrums, races, economic levels, just simple and easy. Plug and play. Well that actually does exist but it takes work. It’s not quite easy but it’s actually pretty simple.

The best outreach you can do for your church is to not lower expectations. Don’t make it easier to just be a butt in a seat. Do you expect the people who call themselves members of the church to be involved in the life of the church beyond Sunday? Volunteerism? Ministry leadership? Actually doing something?

The Bible doesn’t tell us to be about outreach. It tells us to be about discipleship. If we’d focus on discipleship, you know equipping the saints for works of ministry and all that, then the outreach stuff would happen organically, naturally and constantly!

Please stop looking for the best outreach method when you’re not willing to sink the time and effort into raising up and equipping the men and women that you already have. What makes you think that God will send you new people if you’re not leading the ones you have (parable of talents anyone).

I’m not trying to be snarky and nasty or mean or rude. It’s just quit griping and complaining about how hard life and ministry are if you’re not going to double down on the talent God has given you. Don’t complain about something God never promised. Don’t focus on the things God never told you to make your main focus.

That’s it. Outreach does not work. But working on discipleship has tremendous impacts on outreach.

Why are churches closing?

May 26, 2023 / / 0 Comments

I recently listened to a podcast by Issues Etc that peaked my interest. The title was increased church closings. The speaker was the director of witness and outreach for the church body to which I ascribe. The statistics shared weren’t really all that surprising and unfortunately neither was the proposed solution. The problem is, the solution doesn’t address the real issue.

So why are churches closing? And why does it seem like they are closing so much faster today than ever before?

Well, churches close all the time. It’s nothing new to have a church close its doors due to lack of funds, community shifts, membership decline, large business closes and people move away, any number of things can lead to a church closing. Some of those are out of our control, but others are fully within grasp. As for why they’re closing so fast now, well the short answer is the pandemic changed the way people see the world, spirituality and service. If a church isn’t living in the integrity of its confession, then it’s pretty obvious to this society and they’ll disengage. Also we’ve set the bar way too low for church membership which makes leaving that much easier.

The podcast speaker says “the importance of religion is declining at a very rapid rate” in the US, and this is one of the main causes of church closures. Is it really that religion and spirituality are on the decline, or is it that the institution of the local church is no longer viewed as important? I don’t think the two are the same thing.

I don’t see, in the pockets of the country I’ve visited or discussed, that people are less spiritual or religious. I see a lot of people saying why do I need to belong to a church to do the things they do? There’s a large and ever growing number of people that are simply disenfranchised by the church’s lack of loving the least of these or loving our neighbors as ourselves. The old accusation of the church being full of hypocrites is all too often true in the church today. We hold the banners of what sins we think are worst, and at the same time neglect to share the fellowship and friendship that the gospel commands.

The number one reason I see people disconnecting from the local church is because of poor discipleship. We’ve thrown all of the discipleship eggs into one basket – the Sunday morning worship service. But is that really biblical? Does the Bible really tell us that the primary mechanism for making stronger, more devoted followers of Jesus is to put them in a room on Sunday morning when they can’t talk or interact or serve and just listen? That’s what a lot of Sunday morning worship looks like to a person who’s unaware of what we do in worship.

Now before you go and get your panties in a bunch don’t fill in the blanks here with some nasty assumption. Worship is important to the life of the follower of Jesus. And worship is part of discipleship, but it’s only part of it. There is so much more to being a follower of Jesus than Sunday morning worship.

Jesus raised the bar for what it meant to be his follower. He didn’t lower it. Making discipleship solely about worship attendance and how much money we give cheapens the role of the Christian in the world today. Christianity is not a hobby we pursue when we’re bored, but if Sunday morning is the only or even main place discipleship happens it’s easy to view it as merely a hobby.

I’m honored to be part of a network of Jesus loving men and women who want to see the Body of Christ grow and thrive. We’re doing this by helping churches see more clearly who they are and who their community is. This allows them to align their efforts to better meet the needs in their community and infuse a gospel presence into local neighborhoods more effectively. And one of the coolest parts is that we walk alongside churches the whole time. We take phone calls and text messages, set up zoom calls, and even will be boots on the ground to help local churches break through the barriers they’re facing.

If you’re a church leader or part of a church that’s on the decline, I’d love to chat with you about how to raise the bar of discipleship and how we can work together with other Jesus followers to more effectively and efficiently reach our neighbors with the love of Jesus and connect them to deeper relationships as growing disciples. Hit me up here or on social and let’s find a time to chat!

To Die And Be Forgotten

March 3, 2023 / / 1 Comment

I know the title is a tad morbid and depressing but just give me a few minutes and read on. We all have goals in life. Some want to be millionaires or even want to have a street named after them. Some desire to climb the corporate ladder or become the biggest name on the block. There are some with life goals that leave a legacy for their family or friends or followers. But some of us really don’t see it that way.

I was recently listening to a podcast on one of my drives to the gym. The speaker, who I honestly can’t remember anymore, said something that really stood out to me. It was kind of shocking in a good way. It’s almost as if this person speaking was saying something that’s been my way of living lately.

I want to share the gospel, die and be forgotten.

Wow how cool is that! I mean that’s exactly what I want my life to be about. No this is not a depressing statement. Actually it’s quite the opposite. I think it shows that my priorities are in the right place.

Let’s look at it a little differently. As a pastor, there are those people who are part of the church because they have family there. There are others who are present because a friend invited them. Some are there because the church teaches the Bible or has engaging ministry programming. But there are some who are only at a given church because of the pastor. Don’t believe me? What happens when the pastor leaves?

In the average church, when the pastor or other key ministry leader leaves, there is a minor exodus. Some leave because the leader is no longer there and they really liked that leader. I’ve seen it in my ministry. When I come in to a church and people quickly realize that I am not the same as the guy before me, there are some who just don’t like it. And they leave.

I really hope this doesn’t happen to me ever. I never want to leave an organization or church and have people leave because I’m no longer there. Don’t come to church because I’m there. Don’t come because I’m the pastor. I really don’t want it that way.

My heart’s desire is that I get to preach the gospel. Then one day I will die. And when I do, it’s ok to forget me. Actually please do forget me! I would much rather in those moments that you cling to Jesus than some memory of me.

You see that’s why my goal in life is to one day die and be forgotten. It was never about me in the first place!

What’s Your Why?

March 2, 2023 / / 0 Comments

If you’re a parent, or you remember your childhood at all, you likely have a love-hate relationship with the word why. While this is a question I have asked more times that I can even count, it’s a question that I couldn’t stand receiving from my children.

So to be totally honest, I don’t have a problem with the word why, it’s generally the tone in which it is spoken that’s of great disturbance to me. The word is normally said through a sigh or a whining voice. It normally comes with the word but preceding it. This is the kind of why that I really can’t stand!

There is another why that I believe is really important. Many years ago a friend told me the importance of knowing your reason why. He said – if your reason why isn’t strong enough, you’ll always find a reason why not. So very simple of a thought but it explains so much that’s wrong in our world and culture right now.

This is why our New Year’s resolutions don’t typically last. Our why is too weak. I’ve seen this far too often. She wants to lose some weight to fit into her wedding dress. It works for a time but she quickly loses steam. Her why was too short sighted. He wants to stash away a few extra dollars for a rainy day but can’t seem to get any traction. His why was far too broad.

You see the why must be greater than any excuse or why not we can come up with or we’ll lose. This is why our attempts at the new year body don’t generally make it beyond February. We don’t have a good long range picture or reason to keep driving us forward.

What’s your why?

Ok so here’s a warning. I’m going to get a little “churchy” on you for a second. Don’t tune out just yet though. This is a bible example to help drive our point home.

There’s a passage in the latter portion of the Bible that is generally answered wrong. It is in one of Peter’s letters and he says always be prepared to give an answer to anyone who asks you for the reason for the hope that is in you.

Did you get it? What’s your why?

We generally read that verse and say our hope is in Jesus. And while this is correct, it’s answering a question that wasn’t asked. He didn’t say where is your hope. He said why is your hope there. This is a big difference.

Knowing your reason why is really important. Have you ever seen someone go through a really bad time in life and waffle in their faith? I don’t mean they were late for work or overslept kind of bad time. I mean lost their spouse or their house burned down in a freak accident kind of bad day. In these types of situations our why is tested tremendously.

What’s your why?

So often when we go through these really challenging moments in life, we default to asking things like where is God or how could he let this happen to me. We then wonder if it’s all worth it. I’ve been there. I know how this goes.

But what’s your why keeps you from falling off the deep end when trouble and struggle and hardship arise. When we know the reason for the hope that we have, we’ll be able to see that there’s a bigger picture at play here. We’ll be able to get through some of the hardship and struggle and pain because we know something that we can’t see is just around the corner.

Ok back to that summer swimsuit body or wedding ready figure. If this is as far as you can see, then when the wedding is over or summer is past you’re likely going to fall off the wagon. But if you have a big enough reason why to drive you, then even when the event is over you’ll still have a habit and lifestyle that will continue.

I’ve been asked why I get up at 4:30 in the morning to go to the gym. I used to do it to be able to lift a certain amount of weight. But then I met that goal and it was tempting to let things slide. Now the reason is much bigger than bench pressing 350lbs or running a certain distance in a set timeframe. It’s about overall health, wellness, mental clarity, stress management, being around to see my kids get married, meet my grandkids, manage my property, take care of my family. These are reasons why that will far outlast my ability to lift certain amounts of weight or run a set speed.

What is your why? When you can answer this with a big enough and strong enough reason, then you’ll be able to stop every excuse from flooding into your mind.

Know the reason why and soon you’ll have a lifestyle that matches the desire of your heart today.

The 4 Disciplines of Execution

February 3, 2023 / / 0 Comments

Have you ever wondered why some people are more inclined to be productive and others tend to flounder? Ever have one of those projects that needed done but you just couldn’t get the wheels moving in the right direction? Overwhelmed by the tasks in front of you and don’t know how you’re going to get it all done?

I know that I’ve wrestled with these and many other hurdles in trying to be productive. This week’s book is another very practical type of read. Sean Covey writes a pretty simple to follow and sensible book on how to execute and create a culture of execution in life, business and ministry.

The four disciplines are pretty straightforward: Focus on your wildly important goals, Act on lead measures, Keep a compelling scoreboard, Create a cadence of accountability. Each of these are very important in their own right. A book could likely, and perhaps already is, written on each of these topics on their own.

Covey does a great job stacking these principles to show how each one builds on the one before it.

Your wildly important goal or WIG for short is that one driver that moves you. It’s the light at the end of the tunnel. It’s why you and your organization exist. It’s pretty much what it says the most wildly important thing in front of you right now.

Lead measures was the section that I found the most interesting personally. There are two kinds of measurements we generally use lead and lag measures. Lag measures are the ones that are the final outcomes. They’re often the big deals, or so we think. Lead measures however are the ones that need to be our focus in order to get to the lag measures and make them happen. If we can’t achieve the lead measures, we’ll never make our way to the lag measures. I’ll let you read it to figure out what he’s talking about in greater detail.

Compelling scoreboards are super important. How will you know if you won? This is a section devoted to the idea that the person who is being scored should have a say in and thoroughly understand the score card used for them. So often as leaders in various places in the world we use scorecards that make sense to us but give little thought to what the person being scored thinks of the score card or if they even understand it.

Finally the book addresses the idea of accountability. A regular rhythm of accountability is essential in making sure things get accomplished. If no one holds you accountable and you’re not a person with terrific drive, then there’s a good chance you won’t actually get done what you need to get done.

All in all this book is good for anyone but seems to really focus on those in a leadership capacity. It’s an easy read and has some strong take aways that can easily be implemented nearly immediately without disrupting much of your current schedule.

Prioritize

January 27, 2023 / / 0 Comments

I recently read the book Extreme Ownership by Jocko Willink and Leif Babin. I know it may not be what everyone likes to read but there are many good principles in the book. One of them is about prioritization. But the authors go a little beyond merely setting appropriate priorities. The key to proper prioritization is activation. You have to do something with your priorities.

This is the problem that many people have with to do lists. We set our priorities but we often neglect to tackle the priorities, leaving us no better off than when we started. The secret to priorities is action.

Ok so this really isn’t anything secret. It’s common sense to say the least. But it’s so easy to go through the process of setting our priorities and then leaving things there. Willink and Babin are Navy Seals. They explain how setting and acting on priorities in military endeavors was key to success.

They would look at their objectives. List targets. Set goals. Then delegate the tasks as necessary to more quickly and efficiently reach their objectives.

This can sound like something that doesn’t apply to you and me in the civilian world, but if you really pause for just a few minutes you might see how this common sense approach isn’t really just for a well trained Navy Seal. Consider the last big project you had to tackle.

Maybe you are moving to a new house. Perhaps you’re remodeling a room in your house. Looking for a new career. Planning on a child to be welcomed to your house. There are tons of things we tackle on a semi regular basis that are kind of big deals!

Any of these things can be overwhelming to say the least! I recently took on a kitchen remodel project. We removed walls. Repainted the remaining walls. Refaced cabinets. New counters, floors and appliances. But we didn’t just jump in and start blowing out walls. We had to set the tasks in the proper order. Which needed to be done first? What needed to wait until later?

Now my wife will tell you that she never thought this project was actually going to be tackled. I talked about it for a long time. I’m a verbal processor by the way. For weeks, maybe even months, we discussed the details of the plan. Which walls needed to come down? Which walls couldn’t come down? What did we need to do to prepare for these walls to drop? What color will the paint be? What type of floors do we want? I talked through all of it. Added things to my cart at the store. Deleted them. Added new ones. Over and over the list was edited and evaluated.

Then one day I pulled the trigger. Bought the gift cards. Went to the store. Ordered the materials. Brought them home. And down she came. Prioritization is key! I needed to know what to do first. And what needed another project completed before I started.

But ultimately all of the planning and all of the talking wouldn’t have meant anything if the walls didn’t fall. It wasn’t until I took action that the kitchen remodel actually started.

What’s your remodeling project? What about the plan? Do you have a good grasp on what is first and what needs to wait? What’s stopping you from knocking down that wall?

Priorities without action have no affect at all.

Extreme Ownership

January 26, 2023 / / 0 Comments

I’m kind of a sucker for a good book built around the leadership principles learned in the hard school of the US Military. This one is definitely a good book if you’re willing to apply some basic thoughts to the various aspects of your life and leadership journey. These ideas can be used in business, church, home, parenting, just about any area where you have to take ownership of yourself.

There are a ton of simple ideas that can be implemented. The authors Jocko Willink and Leif Babin use real stories of their time serving as US Navy Seals. They take the principles learned in hard fought times of conflict. Tell the story of that challenging time. Then show the straightforward principle they learned. But what makes this book so great is the way they then apply that same battle principle to the civilian sector with real stories of businesses that used these principles to enhance how they function.

I’m not going to give all of the ideas set forth in this book because then you won’t read it yourself. But here are a couple of things to consider.

Simplicity is key. The more simple we make the plan, the easier it will be for the people we lead to follow the plan. Have you ever had someone give you directions using far too many details that really are not pertinent to how you need to go to get to your destination? If so you have experienced the need for simplicity first hand. When we muddy the plan with all sorts of extra steps and details, we make it nearly impossible for those around us to get on board.

Discipline is freedom. That one sounds like an oxymoron but if you really think about it there’s some truth there. The more you disciplined you are about an area of your life, the more freedom you find in the rest of your day. If you have a pretty disciplined routine in life, you’ll find freedom the ability to be productive and get things done. The freedom that comes from discipline is found in the focus and hard work you put in. The more disciplined you are the higher chances of you finding breathing room and margin in life.

If you are in any leadership role at all, this is a book that will benefit you greatly if applied. I’ve been in many roles where the leaders around me would have done far more for the organization had they owned their leadership instead of ignored it. Don’t be that guy!

The One Thing

January 12, 2023 / / 1 Comment

In a book written by Gary Keller titled The One Thing, we are challenged in our fast paced, multitasking world to simply focus. The author challenges the idea of diversifying ourselves into so many areas that we are largely ineffective.

There are really three basic thoughts in this book as I see them:

  1. Focusing on the ONE thing is the best way to get done what needs done.
  2. You’re more successful when you do one thing well.
  3. Success happens most effectively ONE building block at a time.

If you’re a multitasker or one who likes to jump from idea to idea constantly, then this book might be a good one for you. The author asserts that the time it takes to change gears actually slows down our ability to be productive in life. Focusing however on ONE thing until it is complete is a far better approach to work, success and productivity.

I was reminded of the Debt Snowball approach by Dave Ramsey when I considered the ONE thing approach to life. If you’re unfamiliar, the Debt Snowball basically is focusing on one debt at a time until it’s gone, then taking what you put toward that debt and add it to the next smallest debt. Like a snowball rolling down a hill your power over the debt becomes greater over time as you collect more leverage against it. The same is true with our time and focus with regard to productivity.

I’d recommend reading through this one. I did this one as an audiobook and feel it worked fine in that media style. So if you have a drive ahead of you, pop this one in your book reader and give it a listen. Then look at what is distracting you from getting the real tasks done. Focus on one at a time until it’s completed, then add that time to the new task and snowball your way through your day ONE thing at a time.

Influence vs Impact

January 6, 2023 / / 0 Comments

As we start a new year it’s a good thing to take a few minutes to consider the people ahead and behind us in life. Those people who we look to for influence in our lives. But also those people who look to you for guidance. We call these groups people of influence and impact.

The influence group are those who really push you to be your best. They bring out the best in you. They drive you to do and be better in just about every way. These people, and even places, are influential for any number of reasons. Take some time, as you set those resolutions or goals for the year, to consider the influencers in your life.

Make sure to carve our time for these people. Spend time with them. Invest in these relationships. The people who push you to do and be better are the ones you need to be near on a regular basis. Find creative ways to sit at their feet to learn as much as you can. When you’re with those kind of people who draw out the best in you, make sure to sit and listen. Ask good questions to grow as much from these relationships as you possibly can.

But just as important is the group we’ll call your impact group. These are the people on whom you have an impact. While the influencers feed you, the impact group needs you to in a sense feed them.

Take time to think of the people in your circle who need the best from you. Who needs your A game for them to thrive?

When you’re setting goals and plans for the coming year make sure to leave time and space in your life for those people who feed off of your energy, passion and knowledge.

One of the best things we can do in life is to create a legacy around us. A legacy looks ahead and behind us. A healthy legacy gives thanks for the influencers that have brought us to where we are and to the impact group who look to us for leadership and direction in life. Both are critical for a healthy life of leadership.

As a pastor, I focus on something called discipleship. This is the idea of learning from and walking closer to the way of Jesus. We do this by using influencers and impacters. The way we learn and grow is by looking to those who’ve been there…done that. And it becomes scalable and repeatable when we bring others along for the ride. Discipleship has to be an ongoing movement or it simply dies after a generation or two.

Jesus took his lead from his Father. Then shared that with the men and women who we call disciples. What he learned from the Father, he passed on to his followers. We are to do the same thing. Learn from those who feed us knowledge and pass that along to those who will take the reigns after we’re off the scene.

So who are your influencers? And who are you here to impact? Lean into these relationships this year!

Designed To Lead

January 5, 2023 / / 0 Comments

We start off the year with a book about leadership because, well most people think of ways they can better themselves in a variety of areas as they start a new year. This particular book is written to and for churches and their leaders, but some of the principles can be applied across disciplines.

The authors operate from the bias that churches are filled with broken people and therefore their leadership style and structure leave something to be desired. To give a more honest synopsis, they think the church is stuck and refuses to do better because it refuses to really try new things.

The idea of the status quo is constantly challenged throughout the book. However this is not just a thrust to challenge the status quo for the sake of being a pain. The push is pretty well thought out. There are no silver bullet approaches provided, merely a framework through which one should operate.

The three point framework suggested by the authors is conviction, culture and constructs.

Conviction is all about passion. The authors assert that leadership is lacking in many areas in the church because there is a lack of passion for leadership in the first place. Knowing the origin of the word leadership makes desiring leadership even that much less appealing. The base origin is a call to go forth and die. I know sounds like something everyone wants to do right? If we’re not convicted about leadership then we are most certainly not going to be willing to take some serious risks to move forward. Real leaders take calculated risks for the sake of the greater good.

Culture is really about the DNA of the organization. Is there a working DNA of leadership development and apprenticeship present in the church or organization? If not then generational changes will cause leadership to wane over time. Cultivating a culture of leadership development is not easy but for the overall health of the church it’s essential.

Constructs are the concrete actions put in place that allow the culture to thrive in light of the convictions for leadership development. The idea is pretty simple actually. It’s more than a program or new ministry area. It’s built around the culture. Do all areas of the church/organization demonstrate a heartfelt passion for leadership development? If not then a part of this puzzle is missing.

Some are not all that excited about leadership and church being in the same sentence, but if we’re about the idea of bringing people to a devoted relationship with Jesus how are they going to come if we don’t lead them?

A major challenge to leadership development in the church is the professionalization of church leadership positions. We have made all things important in the church fall on the shoulders of the pastor or other trained and educated person. This means that when we’re not good in an area, it’s easier to throw a few dollars at it and hire someone than it is to rally the troops and do it ourselves.

The main premise that weaves through the book is that we were designed to lead in specific ways. Some of us have front and center leadership roles. While others have quieter roles behind the scenes. Our position in leadership really doesn’t matter as much as the conviction, culture and constructs of our leadership setting.

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