Recently in Lead Category

Fractals Lesson by Pastor Wayne Cordeiro (mp3)

CCN is tremendously pleased to announce the official launch of our latest and most innovative project with Dr. Henry Cloud and Dr. John Townsend: SolutionsonVideo.com!

Don't you long for more time, more answers, and more counseling resources to support your congregation? SolutionsonVideo.com is your solution!

Best of all, this site is absolutely FREE to you, your church, your friends and family:

• Search over 1,200 video answers to questions on emotional issues, marriage, parenting, leadership, dating and more!
  
• Ask the Drs. your personal questions and receive continually updated video answers
  
• Dialogue with SolutionsonVideo.com community and receive input from Drs. Cloud and Townsend themselves
  
• Watch weekly video blogs by John and Henry

Five Ways to Make Volunteers' Service Worthwhile
by Ted Harro

1. Give me a clear, compelling purpose
2. Involve me as much as possible
3. Celebrate moments by creating traditions
4. Don't waste my time
5. Stop the ball-hogging

The details can be found here. I longer version of Ted Harro's article can be found here.

Here's a synopsis of Andy Stanely's message at Willow Creek's Leadership Summit 2006 (plan now for next year).

Andy Stanley: Why I Decided to Cheat the Church

He talked about the best leadership decision he’s ever made. He made a deal with God. He explained it something like this:

God, I don’t have time to build a ministry and take care of my family. I’ll give you 45 hours per week as a church planter. If you can build a church on 45 hours, I’m your guy. I’ll let you build has big a church as you can with that 45 hours, and I’ll be satisfied with that. But I’m not going to cheat my family.

Andy decided to cheat the church before he cheated his family. With his wife, he decided to be at home by 4:30 every day. That meant he left work at 4:00.

Andy explained that God has never commanded him to love the Church. He was commanded to love his wife. He was never commanded to build the Church. Jesus said he would do that. Instead, we get it backwards. We try to go build the church, and we pray that God will take care of our family.

How did this decision impact Andy’s leadership?

1. It forced him to play exclusively to play to his strengths. Focus on the things you’re good at. The less you do, the more you accomplish. You’re not very good at very many things. Only do what only you can do.

2. It forced him to prioritize the success of the church over my personal success. He had to say no to lots of other opportunities. It forced him to focus on the main thing God has called him to do. North Point has his undivided attention.

3. The value has forced the organization to say no to many things and maintain a sustainable pace. That protects Andy’s time, but it also obviously also protects his staff’s time. We need to create a “to don’t” list. The value led to a decision to shut down the church the final weekend of every year to give all the volunteers and staff members a weekend to be with their families.

4. This value elicits incredible loyalty from the staff. Andy tells all new employees not to cheat their families.

This is a hard decision. People will be angry. We can’t fall into the “If I don’t, it won’t get done” trap. How many hours you work won’t make or break your career.

Andy wrote more about this topic in his book, Choosing to Cheat.

Beware of Professional Christians
by Dan Reiland

At Crossroads, we pray what can seem like a strange prayer. We pray that God does not send Christians to our church. Before you yell "heresy" and push your delete key, keep reading. We have such a passion to reach the un-churched that we don't want to fill up the limited space we have with Christians who are looking for a new church to attend.

I have been asked: "How can you pray such a prayer?" "Do you turn away followers of Christ?" Of course we don't. We don't turn anyone away. We don't have our parking lot attendants "carding" people, asking if they are Christians and turning them away. It's easy to pray such a prayer when your heart is hot to reach people far from God.

We pray also for a second group. We pray for Christians to come who are nominal in their faith. We would love for the majority to be non-Christians, but particularly in the Southeast, that is not our reality; there are many who have some church background and consider themselves Christians even though their lives give no evidence. (Don't go theological on me, stay practical here.)

We pray for a third group to attend. We pray that the Christians that do come are leaders who are ready to serve. For these believers we are most grateful. We ask God to make this a small but powerful percentage of new people.

If we must choose who we offend (though it is not our desire to offend anyone), we will offend Christians, not the un-churched. If we offend anyone, we are most likely to offend what I call "Professional Christians." Professional Christians are believers, but have no intention to roll up their sleeves and serve. They are looking, in contrast, for a church to feed them, meet their needs, serve their schedules, and offer many of the latest and coolest programs in town. If you felt a little heat there, it is intentional. The consumer mindset in the local church is killing us.

Want people to read and respond to your bulletin announcements and other publicity? Don't just tell them when and where the event will be - tell them why they should participate. Give them a reason to attend.

How to Write a Church Activity Headline that Really Gets Read
by Chris Forbes

Everyday in the United States people are bombarded with a communication avalanche. It has been estimated by communication experts that the average American experiences 1,500-3,500 attempts to get his/her attention per day.

With all that competition, what hope do we who want to communicate to church members and unchurched people about our church events and ministry opportunities have of getting people to hear us? How do we keep the message we know is so important from getting drowned by the information tsunami?

The answer? Learn to broadcast! No, not by buying a radio station! But by learning to speak to people in a way that makes them naturally tune-in. Communication experts tell us, people are like radio receivers tuned into a single radio station. It seems all people are tuned in to “WII FM”. That stands for “What’s In It for Me?” Want to attract attention of the people you’re trying to reach? Tell them “what’s-in-it-for-me.” Tell them what the ministry event can do for them, or why they should be interested in it through the headline. In other words, give them more than facts, give them benefits.

The fact is, people’s needs drive what people pay attention to. People usually only notice what will benefit them in some way. So it never hurts to give them more than just the mere facts in your headlines, event announcements and sermon titles. Learn to think more strategically when writing brochures, newsletters and advertisements.

Read more

By Sam Simmons

Many professions, like medicine, law, and teaching, recognize the importance of skills by requiring updates through an annual certification process. According to Reggie McNeal, ministry skills are not immune to becoming outdated and ineffective over time:

Many men and women who entered the ministry with a clear sense of call to make a difference feel overwhelmed, bewildered, defeated, and generally underprepared for the challenges they face. Having packed their bags for the journey of the church age, they now have no idea what should be in their leadership backpack for the current excursion. The portfolio of skills that once gave them standing in the community of faith no longer distinguishes them, ensures their effectiveness, or guarantees their continued leadership position. (The Present Future, pp. 7-8)

Do your ministry skills need updating? Are your ministry skills out of balance? Does your calling require you to focus your development in certain areas? Below is a list of skills helpful for ministry in the 21st century. You can use the list as a personal assessment tool or as a development guide for those you mentor.

Get the list of ministry skills here

According to Pastor Mark Driscoll:

• Fifteen hundred pastors leave the ministry each month due to moral failure, spiritual burnout, or contention in their churches.
• Fifty percent of pastors' marriages will end in divorce.
• Eighty percent of pastors and eighty-four percent of their spouses feel unqualified and discouraged in their role as pastors.
• Fifty percent of pastors are so discouraged that they would leave the ministry if they could, but have no other way of making a living.
• Eighty percent of seminary and Bible school graduates who enter the ministry will leave the ministry within the first five years.
• Seventy percent of pastors constantly fight depression.
• Almost forty percent polled said they have had an extra-marital affair since beginning their ministry.
• Seventy percent said the only time they spend studying the Word is when they are preparing their sermons.
• Eighty percent of pastors' spouses feel their spouse is overworked.
• Eighty percent of pastors' spouses wish their spouse would choose another profession.
• The majority of pastor's wives surveyed said that the most destructive event that has occurred in their marriage and family was the day they entered the ministry.

Read his entire post for some ways to help avoid becoming one of these statistics (e.g. only do what you can do, exercise, find a hobby, honor the sabbath, turn of the computer and cell phone, do what God created you to do - not what everyone else wants you to do). Especially read the post if you recognize any of these symptoms in your life:

• Unusual mood swings that may include weeping without just cause, anger, or depression
  
• Exhaustion
  
• Paranoia and suspicion
  
• Weight change, including gain or loss
  
• Moments of panic and feeling totally overwhelmed
  
• Fantasizing about dying or running away to get away from the pressure
  
• Fight-or-flight cycles where you rise up to intimidate and conquer others or run away from difficulties just to avoid them
  
• Insomnia, including difficulty falling asleep or remaining asleep, which can lead to a reliance on sleeping pills
  
• Too frequent use of alcohol or tobacco
  
• High blood pressure
  
• Comforting yourself with unhealthy foods packed with fat, sugar, and simple carbohydrates
  
• General irritability
  
• Reckless driving
  
• Change in sexual desire of either noticeable increase or decrease
  
• Notable ongoing sexual temptation
  
• Health-related issues such as irritable bowel syndrome, headaches, heart trouble, chronic sickness, and stomach problems including ulcers
  
• A victim mentality that sees the world as against you and everyone as an enemy to varying degrees
  
• Shopping sprees and unnecessary financial spending
  
• Reliance on caffeine to self-medicate
  
• Children, friends, and loved ones begin to feel like yet another burden

By Mike Bonem and Roger Patterson

Do you want to see exciting, God-honoring results in your church? Then fill it with committed and capable vocational or volunteer leaders serving alongside the senior pastor. This is the essence of “leading from the second chair.” But most leaders who know the biblical truth of this message also know that its potential can be elusive. Capturing these benefits requires that second chair leaders master the dynamics of leading and following, improve their ministry, and influence those with whom they serve. Hence our definition: a second chair leader is a person in a subordinate role whose influence with others adds value throughout an organization. This definition underscores that being in the second chair is not a function of title as much as of attitude, perspective, and influence. That is why executive or associate pastors are not the only second chair leaders in a church. Other staff members and key lay leaders have important second chair roles to play as well.

In essence, effective second chair leaders think, lead, and shepherd beyond the boundaries of their own ministry as they seek to enhance the whole congregation. Second chair leaders are expected to be bold initiators and faithful followers, creative thinkers and detailed implementers. Their ongoing challenge is to do a wide variety of tasks and do them well. Being called upon to wear so many hats can be perplexing and stressful, but it can also be rich and rewarding.

Read the rest

Also, coming soon is the Leading from the Second Chair CCN broadcast.

Before equipping volunteers, it’s essential to ask yourself these three questions: What does each volunteer need to know? What does each volunteer need to have? And finally, what does each volunteer need to be? Build your training on these basics:

1. Each volunteer needs to know:
* our church’s doctrinal statement,
* our department’s mission statement, and
* how to relate to and work with the people they will serve.

2. Each volunteer needs to have:
* faith in Jesus Christ as his or her Savior,
* regular Bible study time,
* a consistent prayer life, and
* an ability to articulate his or her faith.

3. Each volunteer needs to be:
* ethical,
* growing in Christian character, and
* filled with the fruit of the Spirit (see Galatians 5:22-23).

From Group's Church Volunteer Central

We are now set up to broadcast live and pre-recorded seminars from the Church Communication Network. The broadcasts can be shown in the Main Sanctuary or the Student Center.

Here is a list of some of the upcoming seminars:

Leading Kids To Christ: How To Share Jesus With Children
Ministry and Marriage: When Leaders Live Together
Seekers Uncensored II: Next Steps to Reaching Seekers Around You
Prophecies of the Passion
Character Traits of Leaders
Every Young Woman's Battle
Reaching Emerging Generations: They Love Jesus But Not the Church<
MOMSense: Dare to Reach Your Mothering Potential
How to Handle Conflict as a Leader
Truth Telling in Leadership
Creative Romance in Marriage
The Family Life of Leaders
Work Does Not Equal Family
Becoming a Better Communicator in Your Marriage
Becoming Fruitful in Leadership

Take a look at the complete list CCN's upcoming broadcasts to find training opportunities that would benefit you and your teams.
PDF of 1st Quarter of 2006 Schedule
PDF of 2nd Quarter of 2006 Schedule
PDF of 3rd Quarter of 2006 Schedule

Then make note of these 11 things you should know about people.

1. People don't care about the church database.
2. People aren't motivated by your need. They're motivated by theirs.
3. People don’t care about their next step until they know they're valued where they are now.
4. People don't know who you are, no matter how long you've been around the church.
5. People multi-task and can't remember squat.
6. People are turned off by lack of preparation.
7. People relate when you talk about them or people like them.
8. People feel left out and frustrated when you use insider's language.
9. People aren't impressed with your theological vocabulary and holy dialect.
10. People love stories not lectures.
11. People shut down when your message sounds like a scolding.

Read more here. It's worth the click.

Here's something from the 43 Folders website we can all benefit from:

When people ask me to start a new project of any kind — and assuming it is something I’m actually interested in doing — I try to set reasonable boundaries and expectations on how actively I’ll participate as well as how much time and availability I can afford to spend on it. The key for me has been to set fairly hard numerical caps on time, access, and the amount of attention that I want to contribute — and to do so early in the life of the relationship. Here’s the way I put it in that post from December 2004:

So, what used to be “Sure, I’ll do your web site” is now more often “Sure, I’ll give you 10 hours and 3 calls over the next month to use however you want.” If nothing else, it helps everyone understand that time is a precious commodity, but it also gets me out of being the de facto manager for every aspect of a project I touch.

I’ll also share that this “yes, but…” approach also works great for honest-to-God work, as well. It means that my client and I have a fair and honest understanding of how quickly and often we can expect each others’ full attention as well as being able to generate a hard number to guide when the clock is starting to run down. You wouldn’t believe how priorities re-align when people see that 80% of the time or budget is gone.

Read more

• We have to be motivated to motivate
• Motivation requires a goal
• Motivation, once established, never lasts
• Motivation requires recognition
• Participation motivates
• Seeing ourselves progress motivates us
• Challenge only motivates if you can win
• Everybody has a motivational fuse
• Belonging to a group motivates

Read the free e-book, The Laws of Motivation

(thanks to lifehack.org)

A Hard-To-Recognize Hazard for Christian Leaders
by Ruth Haley Barton

Dangerous tired is an atmospheric condition of the soul that is volatile and portends the risk of great destruction. It is a chronic inner fatigue accumulating over months (and sometimes years) that doesn't always manifest itself in physical exhaustion. In fact, dangerous tiredness can appear to be quite the opposite because it can actually be masked by excessive activity and compulsive overworking. When we are dangerously tired we feel out of control, compelled to constant activity by inner impulses that we may not even be aware of. For some reason we can't name, we're not able to linger and relax over a cup of coffee. We can't keep from checking voice-mail or e-mail "just one more time" before we leave the office or before we go to bed at night. Rather than reading anything for the sheer pleasure of it, our nightstand is piled high with books and professional journals that cram our heads full of more information that will keep us at "the top of our game." The idea of taking a full day off once a week seems impossible both in theory and in practice. We rarely, if ever, take time for a real break or vacation, choosing instead to work through holidays and break times. Not surprisingly, we might find that even when it is time for well-deserved sleep or rest, we are unable to relax and receive this necessary gift.

While our way of life might seem heroic, there is a frenetic quality to our activity that is disturbing to those around us. When we do have discretionary time we indulge in escapist behaviors such as compulsive eating, drinking, spending, television watching—because we are too tired to choose activities that are truly life-giving. When we have drifted into the realm of being dangerously tired, we might also be numb to the full range of human emotion. It might seem like a relief to be unhampered by the negative emotions that bog other people down, but when we are dangerously tired the positive emotions become elusive as well. We don't feel much of anything—the good or the bad.

Does any of that sound too familiar? If so, please read more.