3 Traits in Healthy Leaders
Healthy ministries (and healthy organizations) are led by healthy leaders. For this reason, the Apostle Paul challenged pastor Timothy to “pay close attention to your life and your teaching; persevere in these things, for in doing this you will save both yourself and your hearers” (1 Timothy 4:15-16). If a leader is faithful in teaching […]
3 Reasons Ministry Leadership is Uniquely Challenging
A.W. Tozer wrote, “It is not what a man does that determines whether his work is sacred or secular; it is why he does it. Motive is everything.” I agree and do not believe that serving in local church ministry is more spiritual or more sacred than serving in other spheres of society. While I […]
What Does Untainted Leadership Look Like?
There was a time when leadership was as it should be all of the time, when motivations were always pure, when goals were not bent out of shape with unholy ambitions, and when the actions of a leader were right and good and pure. With all the corrupted or apathetic leadership that we have observed, […]
4 Common Marketplace Leadership Sayings That Don’t (Fully) Apply in Ministry
Augustine articulated that “all truth is God’s truth.” When a true leadership principle is discovered in the marketplace, the author of that principle is God Himself, whether the people who discovered the principle recognize its Author or not. Ironically, the world often recognizes leadership principles long after they have been revealed in Scripture. For example, […]
Ministry (and Management) By Walking Around
David Packard, one of the founders of Hewlett-Packard, is credited with coining the acronym MBWA and the accompanying phrase “management by walking around.” It’s a phrase I have read in multiple leadership books to encourage leaders to be present among their teams to build relationships, continually share direction and vision, and increase accountability through visibility—all […]
Refusing to View Challenges as Sacrifices
I recently pointed to insights from Dan Chambliss about the relationship between excellence and loving the hard work associated with improving one’s craft or discipline—that those who become excellent don’t view the necessary work as a sacrifice. They don’t think in those terms because they love the work, the mission, and what they get to […]
A Case for Christian-ese
Every culture has a language. I am not only referring to the languages people speak and write within an ethnic or geographical culture but also to the languages of subcultures. I have been reminded in recent months of the reality of culture and language through working out at a gym and joining a Pilates club […]
Excellence and When What Seems Like a Sacrifice Is Not a Sacrifice
Here are two different types of people on a team (athletic, organization, ministry, etc.): One person considers the sacrifices willing to be made for the sake of the team or for the sake of excellence. Another person doesn’t view the same actions as sacrifices at all because of an overwhelming passion for the work. The […]
3 Inexpensive Leadership Decisions That Are Very Costly
Earlier this year, I wrote about five expensive leadership decisions that are worth more than they cost. Meaning, it is wise to spend the money and invest in your marriage and family, generous giving, wise counsel, developing leaders, and a seasoned leader on your team. There are leadership decisions that have a cost, but the […]
3 Reminders From the Brief Moment When Adolescent Mental Health Improved
In Jean Twenge’s most recent book, Generations, she offers research-based insight from different generations currently living: Silents, Boomers, Gen X, Millennials, and Gen Z. In the chapter on Gen Z, she shared research I had not seen before about the mental health of adolescents during the pandemic—namely that mental health improved during the first three […]