Too many programs. Too many events. Too many announcements. Too many things on the calendar. For those who bemoan complexity, these are common statements. If you serve on a church staff you have surely heard or offered these statements. You have likely wrestled with the tension of wanting to meet a need in a way…
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3 Lessons for Church Leaders From Yahoo! & The Peanut Butter Manifesto
In 2016 Verizon Communications bought Yahoo! In case you are wondering, I did not mean for the exclamation point to communicate that I was overly excited about the acquisition or the demise of the former web giant. The exclamation point is part of their name…Yahoo! Most who have analyzed what went wrong with the company…
Culture Is the Hardest and the Last Thing Changed
Every ministry, every organization, every team has a culture. There have been numerous illustrations to try and capture what culture is and what culture means. Some have said that the culture is the DNA of an organization. And that just as every living organism has self-replicating material, every organization has a culture that will self-replicate….
5 Reminders For Your New Season
Today is my first day in a new ministry and leadership role as I begin serving Mariners Church as their new senior pastor. The day has been mapped out for several weeks. After taking my daughters to school for their first day, I will go to my new office for several planned meetings with my…
Only 2 Ways to Resolve Tension Because of Higher Expectations
When I was in my twenties, just beginning to find any semblance of a stride as a leader, I shared with a mentor that I was receiving some pushback among some people on my team that my expectations were too high. The expectations probably were too high as I was leading a team of predominantly…
When to Lead as a Farmer and When to Lead as a Hunter
Farmers and hunters both spend their days working for food they will eat, but how they get their food is very different. Hunters search for food that they will soon eat. They eat what they kill today. Farmers plan, plant, watch over, and harvest at the appropriate time. Their work today shows up months later….
3 Common Emotional Mistakes Leaders Make
Sometimes being a leader feels like living in two different worlds as leaders must think about the future while also executing today. And then there are the emotional challenges of leadership, as being a leader often requires leading with two emotions at once. Leaders often must grieve the loss of something while also holding to…
Before You Go, Check the Pull…
Leading in any context is challenging. You carry the burden of the people and the ministry or organization on your shoulders. Problems will hit your office. Not everyone will like the decisions you make. Or even how you make them. Not everyone will agree with the priorities you set, the direction you take, or the…
Unfinished Ministry and the Lord’s Finishing
Ministry is never done. You never really “clock out,” because ministry never ends. The work of the church is never going to be over. These are phrases all of us in ministry have heard. And all of us have found them to be true. A mentor once told me to enjoy cutting my grass because…
Blogging, Social Media, and My New Season
After announcing the transition from my role at LifeWay to Mariners Church, several have asked me if I will continue to write/blog and have encouraged me to do so. Here is the backstory… When I was serving Christ Fellowship in Miami as executive pastor and teaching pastor, I served the broader Church in “my spare…