The Word Must Be Central
The church I pastor has a list of eight values that reflect and direct our culture. We evaluate ourselves based on the values, celebrate staff who display the values, and teach them to ourselves continually. Our first value is “the Word must be central.” The order of the other values is not important, but the […]
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 […]
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 […]
The Most Dangerous Animal on Our Safari
Earlier this year, our family joined others from our church on a trip to Uganda to visit some of our global partners. It’s a beautiful country, and they are amazing people. While on the trip we got to go on a safari, which was also amazing. We rode around a massive national park in Jeeps […]
3 Common Postures People Assume at Church
There are different postures we can take when we go to church. Yes, I know some will say, “We don’t go to church; we are the Church.” While I understand the sentiment that we want to be a people who live in Christian community and not merely check “church” off a list of things to […]
Thinking About Technology as a Parent and Pastor
As a Christian, a parent, and a pastor, I know I need to think wisely about technology. I make lots of decisions personally, for my family, and for the church I pastor around technology—ranging from the use of social media in our home to how we approach ministry online as a church. I am not […]
6 Years and 6 of the Best Nuggets of Wisdom My Predecessor Has Given Me
It has been six years since I became the Senior Pastor of Mariners Church, following my predecessor (Kenton Beshore or “KB”) who served Mariners faithfully and with incredible skill for 35 years. KB is worthy of respect and honor, and I am very thankful for him. He is still on our team as one of […]
Message Prep and 3 Rhythms to Avoid the Agony of a Blank Page
I recently read Riding the Alligator: Strategies for a Career in Screenplay by Pen Densham who has written and produced Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves, The Outer Limits, The Twilight Zone, and others. I have no intention of writing a screenplay, but I was curious to see the writing and creative process of someone who […]