Just because a decision is painful does not mean that the decision is difficult. A person on your team displays a lack of moral integrity. Indeed, it will indeed be painful to act and remove the person from the team, but the decision is not. It is clear. Someone you work alongside consistently displays a…
Leadership
4 Reasons I Am Praying for Roe v. Wade to Be Overturned
As I was driving home from the office a few days ago, I decided to flip through talk radio channels and hear what people were saying about the Supreme Court’s proceedings as the Court was considering upholding Mississippi’s ban on abortion fifteen weeks into a pregnancy. I stopped at a red-light and was behind a…
The Great Resignation and 3 Reminders for Leaders
If you search the phrase “Great Resignation” online, you will see a myriad of articles about the reality that people are leaving their jobs at a staggering rate. The stats are unprecedented: 4.4 million Americans quit their jobs in September, 73% of Americans are considering quitting their job right now, 50% of Americans want to…
Seeing People and Three Types of Leaders
Leaders are typically driven. They have a deep burden and that burden becomes a vision that compels them to consistent action. But conviction towards a goal without deep love for people can ruin a leader and result in people not being cared for. At the same time leaders will be hurt as leading others is…
When to NOT Ask Your Predecessor to Stay on the Team
Over three years ago I made the decision to ask my predecessor, Kenton Beshore, to stay on our staff and teaching team. While there are many reasons to consider asking your predecessor to stay, there are times when it is unwise to do so. There are times when it is best for the new leader,…
10 Reasons to Consider Asking Your Predecessor to Stay Involved
When I became the senior pastor of Mariners Church over three years ago, I made the decision to ask Kenton Beshore (my predecessor and long-time pastor of Mariners) to stay on staff and to be on our teaching team. One of the most common thread of questions I receive from other ministry leaders is around…
Receiving and Keeping the Freedom to Work Hard AND Protect Your Schedule
Whenever I have shared the principle with leaders that “it is not how much you work but when you work,” I am inevitably asked how to enjoy such a freedom. In my last three roles (executive and teaching pastor, senior vice-president, and senior pastor), I have been honored with the gift to live by the…
Olympics, Leadership, and a Better Identity
A recurring struggle in my life is finding my identity in something other than Jesus – which is always something less than Jesus. I think being a leader who loves the role and the people can exacerbate the struggle with misplaced identity. Of course, we are to love our roles and the people we serve,…
How Leadership Is Impacted by God Existing Outside of Time
“Are we going to stop the plans we had in place?” “No.” “Why not?” “Because God is eternal. Let me explain …” That was a conversation that played out several times during the pandemic. God is eternal and this weighty theological belief practically impacts leadership. God has always been and will forever be. Moses declared:…
Leaders, Pain and Beauty Seem to Go Together
I first started blogging because Thom Rainer, my former boss and CEO of Lifeway Christian Resources, encouraged me to use a blog to encourage and help ministry leaders thus the vast majority of my writing was for them. But after a few years of blogging Chris Martin, who helps with my blog, surveyed all the…