After the team has brainstormed a long list of behaviors affirmed and practiced by the community, it’s time to reverse engineer those behaviors into value categories. I like to use the bin sort exercise. Each behavior is written on an index card. Looking at the list...
To help facilitate the identification of core values, it can be helpful to start with behaviors and then work backwards. This process results in actual values rather than desired values. Actual values are those lived out in behaviors, while desired values are those...
Determining core values needs to be a Spirit-led process. Although we borrow strategies and exercises from the secular world or businesses, we must never forget that we are part of the Kingdom of God. As such, God is leading, not us. We need to listen with an open...
When we talk about the church planting process, we often think about the various developmental stages: getting the core team gathered, starting groups, launching a worship service, etc. But there are certain core behavioral activities that all church planters need to...
Note: This blog entry is excerpted and adapted from my upcoming book, tentatively titled The Church Planting Journey. We’ll be posting excerpts about once a month here and we’d love to hear feedback from you. We hope you are getting as excited about it as...
Today’s entry is by guest blogger Dr. Charles R. Ridley. On Constructive Change Every individual, group, organization, and certainly every church periodically faces the challenge of changing. It has been said that change is the one constant in life. But some...
