Leadership
Holistic Leadership Development
You want to develop leaders who will do what Jesus called us to do, leaders who can take the church forward into the 21st century. You look to the fields and see them, as Jesus does, ready for harvest — and you know that’s where your ministry needs to concentrate.
What’s needed is holistic leadership development — the kind of leadership development that comes from the harvest and leads people back into the harvest, resulting in subsequent generations of new believers and new leaders living as Jesus called us to live.
We can help you develop leaders the kind of leaders you need in a way that is both relational and intentional… and ultimately effective in helping your church accomplish its mission.
Confusion as a tool of control
From time to time, I've worked with people who are confused about their role or their responsibilities-- about what is expected of them. Sometimes I find I haven't communicated clearly. I slow down, then they lock in and are with me. Other times, even after...
Quitting choir
When I was a junior in college at UCLA studying chemistry, I had a spiritual awakening. I became involved in campus ministry, a youth choir, and other activities. Life was very full, and I enjoyed the vast majority of what I was doing. Before sitting down to...
Leave them in the parking lot
Have you ever taken a hike with unwilling children? It’s a painful experience trying to take kids along who don’t want to go. They will complain and sabotage in an effort to make the experience so miserable that everyone will want to turn back. It’s better to...
Annual time-budget seasons
For many people, the way they spend their time isn’t consistent from week to week or even month to month. Some people are bi-vocational or have a trans-local ministry that requires more time during one season and less during another. They may have two or three...
Coaching networks across the land
I ran across a great example of an opportunity where a semi-independent sodalic ministry could be established. Recently I was doing a consultation with a group that was focused on small town and rural church planting within a particular region. My encouragement...
2 Timothy 2:2 extension chains
“You have heard me teach things that have been confirmed by many reliable witnesses. Now teach these truths to other trustworthy people who will be able to pass them on to others.” -- 2 Timothy 2:2 NLT This photo is a visual of 2 Timothy 2:2. From the man in the red...
A picture of contentment
Here’s something I saw in Honduras: kids playing soccer with an empty liter of soda. They don’t have much at all, but they found an empty bottle, turned it into a soccer ball, and they were having a wonderful time. Seeing this, it struck me how much contentment is...
What God’s calling means for parents
God sometimes calls people at an early age. God can call children now, just as he called Samuel at a young age (1 Samuel 3). What is the role of parents or other significant adults in a child’s life? First, to teach their children about God, by both word and...
Actions that speak louder than words
People in the world are looking for the practical implications of what difference it makes to be a disciple. They want to know: Does this matter? Does this make the lives of others better? Does this help the poor? The church in the western world has largely lost our...
A mission-shaped church?
I have a new pen-pal: Christian Schwarz in Germany of Natural Church Development International. We’ve been writing back and forth lately discussing the relationship between NCD and the missional movement. Christian’s definition of a healthy church includes it...
Three types of questions for learning skills
As someone approaches learning a new skill, coaches need to approach them with three types of questions. These different types of questions are progressive, building on one another, and people aren’t able to process all of them at once. The “what” questions: ...
Mobilize an initial leadership team
Note: This blog entry is part of a series on church planting. If you would like to see all entries that have been posted so far in this series, you can bring them up by doing a search for “church planting series” on this blog. You can also purchase the full 27 page...