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.
Macro thinking vs. Micro thinking
In the midst of a consultation recently it became apparent that the two groups that were there were starting to talk past each other. One group took a macro approach. They asked, “What would this look like if it were completely fleshed out?” They wanted the big...
Asking the right questions
Yesterday I wrote about the growth of urban slums. Which leaves us with the question: “What can we as the church do about it?” Yet our guiding question shouldn’t be, “What can we do to address the challenge of urban slums?” but rather, “What will it take to bring...
On urban poverty
Population growth rates in urban slums are higher than in virtually any other environment in the world. Currently, 1 out of 6 people in the world live in urban slums. 1 out of 6. Every week urban areas gain another 1.3 million people. That’s 67 million people per...
My trip to Mexico
I recently took a week-long trip to Mexico City, which you’ll be hearing a lot more about in upcoming blog entries. The original purpose of the trip was to check out a church plant formed out of ministry to the poor. Those of you who know me know that this is an area...
Continuous effort: In it for the long haul
Next in my series of quotes from Winston Churchill: “Continuous effort – not strength or intelligence – is the key to unlocking our potential.” How often we believe that if we were only smarter, faster, stronger, better… then we would be able to accomplish our goals....
The importance of context
In coaching, as in so many other important parts of life, context matters. The best response must fit with the current situation. Winston Churchill said, “In War: Resolution. In Defeat: Defiance. In Victory: Magnanimity. In Peace: Goodwill.” The best response depends...
Winston Churchill on courage
Lately I’ve been reading a biography of Winston Churchill and ran across this quote from him: “Courage is what it takes to stand up and speak; courage is also what it takes to sit down and listen.” This reminds me of the role we have as Christian leaders. Certainly...
Take the 30-day challenge
For the next 30 days, every time someone asks you an advice-type question, instead of giving them an answer, them this question: “What do you think?” Then discipline yourself to simply listen and help them unpack their thoughts. When I tried this experiment myself, I...
When God is at work, don’t mess it up
When you’re coaching someone and they say, “That’s a good question,” how should you respond? The correct answer is silence. When someone says, “That’s a good question,” it means the Holy Spirit has connected with them and what you need to do is nothing. Be silent and...
What makes a question powerful?
Most powerful questions are simple and they are short—usually 5 words or less. What do you want? What would it look like? Who can help you? What are you hearing from God? These are short, simple questions. Powerful questions have no long preamble or explanation on the...
Does Christianity change?
Did you see last Monday’s article in USA today? They’re doing a series on faith in America and the author, Oliver Thomas, is making the point that things change—even in the area of faith. Once a faith stops connecting with the people and the culture, it begins to die....
What makes missional coach training different?
I’ve done conducted a lot of coach trainings over the years. Last week in Denver I did my first coach training geared specifically for missional leaders. Missional coach training: coaching for incarnational, missional ministry. It felt different. Since then I’ve been...