The Hurt Locker tells the story of various soldiers serving overseas, but it particularly focuses on those who disarm explosive devices. As you can imagine, trying to disarm bombs either before they explode or so that they don't explode is one of the most nerve-racking jobs in the military. The movie shows how such stress affects…
Sticky Leaders is about how to change an existing organization. Most attempts to make changes fail (18). But many books don't talk about failure because it doesn't sell well. Plus, as Nassim Taleb has pointed out, we're all prone to the "survivor bias." We see those who've been successful and try to emulate them, not…
Recap and application of Church Fuel's master class on vision. Vision sketches out a potential future: "Can you see what I'm saying?" Vision needs to be both BIG and small. The big side of vision is your purpose for existing as a church. It will be along the lines of the Great Commission or the Great…
Cal Newport contends that “following your passion” is bad advice. Why? Because many interesting careers have complicated origin stories (13). It’s not just, “Hey, I loved doing this, and then found the perfect job which matched my love. Often, people stumble into a field. Being passionate about often takes time and mastery (17). Telling people…
"I don't have to feel guilty in my relationship with the Lord, because it's my relationship with God." An older, wiser pastor spoke those words to me while we ate lunch together a few months ago. He told me that in his church circles, other pastors constantly exhort one another to follow certain kinds of devotional…
Kem Meyer's book Less Chaos. Less Noise. teaches churches to communicate more effectively. Here are some reflections on the book. More choices does not mean more engagement. Response: dial back the volume (42). App: Send less emails, texts, etc. Make more phone calls! User experience is by far the best "advertisement" (52). App: Make things an awesome experience. Build culture of…
All Community Group Leaders have questions. But not all Group Leaders have the same questions. Rather than having to sit through training and hear answers to questions you're not asking, the Group Leader's Toolbox is a collection of resources that you can look through and find what's useful to you! The Format Each resource answers a common (or…
Spending time in God's Word is always beneficial. But sometimes you might feel like you just don't know what to do. You know you should read. You know you should pray. But how? What does a realistic plan look like? Here I want to give you a sample schedule for how to spend an hour in…
Larry Osborne wrote Sticky Teams to help pastors navigate the practical realities of leading, not just a spiritual organism, but also an organization. There's not much theology found in the book; it's a practical guide with seasoned wisdom sprinkled throughout. Model Don't Matter "Even the clearest vision, greatest innovations, and most stellar programs won't much of an…
"We can and must do in the present, if we are obedient to the gospel, if we are following Jesus, and if we are indwelt, energized, and directed by the Spirit, is to build for the kingdom. This brings us back to 1 Corinthians 15:58 once more: what you do in the Lord is not…