2 QUESTIONS TO ASK IF YOUR CHURCH FEELS STUCK
Churches get stuck all the time.
Too often we can find ourselves doing ministry out of memory.
For what it's worth, here are 2 Important Questions for Fearless Leaders to ask...
1) HAVE WE LOST OUR LOVE FOR LOST PEOPLE?
400 years ago Protestants fled England and came to the New World to set up churches... for themselves. If your church is insider-focused, it's because of our Pilgrim heritage!
Ignite your passion for what ignites God's heart -- Remind your church that EVERY person matters!
If your church is reaching the lost, you WILL be a target from RELIGIOUS people!
Religious people were ALWAYS walking away and rejecting Jesus throughout His ministry. If you are not receiving the same rejection as Jesus, then you may not be preaching the same gospel that Jesus preached!
Ask yourself: Am I a fisher of men or a keeper of an aquarium?
2) AM I LEADING WITH A RISING LEVEL OF HOPE?
Nothing great ever happens THROUGH YOU until it happens TO YOU!
Look at every great hero in the Scriptures:
Moses spent 40 years in the wilderness before ascending into leadership
David was living in a cave down by the river for a decade
Peter beat himself up after rejecting Jesus three times
God LOVES using BROKEN people to minister to BROKEN people!
The key is to not wallow in your brokenness. Minister from the OVERFLOW of what the Lord is doing in your life and in your heart! You cannot lead people to a place that you are not already at.
The most important thing I do as a leader: Making sure that I stay encouraged!
Ask yourself: 'What things CHARGE MY BATTERIES?'
If your internal batteries aren't charged up, you will fall into weariness.
DISCOURAGEMENT precedes DESTRUCTION:
The Enemy RUINS your FUTURE by first RUINING your DAY so that you will run toward destructive habits and choices!
HOW TO MAKE YOUR VISION A REALITY IN 3 EASY STEPS
PRAYER
Pray for God to give you a white-hot vision; a picture of what the future COULD be and SHOULD be.
PLAN
Write out a plan from Point A to Point B to Point C of all the steps required to make your vision a reality.
PERSPIRE
Then, move the plan forward by taking action! Do not allow PRAYER to become an EXCUSE for INACTIVITY. If God has called you to it, He will bring you through it.
Remember these 3 Steps: Pray --> Plan --> Perspire
RUNNING A RESCUE SHOP WITHIN A YARD OF HELL
"Some want to live within the sound of church or chapel bell
I want to run a rescue shop within a yard of hell." (C. T. Studd)
To live within the sound of church or chapel bell was not enough for Charles Thomas (C.T.)
Studd, (1860-1931), an English missionary to China, India, and Africa. C. T. Studd was born into privilege and wealth, but God had other plans for his life. His father, Edward, was converted after hearing the famous American evangelist Dwight L. Moody speak. Then subsequently, C. T. and his brothers were also converted.
But, 6 years after C. T.’s conversion, he realized that his commitment to the Lord was lacking and he decided to give everything up, and seek God’s will. He wisely said, "I know that cricket would not last, and honour would not last, and nothing in this world would last, but it was worthwhile living for the world to come."
How many people are content to live within the sound of church or chapel bell, but never step foot inside of a church to hear the Gospel message?
Or, how many are content to live within the sound of church bells and attend, but never take the Gospel to heart or share Jesus Christ with others?
They haven’t counted the cost of discipleship, but C. T. Studd did and he chose a life of hardship and sacrifice, because of His commitment to Jesus Christ.
And when others questioned him about the decisions he was making for the sake of the Gospel, he could only reply with these words:
"If Jesus Christ be God and died for me, then no sacrifice can be too great for me to make for Him.” –C. T. Studd
Although salvation through Jesus Christ is a free gift from God given to us by grace (Ephesians 2:8-9), it was not without cost to Him.
To be a disciple of Jesus Christ, one must realize the cost of His sacrifice and respond with a commitment to follow Him wholeheartedly; without reservation and whatever the cost.
Additionally, we should want more than to live within the sound of church bells, and be actively involved in helping to fulfill Jesus’ Great Commission.
To do so we have to daily surrender ourselves to Him. As a result, we give up our own way of living and submit to His will and rule in our lives:
Romans 12:1 says, “And so, dear brothers and sisters, I plead with you to give your bodies to God because of all he has done for you. Let them be a living and holy sacrifice--the kind he will find acceptable. This is truly the way to worship him.”
Mark 8:34-37 says, “Then, calling the crowd to join his disciples, he said, 'If any of you wants to be my follower, you must turn from your selfish ways, take up your cross, and follow me. If you try to hang on to your life, you will lose it. But if you give up your life for my sake and for the sake of the Good News, you will save it. And what do you benefit if you gain the whole world but lose your own soul? Is anything worth more than your soul?'”
Great missionaries like C. T. Studd, Hudson Taylor, Jim Elliot and so many more were not content to merely live within the sound of church bells. They gave their lives, and left their homes and families, to be used by the Lord to spread the Gospel.
We also shouldn’t be content to just live within the sound of church bells. We like them, should be passionate about spreading the Gospel; and endure hardship and danger if necessary, so people would be rescued from going to hell. If we can’t, then we should at least support the work of missionaries prayerfully and financially.
As Christians, we can follow in the steps of these great men of faith, by surrendering our lives to the Lord Jesus Christ, seeking His will, and living by faith and trusting in Him.
John 12:24-26 says, “I tell you the truth, unless a kernel of wheat is planted in the soil and dies, it remains alone. But its death will produce many new kernels—a plentiful harvest of new lives. Those who love their life in this world will lose it. Those who care nothing for their life in this world will keep it for eternity. Anyone who wants to serve me must follow me, because my servants must be where I am. And the Father will honor anyone who serves me.”
This famous quote from the poem, “Only One Life, Twill Soon Be Past” by C.T Studd, is a sober reminder of the brevity of life and that only what’s done for Christ has eternal value:
"Only one life, ’twill soon be past,
Only what’s done for Christ will last." – C. T. Studd
6 WORDS YOU NEED IN YOUR LEADERSHIP VOCABULARY
1. PATIENCE
If you get too frustrated with the process, you’ll quit the mission God has given you.
Just because you were patient one season, doesn’t mean you’ll be patient in the next.
The patience you use for yourself should be the patience you use for others.
2. CONFRONTATION
Confrontation is necessary for growth.
When done well, it’s an opportunity to BUILD trust.
If you tolerate things that are against your values, it says more about you than the other person.
3. RISK TAKING
Anytime you step out to do something great, you have to count the cost.
Great leaders are willing to take this risk rather than play it safe.
4. RECRUITING
If you’re a good recruiter, you can SEE in others what they cannot see in THEMSELVES!
Great leadership builds up great people without needing any of the credit.
5. ATTITUDE
There are many things in leadership you can’t control, but what you CAN control is your attitude.
A leader with a great attitude can lead through any situation.
6. EMPOWERING
You can recruit, but can you give away and delegate responsibilities?
The day of the lone ranger is done, the superhero in leadership is the one that empowers others!
5 KEYS TO GROWING YOUR CHURCH IN 2023
Why are the things that USED to work not working now?
Why are most churches NOT growing right now?
The Great Reset happened - and it impacted almost every church. Culture shifts - pandemic, politically, racial strife, migration out of cities. People are rethinking everything.
America is becoming more post-Christian. Rise of the Nones.
You’ve shut down or throttled back your digital presence. This gets rid of your discoverability. Or it’s all about Sunday only.
What you offer digitally is the same as what you offer in-person.
The message isn’t the draw it used to be. Scarcity creates value and the message isn’t scarce since it’s online.
Hype isn’t cutting it anymore.
You’re focused on the wrong audience.
So how do you grow your church in this environment?
Key #1: Renew yourself and your team.
A lot of pastors are exhausted. Lots of grief. Lack of momentum is it’s own form of discouragement. Healthy leaders grow healthy churches. Unhealthy leaders don’t. What do you need to do to become a healthy leader? Grieve your losses and process everything you’ve been through. Healthy at the top, healthy at the bottom. Aligned at the top, aligned at the bottom. Healthy people aren’t attracted to unhealthy leaders or organizations.
Key #2: Renew your mission. Work on your mission until it burns white hot. Identify a big problem you are trying to solve. Renew or define the founder/problem fit.
Key #3: Make digital and in-person each more distinctive. Make in-person more personal. Make in-person a non-downloadable, transcendent experience. “You kinda had to be there.”
Key #4: Elevate community. We’re drowning in a world of content. Nobody should be able to out-community the local church. Relationships are sticky; they make you stick around!
Key #5: Identify and scale your biggest growth barrier.
Barriers emerge at 200, 400, and 800 attenders:
200 Barrier: Pastoral care – scale your pastoral care. The key to pastoral care is having someone who cares. It doesn’t have to be the pastor.
400 Barrier: Staffing – Hire leaders, not doers.
800 Barrier: Governance and push-down decision making. Staff-led, elder-protected, people gifted.
Identify your biggest growth barrier and how you intend to scale it.
Holy Shift Excerpt: Think Ensemble in Your Leadership
"You know what intimacy is? It's into-me-you-see.” - Martin de Maat
The original pioneers of improv-comedy in the 1950s included now-famous names like Alan Arkin, Mike Nichols, and a very young Joan Rivers. A famous story from the annals of Second City recounts how Rivers was once on stage and asked for an audience suggestion for a scene. When "marriage" was shouted back, Joan initiated the scene by saying, "I want a divorce." Joan’s on-stage partner said Yes, And to her initiation by saying, “What about the children?” Joan shot back,“We don’t have any children!”
Of course, there was a big laugh from the audience, but Rivers' cheap laugh set up her partner—and the scene—for failure. Her denial of his reality killed the scene and ended the team’s collaboration. She destroyed more than future possibilities in the scene; Rivers denied and destroyed the trust between partners.
It's time to make a Holy Shift in your leadership through a crucial comedy technique. I want you to Think Ensemble.
Teamwork makes the dream work. In the comedy world, you are taught to always, always, always make your partner look good. It’s not about sharing the spotlight; it is about moving the spotlight completely off of yourself and more brightly onto everyone else on the stage. It’s the comedic equivalent of valuing community. Improvisation is about serving your partner instead of being out there and showing off.
Have you ever watched an episode of Whose Line Is It Anyway? Have you noticed how the comics don’t have time to sit down, write out their ideas, memorize lines, re-write lines? It’s because they Start with a Yes and build on the idea by thinking ensemble.
You don’t know what is going to come out of your partner’s mouth—whatever they say in an improv scene instantly becomes the reality of the scene. Therefore, you want to build a net of trust to leap into—and that trust is knit together by the knowledge that you will always support one another, no matter what.
When you think ensemble, your church will build effective teams, break down silos, and foster creativity. Ensemble gives you an instantaneous advantage with different situations; the outcome isn’t dependent on one lone person. Thinking ensemble strengthens the Body.
Think of an ensemble as a baseball team. You don’t want to load your roster with all sluggers. You need different points of view and complementary strengths. Diversity is the key to thinking ensemble. The enemies of thinking ensemble are the need to be right, stealing focus, and appearing to be in control. Jesus’ disciples were always short-circuiting things when they felt the need to be right (Peter), tried stealing the focus (James and John), or were appearing to be in control (Judas the treasurer).
Ensemble is hard, but rewarding. When nobody cares who gets the credit, your team is able to explore and heighten new ideas together. When you think of winning sports teams, the championship is won not by a single athlete, but by a team of players working together. The burden is shared and the win is shared. When you think ensemble, you are freed to walk into a meeting and bring a brick, not a cathedral.
RELATIONSHIPS ARE NOT DISPOSABLE IN A FACEBOOK WORLD
Thinking ensemble looks easy on paper but is hard in real life. Why? Because we live in the time of Facebook and Twitter, two mighty platforms that can amplify messages—and amplify grudges—if handled immaturely. And believe me, social media can be like crack for immaturity addicts.
I have a theory: we never really leave middle school. That short season of life where the awkwardness of adolescence collides with our first tastes of personal responsibility follows us through life. Many men are still that boy in the junior high locker room comparing and many women walk through life fearful of others’ opinions. We have the popular kids (Hollywood), the geeks (ComicCon), the need for cooler toys (Amazon), and petty schoolyard fights (political races). We never really leave middle school. Social media simply amplifies our inner middle school angst.
Angry at someone? Technology doesn’t force you to seek reconciliation; you can simply “UnFollow” them. They won’t even know. Facebook has made relationships disposable, just another product to consume and spit out.
That’s why thinking ensemble is so explosive: relationships are vital toward forward progress. When you sign up to be a leader, you signup for conflict. Thinking ensemble directs you to walk toward the people there is conflict with, not away from them (you can’t support someone you’re not talking to). In the Bible, we read these words about conflict:
For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.” Ephesians 6:12 (ESV)
The Gospel reminds us that we are messy humans who easily fall into sin. Our flesh can sometimes seek to judge before our spirit listens. But Ephesians 6:12 reminds us that if it has flesh and blood, it is not your enemy. If you are holding anger toward someone or unwilling to revisit boundaries you've set up, it's time to wake up to the fact that that person is not your enemy. They are a human being created in the image of God whom Jesus already died for and the Father has already declared to be not guilty.
Reconciliation is not something you can put off. Biblically, it is always for today. As I gently remind our church periodically, the Internet is an online tool for building community, but should never be used for tearing it down. Here is an axiom to live by: if you ever feel wronged by someone (a fellow Christ follower, a church staff member, a pastor, etc.), posting your grievance online is never the correct course of action. In fact, if someone is willing to attack another person through a blog hiding behind flickering pixels but refuses to meet with them in person, we have a word for that: coward.
EDITOR’S NOTE: The has been an excerpt from my book, Holy Shift. I lead what has been recognized as one of America’s fastest-growing churches, LifeChurchMichigan.com. Part of my training was at The Second City in Chicago.
Holy Shift is about unleashing contagious enthusiasm on church leadership teams; equipping leaders to leverage laughter and passion; and creating sustainable momentum in reaching younger crowds for Christ.
Order copies for your team now on Amazon or ChurchLeaders.com!
Amazon Just Shared Its Secret to Success (and You Can Use It Too!)
There is an energy and an optimism in the eyes of a startup team that's nearly impossible to replicate. Despite working ridiculously long hours, sacrificing time, family, money, and pretty much all of the things that most of us hold holy in life, a startup team produces a euphoria that only they can fully understand. If you've been there, you know what I'm talking about.
When it comes to starting something from scratch, the feeling that results is unmatchable. The attitude, the hunger, the passion, the ability to move and adapt instantly, the willingness to take risks, and the sheer energy and enthusiasm you have in a startup is as good as it gets. When you lose that, you lose the ability to grow, and that will be the greatest challenge to success and threat to innovation.
I've often struggled to put a name to the unique chemistry of a startup. Amazon’s Jeff Bezos has, and it captures beautifully all of the trials, tribulations, and magic of the entrepreneurial spirit. He calls it being a day one company. He is so passionate about the importance of staying a day one company, the building he works in is called day one!
According to Bezos, a day one company's obsessive goal should be to avoid becoming a day two company. In his own words, "Day two is stasis. Followed by irrelevance. Followed by excruciating, painful decline. Followed by death. And that is why [for Amazon] it is always day one."
According to Bezos, "Day One" means that Amazon will always act like a startup. To act like a startup, Bezos requires Amazon employees to do these four things:
Be obsessed with the customer
Focus on results over process
Make high quality decisions quickly
Embrace external trends quickly
I read this to mean always be innovating, because the alternative is to go out of business. To Bezos you either act like a startup or die.