Tag Archive - vision
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3 Things That Stink About Lack Of Preperation

March 21, 2011 in Leadership, Uncategorized with 1 Comment

If you haven’t been reading my blog, you need to know I injured my back 4 weeks ago doing deadlifts at the gym.  I’ve also been training for the Publix Ga Half Marathon.  How do deadlifts fit into a half marathon training schedule you ask?  NOT VERY WELL!   So yesterday I showed up to run a race not having run in 4 weeks and the longest run I’d done was a 7 miler. 

Here are 3 Things that stink about lack of preparation
  1. WASTING YOUR POTENTIAL

The first half marathon I ran I finished in 1:57.  This one I came in at 2:16.  I have very real evidence that my potential is greater than my performance, you may not have the advantage of quatifying your potential like I did.  all the more reason to make sure you prepare.  

When I think about the churches I’m in, I see the construction of new facilities to be a great opportunity to get some of the people in the church to sit down and, maybe for the first time, organize thier finances so they can contribute financially to the project and be a part of what God is doing through the church.  As leaders in the church we’re responsible for the church reaching its potential during seasons like this.  You have to prepare by having a written plan of how you will engage the staffe, the influnecers, the volunteers, and the general congregation if you want to reach your potential.

2. THAT LITTLE VOICE IN YOUR HEAD

I saw a guy holding a posterboard that said “Pain is temporary”.  Right behind him there was a lady with a sign that read “But internet results last forever”.  The whole time I was running I found myself rehersing what I’m going to tell people when they ask what my finish time was.  Several of my close guy friends had planned to run the race and didn’t, and I was stressing over what I’m going to tell them.  They will ask ……but they don’t really care how fast or slow I am.  In fact, nobody cares!

That little voice in my head seems to be louder the less time I spend in prepartation.  Just like that little voice seems to wisper different things in my ear when I’m not connecting with God on a daily basis. 

Preperation for Church Construction takes on many different roles.  One of the most important is to have a clear understanding of exactly what God has called you to do in your community.  Every time that little voice pops up in a panic you can remind yourself, and your team that you are on a “mission from God” (Blues Brothers circa 1988).  Having a plan of how you will focus on Him when the tension rises is the best way to shut the little voice up.

3. PAIN & SUFFERING

About 2 hours after the race I could really begin to feel my39 year old body speaking to me (more of a speaking in tounges than that a wispering voice).  By last night I was rethinking my meeting schedule for today due to lack of ability to move.  You don’t always pay for lack of preparation in the moment. Sometimes it’s later, when it comes to building churches it can be several years down the road before you realize you weren’t properly prepaired. 

Not preparing for a race will cost me until the middle of the week maybe.  Not preparing your church for a season of church construction will cause you long term pain and suffering.  I spoke to a church last year that had to sell their facility and release the pastor because they built a building they couldn’t afford.   These are big, painful problems easily solved with a strategic preperation.

So that’s your three things, I learned alot more (funny how that happens when I don’t distract myself with an ipod) and I’ll share some of it down the road.  Before I let you go I want to add a bonus fourth thing I learned as well.      

4. Sometimes the juice is with the squeeze

Sometimes you just have to go for it.  I’m no longer talking about building churches.  However, sometimes opportunities present themselves and you just have to say yes.  I bailed on this race 2 years ago becasue of a knee injury and I questioned it for a long time.  I knew that I wasn’t prepaired and the race would be a painful experince.  My beautiful, and wise, bride Kristy kept asking me if this was “smart”.  I always said “nope, but I”m doing it anyway”.  Sometimes, even if you haven’t prepared properly, you have to keep promises you make to yourself because……. the juice is worth the squeeze. 

Tomorrow – Georgia Marathon Lesson 2

Tomorrow I’m going to talk about getting 18,000 people moving in the same direction while suffering for it.  Subscribe on the top left corner of my blog and have it come right to your inbox.

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5 Things We Need To Do To Get Our Vision Right – Perry Noble

March 16, 2011 in Uncategorized with 1 Comment

These are the notes I took from the first session of the Unleash Conference last week at Newspring Church where Perry Noble is the Lead Pastor.  If you’re looking for a one day “kick in the pants” I’d highly recommend it.

Matthew 25:34-43 (NIV)
“Then the King will say to those on his right, `Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. [35] For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, [36] I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’ [37] “Then the righteous will answer him, `Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? [38] When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? [39] When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’ [40] “The King will reply, `I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.’ [41] “Then he will say to those on his left, `Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. [42] For I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, [43] I was a stranger and you did not invite me in, I needed clothes and you did not clothe me, I was sick and in prison and you did not look after me.’   
1. Make Jesus the end goal of all we do.
V35. People are walking into our churches and dehydrated and we have to give them the living water.  Told a story about being at a restaurant where they never brought him the food.  Many of our churches are not bringing the food.
The agenda is Jesus.  to hell with any other agenda because that is where it will end up….in hell.
We have to preach the Gospel.  If you don’t you will fail.  Social justice is not Jesus.
People don’t need a blanket they need Jesus.
2.  We must be more concerned with the outsider than the insider.
I was a stranger and you invited me in,
Can strangers show up to your church.  God doesn’t commend the church that doesn’t reach the world for Christ.  The man who buried the talent was called wicked and lazy.  ”every now and then you have got to ask yourself” how can we piss off the religious people”"
Disciples make disciples.  Mature people give up their right first.
3.  we must help people establish a new identity.
Always be able to explain yourself but never feel like you have to defend yourself.
Jesus never went to a funeral he always shut them down and he’s shutting down funerals all over the country in the form of dying churches.
The church has taught people to brag about their self righteousness and then we fail to live up to our own expectation.  We have to teach people that they are brand new.
Philippians 3:4-8 (NIV)
though I myself have reasons for such confidence. If anyone else thinks he has reasons to put confidence in the flesh, I have more: [5] circumcised on the eighth day, of the people of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of Hebrews; in regard to the law, a Pharisee; [6] as for zeal, persecuting the church; as for legalistic righteousness, faultless. [7] But whatever was to my profit I now consider loss for the sake of Christ. [8] What is more, I consider everything a loss compared to the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them rubbish, that I may gain Christ
he word rubbish is schobilat(sp).  It defines what Jesus thought about religion.
You’ve got to stop bringing the schobilat into the house of God and expect him to celebrate you.  We have to understand that he died for our sin.  We have to re-identify who we are.
4. We must be patient with people as they develop spiritually.
I was sick and you looked after me.  We have spiritually sick people showing up to our churches. We were that sick person and only by the grace of God is it any different now.
Can sick people show up and hang out in your church for years?  Do they feel accepted with their sickness.
5.  We must make it our mission to proclaim freedom in Christ.
Hosanna means please save or save now. People don’t need a cause they need a savior. Screw the organ and the stain glass windows.  We’re going to invest in things that matter.
Acts 2 – how amazing would it be to see 3000 people be saved in one day?  God told me right before this conference and said “you Can”..  If we all go back this Sunday and preach the gospel we can.
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3 Leadership Lessons From Tough Economic Times

March 4, 2011 in Leadership, Uncategorized with 2 Comments

1.  No matter how bad things are You can always make them worse.

This is a big lessons I’m learning from the current economic crisis.    We borrow a little more and a little more and later say “hey, maybe that wasn’t a good idea to spend that debt there….lets spend it over here”.  We, the USA, and WE, the church, can’t spend our way out of debt.  As leaders in the church we have to do 2 things really well.  1. Be efficient with the resources God puts us over.  Thats money, but its also people.  2. Cast vision well.  Not because people give to a vision, which we do, but because getting us to rearrange our finances to be part of what God is doing is one of the best thing you can do for us.

2. The on most Dependant on the things of this world…loses!

Today’s Drudge Report headline reads “Hugo To The Rescue”.  The greatest nation in the history of the world is at the mercy of a handful of dictators because, instead of heading the signs 50 years ago, we have chosen to be dependant on people who won’t be inviting us to Sunday lunch anytime soon.

We do the same thing.  A few weeks ago I was with a young church leader and he asked me if it was just an inevitability that “passion dies with age”.   It doesn’t, we sell our ability to live with passion.  We sell it, and purchase the “American Dream” with the cash.  Debt kills Passion

3.  The one who collaborates best….wins!

Zig Ziglar is one of my all time favorite people.  One thing he says often is “Help enough people get what they want and you’ll have everything you want”.  I’m convinced that people are coming back to church during this time because they are hurting, and they’re looking for something more.  They need hope.  And God through His son is that hope.  Collaborating with these people means not treating them like they are “lost” but hearing what their needs are.  Then we do our best to meet their immidiate need and bring them into relationship with Jesus.  For a good example of this read the story of Jesus healing the blind man.  He met his immediate, although temporary need to see (because these bodies don’t last for every), and developed influence with him which brought him into relationship with the creator.

What are you learning from these Tough Economic Times?

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Chopping Down Trees and Building The Church

February 23, 2011 in Uncategorized with 4 Comments

This past weekend I did two things for the first time.  I cut down an enormous tree in my yard, and I went to a local church for the first time.  Here is what learned from both.

The reason I had to cut the tree down wasn’t because of the tree itself, but the box elder bugs that like to have romantic interludes on it.  That’s right, the box elder tree is apparently the Poconos of the flora family and business is very good!  The exterminator said “you can’t get rid of the bugs if you don’t get rid of the tree”.  So in the name of Dave Ramsey, I decided to cut down the tree myself and save the $300 bucks.  So this little bug caused me to have a major job on my hands.

The church I visited yesterday has been on my mind for almost a year.  Long ago I drove by and felt God telling me to stop in and help them.  I stop by alot of churches with my job, so that isn’t unusual.  The prompting of the Holy Spirit IS ALWAYS unusual to me though.

So I connected with them and found out they are searching for a new pastor. Yesterday, on my first visit,  their youth pastor announced he will also be leaving.  After the sermon, I had a chance to speak to a couple of the key people on the search team and I could sense the emotion.  A very real frustration and hurt compounded by an up hill battle ahead of them.  There is a general sense of question about the future and the vision for this church.

So as stood beneath the tree that afternoon,  I had this church on my mind.   I was impressed about how much bigger it looked underneath it that it does from a distance.  You don’t really appreciate the power God placed in something as simple as a tree until there’s a real chance it could fall on you.  You’ll notice my emotion on the video.

So here is what I learned.  Trees, and life’s challenges, always look bigger when you stand beneath them.  So don’t stand under there by yourself.  Find someone who can help you take a look at the situation from a distance.  Get perspective, do your best, then stand back and watch God work.

What’s the tree your standing under right now?  Who will you talk with today about it?

Have an incredible day!

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CHURCH CONSTRUCTION – DESIGN YOU FIRST

February 11, 2011 in Leadership, Uncategorized with 2 Comments

D-E-S-I-G-N: Who Am I? Part 2

This is some great stuff for you to think about over the weekend from my good friend and mentor John Woodall who is the Pastor of  Care at North Point Community Church. If you didn’t see part 1 of the series Click Here and get caught up. 

Last time we looked at the first 10 areas that make all of us unique. Here are some additional areas.

11. Our Natural Gifts: Am I an artistic, athletic, academic?  

12. Our Spiritual Gifts: Romans 12:6-8 We have different gifts, according to the grace given us. If a man’s gift is prophesying, let him use it in proportion to his faith. [7] If it is serving, let him serve; if it is teaching, let him teach; [8] if it is encouraging, let him encourage; if it is contributing to the needs of others, let him give generously; if it is leadership, let him govern diligently; if it is showing mercy, let him do it cheerfully.

13. Our education

14. Our experiences: This is our LifeMap. It is important to remember that God has been with us and leading all the time.

Deut. 8:2-3 Remember how the Lord your God led you all the way in the desert these forty years, to humble you and to test you in order to know what was in your heart, whether or not you would keep his commands. [3] He humbled you, causing you to hunger and then feeding you with manna, which neither you nor your fathers had known, to teach you that man does not live on bread alone but on every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord.

15. Our spiritual pathway: There are many different ways to draw near to God. Some are intellectual, relational, worship, nature, contemplative, serving, and activist. (See Gary Thomas, Sacred Pathways)

Spiritual Pathways

http://www.faithbasedblog.com/2006/05/ortberg_outtakes_spiritual_pat.html

Spiritual Pathway Tool

http://www.fcogpunxsy.com/spiritual_pathway_assessment_tool.htm

16.     Our style of leadership: There are many different styles of leadership: Visionary, entrepreneurial, strategic, motivational, shepherding, role model and managerial

Finding Your Leadership Style

http://www.christianitytoday.com/bcl/areas/leadership/articles/le-8l1-8l1084.html

17.     Our style of ministry: Someone has suggested that there are different styles of ministry based on the offices of Christ.

a.    Prophetic disruptions

b.    Kingly leadership

c.    Priestly connection

18.    Our passion for ministry

19.    Our genius, highest and best use or our core competencies

20.    Our weaknesses

I believe that when we take the time to see how fearfully and wonderfully we are made, we come alive. We experience a peace and joy that is so fulfilling. Our hearts are at rest and we fulfill the purposes of God for our lives in our generation. How well do you know who you are and who you aren’t? Take some time to discover.

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North Point Leadership Change

January 11, 2011 in Uncategorized with 6 Comments

In the 13 years I’ve been at North Point Community Church I can’t tell you the number of times I’ve been amazed at the quality of people the church continues to attract.   Their ability to make high quality leadership decisions in order to stretch their organization to reach the world for Christ is worth taking note of. 

This weekend Andy Stanley announced Joel Thomas as the new campus pastor for the Alpharetta Campus.  If you’re thinking “isn’t that the main campus, the mother ship?” you’re right.  Andy’s moving out of that role and into an advisory role over what will soon be five local campuses for North Point Ministries.  Joel has been with the church for more than a decade and will not only fill that role but probably exceed what has been accomplished with it to date. 

If you hold a leadership role in your organization here are a few things worth thinking about.

1.       Leadership is the lifeblood of growth

Great organizations have great leaders.  Great leaders are in the leadership development business.  They constantly find people with the competence and character to fuel their organization.   Growing leaders is a process that’s more like a crock pot than a microwave, and there isn’t a guaranteed recipe.  You’re going to have to get your hands dirty with people helping them through some personal barriers to leadership before they can really break out. 

So who are your up and coming leaders?  How can you invest regularly in a couple of them? Are their people who aren’t on staff who should be?  

2.       Only do what only you can do

Ok this isn’t the first time you’ve heard this, but how are you making it happen?  For most of us either you can do this or you can’t.  We have to do it all.  However, “only doing what only I can do” should be a goal, even if it’s a long term goal.  Do you know what it is that only you can do in your organization?  Could you make a list of those things?  What are the things you do that anyone in your organization could do?  How can you delegate one or two of those things today?  While you’re at it, what are one or two things you do that nobody in your organization should be doing?  If you’re in a church and you’re not leveraging people in your congregation for some of those things, you’re denying them the growth that might come from serving in that capacity.

3.       Cast Vision and Stand Back

You may not be the best leader on your staff.  I know that might be hard to swallow, but hopefully it’s true.  If you’re going to reach your goal of only doing what only you can do you have to develop a lot of people who can do things better than you can in other areas.  Let go of the wheel systematically and over time.  Create a culture where failure is not only accepted but encouraged.  

Which leaders in your organization need to make a regular appearance on your calendar?  Send the invitation right now!

Lead well and multiply!

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