Throw a party, even if it’s a mini one. Seasoned business consultant Tom Peters is famous for saying, “Celebrate what you want to see more of.” This is a great reminder that we need to affirm positive behavior by making a joyful fuss about it. Could it be that we are not seeing the kind …
Category Archive: 31 Days To A Better Church
Jan 30
31 Days to a Better Church
Pull an old exegesis textbook off the shelf and read it. If there is one inviolable condition for the health and vitality of a local church, it is an ongoing dynamic encounter with the Bible. Sometimes you hear statements like: “Your church will only go as far as the leadership of the pastor.” Maybe that’s …
Jan 29
31 Days to a Better Church
Bring in a consultant, even if you can’t pay them. In Melville’s classic novel Moby Dick, the manaical Captain Ahab nails a gold doubloon to the mast of the ship as a reward. The sailors circle by and look at but each one sees it differently. One sees it as a tribute to great sailorship, …
Jan 28
31 Days to a Better Church
Study (or review) the demographics of your ministry area. A leader is responsible for defining the current reality of his organization. Casting vision of the future is incomplete without clarifying reality of the present. Clearly defining “what is” has to precede dreaming about “what could be.” Applying this leadership principle to pastoral ministry in the …
Jan 27
31 Days to a Better Church
Surprise your wife and kids with a gift. Study after study on pastors show that ministry takes a toll on the families of those who serve Christ by serving the church. Four out of five pastors say that their ministry has a negative impact on their families. (Preventing Ministry Failure, Michael Todd Wilson and Brad …
Jan 26
31 Days to a Better Church
Contribute to someone’s spiritual growth. There is lots of discussion about leadership and what leaders actually do. The word itself is sufficiently amorphous so that lots of people can write books about it, say very different things about it, and yet all be classified as “experts” on leadership. Still, in any leadership definition beauty contest, …
Jan 25
31 Days to a Better Church
Ask someone to mentor you. Do you really need a mentor? I mean, after all, you’re experienced. You’ve been a pastor for years. Or maybe not. Maybe this is your first church. Either way, you need a mentor. If you’re younger, you lack experience and a mentor can provide that. If you’re older, you have …
Jan 24
31 Days to a Better Church
Learn the name of someone new today. Dale Carnegie classes have taught for years that the sweetest sound in the world to a person is the sound of their own name. Maybe God built this into the fabric of reality, based on His own nature. When He calls to us, He does so by our …
Jan 23
31 Days to a Better Church
Do something you enjoy. Being a pastor is a massive commitment of one’s life. At times, the burden of leading and shepherding a church can wear you down. Keeping watch over the lives of a congregation (Hebrews 13:17) is a heavy responsibility and therefore a pastor needs time of recreation and relaxation in his life. …
Jan 22
31 Days to a Better Church
Share your testimony with someone. I can say two things about this. First, without a doubt, this might be the very best thing you could do today for the advance of God’s kingdom through your church. And, second, our culture’s emphasis on the human-interest story has created an environment that is somewhat conducive to sharing …
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