Blog

We Have To Stop Meetings Like This!

I’ve got to get our here, this meeting is a waste. I’ve got better things to do with my time! How often have you found yourself saying something similar? Bad meetings not only waste time but they drain our passion and enthusiasm for ministry. Even worse, ineffective meetings result in lack of action, poorly analyzed decisions and misuse of precious... Continue Reading

Does Your Church Have a Common Language?

Policemen, firemen, air traffic controllers, emergency room personnel and the military teach us the importance of a common language to mitigate confusion. These professions are in “life and death” jobs where their decisions can literally mean the difference between life and death. Any miscommunication can have disastrous results. Church leaders are in a “life and death” vocation as well. The... Continue Reading

10 Church Goal Measurements To Jump Start Your Planning

Do you have a “brain freeze” when you sit down to write your annual ministry goals? Staring at a blank piece of paper wondering where to start is a common and daunting experience for most of us. Admittedly, much of what we do in life and in ministry is difficult to quantify apart from anecdotal evidence. But, often we simply... Continue Reading

Planning God’s Way

  “Failing to plan is planning to fail” is a well known maxim I can relate to. I don’t know about you but in the press of the demands of life and work I am tempted to neglect planning, often to my detriment and the detriment of others. So, from time to time I need to be encouraged to take... Continue Reading

The Minister’s 20 Question Spiritual Health Assessment

One of the most challenging yet essential responsibilities of ministers is to monitor their spiritual health. I have found this assessment developed by my good friend and mentor Keith Meyer, author of “Whole Life Transformation…….Becoming the Change Your Church Needs,” can help discern the status of your gauges by answering each question with a green (consistently), yellow (frequently), orange (infrequently), or red (seldom... Continue Reading

“Our Church Can’t Handle the Kind of Money I Can Give It”

Those words profoundly changed my understanding of what affluent church members consider before allocating their dollars to the church, charities and non-profit organizations. It was a response to a question I posed many years ago to a good friend who happened to also be one of our church’s largest donors as well as key leaders. I had noticed in the... Continue Reading

Financial Leaders Want Someone With Ink On Their Sleeves

Do you ever wonder how to appeal to your financial leaders? Here’s a story that provided me insights into a key pre-requisite for receiving gifts from high capacity donors. Annually our church gathers the top 100 financial leaders at a NEXT dinner where we share vision and strategy updates and offer appreciation for their support. At one of our NEXT dinners I... Continue Reading

How to Set Goals that Get Results

The well known Zig Ziglar quote, ‘if you aim at nothing you will be sure to hit it every time’ speaks to the importance of setting measureable goals. Goals that can’t be measured are of little value if you desire to know whether or not you are hitting the mark. Regretfully, most people who do set goals, do so incorrectly... Continue Reading

How to Shape Church Culture Like Jesus Did

  Shaping church culture is one of the most demanding, illusive and yet vital responsibilities of church leaders. A healthy church culture is essential to being the missional, multiplying, discipling, reaching and transforming force that God intended. Having an intentional process for elevating core organizational and biblical values is one proven approach to building a healthy church culture. What Are... Continue Reading

Being and Doing: The Paradox Every Believer Must Embrace

As you depart many churches today there are signs indicating “You are Now Entering the Mission Field.” The signs are there to remind attenders that missions is not just overseas but also where they live, work and play. At the gate to Christ in the Desert Monastery in Northern New Mexico there is a hand crafted metal sculpture that reads simply... Continue Reading

The Ten Most Important Criteria for Vetting New Ministries

“Good is the enemy of great” is the first sentence of Jim Collins’ business best seller, Good to Great. Collins goes on to say, “and that is one of the reasons that we have so little that becomes great.” “We don’t have great schools, principally because we have good schools. We don’t have great government, principally because we have good... Continue Reading