Command, demand, and control is a common leadership style in the local church. Many of today’s church leaders were mentored themselves by command, demand, and control leaders, and therefore the culture of most churches is based on command, demand, and control behaviors. A command, demand, and control leadership approach is based on models from the military, where top generals develop... Continue Reading
One of the most helpful ways I’ve learned to pray is to listen, read, and observe the prayers of saints who walked with God. One such example is Moses in the book of Exodus. Moses faced similar challenges to today’s church leaders and I have found five aspects of his prayer in Exodus 33 an excellent outline for my own... Continue Reading
“O Jesus, let us spread Your fragrance everywhere we go. Let us preach You without preaching, not by words but by our example, by the catching force, the sympathetic influence of what we do, the evident fullness of the love our hearts bear to You. Amen” — Prayer of Cardinal John Henry Newman It has been said that much of... Continue Reading
The Old Testament is divided into three major sections: the Torah, the Prophets, and the Wisdom books. Old Testament Christian Theologian Walter Brueggemann observes that these three are an excellent representation of the sequential stages of healthy human development. They may also serve as a representation of the stages of developing ourselves as healthy church leaders. The Torah: The First... Continue Reading
The importance of silence, solitude, and stillness in the life of Jesus and his disciples is undeniable. Jesus made a habit of withdrawing, sometimes abruptly, from the crowds and his ministry of doing his Father’s will to “the hills” or a “lonely place” or “the wilderness” or a “high mountain” or to the “seashore” or to the Garden of Gethsemene.... Continue Reading
The longer I am in ministry the more convinced I become that any God honoring effectiveness I experience is a direct result of the cultivation of my inner spiritual life. Most in ministry would say the same, but few of us believe it enough to incorporate the spiritual disciplines, practices and habits necessary to consistently maintain our inner spiritual life.... Continue Reading
I have found that by trusting people until they prove themselves unworthy of that trust, a lot more good things happen–Jim Burke, Former Chairman and CEO of Johnson and Johnson When it comes to trust of church leaders, I have observed there are two types of people I have served with. Those who expect you to earn their trust before... Continue Reading
Deep calls to deep at the thunder of your silence; all your waves and your billows have gone over me. By day the Lord commands his steadfast love, and at night his song is with me, a prayer to the God of my life. –Psalm 42:7-8 Depth. It is the essence of the spiritual journey…..to go deeper into God’s love... Continue Reading
“The greatest enemy of intimacy with God is service for God”- Dallas Willard “As ministers, the activity of our lives (“doing” for Jesus) inevitably begins to eclipse the contemplative dimension of our lives (“being” with Jesus) and soon we are engaged in more activity for God than our being with God can sustain.” – Pete Scazzero “Let the Lord, the... Continue Reading
Many ministers I know wrestle with the difficulty of trying to live a life of transformation and intimacy with God they read about in their Bibles. Most of us long for a deeper inner spiritual life yet regularly experience Dallas Willard’s observation “the greatest enemy of intimacy with God, is service for God.” Ministry by definition is depleting. Without constant... Continue Reading
Dualistic thinking, or the ego operating system, as Cynthia Bourgeault calls it, is our way of reading reality from the position of my private ego. “What’s in it for me?” “How will I look if I do this?” This is the preferred way of seeing reality for most of us. Richard Rohr calls it either/or thinking. It knows reality by... Continue Reading
Every church leader exercises power, or the ability to influence others to take action. When we misuse that power we hurt people and create organizational dysfunction. Virtually every church I know bears scars of hurt due to a failure of leaders to wisely steward power. Regretfully, I am no exception. Because for too long I failed to understand two important... Continue Reading
Jim is a Church Organizational Leadership and Management Coach, Consultant and Trainer. Throughout his career Jim has demonstrated a passion for showing Pastors and Ministers how to use organizational tools for church and personal growth and health.
More About Jim“For I may be absent in body, but I am with you in spirit, rejoicing to see how well ordered you are and the strength of your faith in Christ.” Colossians 2:5