Are You a Real Team?

This past weekend I read Jon Gordon's excellent book The Power of a Positive Team.  In one section of the book, he lists some specific differences between being a team and being on a team.  As you read through this excerpt evaluate your teams - family, workplace, organization, church, sports team - to see how … Continue reading Are You a Real Team?

How to Filter Opinions

Leading change in any organization is difficult. It presents many challenges, obstacles, and complexities that have to be skillfully navigated. It also unearths a plethora of opinions from the people in the organization, including many that stand in opposition to the change that is being proposed. So, how do leaders make sense of all these … Continue reading How to Filter Opinions

The Leadership We Need

This important excerpt from Scott Sauls' book on leadership must be given serious consideration in our day and age.  Haven't we seen enough to understand the limits and failure of human-defined leadership?  We need a different standard.  We need a higher form of leadership - the kind of leadership exhibited by Christ.  Anything less is … Continue reading The Leadership We Need

Courageous Leadership

Over the last several months, the elders and ministers of the congregation I serve have been involved in some deep, soul-searching conversations about the future of our church family and the effectiveness of our work and witness for the Kingdom of God.  Those conversations led to the development of a 5-year vision that we rolled … Continue reading Courageous Leadership

What Your Trepidation Might Be Telling You

Trepidation [trep-i-dey-shuhn] - tremulous fear, alarm, or agitation; synonyms: apprehension, dismay, nervousness, uneasiness Since late last year I have been working on a project that is really big.  Not only is it big, it is happening at a speed for which I was unprepared.  So many times, I have said to myself, "I can't believe … Continue reading What Your Trepidation Might Be Telling You

What’s Your One Word for 2018?

I'm a fan of Jon Gordon's leadership books and videos, and Jon is a big promoter of choosing one word at the beginning of the year that focuses all your efforts in the same direction.  He writes, "A powerful and practical way to live with purpose throughout the year is to pick a word for … Continue reading What’s Your One Word for 2018?

An Inside Look at Preaching

Tomorrow I will be a guest speaker in a homiletics class at Oklahoma Christian University.  The professor emailed some questions he would like for me to address, and I thought I would write out my answers here on my blog as a way of helping me prepare for the class with the bonus of also … Continue reading An Inside Look at Preaching