Off the Agenda: Conversations for Building Church Leaders

At the TAG Consulting Leaders Forum in Scottsdale, Arizona, this week, noted Christian leader Leighton Ford spoke on how to move from crazed busyness to focused attentiveness. Leighton is president of Leighton Ford Ministries. For 30 years he served as associate evangelist and later vice president of the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association. His newest book is The Attentive Life: Discerning God's Presence in All Things (InterVarsity, 2008).

In introducing Leighton, Jim Osterhaus pointed out that Leighton has been at the forefront of 4 major church movements of the past 50 years: mass evangelism (with BGEA), reclaiming the social dimensions of the gospel (with Lausanne), the study of leadership (with Arrow Leadership Program), and now the reintroduction to evangelicalism of the good of contemplative living (his books).

Continue reading "The Forgotten Art of Attentiveness"...

from the Willow Creek Leadership Summit: Tim Keller, senior pastor of Redeemer Presbyterian Church in Manhattan and author of several insightful books, including The Reason for God. Our sister publication Christianity Today recently published a cover story on Keller.

Continue reading "Tim Keller: Leading People to the Prodigal God, Part 1"...

Bruce Miller is the author of Your Life in Rhythm (Tyndale, 2009) and the founder and senior pastor of McKinney Fellowship in McKinney, Texas. Years ago while speaking at a leadership conference, Miller had a flash of insight: instead of struggling to live a balanced life, we ought to live in rhythm. Off the Agenda spoke with Miller about the implications of "rhythm" in ministry.

For more on handling time well, check out this week's download, Learning to Delegate.

What advice would you give to pastors who feel spread thin between their responsibilities?

I encourage pastors to rethink their responsibilities with trusted friends and with their governing board. Often we take on responsibilities that are not ours to bear. One rhythm strategy in my book is to release false expectations. Consider the stage and season of your life, and knowing what "time" it is in your life, reevaluate your responsibilities. When my wife and I were raising our kids, I was asked to serve on the board of a ministry. I was honored and accepted. Later I realized this was not the season of my life for serving on boards. After a year I resigned and determined not to serve on any boards until my kids were out of the house.

Continue reading "3 Questions for Bruce Miller"...

For Scot McKnight, the title creature in his recent book The Blue Parakeet represents biblical passages (and personal experiences) that make us think all over again about how we are reading the Bible. For example, evangelicals tend to be fairly lax about resting on the Sabbath (whether we observe the right day is another question). Yet in the Decalogue God says, "Remember the Sabbath day and keep it holy." Our task as Bible readers is to decide whether this is a valid command for today or a context-specific regulation that we can more or less ignore. How you answer that question says a lot about your understanding of biblical interpretation.

McKnight hopes his book will help us recognize that all of us pick and choose which of the Bible's commands apply to us and which ones do not. It's not a how-to manual for exegesis. But it offers insights into three foundational principles of biblical interpretation.

In the first section, McKnight identifies five approaches or shortcuts that cause Christians to misread the Bible. (You can read about those here.) McKnight's solution is reading the Bible, from Genesis to Revelation, as a single story. Each of the 66 books in the middle serves as a wiki-story—an individual, unique retelling of this main story. This is a key principle for McKnight, because it helps us understand why some commands apply for all time and others don't (this becomes clearer in the example below).

Continue reading "Book Corner: Chasing the Blue Parakeet"...

Pastor and writer Kevin DeYoung caught my attention this morning with his blog post on false apologies—more specifically, apologies for the sins of others. He cites a 1940 article by C.S. Lewis that criticized the younger English generation of that time for its so-called apologies over the nation's past conduct.

Says Lewis:

When a man over forty tries to repent the sins of England and to love her enemies, he is attempting something costly; for he was brought up to certain patriotic sentiments which cannot be mortified without a struggle. But an educated man who is now in his twenties usually has no such sentiment to mortify.

Lewis thought that the twenty-somethings had their own mistakes to repent of, but instead they were opting to express, in the form of a national apology, their disdain for certain attitudes that they had never shared. That's not a "costly" thing to do, and not much of an apology.

Continue reading "BlogSpotting: Kevin DeYoung on False Apologies"...

I have appreciated the ministry of Richard Foster since I read Celebration of Discipline for the first time in college. What sets him apart from others who write about spirituality is that he consistently resists reducing the Christian life to a formula or one-size-fits-all experience. He has drunk deeply from the wells of Christian heritage. But most importantly, he has sampled the waters from a diversity of Christian traditions. And he finds something of value in them all.

Longing for God: Seven Paths of Christian Devotion (IVP, 2009) illustrates Foster's commitment to learning from the broad testimony of Christian experience. With co-author Gayle D. Beebe, Foster explores seven major approaches to spiritual formation throughout history. Since the first century, the authors explain, Christians have understood the process and goal of the life of faith as:

• The Right Ordering of Our Love for God
• The Spiritual Life as Journey
• The Recovery of Knowledge of God Lost in the Fall
• Intimacy with Jesus Christ
• The Right Ordering of Our Experiences of God
• Action and Contemplation
• Divine Ascent

Continue reading "Book Corner: Tour Guides for the Journey of Faith"...

Leadership editor Skye Jethani is visiting over 20 blogs today to talk about his book The Divine Commodity. In it, Skye interacts with both consumerism's grip on American culture as well as the artwork and life of Vincent van Gogh and connects the two. In the end, he offers a way to break free of the grip of consumerism by practicing several spiritual disciplines.

As part of today's blog tour, Skye answered a question from us related to his new book:

What do you say to the Christian leader who favors applying consumer-driven principles to ministry because they "work?"

I've heard this argument before—both in ministry books and in discussion with church leaders. I usually have to follow up by asking, "Define what you mean by 'works'?" The response is typically something related to increasing church attendance. "We started offering coffee and flexible worship venues and it worked. Our attendance is up 38 percent." Or, "We did a sermon series about having great sex and we had to start a third worship service because it was so popular. It worked!"

Continue reading "The Divine Commodity"...

This pair of excellent Easter videos below comes courtesy of St. Helen's Bishopgate in London. If you're looking for any last-minute additions to your service this Sunday, these could be a great fit.

THAT'S EASTER Life to Death from St Helen's Church on Vimeo.

THAT'S EASTER Death to Life from St Helen's Church on Vimeo.

For more on Easter planning…

James MacDonald, founding pastor of Harvest Bible Chapel, shares in the video above how his team thinks about closing a worship service. "I am always amazed at pastors who put hours into their sermons and then kind of 'wing it' at the end," says MacDonald on his blog (click through and watch if video above doesn't load).

Continue reading "BlogSpotting: How to Close a Worship Service"...

It's important to know where you came from.

Here are two biographies I've read in the past few months that I think will encourage you and give you insights into why we do the things we do.

The first is George Marsden's A Short Life of Jonathan Edwards. Marsden wrote a long—very long—biography of the great theologian some years ago that is supposedly very good (I've been meaning to read it). But the great thing about A Short Life is that it's quite short—around 150 pages. It's clear and easy to read. And it provides some great insights into both Edwards' life and ministry and the way life and ministry really was in the 18th century.

Here's an example: For as long as I've been alive, I've heard parents and pastors blame the media (I think MTV used to bear the brunt of evangelical fury) for the promiscuity of teenagers. We seem to assume that in the good old days, young people remained pure and chaste until marriage.

Continue reading "Book Corner: Learning from Edwards and Whitefield"...

Do Christians buy less online pornography than non-believers? The Associated Baptist Press reports on a recent study suggesting "no"—except, that is, on Sundays.

Harvard Business School professor Benjamin Edelman took the zip codes of subscribers to a top-ten porn seller and analyzed the geographical distribution. He says that subscription rates in regions where more people report regularly attending religious services aren't "statistically significantly different" from subscriptions elsewhere.

In fact, subscriptions are actually more prevalent in states that have passed conservative legislation on sexuality, as well as in states where more survey respondents agreed with statements like "I never doubt the existence of God" and "I have old-fashioned values about family and marriage."

Continue reading "Porn Okay, Except on Sunday?"...

For you wordsmiths out there, Mark Batterson lists his five rules for writing. If you prepare sermons, most of these apply. Here's a summary:

1. Start bright and early, well before your "official day" begins; for afternoons, grab a cat-nap.
2. Remember you're on "holy ground" when writing. Your words could lead a reader to a "God encounter."
3. Take days off between chapters to maintain perspective.
4. Hook your readers at the start of each chapter with a strong organizing metaphor.
5. Write for intrinsic reasons, "because you can't not write."

Good suggestions. Rule #2 struck me, especially since Batterson says he does this by taking off his shoes. I like the idea of using a physical discipline to focus a cerebral process like writing. It reminds me of C.S. Lewis's The Screwtape Letters, where the devil Screwtape comments on kneeling:

Continue reading "BlogSpotting: Mark Batterson's Rules for Writing"...

It may come as a shock to some of you to hear an editor on BCL recommending a book about Jesus that was written by a woman who became famous by writing vampire novels. So perhaps a bit of biography is in order.

Anne Rice grew up in the Roman Catholic Church, but spent most of her adulthood as an avowed atheist. In the late 1990s, she felt an attraction back to the Christian faith, and in 2004 she gave her life to Christ. Since then she's said she'll write "only for the Lord." Her Christ the Lord series is the result. The first of the series, Out of Egypt, chronicles Jesus' childhood. The Road to Cana is Rice's follow-up. It picks up with Jesus at around age 30, and includes his baptism by John, his temptation in the wilderness, and the miracle of turning water to wine at the wedding in Cana.

Continue reading "Book Corner: A Day in the Life of Jesus"...

Earlier today I stumbled across a fascinating set of four images—posted here—that were created by The Glue Society, a creative collective. The pictures mimic the satellite photography found on Google Earth and elsewhere, imagining what certain events from the Bible could have looked like. Their rendition of the Red Sea crossing (above) is my favorite. Is it just me, or do those ripples look like fingerprints?

"As a method of representation satellite photography is so trusted, it has been interesting to mess with that trust," says James Dive of The Glue Society. In other words, they have no evangelistic intent. They're more interested in the cultural authority of satellite snapshots.

Yet I share Mr. Dive's interest. For someone who does embrace the historical reality of the Red Sea crossing, and also trusts satellites, it's fascinating to see that biblical event depicted in a form that feels factual, objective, scientific.

Continue reading "Google Earth, Meet Moses"...

It seems like it is taking my wife and me a long time getting to know each other's parents. I blame cell phones. If Amy's family wants to talk to her, they call her phone; if my parents want to talk to me, they call mine. If we had a land line, I'd have to answer my in-laws' calls sometime. As it is, we really only speak when we're together for holidays. The very technology that's supposed to bring us together actually keeps us from connecting.

Shane Hipps' Flickering Pixels: How technology shapes your faith (Zondervan, 2009) talks about how other media—including books, television, and the Internet—all influence the way we process reality and, as a result, the way we understand our faith. If you've ever wanted to know how the development of printed books during the Reformation affected the future of Christianity, or if you'd like to hear how the telegraph encouraged postmodernity, you'll find Flickering Pixels an interesting read.

Continue reading "Book Corner: Taking Media Seriously"...

One of my first editorial assignments—long before I was actually an editor—was helping my pastor grammar-check and proofread a small-group workbook he developed for use in our congregation. The editing process was a joy; but the real treat was working through the material with my small group.

That curriculum, titled Experiencing God's Story of Life and Hope, by J. Scott Duvall, is now available for use in your church. And I highly recommend it. The workbook leads a small group through 12 topics of theology, including the authority of the Bible, the Trinity, the human condition, sin, and the church. What makes it distinct is that every topic consists of three parts: Believing, Behaving, and Becoming.

Continue reading "Book Corner: Spiritual Formation for Small Groups"...

In a world of too much information, the people who stand out are not those with the most factoids and the most RSS feeds. The people who shine like stars are those whose minds are uncluttered, whose spirits are free, who can bring perspective. To become more like that, here are several strategies.

Continue reading "Freedom to Think in 2009"...

By Summer 2008, nearly everyone had heard of The Shack. Not long after that, nearly everyone had read it; William Young's runaway first novel has been on the New York Times Best Sellers list for months.

Back in June, I wrote a short survey of the response The Shack was eliciting from theologians and pastors. As you can imagine, for every word of praise for the novel, there was a criticism. No doubt you have heard both from the people you minister to.

Continue reading "Book Corner: Revisiting The Shack"...

Once upon a time, it was a big deal to have the Bible in the common vernacular (see Wycliffe's English Bible, pictured). Now we English-speakers have a bunch of translations to choose from, and a bunch of study aids to boot.

Al Mohler, president of Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, shares some sound principles for using a study Bible:

Continue reading "BlogSpotting: Al Mohler on How to Read a Study Bible"...

The New York Times ran a story this weekend on the "burst of new interest" at evangelical churches across the country since the market has tumbled. It's hardly surprising in times of trouble to see people looking for something outside themselves to rely on.

What's interesting is that, while church attendance is up in Roman Catholic parishes and mainline Protestant congregations also, the growth is said to be much more dramatic in evangelical churches. Why the disparity? The Times article includes a few different takes on it:

Continue reading "How to Pray: The Recession and Church Attendance"...

Several months ago, BCL's Rachel Willoughby interviewed Nancy Ortberg for a download on BuildingChurchLeaders.com. Nancy had some fantastic things to say about how to lead and teach well. Below is a brief excerpt of Rachel's favorite section of the interview. To access the full interview and other insightful articles on the theme of teaching adults, click here.

Rachel: As you prepare to speak, how do you plan to engage the audience?

Nancy: You have to think provocatively while you're preparing the message so that you are prepared to use stories or something from your research to put a new slant on a familiar idea. When you're speaking to people who have been following Christ or have been in church a long time, familiarity with a passage is sometimes your worst enemy. People assume that they know what a passage says and how to live it out.

Scot McKnight writes that people change in two circumstances: when they're on a quest or when they're in a crisis. Now, I can't send people on a quest, but I can create a crisis. Part of my job as a communicator, then, is to create a rhetorical crisis in the lives of the listeners. The stories I tell, the questions I ask, and the tension I set up should cause some cognitive dissonance in people's minds, so that they walk away thinking about the message.

What about you? When you prepare to speak, how do you go about setting up a "rhetorical crisis?" As you listen to others teach, what moves you most?

I've been attending my church for a little over a year, and right from the get-go I was on the watch for a mentor. In my spiritual growth thus far, nothing has impacted me more than the examples of women who had vibrant, thriving relationships with Christ and who have poured truth, grace, and love into me. So I was eager to be in a mentoring relationship like that again.

I prayed to that effect. I got involved in an inter-generational Bible study, attended Sunday school classes, and kept my eyes open on Sunday mornings for women who had that tangible aura of spiritual maturity about them; women whose lives I wanted to emulate. But the truth is, it takes time to build relationships, and asking a stranger to commit to meeting with you and taking an interest in your life is daunting. After six months, I still hadn't become close enough to anyone who I felt comfortable asking to listen to me for an hour a week.

Continue reading "Finding a Mentor"...

Talk about a timely book! In light of the current economic crisis The Shortest Investment Book Ever: Wall Street Secrets for Making Every Dollar Count by James O'Donnell is the perfect thing to be reading. But amid the savvy saving and investing tips O'Donnell offers, I found something more - a story of the author's mid-life decision for less pay and more meaning. Here's the excerpt. Enjoy!

I never thought that I would become a college professor. But at age 46, I had a chance to take an 80% pay cut (who could pass that up?) and move from cosmopolitan Boston to small town Indiana (who could pass that up either?).

Why in the world would I have done something so crazy? And crazy is what some friends of mine back in Boston thought it was. Well, for me, the reason arose about nine years earlier, with a very unexpected mid-30s change in my spiritual life. Simply put, I discovered I had one. In that discovery, I began to believe in God, and to take God seriously: in other words, as something (or someone) more than a curse word. And I began to see that whatever I had accomplished so far in life was not just because of me and for me. No, now I began to see so much of what I had been given as gifts from God. And in realization and out of gratitude, I wanted to return, if I could, to this world and to my God more than just the space I was taking up.

Continue reading "A Mid-Life Shift Gives Meaning"...

I recently spoke with a colleague who took a special behind-the-scenes tour of Disney World. As you can imagine, the tour is quite different from the regular Disney experience. Instead of the frills and fa?ade of the park, you see the machinery that makes it all happen - the ropes and pulleys, the gears and guts. You might even glimpse a makeup-less Mickey Mouse taking a smoke break. Quite different from the magic that leaves millions of children awe-struck.

But before drawing back the curtain to begin the tour, the guide paused to deliver a warning to the group: "After you see behind this curtain, the magic will be gone."

When I heard my friend's story, I saw a ministry parallel. Being in ministry is a little like peeking behind the curtain. Most Christians see the finished product; those in ministry see how it was created. And peering behind the curtain has a way of erasing the magic and sapping our spiritual strength.

But why?

Continue reading "Working Behind the Curtain"...

Sometime last year, a short passage of Scripture lodged in my brain. It's been rubbing and needling there ever since and challenging the way I think about ministry.

The passage is from Isaiah 42. Describing Jesus, the Suffering Servant, the prophet says: "A bruised reed he will not break, and a smoldering wick he will not snuff out." These beautiful snapshots of compassion and tenderness bring to mind the ministry Henri Nouwen describes in The Wounded Healer (Image, 1979). They present a vision of Christian service that suits my personality. That's why I find it so troubling how discordant this sentiment is with the following words of Jesus: "You snakes! You brood of vipers! How will you escape being condemned to hell?"

To put the matter bluntly, this offends my understanding of authenticity. When I think of someone being "real," I usually have in mind that said person behaves the same way around everyone. He's confident "being himself." That's what makes the TV doctor House so endearing. He's a jerk, sure; but he's a jerk everywhere and always. He's so authentic. And, because authenticity is such a central cultural value for people my age, it's easy for me to adopt the mantra, Be yourself. If you're nothing else, be real. But Jesus - he interacted with some people in one way and others in another. That's the textbook (if junior-high) definition of "inauthentic."

Continue reading "Stiff Necks and Bruised Reeds"...

Pulling up to a busy intersection recently, my wife and I were startled to see a car with its rear windshield shattered. Out of the damaged car leaped a man with a baseball bat, yelling and chasing the two apparent perpetrators. As we slowly drove by, my wife reaching for her phone to call the police, we saw into the back seat where a young girl sat trying to make sense of the chaos that had erupted around her. Arriving at our apartment three blocks away I became aware of an emotion I hadn't felt in a long time: fear.

Three months after moving into Chicago from one of its affluent suburbs, we are still getting our bearings. Is it the Mexican or Polish market that has the better produce? What time is too late for my wife to take a walk by herself? How long will it take to get from the church office to my lunch meeting via the Blue Line? We expected these kinds of questions. Unanticipated, however, was the proper response to shattered windshields and guys with baseball bats. I knew the transition to life and ministry in the city might be tough, but this tangible sense of fear came out of left field.

Continue reading "Urban Exile: Following Jesus in the Face of Fear"...

The last place we expect to get hurt is within the family of God. We assume church people are safe people. But, hurt comes with church leadership. When it happens, the wounds it brings can quickly become a breeding ground for bitterness.

Bitterness can become a gnarly vine that chokes our souls. It poisons our hearts and actions. Scripture says we and others will pay a great price if it is left unchecked (Hebrews 12:15).

What's a Christian to do? When we are wronged, justice demands that someone pay for the wrong. We know that the Lord wants us to forgive. But how can we handle the tension between justice and forgiveness?

Continue reading "Bold Forgiveness"...

This week I attended a retreat as part of the Leadership Media Group of Christianity Today International. I was responsible for posing a warm-up question to the group before we tackled the day's itinerary. Since we are all in the business of equipping church leaders, I asked each person to name the Christian leader who had made the profoundest impact on his or her spiritual life.

The answers surprised me. I expected to hear about best-selling authors and big-time preachers. Instead, most members of our team cited virtual unknowns: youth pastors and teachers, parents and siblings. We have a bookish team, which includes editors and authors, so thinkers such as Henri Nouwen and G.K. Chesterton were also mentioned. But for the most part, my colleagues talked about ordinary people that influenced them during critical phases of their lives: a youth leader who took a special interest in a student, a college roommate whose habit of Bible-reading made a lasting impression, a father who challenged his son to be serious about his faith.

Continue reading "The Trench Versus the Stage"...

Something's wrong. We pastors are the stewards, the spokespeople, the advocates of a message of hope, life, and peace. And yet so few of us seem to be experiencing these qualities in our own lives. Something's wrong. In a world saturated with fear, insecurity, and stress, we are to show a different way. And yet those at the center of the church are burning out and leaving ministry at a rate of 1,500 per month. If that's what's occurring at the heart of the church, why would anyone on the fringe want to move in closer?

I've just read an article by two Christian counselors about the soul-killing impact of church ministry on leaders. (The statistic above comes from them.) They note that the pressure to grow the church is a significant factor leading to pastoral burn out. And some pastors "admitted they promoted growth models that were incongruent with their values because of a desperate need to validate their pastoral leadership." It seems too many of us have our identities wrapped up in the measurable outcomes of our work rather than in the life-giving love of the Christ we proclaim. Something's wrong.

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On May 21, the Steven Curtis Chapman family suffered a horrible loss when their youngest daughter, Maria Sue, ran into the path of the family SUV and died at a Nashville hospital a few hours later. Her 17-year-old brother was behind the wheel.

Chapman, a 5-time Grammy award winner and advocate for adoption, resumed his touring schedule in mid-July. In a recent article for our sister site, Today'sChristian.com, Elizabeth Diffin reports on how Maria's death has impacted Chapman's music:

It's not often you leave a concert reflecting on the words of a song by a different artist. But as I exited the July 24 Steven Curtis Chapman event, the words of a Matt Redman worship song echoed through my head. Chapman opened the concert with "Blessed Be Your Name" just two months after the death of his 5-year-old daughter, Maria Sue, in a tragic accident at the family's home.

"Blessed Be Your Name" was also the first song Chapman sang May 21, the day of Maria's death, when he wasn't sure he'd ever be able to sing again. Inspired by the story of Job, at one point the lyrics repeat, "He gives and takes away."

"As I sang this song ? it wasn't a song, it was a cry, a scream, a prayer," Chapman explained to the audience of nearly 5,000. "I found an amazing comfort and peace that surpasses all understanding."

Chapman also shared that after Maria's death, he'd reconsidered the words to all his songs and if he could still sing - and believe - them. Instead, losing his little girl brought the meaning of some of those songs into sharper focus. One example was "Yours," which addresses how everything in the world belongs to God.

"In this song, in particular, I had to come to a new realization," he said. "There's not an inch of creation that God doesn't look at and say 'all of that's mine.'"

Click here to continue reading.

Hear what the Chapman family has to say about life after the accident.

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This is a highly unscientific observation, but I stand by it: In my scouring of bookshelves in pastor's studies and church libraries, I regularly find volumes from the corporate world about how to be an effective leader and efficient administrator; studies from the humanities about human psychology and sexuality; and manuals from the financial and legal sectors about budgeting, zoning, and liability issues. What I seldom, if ever, find is fiction. And I think that's a shame.

For much of their history, many evangelicals have considered novels to be either immoral or simply a waste of time. (To be fair, there are a good many novels that are both.) But good fiction (an entirely subjective category, I admit) can help a minister better understand the people to whom he or she is ministering - people struggling with doubt, addictions, or questions about calling and vocation. Here's a list of a few novels I think every minister should read, along with a few reasons why.

The Picture of Dorian Gray, by Oscar Wilde - a great look at how a person's spirit can be tormented by secret sin.

Wealthy and conceited Dorian Gray wants to be young forever. He commissions an artist to paint his portrait. Then wishes that his portrait would age and bear the evidence of his dissipation and loose living, but that he would stay young forever. He gets what he asks for. His struggle with sin is powerful (and never explicit, by the way).

My Name is Asher Lev, by Chaim Potok - a moving story of a young man's struggle to decide how best to serve God in his vocation.

Asher Lev is a gifted artist living in Brooklyn during the Second World War. His father, a Hasidic Jew, works to bring Jews from Europe to the United States to avoid persecution. Asher wants to pursue art for a living - and he believes God has gifted him to do it - but he is expected to take over his father's job. Asher wrestles with what it means to be faithful to God, how to best use one's gifts, and how to honor his family in the process.

Silence, by Shusaku Endo - an unsettling story about what it means to be a faithful Christian in the midst of persecution.

A Portuguese priest is on the run from the authorities in sixteenth-century Japan. Since his arrival, the underground Christian community has been relentlessly persecuted, and the governors tell him that all he must do to end the people's misery is renounce the faith. Should he apostatize to save countless peasants from a horrific death, or should he be a model of courage in the face of persecution? And how can he decide when God seems to remain silent?

The Chosen, by Chaim Potok (He makes the list twice. He's just that good.) - a beautiful account of how two deeply devout people (one "liberal" and one "conservative") can learn to respect the other's convictions and religious commitment.

Reuven Malthers is the son of a Modern Orthodox and intellectual Jew; Danny Saunders is heir of a Hasidic rabbi. Although their fathers more or less despise one another, the sons are good friends. Each one tries to be faithful to God - and to the other - as they become men in different traditions.

The list could go on, of course, but this is a good start. Happy reading.

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In our last post, Scot McKnight shared his first four marks of a robust gospel. To read those, click here. To continue on with his thinking, refresh yourself with this summary before you dive into points five through eight.

I sometimes worry we have settled for a little gospel, a miniaturized version that cannot address the robust problems of our world. But as close to us as the pages of a nearby Bible, we can find the Bible's robust gospel, a gospel that is much bigger than many of us have dared to believe:

The gospel is the story of the work of the triune God (Father, Son, and Spirit) to completely restore broken image-bearers (Gen. 1:26?27) in the context of the community of faith (Israel, Kingdom, and Church) through the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ and the gift of the Pentecostal Spirit, to union with God and communion with others for the good of the world.

The gospel may be bigger than this description, but it is certainly not smaller. And as we declare this robust gospel in the face of our real, robust problems, we will rediscover just how different it is from the small gospel we sometimes have believed and proclaimed.

1. The robust gospel is a story.

2. The robust gospel places transactions in the context of persons.

3. The robust gospel deals with a robust problem.

4. A robust gospel has a grand vision.

Continue reading "The 8 Marks of a Robust Gospel—Part 2"...

I sometimes worry we have settled for a little gospel, a miniaturized version that cannot address the robust problems of our world. But as close to us as the pages of a nearby Bible, we can find the Bible's robust gospel, a gospel that is much bigger than many of us have dared to believe:

The gospel is the story of the work of the triune God (Father, Son, and Spirit) to completely restore broken image-bearers (Gen. 1:26?27) in the context of the community of faith (Israel, Kingdom, and Church) through the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ and the gift of the Pentecostal Spirit, to union with God and communion with others for the good of the world.

The gospel may be bigger than this description, but it is certainly not smaller. And as we declare this robust gospel in the face of our real, robust problems, we will rediscover just how different it is from the small gospel we sometimes have believed and proclaimed.

Continue reading "The 8 Marks of a Robust Gospel—Part 1"...

My wife and I were visiting Southern California on vacation when we decided to stop by Mission San Juan Capistrano - an adobe chapel complex founded by Franciscan monks in 1776. In the back of the mission was a small replica of the gardens that produced much of the monks' food for hundreds of years.

As I walked through the garden, I noticed a large sign tacked in front of a particularly leafy bush. It read, "Please don't chase or catch our lizards. They lose their tails if you grab them." Sure enough, looking down at the bush I noticed several lizards lounging camouflaged against the leaves. They were ordinary, as lizards go - small and dull-green, which flecks of white or yellow streaked across their slim bodies. Nothing flashy.

But you can probably guess the first thought that went through my mind after reading that sign and getting a look at those lizards - I would like to see a lizard's tail fall off?. If I hadn't been with my wife and young (impressionable) son, I'm sure I would have reached out right then and there and grabbed at a lizard just to see what would happen next.

Thus the danger of unintended curriculum.

Continue reading "Beware of Unintended Curriculum"...

I recently sat down with Jennifer Oxford, regional leader for Student Impact, the youth ministry of Willow Creek Community Church in South Barrington, Illinois. Jen has five years of ministry under her belt and lots of experience orienting volunteers into a world that is new to them. Here's an excerpt from an interview with Jen that we just published in our Orientation Guide for Volunteer Youth Leaders.

What advice would you give a volunteer who is just starting out?
The first six months are very awkward. It's like going back to junior high or high school. You're the new person without a lunch table. You go home every week and think, What am I doing? But even those confusing times help you become a better leader, because you can empathize with the new students coming into the group. And it does get better.

I would also suggest that someone starting out should mentally commit to serving for two years. Once you get through the initial awkwardness, you start to sense real ministry happening. If you don't wait out the awkward time, you won't truly get into the heart of ministry. It's worth it to persevere, but it takes time to transition into youth ministry.

What should a new youth worker expect?
[Students] end up learning because of who you are, rather than what you're teaching. That's why it's important to commit to two years - because your life speaks volumes. Eventually, they'll begin to learn from the Bible and through spiritual disciplines, because they see you learning that way and teaching them. It's all about relationships and time.

Is there a specific kind of person who is best suited to work with students?
In many youth groups, you see leaders who are in college or in their early to mid-twenties - you know, "hip" people. But I recruit parents. I recruit people from all walks of life. The person God calls to youth ministry is the person he has a plan for. I have some students who don't have a strong parental presence in their lives; having an older, "un-hip" adult lead their small group meets a tremendous need. If you feel passionate about working with youth, then you're the person that's supposed to be there, whether you're 20 or 70.

What are the difficult issues that youth volunteers will face?
When you start working with youth, you become aware that they are confronting serious realities. I've worked with students who are dealing with the death of a parent; struggling with their friends who are starting to party; encountering drugs, pregnancy, sex, rape, and jail. Some are thinking about suicide, or grieving friends who've committed suicide. These issues don't affect every student, but many will know someone who is affected.

Does being a leader include correcting, maybe even rebuking a student?
Definitely. If you have junior high students or even high school freshman, there will be a goof-off factor, and you need to find a balance between building community and teaching the lesson you've planned. With some topics, students goof off because it hits too close to home. When that happens, you need to discern the importance of your topic. If it's worth pursuing, you need to say, "No, guys, we're going to settle down and talk through this." Other weeks, they might need to have some fun, and you can scrap the agenda.

What's one piece of advice you'd give to someone just starting in youth ministry?
Step out in faith and just give it a try. I don't think there's anywhere else where you can make such an incredible difference in someone's life. You experience highs and lows, but you are also given many opportunities to do God's work.

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Matthew 4:2: "Jesus fasted forty days and forty nights, and afterwards, he was famished." It was then that "the tempter came."

What an understatement. When you haven't eaten for almost six weeks, you're not just famished, you're dangerously weak. Your muscles and bones hurt. Your electrolyte levels are way off. You're not able to think clearly.

You're so hungry your eyes are practically rolling back inside your head.

And that is when Satan shows up. He doesn't come right after Jesus is baptized, when the heavens open up, and the Holy Spirit descends on Jesus and rests on him and God says, audibly, so people hear it, "This is My Son, whom I love." Instead, Satan waits until all that is a distant memory, so distant, that it seems like, "Did that really happen?" Satan comes on Day 40.

Have you ever had an amazing encounter with God, when everything seemed so clear, and so affirming, and you heard his voice - but later, you were in such desperate shape you could hardly remember any of it; in fact, you questioned it?

In the summer of 1998, I went to a Christian conference, and there, a woman I barely knew, prayed for me. She prayed the most astonishing prayer I have ever received. She said things in her prayer that revealed my inmost heart, things I had told no one, except God in prayer. And then she said that despite my not having gone to seminary, I would be released into pastoral ministry, which is virtually impossible to do in my tradition.

I walked away in a daze. I knew the heavens had opened up, the Holy Spirit had descended, and God had spoken.

Continue reading "Satan Comes on Day 40"...

Newsweek recently interviewed Anglican bishop N.T. Wright. Whether or not you have an opinion on our brother from the U.K., one thing is clear in Wright's work: he does his work with a pastor's heart.

A few quotes from the Newsweek interview stand out, especially since Wright spends much of his time speaking to people who would call themselves Christians (as, I suspect, many of us do too).

As you read on, note how Wright's view of the resurrection sees it as literal, historical, relevant, and comprehensive to every aspect of life. Such a view can transform and inspire ministry. May it do so more and more in each of ours!

The full interview (well worth the read if you're into this kind of thing) can be accessed here.

NEWSWEEK: When you talk about the resurrection, are you telling people something they haven't heard before?

N. T. Wright: Usually, yes. People have been told so often that resurrection is just a metaphor, and means Jesus died and was glorified - in other words, he went to heaven, whatever that means. And they've never realized that the word resurrection simply didn't mean that. If people [in the first century] had wanted to say he died and went to heaven, they had perfectly good ways of saying that.

What does the resurrected body look like?
The analogy that I use is this: if you are with somebody who is very sick, you say, "Poor old so-and-so, he's just a shadow of his former self." He's still recognizable as the same person. Who we are at the moment is just a shadow of our future selves. There's a real you, a real me, which will one day be there and we'll say, "My goodness, you're looking well." There's a sense of "like but more than."

How do you reconcile your orthodox theology with your progressive politics?
?The resurrection gives you a sense of what God wants to do for the whole world, and it gives the church the courage to say, "God's new world has actually begun already." The church can then say to the powers that be, whether it's George W. Bush or Gordon Brown or the United Nations, "We are urging you to do justice, and we're going to hold your feet to the fire and go on reminding you when you're getting it wrong and congratulating you when you're getting it right."

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I'm going to attempt to paraphrase a story I heard at a small-groups conference a little over a year ago, so please bear with me. The speaker was Randy Frazee. The story centered on Frazee's first attempt at small-group ministry as the senior pastor of a large church in the suburbs of Fort Worth, Texas.

Being the senior pastor, Frazee wanted to make sure that his small group was an example of excellence for the rest of the church to follow. So after much prayer and deliberation, he and his wife invited the most spiritual couple in the church to serve as co-leaders, and then the most athletic, most attractive, most intelligent, and most wealthy couples to round out the group. They called it their "Super Small Group."

The only problem was that the couples' homes were spread out, which meant that Frazee and his wife had to travel between 25 and 40 minutes each way to get to their group meeting every week. About this time, however, Frazee's new next-door neighbor - a real whiz at hospitality and socializing - began organizing regular get-togethers within the neighborhood. Consequently, Frazee's Super Small Group became less and less appealing in light of what was happening in his own backyard.

He described one specific occasion when the next-door neighbor set up a street-wide potluck event. The evening of this event happened to coincide with the meeting time of the Super Small Group. Frazee described his sense of loss as he and his wife pulled out of their driveway and watched children playing kickball in the street, men playing horseshoes across a front lawn, families gathered together over steaming plates of fried chicken and cool glasses of lemonade, and so on.

It was a great story, and I'm sure I haven't done it justice here. But that was when I first began to ask myself the question: When does a small group become just another meeting? When does a small group cross the line between supportive community and draining obligation? How do you know when it's time to go?

Continue reading "When Is a Small Group ‘Just Another Meeting’?"...

A church in our area recently dealt with a situation that made me think harder about the way many congregations approach adult Sunday school.

This church of about 150 people gathers for a worship service first, then breaks into age-specific classes afterward. A few months ago, a group of young mothers in the church found themselves loitering together in the church lobby. They wound up spending the entire Sunday school hour sharing updates on life and providing encouragement, without children around to interrupt.

The following week, the women found themselves in the lobby for the impromptu meeting. And then again the next week. And the next. Some momentum began to build.

But in a church of about 150 people, it didn't take long for others to notice. And this is where I found myself challenged by the ways church leaders typically approach adult Christian education.

Continue reading "Pondering the Question of Adult Education"...

I know a thing or two about living in the parsonage.

As a pastor's kid, I spent 10 years living in the house next door to the church. And later, as a youth pastor's wife, I spent a few more living in a bubble that may as well have been a parsonage.

The thing about the parsonage, in my experience, is that many church members consider it their property and figure they can come and go as they please. And the bubble is similar. For some reason, many people feel free to take great liberties with the personal boundaries of church staff and their families.

Why is this? Is it because people believe that those who dedicate their lives to ministry automatically surrender their sense of self? Do they believe God grants special grace to church workers, overcoming their need for downtime? Is it because people who contribute money to the church figure they're paying the salaries and therefore are the bosses?

Continue reading "So Many Bosses"...

Practices vary for church leaders seeking to hear God's call. The most radical method is "the lot," used by many Anabaptists since their early days in Europe. This method of discernment, taken from the example of the eleven disciples in Acts 1, is still practiced today by most Amish and a few Mennonite groups.

When a church needs a leader, they hear a sermon (Titus 1 or 1 Timothy 3) on the necessary qualifications. Then each member submits the name of one person from the congregation who meets those criteria.

Anyone receiving three or more votes is given the opportunity to decline but otherwise enters the lottery. If, say, five names remain, then five hymn books (or Bibles) are taken outside the room and a slip of paper, on which is written the words of Acts 1:24 or Proverbs 16:33, is placed in one of them.

The books are brought back into the room and placed on a table. Each of the five individuals picks one book. The one whose book contains the paper becomes the leader! The chosen one (and family) often weeps because of the solemn and unsought responsibility, and the dramatic sense of God's calling.

Continue reading "Exploring "The Call""...

I have this cartoon strip coming together in my mind. It has three frames: Frame 1: A well-dressed man - your stereotypical church leader - is taking in a worship service. His wife is sitting next to him. The congregation is standing, hands raised, praising with all their might. A guitarist is on the platform leading the singing. The only people sitting are the man and his spouse. As she looks on, he leans over and says, "I hear you can induce a trance if you sing repetitive phrases over and over?" She ignores him.

Frame 2: The sermon. With a Bible in one hand, the pastor proclaims, "?and we know this is true because God said it to us in his Word!" Again, the churchgoing man whispers to his wife, "You know, we can't even be sure that exact line was in Paul's original letter." Her face shows the beginnings of a frown.

Frame 3: The churchgoing man now is in heaven. He is touring the New Jerusalem Museum of Original Manuscripts. A placard on the wall tells us he is reading the original text of Romans. His finger traces the words of chapter 1, verse 29 - "They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, cynicism, skepticism, and malice."

"Cynicism? skepticism," he thinks with a guilty look on his face, "I'm sure glad those got lost in translation!"

Off to the side, his (former) wife is talking to Paul. "Why did that not make it into our Bibles?" she asks.

"Something about not testing us beyond what we could bear," the apostle replies.

*************

I'll admit that all blog posts are slightly autobiographical if you'll admit that this is one of the constant struggles of serving in the church. We spend so much time around the work of God that we risk losing the wonder and a sense of the holiness of it all.

There are myriad ways to combat cynicism. I think we need to recover the ability to laugh about it (note: I did not say we should laugh at each other). Cynicism is pitiful - a bad attitude masquerading as thoughtful elitism. But it's a poisonous defense mechanism. It gives Satan a huge foothold at the highest levels of church leadership.

If laughing at it will help us to admit the truth - that we're tempted to deny the holiness of the things we deal in, and even though we continue to struggle, we know that cynicism is ridiculous - then may our churches be filled with laughter.

How do you combat cynicism and skepticism?

This week, BuildingChurchLeaders.com and some of our sister sites are joining to think seriously about Scripture. An exciting foray into this topic begins with an interactive assessment: The Hermeneutics Quiz, by Scot McKnight. This quiz will give you an insightful perspective into the way in which you interpret Scripture.

For other considerations, read Scot's article on the Leadership website, or dive into the post below.

A church's ability to minister to people hinges on its confidence in the Word of God. A low-confidence church can't teach or preach or serve with any real sense of expectation. It can't profess assurance that God speaks or that listening for his voice is worthwhile. A high-confidence church lives in another reality: a realm in which God speaks and acts, calls and sends.

The divide here isn't a clear-cut, liberal-conservative issue. It isn't an issue that can be dealt with primarily on an institutional level. Confidence in the Word of God is intensely personal. The question is this: do you believe that God speaks?

How we answer that question determines more about our ministry than almost any other. If the answer is yes, that we are high-confidence believers, then we can ask God to bend, shape, and teach us. If the answer is no, then our low-confidence answer should prompt a question: why is this God worth serving.

Continue reading "Listening to God's Word"...

In mid-January, the Wall Street Journal published an article about church discipline, choosing for its focus a case in which a 71-year-old woman was expelled from her congregation. The article made almost no use of concepts that are central to church discipline - redemption, unity, and discipleship. Almost immediately, a small niche of the blog world erupted at the overwhelmingly negative portrayal of discipline. A few secular blogs picked up on the article, too, and they used it to bolster cynicism.

Off the Agenda decided to take the opportunity to address and to expand upon the core issue brought up in the article - how leaders and congregants can survive the pitfalls of conflict. In the following article, Ken Sande, president of Peacemaker Ministries and a member of Building Church Leaders' Ask the Experts panel, explains several steps that leaders can take to avoid destructive conflict. This article first appeared on Peacemaker's website:

Every year hundreds of churches and ministries are thrown into turmoil when someone criticizes or raises serious questions about the conduct of a pastor or ministry executive. All too many of these situations end in resignation, dishonor, or division - usually because those who are responsible for addressing the allegations commit one of two major errors.

Continue reading "Holding Leaders Accountable"...

When our small staff (of two) met for a long-term planning and goals review, my colleague was visibly stressed. She said, "My whole life is church. I'm drained, rather than energized, by ministry. I want to be able to go home without thinking about work all the time."

We talked about delegating some of her duties. But she was already delegating effectively. Then we talked about her schedule. She produced a "to do" list with 64 items on it. No wonder she felt pressured!

Her list included everything from meetings and telephone calls to recruiting ministry volunteers and revising ministry positions. With the help of another set of eyes, she realized some of the duties could be delegated. But it still left an intimidating list and an incredible mess on her monthly planner.

Eventually we arrived at a simple but effective way of keeping priorities straight and burdens in perspective.

Continue reading "Is Your "To Do's" List Too Long?"...

The number one reason that pastors leave their ministries is "wives issues," according to a 2007 Time magazine article. I would take some comfort in that statistic - that the number one reason they leave isn't sexual sin or burnout - but the Bible teaches that neglecting an obligation to care for family is its own form of moral failure. (Here I'm thinking of Ephesians 5, but I don't think Jesus is far from this in the beginning of Matthew 15, either.)

Up until last July, I doubted the prevalence of stress placed on pastors' spouses. But when we launched a Survival Guide entitled "Help for the Pastor's Spouse," and it became one of our most popular downloads, I had to admit that the stress was more common than I ever expected. For a succinct understanding of why, consider the opening paragraph from that Time article:

HELP WANTED: Pastor's wife. Must sing, play music, lead youth groups, raise seraphic children, entertain church notables, minister to other wives, have ability to recite Bible backward and choreograph Christmas pageant. Must keep pastor sated, peaceful and out of trouble. Difficult colleagues, demanding customers, erratic hours. Pay: $0.

Yes, it's a cynical view of the role - or vocation - of a pastor's spouse. But it rings true for many ministry wives, and it drives many of them to create networks on the internet and beyond.

These networks build themselves around the pain points (and, to a lesser extent, the shared joys) of marriage to a minister. Unless we want our churches to bear the burden of a pastor's strained marriage - or the wreckage of a broken marriage - it would be wise for leaders to periodically consider the pain points and ask a few questions:

Continue reading "Remembering the Pastor’s Spouse"...

I came across an interesting article the other day - one that I think captures a brief but powerful case study of the importance of mentoring in terms of personal and spiritual growth. Here's an excerpt:

Every morning, Devin Hester receives an inspirational text message from his idol and friend, Deion Sanders. Hester certainly needed encouragement following the death of former Miami Hurricanes teammate Sean Taylor.

Hester ? attended Taylor's funeral Monday in Miami. Sanders came to practice Tuesday, preparing for his sideline coverage of the upcoming Bears-Redskins game. But Sanders also made himself available in case Hester needed more support.

"When he's dealing with something that's heavy on his heart, he'll send me a text," Sanders said. "He sent me a text last week telling me it was hard to come to practice knowing Sean would never be at practice again."

If you're confused by some of the names and terms here, let me explain. This excerpt was originally published in the Chicago Tribune. It refers to a unique relationship that has developed between two of the most exciting players to set foot in the National Football League during the last 20 years: Devin Hester and Deion "Prime Time" Sanders.

If you're not a football fan, I'll let you know that Sanders is a retired NFL legend known for his extreme speed and flamboyant style. Hester is a young player - currently finishing his second season with the Chicago Bears - who electrified fans by setting an NFL record for return touchdowns in 2006, his rookie year.

As a rookie, Hester mentioned in an interview that he had idolized Deion Sanders as a child. Upon hearing this, Sanders contacted the young player and took him under his wing, so to speak. They have enjoyed a close relationship ever since.

With that in mind, take another look at the newspaper excerpt above. Here are some things that stood out to me:

Continue reading "Deion Sanders, Devin Hester, and Mentoring"...

Last spring a man came to see me. It was the beginning of Lent, the original "40 Days of Purpose-Filled Repentance."

"Pastor," he said, "I want to confess my sins." And in tears, he spoke honestly and openly about the sin in his life - nothing illegal, most known only to him, yet serious, and he was serious about turning away from it. We talked and prayed together, and he left.

Forty days later, he came back. "How are you doing?" I asked. "How is God at work in your life?"

He looked down. "I haven't made much progress," he admitted. "I still struggle with what we talked about before."

As I watched a tear slowly trickle down the center of his cheek, I saw in his agony a question I've often asked: "Why does sin so stubbornly remain in our lives? He and I both want to change more than we have and more than we do. How come?"

I've heard many answers, ranging from "You just haven't gotten serious enough about turning away from your sin," (which doesn't always seem the case) to "You need an experience of greater or entire sanctification," to "You need an accountability partner," to "You need to let go and let God." All helpful, to a point, but they didn't seem to pastorally fit this man hunched over in front of me.

As church leaders, we work with people feeling overcome by persistent sin - and we experience that in our own lives. What help or counsel should we give, starting with ourselves?

During the summer, I read several books, and unexpectedly, they spoke to this question. Their answer was not what I expected; in fact, it was the opposite of what I expected.

Continue reading "Why Does Sin Remain in My Life?"...

My wife and I read Psalm 74 last night. It was a strange choice - a break from Advent passages about anticipating Christ's coming. One particular phrase lodged itself in our minds: "Have regard for your covenant, for the dark places of the land are full of the haunts of violence."

Our minds went first to Rwanda, a country that lives in the shadow of a genocide that killed nearly a million people. My wife, Stephanie, spent time living in Rwanda. She understands better than most the cry for God that goes up from people who are weary of violence. It is a cry that goes up from Darfur and Sudan, Yugoslavia, Kashmir, and many other places. This week, it is a cry that goes up close to home - from Colorado.

Continue reading "Comfort in a Time of Despair"...

"Mentoring," says the late Fred Smith Sr. in his book Leading with Integrity, "is back in favor again, like a wonderful old story that hasn't been told for so long it sounds new."

Then he succinctly explains the danger of that dynamic.

"In some ways it has taken on the characteristics of a fad; if too much is expected too soon, it will fail."

Much like Smith, I have listened in recent years to the growing chorus of voices insisting younger people like me need a mentor, an individual who can listen and provide sage wisdom to me in my faith, my marriage, my parenting, my career, and my leadership. Almost all of those messages have come at me as I sit in the pews of the churches I've attended. Unfortunately, none of these churches effectively found ways to orchestrate meaningful mentoring relationships between older and younger congregants.

It's a question I've chewed on in recent months as I begin the journey of finding a mentor in my own life. How can churches help people connect in ways that lead to mentoring relationships? I fear we lose an opportunity to recover a once-prized practice if, as Smith asserts, our talk doesn't translate into results.

For mentoring to work, the message, and supporting environment, must be intentionally focused on building a culture of mentorship. I'm not suggesting churches play the role of matchmaker, arbitrarily pairing people up and hoping they become tight-knit confidantes. That's absurd. But most of the current formula isn't working.

Continue reading "Create a Culture of Mentorship"...

Let me begin with a simple, wonderfully freeing premise: You do not need to know everything.

A few short generations ago, it could rightly be said, Information Is Power. That was true when there wasn't enough of it. Today, the motto should read: Information Is Fatigue. We get too much information, and a high percentage of that information is inane, meaningless, enervating. Do I really need to know whom Britney Spears is dating?

Writes Richard Saul Wurman, in Information Anxiety 2 (Que, 2001): "Information was once a sought-after and treasured commodity like a fine wine. Now, it's regarded more like crabgrass, something to be kept at bay."

No, information alone is no longer power. What is power is the right information, a limited amount of information - the information you need, when you need it.

Continue reading "How Leaders Can Survive Information Overload"...

"Micah 7:8-9 is a picture of what you say to your enemy when he scoffs at your defeat. I call this practice 'gutsy guilt.' The believer admits that he has done wrong and that God is dealing roughly with him. But even in a condition of darkness and discipline, he will not surrender his hold on the truth that God is on his side. Pay close attention to these amazing words. Use them whenever Satan tempts you to throw away your life on trifles because that's all you're good for.

Micah 7:8-9 is what victory looks like the morning after failure. Learn to take your theology and speak like this to the Devil or anyone else who tells you that Christ is not capable of using you mightily for his global cause."

--John Piper, from his article, "Gutsy Guilt," in the October 2007 edition of Christianity Today. To read the entire article, click here.

What tools have you found useful to maintain your sexual integrity?

As I prepared to leave for a recent speaking engagement, I realized how tired I was, how desperate I was for my own experience of intimacy with God, and how much I needed the very things I would be guiding others into on that day. After 25 years of life in ministry, I had learned to pay attention to such inner dynamics and knew better than to wait for a better time. I packed a simple bag, made overnight arrangements as I drove to the retreat I was leading, and left right from the speaking engagement to enter into 24 hours of silent retreat. That choice alone changed the tenor of the whole week and the whole month that followed.

One of the most important rhythms of my life as a person in ministry is a constant back and forth motion between times when I am engaged in the battle, giving my best energy to taking the next hill and times of retreat when I am not "on" and I do not have to be any particular way for anyone. Times when I can be in God's presence for my own soul's sake.

A sobering truth about life in leadership is that we can be very busy and look very important, yet be out of touch with that place in the center of our being where we know who we are in God and what he has called us to do - that place where we are responsive to the voice of God above all others.

Continue reading "Before Ministry Life Burns You Out"...

"Make a mental switch on the way home. If that's not possible, give your family a signal when you've shaken off the day and are home at last. Take a shower, change your clothes, or even wait to drop the tie until you're ready to be mentally present with your family."

- Marshall Shelley, from the article "Winning the War for Family Time," in the Building Church Leaders Assessment Pack, "Time Management."