How to Deal with Ministry Pain
We all carry baggage not only from our family of origin, but also from our previous ministry experiences. For some, that baggage may feel like a light daypack. For others, it may feel like a 100-pound duffle bag. How can we deal with this pain so that it doesn’t affect our families, ourselves, and our
8 Decisions Leaders Should Make During a Crisis
One of the best books I’ver every read on leadership is A Failure of Nerve by Edwin H. Friedman. It’s a challenging read, but well worth it. The author was a Jewish counselor who wrote extensively on a counseling philosophy called Bowen Family Systems. The more I read about this way of looking at church leadership through ’systems’
When a Leader Spirals Downward
An aviation term called a death spiral describes what can happen to a plane in nighttime or poor flying conditions when a pilot loses his sense of the plane’s horizontal orientation. The plane can begin to spin uncontrollable. Unless the pilot pulls out, he can spiral out of control and crash. In ministry, leaders can
10 Subtle Signs You Have Hit your Stress Red Zone
The Red Zone: unsafe areas in Iraq after the 2003 invasion, a region of France decimated during WWI, the area on the field between the 20 yard line and the end zone in American football (source: wikipedia). The term Red Zone is a fairly well understood term that designates either a problem area or a
Emotionally Anxious Leaders: 8 Signs
My dad was an electrical engineer and filled his shop in our basement with the most amazing gizmos. Transistors, capacitors, transformers, electrical tools and every conceivable gadget lined the shelves and entertained me for hours. My favorite gadget was a neon sign transformer. A transformer is a device that either steps up or steps down
Leading in Turbulent Times: 4 Essentials
If you are a leader, you will face turbulence in your ministry or organization. Sometimes the turbulence feels so intense that leading seems impossible. If you’re currently facing turbulent times in your role, consider what one of the most revered men in history did when he faced such times. King David constantly faced turbulence as he
Shadow Beliefs in a Leader: Clues to Yours
Kevin Cashman wrote an outstanding book on leadership called Leadership from the Inside Out: Becoming a Leader for Life. In his book he writes about conscious beliefs and shadow beliefs. He defines a shadow belief as a belief we hold deep inside, outside of our conscious awareness. He provides insight about how to discover those
A Leader’s Heart: 5 Questions You Should Ask Yourself
The story of the Good Samaritan (Luke 10.25-37), one of Jesus’ most famous stories, describes the power of true love. In this story, Jesus contrasts those with big heads (the priest and the levite who had heads full of Bible knowledge) with one who had a big heart, the Samaritan. This story also offers clues about leaders with
Is This the Most Important Time on Sundays for a Pastor?
I’ve been in full-time vocational ministry 35 years and have always believed that the most important use of my time on Sunday was when I brought the message. I still believe that, but now also believe that the second most important time is right before and right after the service. I call it my ‘ministry of presence.’ My high visibility as
Are you a Pastor Stuck on Hurry?
Two experiences several years ago caused me one day to pause not only my body, but my mind as well. So often as a pastor I get stuck on ‘hurry’ mode which makes me miss moments in life God intended that I pay attention to. Here are those two sobering experiences and what I learned.
