Our Church’s Giving Increased 33%…Here’s Why
I recently became lead pastor at a great church in London, Ontario, West Park Church. It has a rich tradition, great people, is located in a fast growing area, and has a killer facility. When I arrived we faced a significant budget deficit. We erased our deficit with a special offering around Christmas. However, during
This Sermon got the Most Positive Comments ever-and it was on Tithing!
I moved to Canada about five months ago to pastor West Park Church in London, Ontario. I’m enjoying living and serving in Canada. Early on I realized that I needed to teach on generosity. So, last week I brought a message on tithing, the fourth in a series on generosity. I don’t think I’ve every
5 Clout Killers every Pastor should Avoid
Jenni Catron, who will soon go on staff at Menlo Park Presbyterian Church where John Ortberg pastors, wrote the just released book, Clout: Discover and Unleash Your God-Given Influence. I read it recently and I believe it is a must read for every pastor, as well as for every follower of Jesus. She defines clout
Top 10 Mistakes New Pastors Make
I just began a new role at a great church in London, Ontario, Canada. I never thought I’d be north of the border, but I’m thoroughly enjoying the ministry here. Before I came I extensively read about how best to onboard (adjust to a new job setting). In my reading and my 33 years of
How Prevalent are People Pleasing Pastors?
This February Inter-Varsity Press will release my third book titled, People Pleasing Pastors: Avoiding the Pitfalls of Approval Motivated Leadership with a forward by Dr. Ed Stetzer. When I began writing the book, I sought to discover how prevalent people pleasing motivations existed among pastoral leadership. What I found confirmed my suspicion. I commissioned several phases of
Why Leaders Need Emotional Intelligence
One way to grow your emotional intelligence, a crucial trait for successful leaders, comes by reading broadly. One of the best leadership bloggers today and my friend, Dan Black, just released his new book, The Leadership Mandate. He is offering readers of my blog an extended chance to receive 6 special bonuses (valuing over $85) when they purchase
A Former Pastor’s Perspective on What Makes a Compelling Worship Service
In a recent article I wrote for Churchleaders.com, 8 Surprising Insights from a Former Pastor, I shared 8 key insights I’ve learned during the last 18 months as a former pastor. I’ve served 32 years in vocational ministry and took off the past 18 months to write, coach pastors, travel, and begin another master’s degree. The Churchleaders.com
5 Surprising Observations from my 7 Hours with 40 Pastors of Today’s Largest Churches
Each year Leadership Network offers an amazing two day online leadership conference called The Nines. The 2013 conference is scheduled for November 15-16 and will include dozens of today’s most influential pastors and Christian leaders. I’ve been asked to be one of the presenters this year. On August 1 Leadership Network gathered 40 of these leaders at
10 Transformative Takeaways from the Willow Creek Leadership Summit
Two weeks ago I attended Willow’s Leadership Summit and I’m glad I did. In my prior post I wrote about the 4 books I bought because of the Summit. In this post I list the 10 transformative insights I learned. The insights are mostly paraphrases from each speaker’s respective talks, with their names in parentheses. Margin: Make margin
My Journey from Preacher to Parishoner-8 Insights I Learned as “no longer a pastor”
I’ve served in the local church as a pastor for over 32 years, yet for the past year I’ve not served in an official pastoral role. After 7-1/2 wonderful years at a church in Aurora, IL, I left to accomplish several goals that I couldn’t have if I were on staff at a church. I