5 Things Great Student Pastors Choose To Believe

My friends over at Orange Books are offering some great deals this week for their first ever Orange Books Deal Week. You can get any of the deals, any day this week, but here is today’s deal:

LSC_Cover_epub

Buy one copy of the book Make Believe, and get all of the following:

  • “Make Believe” (Orange Conference 2014 breakout by Ben Crawshaw and Kevin Ragsdale, audio file)
  • “Give the Right Person the Mic” (Jon Acuff, High School Camp 2014, video)
  • A three-month trial membership to Weekly (an online subscription to empower small group leaders and parents)
Plus, when you tweet or share on Facebook any of the deals using the hashtag #OrangeBooks, you’ll be entered to win a prize.
Go to OrangeBooks.com to learn more & be sure to come back tomorrow to learn about tomorrow’s great deal!

Global Leadership Summit – Day 2 Notes

Day 2 of Willow Creek’s Global Leadership Summit did not disappoint!  The speaker line-up was fantastic and their messages gave me much to think about in the days and weeks ahead.

If you weren’t able to attend, you can read some of the things that stood out to me from today’s speakers (I will share my personal takeaways and action steps in the coming weeks):

Session Five (Part 1):  Joseph Grenny (@josephgrenny) “Mastering the Art of Crucial Conversations”

Anytime you find yourself stuck, stop and ask: “What crucial conversation are we not holding or not holding well?”

**2 options for handling crucial conversations:

  1. You can TALK it out.
  2. You can ACT it out.
  • You can measure the health of a team, relationship, etc. by the number of crucial conversations.
  • Crucial conversations are either a pit or a path.
  • Crucial conversations are the core of a healthy team.  Improvement in this area will dramatically improve the health of the team.

**The Three Crucial Moments in Churches:

  1. Performance problems with volunteers or staff.
  2. Members who are struggling in sin or disconnecting from the church.
  3. Concerns with pastors.

**The Principle of Crucial Conversations: The vital behavior that enables most any positive organizational outcome is CANDOR at moments of acute emotional and political risk.

**Areas that affect crucial conversations:

  • Individual influence
  • Teamwork
  • Productivity
  • Marriage Success
  • Diversity
  • Quality
  • Safety

**Seven Crucial Skills in having Crucial Conversations:

  1. Start with heart
  2. Learn to look
  3. Make it safe (See below)
  4. Master my stories
  5. State my path
  6. Explore others’ path
  7. Move to action

**Ingredients of Safety

  1. Mutual purpose – this says, “You know that I care about your goals.”
  2. Mutual respect – this says, “You know that I care about you.”

**A few thoughts about CANDOR:  Candor is never the problem.  People NEVER become defensive about what you’re saying.  People become defensive because of WHY they think you’re saying it.

Session Five (Part 2):  Erica Ariel Fox (@ericaarielfox) “Winning from Within (How to Lead Ourselves)”

Performance gap is defined as “what you could do at your best vs. what you do in the moment.”

  • Think of yourself in a new way.  Think, “I am plural.  I am not singular.”

The Big 4 Innovators

1. The Dreamer (Your Inner CEO) – Creates possibilities

  • Sets strategic vision
  • Senses a path forward
  • Gives direction

Question:  Is there a dream in me I have left behind?

2. The Thinker (Your Inner CFO) – Clarifies Perspectives

  • Analyzes data
  • Manages risk
  • Considers consequences

Question:  Can you articulate a case for the moral outcome you desire to see?

3.  The Lover (Your Inner VP of HR) – Cares about People

  • Feels emotions
  • Manages relationships
  • Collaborates with others

Tip:  Have a practice before you go into a big meeting; call the name and face of someone you love in your heart.

4,  The Warrior (Your Inner COO) – Catalyzes Performance

  • Takes action
  • Reaches goals
  • Speaks hard truth

Tip:  Find places in your life where you’re saying “yes” today and say, “No, but thanks.”

Session Six (Part 1):  Don Flow 

  • We are called to love people, not just exercise authority over them.

**Leaders S.E.R.V.E.

Show respect

Earn trust

Reach for perfection – don’t be satisfied with the way things are

Value input

Energize others

  • Leadership flows out of who we are, not just what we do.
  • Clarity of purpose gives someone something to believe in.

“Courage is an inner resolution to go forward despite obstacles; cowardice is submissive surrender to circumstances.  Courage breeds creativity; cowardice represses fear and is mastered by it. Cowardice asks the question, ‘Is it safe?’  Expediency asks the question, ‘Is it political?’  Vanity asks the question, ‘Is it popular?’ but conscience asks the question ‘Is it right?’ There comes a time when we must take a position that’s neither safe, nor political, nor popular, but one must take it because it’s right.”

–Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

Session Six (Part 2):  Allen Catherine Kagina (@CG_URA

  • If we are willing to invite the kingdom of God in, God will take over and we’ll see better societies.

Session Six (Part 3):  Wilfredo De Jesus (@PastorChoco

  • We cannot allow prayer to become a crutch and cause us not to do anything.
  • You cannot let your budget dictate your faith.
  • God is looking for someone to stand in the gap.  However, the moment you decide to stand in the gap, you will face opposition.
  • We must not be afraid to take our faith into the community.
  • With revelation comes responsibility.

**Leadership lessons from Nehemiah:

  • He prayed.
  • He planned.
  • He proceeded.
  • He persuaded.

Session Seven:  Ivan Satyavrata (@AGCKolkata) “The Power Paradox”

  • There is no such thing as leadership without power.

The paradox: a leader must be able to wield power, real power, in order to lead effectively.  She must, however, at the same time be genuinely vulnerable, subservient & seemingly powerless.

**3 Types of Power

1. Knowledge Power

  • Knowledge is power.
  • How am I stewarding my knowledge as a leader?
  • Leaders hold the scepter of power in one hand and a towel and basin in the other.  Which one are you gripping tighter?

2. People Power

  • Leaders have the power to influence people.

3. Kingdom Power

  • God’s Kingdom people regularly pray, “Thy Kingdom come.”

Question:  Is the world a better place because of your power?

Continue the conversation about the Summit on Twitter, Facebook & Instagram using the official Summit hashtag #GLS14.

If you attended the Summit, what were your key takeaways?  Share them below!

Global Leadership Summit – Day 1 Notes

Hello friends!  I’ve been away from this platform for a while – between our VBS, vacation and gearing up for fall, things have kept me away but it feels great to be back!  I’ve missed you!

Today, I attended Day 1 of Willow Creek’s Global Leadership Summit.  It’s been a few years since I’ve attended but I’ve always enjoyed it.  The speakers have always been dynamic and have left me with many leadership principles that I apply today.

If you weren’t able to attend, you can read some of the things that stood out to me from today’s speakers (I will share my personal takeaways and action steps in the coming weeks):

Session One:  Bill Hybels (@BillHybels) “Hard-Fought Leadership Lessons”

1. Leaders are gifted by God to see things that other people don’t.

  • Your culture will only be as healthy as the senior leader wants it to be.
  • People join organizations – they leave managers.
  • The kindest form of management is the truth. (Jack Welch)
  • Everybody wins when a leader gets better.

**3 key points of evaluation – What do you need to:

  • Start – What do you need to do to move ahead?
  • Stop – What isn’t working?  Do you need to modify it or eliminate it altogether?
  • Continue – How can you motivate and inspire your team to continue doing what’s working?

2. Great leadership, by definition, is relentlessly developmental.

**5 ways to develop new leaders:

  • Put them in high-challenge roles.
  • Place them on a short-term task force (allows you to “test drive” a leader before putting them in a high-capacity role)
  • Provide real-time feedback
  • Provide coaching and mentoring
  • Encourage them to attend classroom courses and seminars

3. Find & develop leaders with a legacy mindset.

  • Look for people who aren’t just interested in ladder-climbers – look for people who can stay the long-term.
  • Legacy leaders leave something beautiful behind when their hourglass is empty.
  • What legacy will you leave behind?

4. Endurance

  • The grander the vision, the greater the price tag.
  • Pursue solitude to hear God in unrushed ways.
  • Humble yourself and ask for help if you need it.

Session Two (Part 1):  Carly Fiorina (@CarlyFiorina) “Defining Leadership”

  • Leadership is the same, no matter the context.
  • What unlocks potential?  Leadership.  Leaders unlock the potential in others.

Leadership is NOT:

  • Management – leadership is about changing the order of things.
  • About position and power

 

  • Set the framework and then set your team free.

The 20/20 rule:

  • 20% of the people in most organization are change warriors.
  • 20% of people are not going forward and become resistant.
  • 60% are skeptics.
  • Change never happens unless the 60% are moved.

Session Two (Part 2):  Jeffrey Immelt “Positioning Your Organization for the Future”

Fact:  General Electric (GE) invests one billion dollars each year for leadership development.

  • Hold regular times for leadership development.
  • Eliminate fear in the workplace.  Make coming to the workplace enjoyable for your employees.

Session Three (Part 1):  Susan Cain (@susancain) “Quiet: Challenging the Extrovert Ideal”

Fact:  One-half to one-third of people are introverts.

  • There is no such thing as a one-size-fits-all environment.

Encouraging an introvert’s creativity:

  • Stop the madness for constant group work.
  • Forget networking.  Focus on service.
  • Restore quiet to your culture.

Encouraging an introvert’s leadership:

  • Groom an ‘unlikely’ leader.
  • Find your complement.
  • Find a role model.

Session Three (Part 2):  Bryan Loritts (@bcloritts) “Instigating Change through Personal Sacrifice”

  • The blessings of God are not meant to be hoarded; they’re meant to be shared.
  • Our vision as leaders have got to go beyond what will perish.

Session Four:  Patrick Lencioni (@patricklencioni) “The Most Dangerous Mistakes Leaders Make”

**When we do these 3 things, we not only hurt our leadership – we hurt people.  What do these three things have in common? PRIDE!

1. Becoming a leader for the wrong reasons – notoriety, fame, power, money, etc.

  • The only payoff for leadership is eternal.

2. Failing to embrace vulnerability.

  • When we do this, we destroy trust with those we lead.
  • People don’t want us to be perfect – they want us to be human.
  • Admit when you need help.
  • Admit the challenges.

3. Making leadership too important.

  • Our identity as a leader can become what we strive for.

I can’t wait to continue the learning tomorrow!  Join the conversation throughout the Summit on Twitter, Facebook & Instagram using the official Summit hashtag #GLS14.

If you attended the Summit, what were your key takeaways?  Share them below!

Wilderness Escape VBS: Day 5 (To God Be the Glory)

Well friends, our VBS ended last Friday.  The end of VBS is always bittersweet but we had a good week.  There were so many ways that I saw God working but I’ll share just a few:

Our volunteers were rock stars!  They were so ready to jump in and serve in various capacities, whether leading games, helping to keep our building safe, leading meaningful discussions, being crafty, serving snacks or making sure that our sound was up and running.  In fact, many of them took time off from work to be with us for the week.  It was great to see our volunteers come together to make the week great!

Hearing stories of meaningful conversations happening at VBS, in the car or at home were so inspiring.  Children were asking good questions and really grappling with what they saw and heard.

Seeing children worship was great!  They were not only singing, they were worshiping.  I know that God was pleased.

Here are a few pictures from Day 5:

Our thank-you gift to our fabulous family leaders (A Pinterest-inspired idea)
Our thank-you gift to our fabulous family leaders (A Pinterest-inspired idea)
Our family leaders made VBS s'more fun!
Our family leaders made VBS s’more fun!

 

All week, our children were asked to bring in food for a local food pantry we support.  Humphrey the Camel liked what we collected. :)
All week, our children were asked to bring in food for a local food pantry we support. Humphrey the Camel liked what we collected. 🙂

Day 5 also included taking down much of our decor so that we could prepare for our Friday night celebration service and picnic.  This was the first year that we held our closing worship service on Friday night – we usually hold it on the Sunday following in lieu of our ‘normal’ worship services – but because of our church’s core values is connecting, we wanted a way to connect families to each other as well as to their child’s leaders.

The service lasted approximately 40 minutes and highlighted many of the songs the children learned in addition to a special visit from ‘Moses’.  Our picnic (complete with inflatables, games, prizes and food) was a great ending to the day.  Seeing families connect was a beautiful thing.

All in all, when I think back to the week, the two words that come to mind are grace and beauty.  I described grace earlier in the week (you can read that here) but here’s how it was beautiful.

Seeing inter-generational ministry happening is one way that our VBS is unique.  Seeing teens serve with older members of our congregation is one of the strengths of our program.  Because of this, our VBS is something that seems to rally our entire church like no other event.

Seeing our staff come together and support our VBS makes me grateful to serve alongside my colleagues.  Every department in our church made a contribution to our VBS.  It truly is an all-church, all-staff endeavor.

Seeing the giftedness within our congregation makes me thankful that God makes us all different.  Some have a knack to make things pretty; some are extremely organized; some are fun-loving; some are deeply passionate about seeing children learn about God in a Bible-based environment and want us to keep the main thing the main thing.  VBS is truly a collaboration of gifts and talents.

Seeing the Holy Spirit move in the hearts of our children reminds me that despite all of our efforts, it is the Holy Spirit who prompts children to be receptive to the message of the Gospel.  We want children who don’t know Jesus to accept His free gift of salvation and we want children who know Him to know and love Him more.

I am truly thankful to my fabulous team who worked so hard and tirelessly to make it a fabulous week.  Once we all recover, we’ll celebrate! 🙂  To God be the Glory!

“I will bless the Lord who guides me.”

Psalm 16:7