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CNLP 417: Simon Sinek on Why the Church is Losing Ground, the Importance of Existential Flex and How Deep, Personal Crisis Spawned Start With Why

Sean Cronin — Tue, 25 May 2021 09:00:00 +0000

By Carey Nieuwhof: Simon Sinek unpacks his back story, including how his grandfather shaped him, how ADHD impacted his leadership and how a deep, personal crisis led to him developing the ideas behind Start With Why.

Simon also talks about how existential flex is so important in a post-pandemic world, and why the church keeps losing ground.

Welcome to Episode 417 of the podcast. Listen and access the show notes below or search for the Carey Nieuwhof Leadership Podcast on Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts and listen for free.

Plus, in this episode’s What I’m Thinking About segment, Carey talks about what the Church needs to do to stay relevant.

Guest Links

Instagram | Facebook | Twitter | YouTube | Website

Episode Links

Pro Media Fire

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World Vision

This has been an incredibly difficult season for those pastoring church congregations. Many of you—church leaders—are caring for the souls of struggling congregants only to find yourselves burnt out and in need of your own soul care.

Our partner, World Vision, is called to serve the most vulnerable around the world, but also feels called to serve the Bride of Christ. And that includes caring for YOU—shepherds of the flock.

So, World Vision has partnered with Danielle Strickland to provide a practical resource called Soul Care Prayer Postures.

In this FREE web series, Danielle will share rhythms and practices to help create space for God to tend to YOUR soul, and get tools you can use as you lead others.

The Church is a force for good in the world, and World Vision’s heart is for the Bride of Christ to be healthy and mobilized to be the church outside the four walls!

Sign up for the FREE web series today by going to worldvision.org/carey.

Conversation Links

Start With Why by Simon Sinek

Leaders Eat Last by Simon Sinek

Together is Better by Simon Sinek

The Infinite Game by Simon Sinek

Why Good Leaders Make You Feel Safe – TED Talk by Simon Sinek

How to Discover Your “Why” in Difficult Times – TED Talk by Simon Sinek

How Great Leaders Inspire Action – TED Talk by Simon Sinek

Church Attendance is Dying. Here’s What’s Next by Carey Nieuwhof

Get Carey’s Content Straight to Your Inbox

*As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.

Insights From Simon

1. True success comes from the combination of 3 things:

When asked what led to his success, Simon outlined an interesting framework about what causes true, repeatable success. He’s found that it’s a combination of 3 things: Talent, Hard Work, and Luck. When those 3 things meet, you’re setting yourself up for repeatable success throughout your life.

2. When approaching your work, start with your why.

So many businesses and organizations focus on what they’re doing, and how they’re doing it, but they don’t focus on “why” enough. In his book, Start With Why Simon takes a deep dive into why your “why” is so important, and how to find what you or your business’ “why” is.

3. The Church’s inability to change is causing its own irrelevance.

Simon points out that a large portion of the church is behaving similar to how the music industry behaved as iTunes disrupted them. People didn’t stop listening to music, they just changed how they listened. Similarly, It’s not that people are losing their spirituality, it’s that they just aren’t turning to the Church for answers.

Quotes from Episode 417

It’s not that people are losing their spirituality, it’s that the church is losing its relevance. @simonsinekClick To Tweet

The responsibility of a church is not to get people in the pews. The responsibility of the church is to spread the gospel. @simonsinekClick To Tweet

People are spiritual and in search of community, in search of belief, in search of belonging, in search of hope, and in search of vision. They’re not getting it, and so they’re looking for it in other places. @simonsinekClick To Tweet

The church, as an industry, unfortunately looks a lot like a lot of other old-fashioned industries which is, ‘This is the way we’ve always done it.’ @simonsinekClick To Tweet

The solutions we find to the challenges we have when we’re children become our strengths as adults. @simonsinekClick To Tweet

There’s a formula for success, this zero-sum formula, which is talent, something innate, hard work, and then luck. @simonsinekClick To Tweet

We all have innate things in us, like the strengths we build when we’re kids, and if we invest in building on those talents, they become even stronger. @simonsinekClick To Tweet

We see the world through different lenses because of our childhoods and our upbringings. @simonsinekClick To Tweet

I am living proof that in adversity comes opportunity, and in hardship comes renewal and rebirth. @simonsinekClick To Tweet

I didn’t set out to tell anybody anything. I set out to share something that had profoundly changed my life and my view of the world. @simonsinekClick To Tweet

As a species, we are constantly searching for explanation. The most confounding things are things that seem to lack explanation. @simonsinekClick To Tweet

A why comes from the past. It’s where we come from, it is objective, and it never changes your whole life. @simonsinekClick To Tweet

I imagine a world in which the vast majority of people wake up every single morning inspired, feel safe wherever they are and end the day fulfilled by the work that they do. @simonsinekClick To Tweet

The obsession with the finite game means we see more and are more short term-ism. @simonsinekClick To Tweet

Finite-mindedness dominates business theory and political theory of the day. @simonsinekClick To Tweet

Wall Street breaks economies because they are making decisions for the good of themselves in a finite manner, rather than allowing companies and allowing executives to make decisions that are for the good of the whole. @simonsinekClick To Tweet

Existential flexibility is the capacity to make a 180 degree strategic shift in order to better advance your cause. @simonsinekClick To Tweet

If you don’t have the just cause and you don’t have the trusting teams, that existential flex will probably fail. @simonsinekClick To Tweet

In the future church, the church is going to meet anytime, anywhere, sometimes.Click To Tweet

Consumer Christianity isn’t about what you bring to the mission, it’s about what you squeeze out of it.Click To Tweet

Read or Download the Transcript for Episode 417

Looking for a key quote? More of a reader?

Read or download a free PDF transcript of this episode here.

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Is Your Church Ready For Future Evangelism? Take The Free Church Outreach Assessment To Find Out.

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Is Your Church Ready For Future Evangelism? Take The Free Church Outreach Assessment To Find Out.

Almost every church leader wants to grow their church by reaching more people.

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Donu2019t be discouraged. You can still reach people.

Take the Church Outreach Assessment now!”,”label_pos”:”above”,”parentType”:”html”,”element_templates”:[“html”,”input”],”old_classname”:””,”wrap_template”:”wrap”}];nfForms.push(form);

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Select episodes of this podcast are now on YouTube. Our YouTube Channel gives you a chance to watch some episodes, not just listen.

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Spread the Word. Leave a Rating and Review

Hopefully, this episode has helped you lead like never before. That’s my goal. If you appreciated it, could you share the love?

The best way to do that is to rate the podcast on Apple Podcasts and leave us a brief review! You can do the same on Stitcher and on TuneIn as well.

Your ratings and reviews help us place the podcast in front of new leaders and listeners. Your feedback also lets me know how I can better serve you.

Thank you for being so awesome.

Next Episode: Tony Morgan

Tony Morgan returns to the podcast to share the latest data on church attendance trends, best and worst practices for creating a digital strategy, and how to track online metrics that actually matter so you can connect with people who find you online.

Subscribe for free now so you won’t miss Episode 418.

The post CNLP 417: Simon Sinek on Why the Church is Losing Ground, the Importance of Existential Flex and How Deep, Personal Crisis Spawned Start With Why appeared first on CareyNieuwhof.com.

Source: CNLP 417: Simon Sinek on Why the Church is Losing Ground, the Importance of Existential Flex and How Deep, Personal Crisis Spawned Start With Why

The post CNLP 417: Simon Sinek on Why the Church is Losing Ground, the Importance of Existential Flex and How Deep, Personal Crisis Spawned Start With Why appeared first on Passion for Planting.

CNLP 413: Francis Chan on Escalating Division, Asian Hate, and Why Influence in the Church Can’t Come from Self-Promotion

Sean Cronin — Mon, 03 May 2021 13:27:23 +0000

By Carey Nieuwhof: Francis Chan has become convicted that division in the church is escalating and causing deep harm. He also thinks it’s tied to the desire for celebrity and influence so many leaders have.

Francis also talks about racial division and his experience as an Asian-American who has been the target of discrimination.

Welcome to Episode 413 of the podcast. Listen and access the show notes below or search for the Carey Nieuwhof Leadership Podcast on Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts and listen for free.

Plus, in this episode’s What I’m Thinking About segment, Carey shares a few thoughts on unity, division and the Church.

Guest Links

Instagram | Twitter | Website

Episode Links

Pro Media Fire

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Generis

Most churches have experienced stability in giving over the last year—that is some of the best news the team at Generis has heard during the pandemic.

But, a new concern is growing—will the other shoe drop in 2021? Will the economy shift? Will giving begin to trend down?

The truth is, whether it is next month, next year, or in five years, a shoe will drop, the economy will shift, and there will always be a new mission, need, or challenge that will require resources. It’s just a part of the natural ebb and flow of church finance. So, wouldn’t it be great if you could be prepared by understanding how healthy your church is no matter what financial reality you might face?

The team at Generis is offering a FREE opportunity for church leaders of this podcast to do exactly that with their Generosity Pulse Report.

Think of the Generosity Pulse Report as a quick snapshot of the health of your culture of stewardship and giving. Wouldn’t it be super helpful to know where you stand today, identify what needs improvement, and what you can do to move the needle on greater generosity?

No matter what lies ahead with the economy, giving or that other shoe…now is a great time for financial clarity, and Generis can help you achieve it.

Schedule your FREE Generosity Pulse Report today, an exclusive offer for listeners of this podcast, by going to generis.com/carey.

Conversation Links

Until Unity by Francis Chan

Erasing Hell by Francis Chan

You and Me Forever by Francis Chan and Lisa Chan

Crazy Love by Francis Chan

Letters to the Church by Francis Chan

Forgotten God by Francis Chan

CNLP 313: Francis Chan Clarifies What’s Next for Him, Talks About the Impact of Social Media on Real People, Apologizes for the Confusion, and Talks About the Future of the U.S. Church

CNLP 218: Francis Chan on Battling Pride and Fame, Why He Left His Megachurch, and his Airbnb Church Experiment

ChurchPulse Weekly, Episode 038: Francis Chan, Part 1

Carey on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter

After the U.S. Election: 3 Things the Culture Needs Right Now That the Church Can Give by Carey Nieuwhof

*As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.

Insights From Francis

1. When it comes to racial justice, be quick to listen

During the interview, Francis talked about how he has been somewhat unaware of the depths of the struggles of the Native American people in America until a few days before the time of recording. He’d went and stayed the night on a reservation. Going there, seeing how they live, and asking questions about them opened his eyes to their struggle.

He thinks that this year has started a listening and learning process for many similar to what he experienced, and would encourage all of us to lean in and listen to those with a different experience than us.

2. As Christian leaders, decreasing our own name is a great way forward

When Francis was serving the underground church in China, a Chinese pastor told him:

“You Americans keep thinking that you have to become popular to have an impact. But in China and the underground church, it was those who were most hidden that had the most impact, the greatest impact, because we couldn’t be found.”

This made Francis ask himself, “Could it be possible that me being quieter, and in the presence of God and doing more things that are unseen, will actually have a greater impact in lifting up the name of Jesus?”

As a Christian leader, ask yourself whose name you are working to increase. Yours, or Christ’s?

3. The Western Church is being deeply damaged by division and outrage

So much of the Western church has been hijacked by ideology, political division and outrage. This has caused pastors to blacklist each other, entire denominations to split repeatedly and nearly an entire generation to walk away from the church.

This isn’t helping the gospel reach more people. If we’re going to move forward, we need to move forward together—even if we disagree.

Quotes from Episode 413

No one ever hears the apology as loudly as they hear that initial biting, angry thought. @crazyloveClick To Tweet

If you feel nothing for people outside of your little circle, I’ve got to question whether the Spirit is in you. @crazyloveClick To Tweet

I think most leaders in America are thinking, ‘I must increase so that He can increase.’ We think it’s up to us. @crazyloveClick To Tweet

I had a very casual attitude towards Christian unity, and I think it’s because it just felt like it was impossible. @crazyloveClick To Tweet

I thought I was pretty sensitive to the Black Lives Matter movement. But you really can’t understand it ’til it’s you. @crazyloveClick To Tweet

It was the first time it really hit me and hurt me and it’s like, ‘So just because of my nationality?’ It was devastating. @crazyloveClick To Tweet

Anyone who pursues unity will be accused of, ‘Oh, you just want unity at the expense of truth.’ Well, would it be possible that you want both? @crazyloveClick To Tweet

Could it be possible that me being quieter, and being in the presence of God and doing more things that are unseen, will actually have a greater impact in lifting up the name of Jesus? @crazyloveClick To Tweet

It’s easier to be divisive than it is to be unifying.Click To Tweet

A blaming culture needs a confessing church.Click To Tweet

You’ll never address what you don’t confess.Click To Tweet

A divided nation needs a united church.Click To Tweet

If God has all the same opinions you do, you’re probably not worshiping God.Click To Tweet

In a divided culture, Christians should be the help and the hope, not the hate.Click To Tweet

Read or Download the Transcript for Episode 413

Looking for a key quote? More of a reader?

Read or download a free PDF transcript of this episode here.

WHAT WILL IMPACTFUL PREACHING LOOK LIKE IN THE FUTURE?

Every time I preach, there are 10 things I check to make sure that my sermon is ready to go.

I outline those 10 things inside the Preaching Cheat Sheet.

If you want a step-by-step process to craft clear sermons that are relevant to your audience, this is for you.

The Preaching Cheat Sheet is just one small part of Mark Clark and I’s course The Art Of Better Preaching. If you want world class-training that will make your preaching better, you can find more information here.

Watch Back Episodes of The Podcast on YouTube

Select episodes of this podcast are now on YouTube. Our YouTube Channel gives you a chance to watch some episodes, not just listen.

SUBSCRIBED YET?

Subscribe using your favorite podcast app via

Spread the Word. Leave a Rating and Review

Hopefully, this episode has helped you lead like never before. That’s my goal. If you appreciated it, could you share the love?

The best way to do that is to rate the podcast on Apple Podcasts and leave us a brief review! You can do the same on Stitcher and on TuneIn as well.

Your ratings and reviews help us place the podcast in front of new leaders and listeners. Your feedback also lets me know how I can better serve you.

Thank you for being so awesome.

Next Episode: Tim Keller

Tim Keller shares some personal reflections about his recent battle with pancreatic cancer and how it’s causing him to rethink his beliefs about God and suffering, drawing him even more deeply into truths he used to only partially understand. Tim also reflects on what a year of crisis has done to the church, and shares some thoughts on the future of the church, how culture has changed in the last year, and what needs to happen next.

Subscribe for free now so you won’t miss Episode 414.

The post CNLP 413: Francis Chan on Escalating Division, Asian Hate, and Why Influence in the Church Can’t Come from Self-Promotion appeared first on CareyNieuwhof.com.

Source: CNLP 413: Francis Chan on Escalating Division, Asian Hate, and Why Influence in the Church Can’t Come from Self-Promotion

The post CNLP 413: Francis Chan on Escalating Division, Asian Hate, and Why Influence in the Church Can’t Come from Self-Promotion appeared first on Passion for Planting.

The Awkward Relationship Between Money and The Church…And What You Can Do About It

Sean Cronin — Wed, 31 Mar 2021 09:00:00 +0000

Today’s post is written by Jim Sheppard. Jim is CEO & Principal of Generis, a consulting firm passionate about helping churches accelerate generosity towards their God-inspired vision.

By Jim Sheppard

Money and the church. It’s an awkward relationship. Have you noticed that?

If I had to guess, I would say that there is no topic that is more on the minds of senior pastors on Monday mornings and less on their minds as they plan sermons. This is not a critique, just an observation.

The conversation about money and giving in the church has become taboo. We don’t talk about it; and yet, all of the church leaders I know want to see giving increase. They want their people to become more generous with their finances, loosen their grip on money, and give back to the One who has provided it all in the first place.

To add to the tension, a lot of pastors fear playing into the stereotype that the church is all about money. So they never talk about money or wait until they need it. That’s a mistake.

The reason you need to talk about money is more about what you want for people than what you want from them. People argue about money every day, and you can help them win with it.

In addition, without casting an authentic vision about money, many will never release the gift of generosity in their life. Giving is a discipleship issue that too many church leaders ignore.

If you truly want to see church members embrace biblical generosity, you have to talk about it openly. You need to normalize the giving conversation and take the awkward out of it.

It starts with the acknowledgement that giving is first and foremost a spiritual issue, not financial. Our giving back to God for the work He wants to do in this world is a reflection of who He is in our lives. It shows our worship and reverence.

Giving is first and foremost a spiritual issue, not financial. – Jim SheppardClick To Tweet

That is why we give to God. It’s not to fund the church budget or advance projects. Those are merely secondary effects of what happens when we give to God’s work in and through the church.

This is where we often get it wrong and add to the awkwardness. We communicate that the main reason we want the people in our church to give is so that our church finances will flourish. That’s not it. That is not the primary reason we want our people to give. We want our people to give so that they can experience what it does for them when they give to God’s work. Our giving to God is meant to transform us!

When we treat the spiritual discipline of generosity as an exercise in fundraising – we end up nominalizing what God intended as a means to grow us.

Teaching about giving is an integral part of making disciples.

All of the church leaders I know want to make more disciples. Therefore, we have to teach and equip our people on giving if we are really serious about making disciples.

Most of the people in our churches have no idea of the spiritual implication of managing (or not managing) well the money and possessions that have been entrusted to them. For us to take the awkwardness out of it, our focus must be on growing givers’ hearts.

A couple of leading voices in the American church have spoken to this and it bears mentioning here.

In the second message of the series Money Talks that Andy Stanley preached in February 2019, he says it this way. “Until Jesus is first in your finances, Jesus isn’t first. You’re not a follower. You’re a user. And Judas tried that.”

That sounds direct but it is hard to argue. If we have put Jesus first in other areas of our lives but we have not done so with our money and possessions, we have missed it. We have not fully put Jesus first.

The issue gets compounded because we are not good at self-assessing. We think we are more generous than we really are.

Tim Keller, in a talk he gave at a Generous Giving gathering some years ago, says it well in this excerpt. “…Nobody thinks they’re greedy. Nobody. In all my years as a minister, I have heard almost every kind of confession. Nobody has ever come to me and said, ‘I spend too much money on myself.’ Nobody has ever done that. But here is what I want you to consider. If Jesus talks about greed and materialism 10 or 20 times more than he talks about other sins, and he says that nobody ever thinks they’re doing it. Then we should start with a working hypothesis that it is probably a problem for me.”

Giving is a spiritual issue. If we want to develop cultures of generosity in our churches, we have to own this. We can’t just hope it will change. We have to do something if we want to see it change.

Until Jesus is first in your finances, Jesus isn’t first. You’re not a follower. You’re a user. And Judas tried that. – @AndyStanleyClick To Tweet

Five Areas To Address When Taking The Awkward out of the Giving Conversation

So, where do we start? There are five areas where I would recommend we start:

1. Regularly Teach Biblical Generosity

The senior leader must teach on generosity and stewardship on a regular basis. A series every now and then is helpful, but also consider other means. When generosity comes up in the text of a passage you are using to make another point, take time to cover the generosity point in the text.

Perhaps the single best way to teach regularly is through the offering moment. The few minutes before you receive the offering in service each week is a key time to teach on the importance of what is happening.

If you want a step-by-step plan to accelerate generosity in your church, you can download one for free here.

The few minutes before you receive the offering in service each week is a key time to teach on the importance of what is happening. – Jim SheppardClick To Tweet

2. Model Generosity – In Your Own Life and In Others

Share examples of people who have seen transformation in their own lives when it comes to giving. For people who are not faithful givers, they don’t know what it looks like. They need examples and encouragement. Seeing the journey of someone else accomplishes both.

One thing I hear often when I bring this up is the idea that this is not a topic we are supposed to share about in public. They say, “don’t let the left hand know what the right hand is doing.” Without going into a long explanation of the text, that is not a prohibition against sharing one’s giving story. If it were, Jesus would not have talked about letting your light shine before men that they might see your good works.

The key here is to be careful about the motive in sharing. Give credit to God for the increase in your heart’s capacity to give. That’s the real story here!

3. Celebrate Mission Advancement

Encourage your church by calling attention to victories in mission advancement due to giving. This is probably the most overlooked element of encouraging generosity.

Think of a time when you made a significant appeal to the people of your church and they rose up and met it. Did you celebrate it? I don’t mean patting yourselves on the back and congratulating each other, I mean giving thanks to God for the move of His Spirit among your people, and the response of obedience in His people.

If you haven’t been doing it, make sure you do it next time you ask and your people respond.

4. Make Generosity a Priority, a Mark of Discipleship

Specifically identify giving and generosity as one of the marks of discipleship in your church.

Churches prioritize that which they have identified as important. Values get prioritized. Many times, the values a church establishes are connected to marks of discipleship. Prayer, service, leading, and Bible study are frequently on the list of things a church considers the marks of discipleship.

Did you notice which one is not in the list? Giving and generosity. Maybe church leaders just assume if you do the other things, you will be a generous giver. This is not a good strategy.

I have been around hundreds of churches as a consultant and I’ll just say that’s not my experience. It doesn’t just happen. It has to be specifically addressed. Making generosity one of the church’s marks of discipleship is a way to ensure that it happens.

5. Have a Generosity Champion at the table with your lead team

This is a voice to make sure generosity and giving are prioritized. This is probably the biggest single idea of the five mentioned here, and likely the one most leaders have not considered.

It is easy for giving and generosity to take a back seat to other priorities church leaders are addressing at any given time. This is understandable when something really pressing comes along, but it should be the exception, not the norm.

Generosity should be like a thread that is woven into the fabric of the church. Not siloed, but owned by every leader on the team.

A Generosity Champion, whether a staff member or a key lay person, will keep it on the table at all times.

Generosity should be like a thread that is woven into the fabric of the church. Not siloed, but owned by every leader on the team. – Jim SheppardClick To Tweet

Where do we go from here?

We have to solve this. The stakes are high on two fronts.

1. The people in our churches are spiritually malnourished when it comes to money and possessions.

When we talk about making disciples, we have to be committed to addressing all the areas of discipleship. Teaching in the area of money and possessions is the most neglected one. In a culture that is as materialistic as America, our understanding of money and possessions and how it fits into our faith perspective is critical.

Jesus was concerned about it two thousand years ago. He knew that money had the potential to be another god to us.

In Luke 16, he clearly pointed out that money has the potential to cause us to worship at that altar instead of the altar of Almighty God.

This is a powerful teaching and we tend to blow past it. It speaks to the need to provide spiritual nourishment in the area of money and possessions.

2. Our churches are being limited in the pursuit of their God-given mission and mandate by the lack of sufficient financial resources.

In a country as affluent as America, there is no reason for our churches to have to limit their ministry because of financial resources. Yes, there are churches that are in economically challenged areas. But that is not the norm.

The best research we have indicates giving among believers is somewhere in the range of 2.5% of their income. Think about that. If believers in America gave just half a tithe (10% of their income), it would double the level of giving to churches. The impact of the ministry of the American church would be significantly expanded.

Only by growing givers’ hearts and loosening the grip on what God has provided will we make meaningful progress.

There’s too much at stake.

Let’s commit ourselves to removing the awkwardness and normalizing the giving conversation. For our people and for our churches.

What if you could take the weirdness out of the giving conversation at your church?

The Generis team has been helping churches do this for years.

We’d love to offer you a totally free conversation about how you can build a culture that embraces generosity like never before.

Normalize the giving conversation in your church and accelerate greater generosity towards your God-inspired vision starting today!

You can schedule a complimentary discovery session with a Generosity Strategist here: https://resources.generis.com/carey

How do you currently talk about giving?

I’d love to know what strategies you’re trying.

Oh Be Careful Little Hands

Sean Cronin — Thu, 25 Mar 2021 09:00:00 +0000

By Stan Rodda: When I was a kid in Sunday school, we sang a song that went like this…

Oh be careful little hands what you do.

For the Father up above is looking down in love.

So be careful little hands what you do.

If it were written today, I think that line would read, “Oh be careful little hands what you post and comment on social media.” Not rhythmically appealing, but work with me here.

At the last supper, Jesus reclined at a table and ate a meal with Simon the Zealot and Matthew the tax collector. If it weren’t for Jesus uniting them, Simon would have been more likely to stab Matthew to death in an alley than he would have been to eat a meal with him. Simon hated the Roman government and all those associated with it. Matthew was collecting taxes for the Roman government as a Jew.

Jesus gave us an example for everything as disciple makers, including how to lead and unite the far right and left. That doesn’t sound like a problem we have in the United States, does it? I don’t know a lot, but I do know this: there is no world system on this planet, or ever will be, that will unite people like the Gospel of Jesus.

I know a family struggling with whether or not they have a place in the church anymore simply because of how some Christians commented on a social media post. Because political positions and candidates have become the god we serve on every side of the aisle. To be fair, there are problems on both sides of this conversation, but for our purposes in this post, I simply want to focus on how to avoid causing more damage in the Kingdom of God with your online and social platforms.

As a disciple maker, I believe that social media and our online presence will be one of the key determining factors of our effectiveness in the future. In other words: it matters! So here are a few thoughts on how to avoid damaging the bride of Christ as a disciple of Jesus in the digital space.

Simplify Your Connections

Unfriend every person who you don’t personally know from your Facebook friends list. Call it a purge of sorts. Unfollow people on Twitter or Instagram. Leave political groups that leave you feeling anxious and scared. Leave the groups and unfollow pages that are only echo chambers for what you already think socially, economically, politically, etc. Get out of those spaces. Limit your social media intake to only those

Keep Scrolling

If it hurts you to keep scrolling, then your battle is with your own pride. Deep down you have maybe you really believe that you are the one who is right all the time on every issue. And it’s nearly impossible for you to understand how anyone could think a different way. Assuming everyone must think and view things just like you. Your pride is in the way. Keep scrolling anyway. This will sting the first few times until soon you discover the freedom and peace that comes from continuing to scroll.

Delete It All

For centuries we kept in contact with family through snail mail and phone calls. You don’t “have to have” Facebook to stay connected to friends and family. If social media is going to cause you anxiety, anger, and bitterness, damaging relationships with people around you, consider deleting it. I will bet that you find yourself in a more peaceful place, focusing on the most important relationships in your life. My guess is after about a week of social detox, you probably won’t even miss social media.

Stop Over spiritualizing Your Fear/Anger

When you leave a comment like, “Anyone who does ‘X’ is clearly a __________,” you aren’t edifying, encouraging. You definitely aren’t being light in a dark world. You are simply masking your fear about that particular topic through anger. Your comment isn’t coming across as wisdom. It’s coming across as prideful and arrogant.

Stop spiritualizing it and acting as if you are doing the Lord’s work. Admit that might be a topic that scares you, that you have little information or knowledge about and refuse to comment anything at all. But for the sake of the Kingdom, please stop spiritualizing your fear, anger and hatred online and pretending to be Christ’s keyboard warrior.

Digital Is Ministry

Sometimes it’s hard to see outside the bubbles we have created for ourselves. May I encourage you to find some faithful, Christian friends and ministers who are working hard to make the digital space one where digital missionaries and disciple makers flourish. Follow and learn from my friend, Tom Pounder, and his work with Digital Bootcamp. Or you can follow another friend, Jeff Reed, over at Being the Church Online. Learn, grow, mature and treat your online presence like a ministry.

Take It Offline

When you disagree with someone’s post online, instead of starting a debate in the comment section, invite them out to eat. Get to know them. Ask them their story. Share your story. Even if you still end up disagreeing with that person on a topic, you will have saved the relationship. I see too many Christian relationships crumble at the altar of the keyboard warriors. It’s incredibly sad.

The question you must answer is: do you want to earn the right to be given the opportunity to share the Gospel with someone or would you prefer to be right about a current political topic? Based on what I see on social media many days, I would say that question is a lot harder to answer for many Christians than it should be.

Let’s recap:

Simplify your connections

Keep scrolling

Delete it all

Stop over spiritualizing

See digital as a ministry space

Take it offline

To be honest, I don’t know if Jesus would have a social media account or not. He regularly pushed off popularity and taught difficult things purposefully to thin out His followers down to the most committed ones. That doesn’t scream, “I need to grow my brand.” Regardless, I am convinced if Jesus were online with us, He would share the same principles with us now that He shared with His disciples 2000 years ago.

You are the light of the world – like a city on a hilltop that cannot be hidden. Let your good deeds shine out for all to see, so that everyone will praise your Heavenly Father. [Matthew 5:14, 16 NLT]

What tips would you add for using digital and social media presence well for your disciple making efforts?

Source: Oh Be Careful Little Hands

The post Oh Be Careful Little Hands appeared first on Passion for Planting.

How To Prepare For Momentum

Sean Cronin — Fri, 12 Mar 2021 10:00:00 +0000

By Shawn Lovejoy:

Momentum.

Every leader, team and organization wants it.

Yet, as much as it is sought after and worked for, Momentum often remains elusive.

The truth is…

Momentum does not come easily.

Momentum is not automatic.

Momentum is fragile.

Momentum is often a mystery.

While we can’t presume on momentum, we can be prepared for momentum.

Let’s talk about how?

Here are 3 ways leaders get prepared to experience momentum.

#1 – Alignment

A staff only becomes a team when it becomes 100% aligned around the Vision & Values of the ministry or organization.

Here’s our first challenge: Usually, there are one or two members on the team who tend to pull in their own direction. There are usually one or two team members who can’t keep up with the rest of the team.

Alignment requires courageous conversations and courageous decisions in these moments. It requires courage to lead.

#2 – Consistency

Great leaders and organizations practice what they preach.

Our key role is to be the culture we want to build.

In addition, we must also live the vision out consistently. Our lives, in addition to our voices, should clearly and consistently communicate the vision.

We must also be committed to the blocking and tackling of leadership, remaining focused on the basics. Commit to do the little things well. If we can’t manage what we’ve got, why would God entrust us with more?

#3 – Urgency

Complacency is the # 1 gravitational force working against successful organizations.

The greatest threat to future success is current success.

Every day we have to declare war on complacency and mediocrity and embrace urgency, because we cannot change what we’re willing to tolerate.

Are you searching for momentum? Do you currently have momentum and want to protect and keep it?

I understand that leading your team, organization or ministry to a place of momentum requires an unrelenting courage.

Join us on March 18th and March 25th for a first of it’s kind live online event, CourageToLead LIVE.

Unlike your typical pre-recorded, virtual conference; at CourageToLead LIVE you will join online with a live studio audience and 14 world-class, faith-based leaders from both the marketplace and ministry to be inspired, empowered and have your questions answered in live-time.

These two days of practical, faith-based insight from top-tier speakers will strengthen your commitment to leadership growth and organizational health.

Each one-day leadership experience is tailor-made for marketplace and ministry leadership teams like yours, and your entire team can join for FREE!

Reserve your seat today for the live online leadership experience for faith-based leaders at CourageToLead LIVE.

reserve your spot at couragetolead live

Source: How To Prepare For Momentum

The post How To Prepare For Momentum appeared first on Passion for Planting.

CNLP 397: Craig Groeschel on the Future of Church Attendance, How to Lead Well When Everyone Has Different Opinions, and on Winning the War in Your Mind

Sean Cronin — Wed, 17 Feb 2021 10:00:00 +0000

By Carey Nieuwhof: Craig Groeschel returns to talk about what he’s learned in the last year about church attendance, how to lead your team well when everyone has strong (and divergent) opinions, why he’s gone 100% in on digital church and 100% in on physical church, and how he’s winning the war in his mind.

Welcome to Episode 397 of the podcast. Listen and access the show notes below or search for the Carey Nieuwhof Leadership Podcast on Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts and listen for free.

Plus, in this episode’s What I’m Thinking About segment, Carey talks about disruptive church trends that will rule 2021 (part 1).

Guest Links

Instagram | Facebook | Twitter | Website

Episode Links

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Convoy of Hope

Convoy of Hope is a Christian humanitarian organization that exists to bring hope to the hungry through feeding initiatives, disaster response, women’s empowerment and agricultural training, empowering others to live with greater independence and freedom from poverty, disease and hunger.

In 2020, Convoy of Hope delivered 150 million meals to those affected by COVID-19, all in partnership with the local church.

Thousands of churches around the U.S. partner with Convoy of Hope to help those in need in their local community. You and your church can, too.

Convoy is one of the most trusted non-profit Christian humanitarian organizations in the world. They take your dollars and stretch it into 6 dollars because of their partnerships with companies like Wal-Mart, The Home Depot, Culligan, Nestle Water, Bass Pro Shops and more.

You can bring hope to the hurting and hungry by texting COH to 68828, or visit convoyofhope.org to donate.

Conversation Links

Winning the War in Your Mind by Craig Groeschel

The Craig Groeschel Leadership Podcast

Life.Church

Dangerous Prayers by Craig Groeschel

Divine Direction by Craig Groeschel

Hope in the Dark by Craig Groeschel

Liking Jesus by Craig Groeschel

CNLP 173: Craig Groeschel Deconstructs His Approach to Preaching, Leadership, Success, the Future and More

CNLP 319: Craig Groeschel on What He’s Learning From His Performance Coach, How to Handle High Demand Leadership, and How to Avoid Entitlement in Leadership

CNLP 052: How Craig Groeschel Stays Healthy, Relevant and Passionate in Ministry

CNLP 228: Craig Groeschel on Handling the Pain That Comes with Life and Leadership, How God Can Redeem Self-Inflicted Pain and Bring Hope in the Dark of Personal Suffering

CNLP 207: Bobby Gruenewald on Leveraging First Mover Advantage, Innovation, AI, Technology and the Future Church

8 Disruptive Church Trends That Will Rule 2021 (The Rise of the Post-Pandemic Church) by Carey Nieuwhof

*As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.

Insights From Craig

1. As a leader, you can have extreme views but you need extreme empathy for those who disagree

The COVID-19 pandemic has likely revealed how far apart the views of some of your staff are. Mask or no mask, gather or not, all of these issues are highly-polarized, and as a leader, you need to be able to speak to and empathize with people on both extremes. If you can’t respect other people’s views, you’ll never be able to lead them.

2. Truly engaging people online takes a lot more work

There’s a lot to question when it comes to online attendance and results. Do online views count? Yes. But how you count them and how you engage with those viewers on a deeper level is difficult to know. Both Carey and Craig tend to be conservative in how they count online numbers and think you need to go beyond just views.

3. Go in 100% on online and 100% on in-person

As you build out the future of your church, there is opportunity both online and in-person. To capitalize on both places, Craig and his team are going 100% in on online and 100% in on in-person church services. He recommends that you be honest about the strengths and weaknesses of both ways to gather.

4. When it comes to models, be FOR what you are but not against what you aren’t

So many pastors cast stones at churches that don’t share the same model as them. Craig points out that there are strengths to large gatherings and strengths to micro-gatherings. Moving forward, be positive about the model that’s working for you, but don’t be against the model that you isn’t.

5. To have a great organization, get over your preferences

Over the years, Craig has learned that if he wants their organization to grow, he needs to be willing to give up more of his preferences for the sake of empowering others to make those decisions. He’s learned this through a lot of pain and anonymous 360 reviews. The longer he’s led, the less confident in his own preferences he’s become.

Quotes from Episode 397

Your life and leadership are always moving in the direction of your strongest thoughts. @craiggroeschelClick To Tweet

Be what you are without being against what you’re not. @craiggroeschelClick To Tweet

If you’re small minded, you’re always going to have a limited impact. @craiggroeschelClick To Tweet

Online is a higher priority, and it should be for everyone doing any form of ministry and leadership moving forward. @craiggroeschelClick To Tweet

If you don’t like what you have, change the way you think. @craiggroeschelClick To Tweet

Whatever you lead is a reflection of the thoughts you think. People may not ever hear you say it or think your inner dialogue, but they’re going to feel it. @craiggroeschelClick To Tweet

To have a great organization, you have to get over your preferences. @craiggroeschelClick To Tweet

We have to fight as leaders not to be overly optimistic or overly discouraged, but just tell the truth. @craiggroeschelClick To Tweet

You have to lead with grace, understanding and an explanation. @craiggroeschelClick To Tweet

Crisis leadership is not as hard as you think. There are some basics: You have to communicate over and over again. You have to bring the why behind everything that you’re doing. @craiggroeschelClick To Tweet

If we value the church gathering, then we may still stream our content but our strategy of how we engage people needs to be different. @craiggroeschelClick To Tweet

The number of people participating in the mission who are not in the building on a Sunday will surpass the number of people participating in the mission.Click To Tweet

In the post-pandemic church, your most engaged people may not be in the room.Click To Tweet

In the post-pandemic church, growing churches will shift their focus from gathering to connecting.Click To Tweet

Some pastors will try to fill auditoriums while others focus on fulfilling the mission.Click To Tweet

Full auditoriums do not guarantee a fulfilled mission.Click To Tweet

Read or Download the Transcript for Episode 397

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Read or download a free PDF transcript of this episode here.

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Select episodes of this podcast are now on YouTube. Our YouTube Channel gives you a chance to watch some episodes, not just listen.

Help Your Team Crush Their Goals As You Move Into The Future

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Lead a Better Team is the step-by-step approach to:

Get far better results with the same team
Create a system of accountability so you can actually achieve the goals you set; and
Boost the performance of your staff so you can stop micromanaging

All while freeing up time for you to do what you do best.

The best part? You’ll learn how you can do this even if you’re leading a virtual team.

Get instant access to Lead a Better Team here, and take your team to the next level.

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Your ratings and reviews help us place the podcast in front of new leaders and listeners. Your feedback also lets me know how I can better serve you.

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Next Episode: Christy Nockels

Christy Nockels has been singing in front of tens of thousands of people since she was 19. She shares the best and hardest parts of life on the road, how she dealt with a life-altering bout of burnout, how to work with your spouse and what she thinks the future of live events and the music industry might look like.

Subscribe for free now so you won’t miss Episode 398.

The post CNLP 397: Craig Groeschel on the Future of Church Attendance, How to Lead Well When Everyone Has Different Opinions, and on Winning the War in Your Mind appeared first on CareyNieuwhof.com.

Source: CNLP 397: Craig Groeschel on the Future of Church Attendance, How to Lead Well When Everyone Has Different Opinions, and on Winning the War in Your Mind

The post CNLP 397: Craig Groeschel on the Future of Church Attendance, How to Lead Well When Everyone Has Different Opinions, and on Winning the War in Your Mind appeared first on Passion for Planting.

4 Types Of Thinking That Will Sabatage Your Leadership

Sean Cronin — Sat, 13 Feb 2021 10:00:00 +0000

By Carey Nieuwhof: Chances are a big chunk of what you’re going to do today in leadership is think.

Really, thinking is a big slice of what any leader is paid to do.

You try to solve problems, analyze opportunities, listen, facilitate and chart paths.

And this last year has likely required more thinking from you as a leader than the entire decade before it.

As a result, you’ve probably noticed that how you think will determine how well you lead.

Not surprisingly, there are four kinds of ways leaders commonly think that can actually damage your leadership.

You See It All The Time

Sometimes all we need to do is put language to things we see.

I’ve just been keeping notes on the kinds of thinking to which various leaders default. So this post isn’t scientifically about anyone, but if you’re like me, as you read through this list, specific people will come to mind.

I’d encourage you to focus on your own thinking, rather than theirs.

Nobody Intends to Sabotage Themselves

Few people intend to sabotage their leadership. They don’t plant landmines throughout their day and wait for them to go off. But let’s be honest. Many leaders end up sabotaging themselves every day despite their best intentions.

Intent has little to do with effectiveness.

When you and I can see how certain patterns of thinking trip us (and others) up, progress becomes easier.

Here are 4 kinds of thinking that can sabotage your leadership and have often tripped up mine:

Intent has little to do with effectiveness.Click To Tweet

1. Undigested Thinking

As a leader, I hate to admit I see this all the time in the church. You’ve seen it too.

Someone goes to a conference and comes away with two good ideas. Then they go to another conference and come away with three more. Add a dozen podcasts, blog posts, webinars and books into the mix, and they end up with a 9 raw ideas they’re intrigued with.

And then they make their critical mistake.

They implement the ideas without thinking much further about it.

And here’s the problem.

None of the ideas are compatible with each other.

Some of them directly compete with each other.

No idea is fully integrated into their existing model of ministry (which might actually be scrambled eggs to start with).

They didn’t digest any of it, synthesize any of it or even critically process it.

They leave their followers confused. And their systems dis-integrated (literally).

2. Overthinking

This is a leadership epidemic, especially in the church. I’m guilty of this sometimes.

Leaders often overthink issues.

They think about:

Everything that could go wrong

Who might feel left out

Why it might not work

How much it could cost

And they often wrongly believe they:

Need a bullet-proof plan before they start

Have to have every potential problem worked through before they begin

Should plan for every contingency ‘just in case’

Hey, in a perfect world that would be awesome. But last time I checked, this wasn’t much of a perfect world.

Great leaders often have a bias for action (I wrote about that here). Overthinking kills action.

If you want to be challenged to stop overthinking issues, read this account of how Sir Richard Branson started Virgin Airlines. It might freak you out, but it will show you why he has been so successful.

When it comes to church leadership, I believe we overthink. The pendulum has swung too far. It’s time to start acting.

Great leaders often have a bias for action. Overthinking kills action.Click To Tweet

3. Indecisive Thinking

The indecisive thinker may have some well-digested thoughts, and might even be ready to act.

But they come to a fatal point in the road.

They have usually narrowed the options to two, but they just can’t pull the trigger. And they really have no idea why.

I’ll tell you why I think leaders end up being indecisive.

One word: FEAR.

If you’re an indecisive thinker, drill down on your fear and you’ll find your future.

Don’t rest until you ask yourself “What am I afraid of?” Seriously, answer that. If you can’t, ask others. Go sit with a counsellor. Pray. Fast. Do what you need to do.

Keep asking. Don’t stop until you get a real, honest answer.

Then when you get an answer, take your fear to God in prayer until it no longer owns you.

Great leadership isn’t the absence of fear, it’s the courage to push through it.

Figuring out your fear and pushing through it will kill your indecision for good.

Great leadership isn’t the absence of fear, it’s the courage to push through it.Click To Tweet

4. Underthinking

I put this last because I think it’s a problem in the church, but because the church is dominated by overthinkers, most would criticize anyone who underthinks.

Sure, sometimes leadership is poor because leaders have underthought an issue – or underprayed it. But like I said, that doesn’t often happen.

Do you think Paul pre-thought the explosion of the early church through to its conclusion before he started out on his first mission trip? Nope. He just went, and was blown away by what God did.

If you really sit down and talk to successful (and faithful) leaders, they will tell you they are the most surprised at what happened. All they did was start. They knew they didn’t quite know what they were doing, but they acted while everyone else sat in a boat and watched someone else walk on water.

Entrepreneurial business leaders are often more likely to underthink things, but I still applaud their efforts. And a surprising number of times, they go on to succeed anyway.

In the church world, few have underthought their future. Far too many have underacted on it.

If you really sit down and talk to successful (and faithful) leaders, they will tell you they are the most surprised at what happened. All they did was start.Click To Tweet

What’s Your Next Step?

Normally this is where the blogger-type-person says “what about you, what do you think?” and “leave a comment” (which you can certainly do).

But today I want to challenge you to work through this.

Seriously. Which kind of thinker are you?

And then consider taking this to your team or board. Because the truth is as much as you have a bias toward kind of thinking that sabotage your leadership, so does your organization.

There is a ‘group think’ that has developed among your organization that shapes your culture.

Do you generally overthink or underthink?

Are you indecisive?

Does fear rule you?

Are you trigger happy with undigested thoughts?

Work this through, and we’ll all be better off. So will our organization and the people we lead.

That’s what I’m going to do.

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HOW TO BOOST YOUR TEAM’S PRODUCTIVITY AND PERFORMANCEnnn

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nnnnnnn

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The post 4 Types Of Thinking That Will Sabatage Your Leadership appeared first on CareyNieuwhof.com.

Source: 4 Types Of Thinking That Will Sabatage Your Leadership

The post 4 Types Of Thinking That Will Sabatage Your Leadership appeared first on Passion for Planting.

Someday | Part 1

Sean Cronin — Wed, 03 Feb 2021 10:00:00 +0000

By Stan Rodda: Just like everyone else, disciple makers experience seasons of waiting in life. Times when it seems that God is distant. Maybe He isn’t hearing your prayers or He has abandoned you for some reason. We can convince ourselves of nearly anything during this times of waiting.

We need these seasons of waiting from God because it is one of the key ways that He develops and prepares us for the future. And one of the best places to learn about these times in faith is the prophet, Habakkuk.

Philosopher, Winnie the Pooh, said,

Rivers know this: there is no hurry. We shall get there some day. -A.A. Milne

This is the first in a 4-part series on learning to wait on God during times of suffering and silence. If you are a disciple maker in a season of waiting, I hope this series will encourage you. In this first part, we must learn from Habakkuk’s groan.

Habakkuk’s Groan

Habakkuk is confronted with a burden from God. The prophet responds to God by groaning a bit about the way things are going in life. He groans to God, “Why aren’t you doing anything about the injustice and evil? I have been telling you all about it and you’re totally silent.” (Habakkuk 1:2-4)

The nation around Habakkuk had fallen into complete rebellion. While this book was written 2600 years ago, it could have been written at the end of 2020. So much chaos, sin, injustice, pain, suffering and evil. God, where are you? Why won’t you answer me?

God, I’m doing my best to make disciples. I’m trying to reach people. Why is it that You seem to have gone silent? Don’t You care about what’s going on in the world? Don’t you want people to come to You? Where are you?

Permission Given to Ask Questions

When I was growing up, it was never okay to question God. If you were thinking about questioning God that meant you had a faith problem. That your relationship with God wasn’t good enough. No one ever told me that babies aren’t born with Paul-like relationships with Jesus. No, we have to work at it. Developing faith and making disciples comes with questions.

I believe that when God responds to Habakkuk’s questions, He is in essence saying, “I welcome your questions. I’m big enough for them. Let’s develop your faith and I’ll show you a little more of what I’m up to.”

Ask Humbly

Not all questions are created equal. Don’t pull a Job assuming you know more than God. By the time God finally responds in chapter 38 of Job, He responds out of a whirlwind. God storms His responses back at Job. Be careful Job. You don’t know nearly as much as you think you do. Be careful Stan. You aren’t nearly as clever or wise as you think you are. Be careful disciple maker. You don’t know as much as you think. Ask your questions, but ask with humility.

God’s Promise to Habakkuk

Habakkuk 1:5 God responds and tells Habakkuk that He is doing amazing things. Even if Habakkuk could see clearly he wouldn’t believe it. God is at work beyond all we can ask or imagine, doing amazing things that we wouldn’t believe even if He told us. But as God is at work, it’s not all rainbows and unicorns. It’s going to come with the price of suffering.

God promises that the Chaldeans are coming and they are going to punish Israel. They will sift the people and it will not be pleasant. I’m sure Habakkuk had to have a moment of celebration that God was at work only to backtrack not wanting God to work through the Babylonians.

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God’s Way Are Not Our Ways

When the disciple making conversations have run dry. When disciples walk away from us looking for a simpler life. When we feel we are completely on our own and God doesn’t seem to be responding to the mess that is life; God’s ways are not our way.

Think Noah. God says, I’m going to purify the world and rid it of evil. Starting over with you, Noah. Awesome, sounds great. What’s next? Oh, I need you to build an ark. What’s an ark. It’s a huge boat that will float on water. That much water? Yeah, it’s going to rain. What’s rain?

God’s ways are not our ways.

Think John the Baptist. Jesus said, “There is no one greater than John.” What did that mean for him? It meant imprisonment and beheading. All because he supported God’s definition of marriage.

God’s ways are not our ways.

When God says, “I’m doing amazing things in your day. You’re not going to believe this.” Always remember that some of God’s greatest work comes through suffering. In fact, God’s greatest work in history happened through a cross. We all have heavy hearts because of what is happening in our nation. God is still doing amazing things. Even if He has to use Babylon to do it.

What To Do In The Waiting

The answer to seasons of waiting can be found in Habakkuk’s name. It means, “to wrestle, embrace.” We go back and forth with God, drawing near to Him, asking questions.

Wrestle. Embrace. Wrestle. Embrace.

Embrace God’s Promises

The God of all grace, who called you to His eternal glory in Christ, will Himself restore, establish, strengthen, and support you after you have suffered a little while.

[1 Peter 5:10 CSB]

Even when things are difficult, draw near to God. Stay connected in your abiding time with Christ. Don’t let go of your relationship with God. Draw near. Embrace Him and His promises. That even though you may be going through a season of suffering, He Himself will restore you.

The Lord is the One who goes before us (Deut 31:8). He turns to me and hears my cries (Ps 40:1). Gives us days of rejoicing that match the days we wept (Ps 90:15). Embraces God’s promises to restore you, to bring you through for His glory. Embrace the promise of God that He is at work.

Embrace God’s People

Gallup and the CDC both say mental health is an absolute crisis. Since the summer of 2020, 1 in 4 young people have considered suicide. Suicide rates are soaring. People considering it is higher than ever. And yet I the midst of that tragedy, one group stands out as having improved mental health; those who regularly attended church through the pandemic.

Something supernatural, mystical happens, when God’s people gather. Whether you are gathering at a modern looking church, a traditional church or you meet in a church in your living room, the gathering of God’s people is an essential for us.

God is doing something amazing in our generation. But it seems He is going to do it through Babylon. As you go through your season of waiting, remember to embrace God’s promises and His people.

What promises of God do you hold onto the most in times of suffering and waiting?

Source: Someday | Part 1

The post Someday | Part 1 appeared first on Passion for Planting.

Need Encouragement? 6 Invisible Things Church Leaders are Doing Really Well Right Now

Sean Cronin — Mon, 01 Feb 2021 10:00:00 +0000

By Cary Nieuwhof: Feel like you need some encouragement?

Doesn’t every leader right about now…?

Most of what’s come at you in the last year has been discouraging…criticism from every side, events that are completely out of your control, operating in anything but ideal conditions. It’s a long list if you think about it.

So, this short post is designed to do one thing: Encourage you.

I love the word encouragement.

As a young leader, I never knew what to do with encouragement. Discount it? Shrug it off? Live for it?

I think I did all of the above.

But, the longer I’ve led, the more I realize how valuable encouragement is.

Think about the etymology.

To encourage someone literally means to give courage to them. Encouragement derives from an old French word that means ‘to make strong’ or ‘hearten.’

So, in the hopes of encouraging you and your team, here are some rather invisible things you’re doing really well right now as you’re leading.

To encourage someone literally means to give courage to them.

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1. You Haven’t Quit

Some of the most important moments of leadership have come for me when, discouraged, someone pulls up alongside me, puts their hand on my shoulder, looks me in the eye and says, “Hang in there.”

When I’ve hung in there, I’ve never regretted it.

So, leader, you’re hanging in there. You’ve made it this far. You haven’t quit.

I’m not saying you can never quit. But here’s a good rule: Never quit on a bad day.

If you’re going to quit, quit on a good day.

Never quit on a bad day. If you’re going to quit, quit on a good day.

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Then, at least you have a level head, have thought about it, prayed about it and hopefully talked to some really wise friends.

You haven’t quit. And, that thing you’re developing, as a result, has a name. It’s called resilience.

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2. You’re Learning to Lead in Constant Uncertainty

Remember predictability in leadership? You could look ahead six months and have a relatively clear idea what was going to happen.

That, of course, is completely gone.

You’ve had to lead through crisis and are still facing tremendous uncertainty ahead…uncertainty that’s likely to remain for a while longer, even after the pandemic ends.

In the midst of it, perhaps without even noticing it, you’re developing an agility you’ve never known before.

In uncertainty, agility is ability and flexibility is a superpower.

Hint: Agility is an incredible skill to keep honing in leadership. Agile leaders have done better than inflexible leaders for years. In a highly disrupted world, they’ll do even better.

In uncertainty, agility is ability and flexibility is a superpower.

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3. You’re Navigating Deep Divisions and Forging Unity

Every leader I’ve talked to tells me how hard it’s been navigating the division, tribalization and polarization that’s happening among the people you lead.

Numerous pastors have told me they’ve had to break up public arguments among staff, board members and even prayer team members. Wow.

This too, I hope, will pass.

One of the tasks of leadership is to bring diverse groups together around a common mission and purpose.

The Gospel unites what politics and prejudice often divide.

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I’m guessing all the division is driving you deeper and deeper into the true mission of the church. That’s never a bad thing.

A divided nation needs a united church.

You’re leading toward that. Way to go.

4. You’re Bringing Hope

Hope is what people need right now, and hope is so hard to find.

Church leaders, you’re bringing it.

I know sometimes you look out on a Sunday and see 30% of the people who used to be in the room. Or, you can’t even get in a room with people, so you just look into the lens of a camera.

But, you’re bringing hope.

Every person who watches that video or stops on your post needs it.

Every person you see in those distanced chairs hungers for it.

And every person you’re trying to reach has no idea what they’re missing.

You’re bringing hope. Keep bringing it.

Hope is what people need right now, and hope is so hard to find. Church leaders, you’re bringing it.

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5. You’re Deepening Your Faith

You probably don’t even realize it, but your faith is growing.

That’s what crisis does. It forces you to stop relying on yourself and start trusting God at a much deeper level.

I know it’s hard.

But, it’s like deciding you’re going to train for a 5k. At first, it’s painful, you end up walking 2km of your ‘run’ and you’re so sore you need to stretch five times later that day.

The next day hardly feels easier, and now you’re running sore and through shin splints, but it’s done.

Fast forward to six months later, and you’ve just set a personal best and the endorphins kick in halfway through. Yeah, you’re tired when you’re done. But you’re so much further ahead than you were six months earlier.

Your faith is growing.

Your trust is deepening.

And, your reliance on God is probably more profound than you realize.

Keep going.

Crisis forces you to stop relying on yourself and start trusting God at a much deeper level.

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6. You’re Learning New Skills

Every leader ends up in ruts…at least I do.

And right now, you’re learning new skills at a rate you may not have learned them in years.

Take online ministry for example. You probably feel out of your depth. You may be disappointed by the results.

But you’re doing a new thing.

That’s actually rewiring your brain and making you stronger. Cognitive and social engagement have even been shown to protect against cognitive decline as you age.

Whether you continue to do everything you’re doing now or not, you’re growing, stretching and learning.

That has long term benefits no matter what’s ahead.

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engage your congregation and reach the unchurched with the art of better preaching

Whether you’re preaching into a camera or in front of an audience, the core principles of sermon preparation and excellent preaching never change.

If you’re ready to start preaching better sermons and reach the unchurched without selling out, then it’s time to start using the right tips, lessons and strategies communicating better.

The Art Of Better Preaching is a 12 session video training (and comprehensive workbook) that will help you create, write and deliver more engaging sermons. It’s the lessons that Mark Clark (Lead Pastor of Village Church) and I have learned, taught and used over decades of preaching.

It’s the complete course you need to start preaching better sermons, including: A new bonus unit on preaching into a camera The 5 keys to preaching sermons to unchurched people (to keep them coming back) How to discover power in the text and use it to drive your sermonWhy you need to ditch your sermon notes (and how to do it far more easily than you think) How to keep your mind and heart fresh over the long run

… And much more!

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engage your congregation and reach the unchurched with the art of better preaching

Whether you’re preaching into a camera or in front of an audience, the core principles of sermon preparation and excellent preaching never change.

If you’re ready to start preaching better sermons and reach the unchurched without selling out, then it’s time to start using the right tips, lessons and strategies communicating better.

… And much more!

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Keep Going (Share and Leave a Comment)

So, keep going.

If you need some more reasons not to quit, here are some more.

If you want to encourage someone, share this post on social or with your team.

And, leave a comment about how you’re growing and what you think you and your team are doing well right now.

Let’s encourage each other.

The post Need Encouragement? 6 Invisible Things Church Leaders are Doing Really Well Right Now appeared first on CareyNieuwhof.com.

Source: Need Encouragement? 6 Invisible Things Church Leaders are Doing Really Well Right Now

The post Need Encouragement? 6 Invisible Things Church Leaders are Doing Really Well Right Now appeared first on Passion for Planting.

What Can We Do About All the Problems? We Can Keep Showing Up

Sean Cronin — Sat, 23 Jan 2021 10:00:00 +0000

By Brandon Cox: So, what do we do about all this stuff?

Years of preaching and listening to sermons about how to be positive, happy, and successful definitely did NOT prepare us to endure a lengthy global pandemic, which triggered a recession, which occurred during an election year, in which racial injustice was brought to the forefront. and income inequality mushroomed.

You can’t follow Jesus and turn a blind eye to those who are suffering while enjoying personal peace and prosperity. It’s simply not an option for a disciple, or for a church full of disciples.

As much as I’d love to go back to business as usual, it’s simply not an appropriate response to all that is happening around us.

But we also can’t get down about all the problems and disengage and retreat. So what can we do?

We CAN listen to the voices of prophets who speak on behalf of the outcast and marginalized.

We CAN develop the compassion and empathy we see exemplified by Jesus.

We CAN think about news and culture through a biblical framework and a gospel lens.

We CAN give out of our extra to help those who lack. We can befriend the lonely. We can serve the sick.

And we CAN do it all as those who have HOPE in the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ who is reconciling the world back to himself from its lostness.

We can’t just coast at ease in our own comfort.

We can engage and become love to a world that desperately needs it.

I don’t know what the rest of 2021 will bring, but no matter what happens, our communities and our culture will need people who follow Jesus faithfully to show up again and again full of truth and full of grace.

Just keep showing up. Let’s start there.

Photo Credit: Matt Bero.

Source: What Can We Do About All the Problems? We Can Keep Showing Up

The post What Can We Do About All the Problems? We Can Keep Showing Up appeared first on Passion for Planting.