Posts with the category “fearless-leadership”

"Creativity is just connecting things.When you ask creative people how they did something, they feel a little guilty because they didn’t really do it, they just saw something. It seemed obvious to them after a while. That’s because they were able to connect experiences they’ve had and synthesize new things.And the reason they were able to do that was that they’ve had more experiences or they have ...  Read More

I was reading a blog by Gordon Hayward, the Boston Celtic who suffered a horrific ankle injury in the opening minutes of his 2017 NBA Opener against the Cleveland Cavaliers. As he shared his thoughts and feelings in the days after the injury and surgery, this quote leaped out at me:And then there was the Utah Jazz. I had such a tough decision to leave this summer and yet everyone from ownership, t...  Read More

I'M A LITTLE FIRED UP RIGHT NOW.SOMEONE JUST TOLD ME THEY DIDN'T MAKE AN ASK BECAUSE THEY DIDN'T THINK THE PERSON WOULD GO FOR IT.IN OTHER WORDS, THEY SAID "NO" FOR THEM.They "passed" on behalf of the person without even giving them the chance to say "yes."Let me tell you something...When it comes to making things happen, everyone has a job.Your job is to dream audaciously, act courageously and ma...  Read More

Thinking of starting a new church from scratch?Got the itch to "graduate" from leading the youth group to becoming the lead pastor of your own thing?Sure, church planting looks hot and sexy on Instagram, but take it from me, there are 5 Reasons Church Planting Will Ruin Your Life... You will never have all the resources you used to have at your cushy, all-expenses-paid, endowed former established ...  Read More

"You know what intimacy is? It's into-me-you-see.” - Martin de Maat The original pioneers of improv-comedy in the 1950s included now-famous names like Alan Arkin, Mike Nichols, and a very young Joan Rivers. A famous story from the annals of Second City recounts how Rivers was once on stage and asked for an audience suggestion for a scene. When "marriage" was shouted back, Joan initiated the scene ...  Read More

"Some want to live within the sound of church or chapel bellI want to run a rescue shop within a yard of hell."  (C. T. Studd)To live within the sound of church or chapel bell was not enough for Charles Thomas (C.T.)Studd, (1860-1931), an English missionary to China, India, and Africa. C. T. Studd was born into privilege and wealth, but God had other plans for his life. His father, Edward, was con...  Read More

One of my heroes of the faith is the little-known missionary William Borden. William Borden’s funeral took place at The Moody Church in Chicago.During my college years, I discovered the beauty of the gospel while attending The Moody Church.Here's something my team filmed a few years back on location....  Read More

I am currently deep into the process of my doctoral studies through Rawlings School of Divinity at Liberty University.  My experience thus far has been fantastic and I have learned so much not only about my cognate of Evangelism & Church Planting, but more importantly I've learned so much about myself.The focus now in this later track of my cognate is to complete 4 research projects that become pa...  Read More

PRAYERPray for God to give you a white-hot vision; a picture of what the future COULD be and SHOULD be.PLANWrite out a plan from Point A to Point B to Point C of all the steps required to make your vision a reality.PERSPIREThen, move the plan forward by taking action! Do not allow PRAYER to become an EXCUSE for INACTIVITY.  If God has called you to it, He will bring you through it.Remember these 3...  Read More

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THE THREE STRUGGLES OF PASTORS- by Chad Graves -In the last week I have had meetings with multiple pastors. It has been a reminder and an eye-opener. Pastors all over the country are dealing with intense stress. Recently, 3 different churches asked me if I knew of anyone I would recommend as a possible candidate for them. Many churches are without pastors. I will repost something I worked on a cou...  Read More

I’m not concerned about being criticized for taking risks to reach people far from God.  I’m concerned about not being criticized. Recently I was invited to teach a breakout session at a conference in Chicago based on my book, Holy Shift.  The topic was so popular among church leaders that we ran out of seats!I had fun sharing my journey in comedy and ministry, the unique story God is writing at L...  Read More

Are you ready to climb the mountain again? Maybe you've set goals for yourself or your business. Maybe you've decided to take a risk. Whatever it may be, I know this much to be true: with a little hard work and consistency, anyone has the ability to build something good. But what does it take to build something GREAT? 1. A PACE THAT WILL LAST A LONG TIMEI recently heard this quote about money that...  Read More

KEEPING IT R.E.A.L.I recently learned this acronym from a leader I’ve looked up to for as long as I can remember.  He says that everything he does, he does through the lens of R.E.A.L. It stands for Relationship, Equipping, Attitude, and Leadership. Let’s explore how to lead and live life through this lens.R - RelationshipVALUE YOUR RELATIONSHIPSAll of life flows from relationships. You can’t do l...  Read More

Marines get stuff done.They face impossible missions yet always prevail. 2 Timothy 2:1-6 tells leaders to think like a Marine. During a recent Leadership Coaching Session, I shared 8 Leadership Lessons from the Marine Corp: Common Sense Principles for Success.I hope these 8 Leadership Lessons encourage you and your team to fearlessly lead your church to grow!...  Read More

We often think about what our team owes us -- what we expect from them.But there are four things we owe them, as well:1) GRACE: Not expecting them to be perfect.2) HONESTY: Shooting straight and being transparent.3) PROPER PLACEMENT: A place where they can thrive.4) PRAYER: This opens our hearts to them and provides wisdom and insight to love them....  Read More

Are you an inspirational leader? There are three steps you can take right now to become more inspirational:  #1 = Lead with the why People need to know the purpose behind the work. Particularly over the past few years, team members have determined that they want to give their lives to something that matters. #2 = Celebrate progressLook back. Make sure everyone on the team knows that you see what t...  Read More

I hopped on the treadmill and fired up my iPad to catch up on the day's headlines. I wasn’t prepared for the news from The Washington Post: Billy Graham’s grandson steps down from Florida megachurch after admitting an affair. My heart dropped and I felt deep compassion for the family.If your first response to someone’s failure isn’t forgiveness, then you have missed the gospel. Nobody is perfect. ...  Read More

Listen, nothing is going to work in your church if EVERYTHING has to go through you.Like sands sifting through an hourglass, you will become the middle squeeze that slows everything down.In Numbers 11, Moses grew frustrated in leadership.  He even started to see his people as a BURDEN instead of a BLESSING!If that's you, it's time to develop more leaders:Carve out strategic time to take out an eme...  Read More

What it takes to be a GREAT Campus LeaderBIG IDEA: Campus Leaders have Hustle + Intensity about the Total Guest ExperienceHustle = Self-Led CHASES Jesus on their own with passionINITIATIVE - Does not need constant motivationJon would rather REIGN IN a STALLIONthan MOTIVATE a MULE!Secure as a Son of the House (Old Testament Idea)- Son of the House > Hired Hand- As the House spreads out, the Sons ha...  Read More

Nobody enjoys a car wreck, but we all inevitably slow down in traffic to peer out the window as we drive by, attempting to ascertain what happened and to (hopefully) learn something that will prevent such a tragedy from happening to us.With over 20 years of full-time ministry under my belt (plus another 20+ as a pastor's kid), I've seen my share of ugly wrecks in church world.  I'm sure you've als...  Read More

Leaders and comedians share the same struggle: Creativity Constipation.You know that great idea is in your noggin' somewhere, but it just isn't coming out.Dry seasons happen; the inspiration is quenched and decisions become tougher to make.I remember talking with my improv teacher Mick Napier (pictured above) back in my Chicago comedy days about what to do when you don't know what to do.  Mick gav...  Read More

Marines get stuff done.They face impossible missions yet always prevail. 2 Timothy 2:1-6 tells leaders to think like a marine. During a recent Coaching Session, I shared 8 Leadership Lessons from the Marine Corp: Common Sense Principles for Success.I hope these 8 Leadership Lessons encourage you and your team to fearlessly lead your church to grow!...  Read More

The late Dr. Martin de Maat had a profound impact on my life (I wrote about that here). He was not only my professor and mentor, he was a close friend (Martin was even one of my wedding groomsmen!). Dr. de Maat taught me so much not only about improvisational-comedy, but more importantly about the joy of doing life together:"What happens... in being with each other in acceptance and Yes And-ing ea...  Read More

Notes from Dale O’Shields’ presentation: Leading Through Change -- When Staff and Members Leave. Staffing is a Key Decision1 Timothy 5: “Do not lay hands on a man suddenly.” Any staff hire is a very important, sobering decision. Be slow to hire.You want to hire someone who is focused on the TOWEL, not the TITLE. You are here to SERVE.2. Have a Process in Place for Evaluating Staff and Key Voluntee...  Read More

My friend Bob Goff just said something to me over the phone that absolutely challenged me to the core:“Take some time to look at the rules you’ve made for yourself and start stripping away your limiting beliefs!”Wow.We are all waking up to a new and different world.Instead of fearing the future and being paralyzed by the unknown, what if we instead embraced this forced sabbatical and made positive...  Read More

There are moments in life where you can't overthink your reaction.  All you can do is pivot and make it happen.Take for instance the adoption of our youngest: Alysia Hope.Adoption wasn't even on our minds. We thought our family was complete with four kiddo's and a wiener dog to boot.Isn't it funny how life interrupts our perfectly-laid plans?That's when we got the phone call out of the blue: The b...  Read More

Churches get stuck all the time.Too often we can find ourselves doing ministry out of memory.For what it's worth, here are 5 Important Questions for Fearless Leaders to ask... 400 years ago Protestants fled England and came to the New World to set up churches... for themselves.  If your church is insider-focused, it's because of our Pilgrim heritage!Ignite your passion for what ignites God's heart...  Read More

I had a BLAST sharing about what God is doing at the church I love, partying with Chris Farley, PLUS how EXCITED I was to open for LEE STROBEL at the Outreach Summit! Jonathan Herron is the Founding and Teaching Pastor of Life Church Michigan, the 11th Fastest Growing Church in America (Outreach Magazine, 2019). Jonathan says the two main ingredients to church leadership in the 21st century are la...  Read More