Big day tomorrow. Sometime during the day I’m expecting the one millionth unique visitor to stop by TonyMorganLive.com. When I wrote this initial post four years ago, I didn’t expect to have that many people stop by. In actuality, I really didn’t expect anyone but a handful of friends and family to hang out here. Go figure.

Thanks for joining the conversation. It’s been fun. We’ve had lots of great discussions along the way. And, I’ve met many new friends.

Thanks to Google (and more recently Twitter) for sending so many friends to the site. Thanks to @emilymorganlive for having the patience to let me write.

Thanks to you for putting up with me while I figure things out. I’m still figuring…but you probably already knew that.

Because there’s no way for me to know, let’s just assume you’re #1,000,000. Congratulations!

Are you looking for a job at a church? Then you’ve come to the right place. We have several new job listings on the job board to choose from. Check out these roles:

• arts administrator
• business director
• video producer
• kids director
• worship pastor
• campus pastor

Or, if you’re a church looking for gifted people, check out these resumes.

Have you either found a job or found a new employee using the job board? If so, I’d love to hear your story.

btw… You can add your position to the job board for only $49 for 30 days.

Folks have been asking about what’s happening in my life. I’m continuing to have conversations with people about my next steps. My family and I still don’t know exactly what’s in store for us, but we’re really excited about our future.

In the mean time, I’m staying busy. My calendar is essentially full through mid-August. While I’m in transition, you may be interested in one of these opportunities:

• Coaching – I’m launching a new coaching network in July with Ron Sylvia that’s designed for teams of Senior and Executive Pastors.
• Speaking – I have several engagements including the Killing Cockroaches Summer Tour with stops in six cities.
• Consulting – I’m working with a number of churches throughout the country.

Just let me know how I might be able to serve you and your team. Act soon. My guess is my fall calendar will fill up quickly.

I took the test. Then Emily took the test for me. We both arrived at the same results. I’m a narcissistic leader.

The test was included in the book Narcissistic Leaders by Michael Maccoby. It’s an older book. It was originally published in 2003, but it may be one of the most helpful leadership books I’ve read.

In the book, Maccoby highlights four patterns of personality:

• Erotic – They are driven by loving and being loved.
• Obsessive – They live by the rules, and the rules are set by some higher authority (i.e. father figure, strict conscience, tradition, etc.)
• Marketing – They sense what the market wants and needs and then conform to it.
• Narcissist – They impress us as a personality, who disrupts the status quo and brings about change.

Each of these personality patterns can either be productive or disruptive. And, there are combination of types (I’m narcissistic-marketing), but one usually is dominant over the other. Maccoby suggests that Bill Gates, Jack Welch, Henry Ford and Abraham Lincoln are/were productive narcissists.

I’ll let you pick up the book to get the rest of the story. But, here are a handful of highlights from my reading:

• “Narcissists do no react to the external world so much as they try to create it… [Their] vision always starts with a rejection of the status quo.”
• “A true narcissist is the kind of person who (1) doesn’t listen to anyone else when he believes in doing something and (2) has a precise vision of how things should be.”
• Narcissism “is not an illness or a description of bad behavior, but a personality type, and like any personality, it can be productive or unproductive, creative or destructive, healthy or sick, generous or selfish.”
• Obsessives “become mired in details and rules…; they are more concerned with doing things in the right way than doing the right things; they turn into control freaks.”
• “Without enthusiasm and passion, even the most skillful, focused, reasoned, and talented person can just go through the motions of work, passively accepting tasks as if they were assignments.”
• “The ones who do actually change our world, provide meaning not only for themselves but also for the people who work for them, who believe in them, who follow them.”
• “Narcissists can’t stand situations that contain them and their ideas, and have the guts to go out on their own, risking security and failure in favor of their vision.”
• “Because of their paranoid tendencies, narcissists may try to maintain total control over an organization, making it impossible for their best people to make any kind of contribution or further the narcissist’s vision.”
• Regarding working for a narcissist: “If you have a great idea and can’t get his ear, you have to frame it in a way that shows him how he will benefit personally. Also, if you are trying to stop him from an action that could damage the company, you have to show how it will damage him personally.”

Now, let’s be honest. I’m guessing I’m not the only leader in the church today who has these tendencies. Either you do as well, or you probably know someone who does. If that’s true, this book may be for you. I’ve only scratched the surface of the contents of this book.

In the mean time, I need to figure out how to disrupt the status quo a little bit more.

During our date last night, Abby and I stopped by the local LifeWay store to browse books. Look what Abby found. There was a whole stack of Killing Cockroaches.

With that, LifeWay wins the “You’re a Really Cool Bookstore Award” for carrying a sufficient quantity of books so that potential Killing Cockroaches owners don’t have to walk away disappointed.

And, with that, I’m also naming Thom Rainer the first recipient of the “You’re a Really Cool CEO Award” for making it all possible. Thanks Thom!

(By the way, Thom, has there been any sign of Ed Stetzer at the LifeWay offices yet? Any confirmation that he actually works for you? I find it odd that Ed never mentions you when we talk. Very odd…)

The new Hillsong United album, “Tear Down the Walls“, released today. Listen to the album straight through one time for free on my website:

If you like it, you can purchase it and download it immediately from Amazon. And, while you’re here, let me know what you think of the new album. I’d love to hear your reaction.

I’m amazed at the number of churches that still view the web as primarily an advertising mechanism to let people know who they are and what they’re doing. Go ahead. Visit several church websites. Really doesn’t even matter what size the church is. With few exceptions, you’ll find their web strategy is essentially a bullhorn approach. The church is standing on a streetcorner of the web yelling at the people passing by:

• “Come to our services on Sunday!”
• “Let me tell you about our men’s ministry!”
• “Join us for the golf tournament or fishing derby!”
• “Serve on one of our ministry teams!”
• “Give money to our church!”
• “Here’s what we believe!”

It’s a one-sided relationship. The church views the web as a place to promote their agenda. No interaction with the audience. No stories of life change. No solutions to help people experience community or discipleship online. At best, you may be able to watch a video of a service, but you certainly won’t have the opportunity to engage a conversation with others about what you’re watching.

Essentially we’ve taken the Sunday service bulletin and we’ve put it on our website. That’s the web strategy for the Church today. “Here’s who we are and what we’re doing. Join us!”

The rest of the world views the Web very differently. For example, outside of the Church, people go online to:

• Meet other people and build relationships
• Share what’s happening in their life and tell their story
• Get a taste of the experience, primarily through video, with the opportunity to interact
• Have the ability to share slivers of content with others (3-minute clips, not 45-minute messages)
• View content on demand on their time
• Create content to add their contribution to the bigger story

Rather than looking at the Web through the eyes of a Facebook and YouTube and Twitter user, though, we’re still looking at the Web through the eyes of a Sunday bulletin reader. That approach works for the people who are already attending our churches. It completely ignors the people who we are trying to reach.

And that’s the problem. We view the Web as an add-on. After we’ve figured out how we’re going to do ministry, then we want to know how to use the Web to promote our ministry.

Instead, the churches that have influence within our online culture look at ministry differently. They assume the people they’re trying to reach are online. They assume the people who are connected to their ministry are online. Rather than looking at the Web as an add-on, they consider their web strategy as a fully-integrated part of how they help people take steps toward Christ. They are a church online as much as they are a church in a building located on the corner of First and Main.

The website isn’t something the “web monkey” maintains. It’s a place where the youth pastor, worship leader, children’s director, small group leader, senior pastor and every other person of influence help people to connect and grow. It’s an environment where the entire church engages the community and encourages each other to take their next steps. It’s as much their story as it is our story.

Of course, this approach to the Web would require far more time, resources and leadership. It would be much less expensive than building a new building, but it would require a shift in thinking and a shift in focus. Because it’s new, it would be hard. Because the staff and volunteer leadership team would have to embrace this new approach, it would be challenging.

We’d rather stick with what we know. It’s a lot easier to maintain our online bulletins. And that’s another reason why we are the new traditional church.

__________________

Other Posts in This Series:

• Discipleship
• Music
• Community

It’s official! The Killing Cockroaches Summer Tour 2009 is going to happen. The Morgan family is super excited about jumping in the family truckster and traveling throughout the country. It’ll be a combination family vacation and training workshop tour. Here are the details:

• Stops in 6 cities: Atlanta, Dallas, St. Louis, Chicago, Columbus and Nashville
• 1/2 day workshops hosted by 6 great churches
• Events scheduled over 3 weeks beginning June 29 in Atlanta and concluding July 17 in Nashville
• Teaching on 2 topics: “Building Teams & Empowering Leaders” and “Finding Your Focus”
• Plenty of time for Q&A to dig deeper on these topics and more
• Priced (only $29) so you can bring both staff and volunteers

You can find more details on the schedule, the topics and the host churches on the registration page. Seating will be limited at all locations, so be sure to register today. If it’s anything like my past experiences with similar events, some of these locations will sell out.

I’m looking forward to having you meet my family and getting the chance to hang out with you. This is going to be fun. I hope you’ll join us.

UPDATE: The early bird rate of $29 will end two weeks prior to the event. Register early to save money.

I know. I’m not as cool as you because I carry a Blackberry instead of an iPhone. Until AT&T improves their coverage where I live, iPhone isn’t an option. And, until AT&T improves their pricing to be competitive with the Sprint “Everything” family plans, the iPhone isn’t an option.

That said, there are some apps on Blackberry that make it more than just a great tool for communication. Here are my favorite apps:

• AllSport GPS – Use it to track my time, distance and pace when I run.
• Blackberry App World – Where I browse new apps.
• Gmail – Because my world is run through Gmail.
• Google Mobile App – One of the coolest new features is the search by voice.
• Google Sync – Syncs my Google calendar and contacts to my phone.
• Opera Mini – I prefer this mobile browser of the ones I’ve tried so far.
• Pandora – The mobile version of my favorite free music web app.
• Salesforce Mobile – It connects me to the CRM app I’ve landed on.
• SmartFlicks – Accesses my Netflix account from my phone.
• Sprint Navigation – No need for a separate navigation system. It’s all on my phone.
• TetherBerry – The only paid app I own. Allows me to connect to the Internet through my phone.
• TwitterBerry – It’s what I use to post updates to Twitter and follow replies and direct messages.
• Vlingo – Use it to dictate messages and control my phone with my voice.
• YouVersion – Allows me to carry my Bible with me wherever I go.

What am I missing that you would recommend I check out?

• 7:55 PM tonymorganlive - “If you are a pastor in the South, you have to be strapped [own a gun].”
• 7:56 PM tonymorganlive - “When the alarm goes off, you can’t be passive.”
• 7:57 PM tonymorganlive - “The message to the Church is this: you better wake up!”
• 7:58 PM tonymorganlive - “I believe the Church’s best days are ahead of her.”
• 7:59 PM tonymorganlive - (You should see the woman who is trying to sign everything that Perry is saying. Her arms are flailing about.)
• 8:00 PM tonymorganlive - “What is it that God wants to do in my church?”
• 8:01 PM tonymorganlive - “I didn’t say ‘What is it that the deacons or the bloggers want to do in my church?’”
• 8:03 PM tonymorganlive - “The ‘older brother’ is sitting in the seat of leadership in our churches.” (referring to the story of the Prodigal Son)
• 8:06 PM tonymorganlive - “The older son didn’t have the heart of the father in him.”
• 8:06 PM tonymorganlive - “At conferences, there’s too much inspiration and not enough revelation.”
• 8:06 PM tonymorganlive - “If you don’t have a vision, you’re not a leader.”
• 8:07 PM tonymorganlive - “The only way we can’t get a vision from God is to spend time with God.”
• 8:08 PM tonymorganlive - “You gotta’ be stupid to plant a church.”
• 8:09 PM tonymorganlive - “God used unschooled, ordinary men to change the world.”
• 8:10 PM tonymorganlive - “People say, ‘The music is too loud.’ Well, you’re going to hate Heaven.”
• 8:11 PM tonymorganlive - “We have to pray and work.”
• 8:12 PM tonymorganlive - “We have to put effort into it.”
• 8:14 PM tonymorganlive - “If it’s God’s will, it’s God’s bill.”
• 8:14 PM tonymorganlive - “This is my opinion…but I’m right.”
• 8:15 PM tonymorganlive - “Most churches stick their kids and students in the basement with a woman that knew Moses.”
• 8:19 PM tonymorganlive - “We’re going going to try to listen to God and do what he says.”
• 8:19 PM tonymorganlive - “What are the barriers that stand in our way?”
• 8:19 PM tonymorganlive - “Did you know there are some people that don’t want the church to grow?”
• 8:20 PM tonymorganlive - “I thought the food fight in the grave yard was a great idea.”
• 8:21 PM tonymorganlive - “Here’s how you know you’ve got a vision from God: It makes people mad.”
• 8:21 PM tonymorganlive - “Christians are the meanest people in the world.”
• 8:26 PM tonymorganlive - 3 problems… #1 = “Refusal to change.”
• 8:27 PM tonymorganlive - “Pastors, we can’t lead a church according to personal preferences.”
• 8:28 PM tonymorganlive - “The church in Acts grew because it was willing to change.”
• 8:29 PM tonymorganlive - “Don’t change things just to change things. That’s stupid.”
• 8:30 PM tonymorganlive - #2 = “Jealousy.”
• 8:30 PM tonymorganlive - “Jealousy will stop a church from growing faster than anything.”
• 8:31 PM tonymorganlive - “Is it all about the numbers? I think it is.”
• 8:32 PM tonymorganlive - #3 = “Lack of understanding.”
• 8:33 PM tonymorganlive - “The same God that was in the book of Acts is in your church.”
• 8:34 PM tonymorganlive - “When we make church growth a formula, we tell God we don’t need him.”
• 8:34 PM tonymorganlive - “We can prepare for a move of God, but we can’t plan for it.”
• 8:34 PM tonymorganlive - “What do we want to celebrate?”
• 8:39 PM tonymorganlive - “We always like to condemn the sins we’re not committing.”
• 8:39 PM tonymorganlive - “We don’t try to be relevant. We preach the Gospel.”
• 8:40 PM tonymorganlive - “Aren’t we all sinners that needed a Savior?”
• 8:41 PM tonymorganlive - “Jesus did not die for your political party.”
• 8:41 PM tonymorganlive - “We yell at lost people for acting like lost people.”
• 8:42 PM tonymorganlive - “At the end of the day, all I want to see is for people to meet Jesus.”
• 8:42 PM tonymorganlive - “Because I haven’t forgotten what it feels like to be lost.”
• 8:43 PM tonymorganlive - “Jesus saved me, and he changed me.”
• 8:43 PM tonymorganlive - “That’s what we celebrate: changed lives.”