You may have noticed some great content in recent weeks from other guest contributors. There’s room for your quality content as well. (btw… We don’t publish your stinky content.) If you’d like to jump on board, here are…

10 Rules to Get Published on TonyMorganLive.com

1. Your post should provide our readers with strategic and practical content that helps them get unstuck and have a bigger impact.
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5. Your post should be less than 500 words. We like simple and concise.
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7. We will copyedit your post for grammar, punctuation, spelling, etc.
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10. Please email Jason your post for consideration. You will receive a response within 10 days.

By Ryan Stigile, contributing writer

Many of us have a desperate desire for strategic change within our organization. Unfortunately, most of us are not the point leaders of our team. This lack of authority creates frustration for a forward-thinking follower. Constrained by position, the pursuit of change can feel far above our heads. I imagine many have thought, “My organization will never improve because my leader won’t initiate the necessary change.” This line of reasoning is based on the assumption that change develops strictly through a hierarchical structure. If we consider the reformation of societies,  innovations in industry, and turnarounds of organizations, we can find one truth that spans them all:

Change begins with new ideas.

New ideas are not restricted by structure, only lack of influence. Regardless of your position, the following principles can help you get the ball rolling from the bottom:

1.  Challenge the paradigm, never the person

Everyone on your team holds a paradigm of your organization, its problems, and the accomplishments it is capable of achieving. Some of the paradigms are accurate reflections of reality while many only limit the possibility of change. It is natural to judge a person’s heart by their paradigm. But paradigms are created by experience, not character. Despite disagreeing perspectives, the people on your team share a genuine desire for your church or organization. Challenge the paradigm but never challenge the person. The quicker you recognize and value someone’s heart, the faster you will win it.

2.  Utilize objective evidence, not subjective observations

Forward-thinking followers can quickly recognize the need for change with basic observations. General statements such as, “We need to be relevant” or “Our people are not serving,” can be quickly discredited with equally unverified opinions. Objective evidence provides credibility to your assessments, opening the door to discuss new ideas. Your subjective observations are probably correct, they just do not communicate well. Take them a step further by surveying your members, putting together a focus group, graphing your attendance data, etc. Verify your subjective observations with objective evidence that a real problem exists. (more…)

This is a guest post from Lance Morgan. (We’re not related. At least I don’t think we are.)

I remember the first (and last) time I got my mouth washed out with soap. What brought out the bottle of liquid soap and toothbrush? I had smarted off at my mom.

Now, before I had my mouth washed out, I had heard of this type of punishment from my friends. So I have to admit, I was pretty curious as to how the punishment was going to be executed. Was I going to have to hold a bar of soap in my mouth like in the movie, “The Christmas Story”? Or was I going to have to bite off a piece of soap and chew it up, and swallow it.

None of the above. I had to squirt liquid hand soap on my toothbrush and scrub my tongue for five minutes. I believe that is the worst way to execute that punishment. Since I had to use my regular toothbrush, the taste of soap lingered for a couple of days after.

Speaking of saying things we shouldn’t, have you ever said the F-word? It’s not that easy to say. There are situations in my life right now, where I need to drop an F-bomb. But this time, it’s an F-word we actually should be saying.

I forgive you.

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Then they answered Joshua, “Whatever you have commanded us we will do, and wherever you send us we will go. Just as we fully obeyed Moses, so we will obey you. Only may the LORD your God be with you as he was with Moses. Whoever rebels against your word and does not obey your words, whatever you may command them, will be put to death. Only be strong and courageous!” – Joshua 1:16-18 (NIV)

A lot of emphasis these days is put on the need for good leadership in the church, but the reality is the church does not just need good leadership and good leaders but also good “followship” — people that can follow well.

It’s easy to point the finger at leaders that have made mistakes or not led well, but what about followers taking responsibility for how well they have followed leadership? I think this is a really interesting thought that has the potential to produce a whole lot of good and very healthy, effective churches – if we dare to think about it.

In the scripture above, we read about some great followers – the followers of Joshua. This is the second time Israel had been given an opportunity to inherit the land God had promised (as you know the first time did not go so well). Why did it all go wrong that first time when Moses was leading? If you read about that account, the problem was not actually with the leaders (Moses, Joshua and Caleb) it was with the followers. They were the ones that caused the nation to not enter in.

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This time last year, I was at my wit’s end. For the first time in my life and ministry, I was depressed. Not just down. Not just discouraged. Depressed. It had been coming for months, and it lasted for months.

Many of you make things.

Many of you feel misunderstood.

Perhaps you wear that fact as a badge of honor.

You prefer to be on the fringe.

You prefer to be the crazy prophet being thrown out of the court for the radical idea.

You prefer to be that lonely voice in the wilderness speaking out against the establishment.

Might I suggest to you (and to myself, if I’m honest) that you’re being a little short-sighted.

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