On Friday night, Jacob had a basketball game. We don’t always make the other kids watch him play basketball, but for this game we decided to take everyone. That included Brooke, my almost-four-year-old daughter.

For those of you who are experienced parents, you know it’s a little much to ask an almost-four-year-old to sit through an hour of anything including watching older brothers play basketball. Brooke is no exception. She’s a smart little girl. I love her. I mean that. But, just to be honest, sometimes her mother’s feisty personality comes through in most inopportune times.

We were about midway through the game when Brooke decided to begin pestering her older sister. Abby, our eight-year-old was sitting to my right. We had Brooke strategically positioned to my left between my feisty wife and me. Brooke, though, was done with basketball. She crawled under my legs and began teasing Abby. She made faces. She poked. She gave Abby the raspberries. Basically she was trying to annoy Abby in any way possible to divert Abby’s attention from the game to her.

Abby has great patience, but she’s also very human and will sometimes react the way “more mature” people react. She let Brooke do her thing for a few minutes, and then she basically kneed Brooke in the chest. I guess as the father I was supposed to reprimand Abby for that reaction, but my initial thought was, “You should have hit her a little harder.”

[read more]

I finished Andy Stanley’s most recent book, The Principle of the Path, last week. Andy is one of those guys that seems to have figured out how to get from here to there, so I figured I’d read his book about how to get from where I am to where I want to be.

Here are some of the highlights from my reading:

• “To get from where we don’t want to be to where we do want to be requires two things: time and a change of direction.”
• “Direction–not intentions, hopes, dreams, prayers, beliefs, intellect, or education–determines destination.”
• “We should break the habit of drawing a circle around individual decisions and events and dismissing them as isolated occurrences. These are steps. Steps that lead somewhere.”
• “Prudent people look as far down the road as possible when making decisions.”
• “Christians start talking about forgiveness as if somehow forgiveness serves as an escape hatch from the outcome of bad decisions.”

[read more]

By the way, out of full disclosure, I received this book for free from the publisher. Most of the books I read are free from publishers or authors. With that said, this was a great book.

I’m growing more and more convinced that the worst thing an organization can do is try to reach a consenus about something. Think government. Think church committee meetings. Think declining big business.

On the surface, reaching a consensus seems like a positive thing because it means people have agreed to move in the same direction. That’s a good thing isn’t it?

Actually, I’m not convinced that’s the case. For example, here are:

5 Reasons Why Consensus Sucks

1. It embraces the status quo. Change, whether positive or not, is not human nature. We would prefer for things to remain the way they are today. So, when people get together to discuss the possibility of doing something a little different in the future, it’s normal for the majority to avoid making changes.
2. It gives the malcontents an equal voice in your decision. Reaching consensus gives everyone a voice at the table. When that happens, even the negative, bitter folks that don’t really embrace the vision have the opportunity to pull the rest of the group away from what could really be the most desirable outcome.

[read more]

Earlier today, Jason Gerdes was introduced as the new senior pastor of Revolution Church in Canton, Georgia. I’m particularly excited about this announcement because William and our team at FaithSearch Partners worked with the crew at Revolution to select Jason for this role.

Jason is one of the top young leaders in the Church today, and I’m looking forward to seeing how God uses him to reach people in the Canton region and beyond. Since you may not be familiar with his story, I caught up with him a few days ago for an interview:

TONY: Congratulations on your new role with Revolution Church. Tell us what most excites you about this opportunity.

JASON: Thanks Tony.  The thing that most excites me about this opportunity with Revolution is the great foundation that has already been set for reaching people far from God.  I always thought that I would start a church, but when this came along God really showed me how this is for me. It is literally taking over a church plant that is already stable.  I am walking into a great situation with great people so we can build faster then if I started a church in the area.

TONY: For those that don’t know you, will you share a little bit of your background?

JASON: I did not grow up going to church or knowing anything about Jesus.  When I was a teenager my friends invited me to church and I gave my life to Him.  After I accepted Christ, it was really tough getting my other friends to come to church so it became my passion to create a church that my friends would come to.  I went on staff at Green Acres Baptist Church in college as an intern and worked my way up to Associate student pastor.  In seminary, I met Bil Cornelius at a church planting conference and then 6 months later went on staff at Bay Area Fellowship as the student pastor with the intention of starting a church one day with Bay Area.

TONY: I’ve been a big fan of your previous boss, Bil Cornelius, at Bay Area Fellowship. How has he influenced your leadership?

JASON: Bil Cornelius has influenced my leadership in profound ways.  The first being Bil has taught me is what it means to be a man of prayer and how your leadership publicly with never grow above your prayer life privately.  Bil is a man of prayer that really loves Jesus and that has influenced me tremendously.  The second thing Bil has taught me is how to think like a church planter.  In my first year as the student pastor I was unlearning everything that I had learned in an established church and Bil re-taught me how to lead the students like I was planting a church.  With that insight, it has enabled us to structure the ministry as a church plant and grow rapidly through multiple services and multiple locations.

TONY: How did you know you were called to pastor a church like Revolution?

JASON: As I have thought through the type of church I would start it matches up a lot with who Revolution is and what it does.  However, the main way I knew I was called to Revolution was what God showed me through our adoption journey.  My wife and have just recently adopted a baby girl and as I was praying though this God clearly said, “Jason, just like how your daughter is not from you but you are adopting her I want you to adopt Revolution even though she is not from you.”  I immediately went into our nursery, got on my knees and starting praying/crying out to God.  He spoke so clearly to me that, just like with the adoption, there will be issues since I didn’t birth Revolution, but that she is worth leading and adopting into my life.  Now if I ever struggle with the call God has placed on my life, all I have to do is look at my daughter and know that it was worth it.

TONY: What’s something folks may not know about you that says a lot about your personality?

JASON: I would have to say that since I am the youngest of three kids my natural personality is to entertain and be goofy.  I spent my life growing up in a family that did not have a lot of joy so I would do whatever it took to make my family laugh and have a good time.  But as I have gotten older, I have become much more of a learner and reader that loves to study theology and leadership.  So, I am a weird mix of a people-person that draws energy from crowds but then also loves to be alone and read.  I am not sure if that makes me well-rounded or a psychological case study, and I guess only time will tell.

Please join me in continuing to pray for Jason and Revolution Church that God will continue to multiply their impact in their community.

I know Christmas is next week, but there are some important things coming up that you may want to get on your radar:

1. Big Announcement – Next Sunday, December 20, I’m going to have some big news to share. It’s BIG! (But, no, Emily’s not pregnant.)
2. New Coaching Networks – Applications have started to flow in for the two new coaching networks – one on the Web and one in Atlanta. Deadline for applications is January 8.
3. Killing Cockroaches Tour Stop – I’ll be in Houston, Texas on January 21 for a tour stop at Cypress Creek Christian Church. Registration is FREE.
4. Velocity 2010 – I’m speaking the ChurchPlanters.com conference in February. And, Brian and I are pulling together a special gathering for church planters in conjunction with that event. Stay tuned for details.

Oh, and I got another fun invitation on Friday, but you’ll just have to sit tight for the lowdown on that one. It’s still a secret.

Big news today. I’m opening registrations for two new coaching networks in 2010. One of them will meet in Atlanta at West Ridge Church. The other one will meet from the confines of your home office via the World Wide Web. I’m offering one opportunity for those who want to travel to Hotlanta and another for those who would like to save a few pennies and join us online.

Overview

This network is designed for leaders and strategists who serve in a local church. The network will be limited to no more than 12 participants. As best as possible, I will select candidates to participate who are in similar roles and at similar churches. I’ll try to create an environment where you can experience the coaching but also learn from your peers. And, frankly, I’m looking forward to being challenged and learning from all of the participants as well.

We will meet six times once a month between February and July 2010. Each day will begin at 9:00 am and conclude by 3:00 pm. The dates are listed below. 
Once the coaching network participants are identified, I will ask for recommendations on topics to cover at each session. Topics may include: staffing, leadership development, communications strategy, financial stewardship, volunteer team development, weekend services, ministry structure, multi-site strategy and more. Additionally, each session will include an opportunity for participants to discuss the pressing issues they are facing in their ministry environments.

What will you receive?

• Six day-long coaching sessions
• The opportunity to network with like-minded leaders
• An invitation to join an online forum limited to network participants for continuing dialogue between sessions
• Several free tools and resources including my new book, Killing Cockroaches
• Plus other fun surprises and guest appearances!

What are the expectations?

• Be a leader and/or strategist who’s currently serving in a local church
• Demonstrate a strong commitment to personal and ministry growth
• Attend all six coaching sessions on the following dates:
  • Web Network: Feb 18, Mar 18, Apr 15, May 13, Jun 17, Jul 15
  • Atlanta Network: Feb 19, Mar 19, Apr 16, May 14, Jun 18, Jul 16
• Invest $200 per session
• Complete the coaching network application by Friday, January 8, 2010 and submit it for review

If you are accepted into the network, we will notify you by Friday, January 15. If you have additional questions, please contact me.

I’m guessing you’re familiar with the story from Acts 6 where the widows in the church were not getting fed. That’s a bad situation. I know how grumpy I get when I’m hungry. I can’t imagine how grumpy a group of hungry, older women can be. That can’t be good.

The grumpy, old women weren’t getting fed because the apostles weren’t getting the job done. These leaders were supposed to be focusing on prayer and teaching God’s Word (see Acts 6:4), but instead they were stuck trying to pull off a not very effective food distribution effort.

So who’s at fault? It could be the people in the church who are just showing up for services on Sunday morning but not engaging in ministry. Maybe they haven’t studied the Bible enough to learn that it’s not biblical to pay pastors to do all the ministry of the church.

It could be the fault of the leaders. Maybe they’ve fallen into the “I can do it better” trap. Maybe they aren’t really leaders, so they aren’t spiritually gifted to empower other people in ministry.

Either way, here’s what strikes me about this passage in Acts. The apostles were engaged in ministry. In that day, food distribution was just as much a part of the ministry of the church as praying and teaching. They were doing ministry; they just weren’t doing the right ministry. In other words…

It’s possible to do the work of God without doing the work God has called you to do.

That should be alarming for us. Because as the church grows, it requires us to prayerfully consider questions like this:

• Am I encouraging people to serve in ministry?
• Am I helping people determine their gifts?
• Am I empowering new leaders?
• Am I a leader, or am I just in a leadership position?
• Am I doing what God designed me to do?

Fortunately, the apostles decided to empower seven other leaders to take responsibility for the food distribution. That allowed the apostles to get back to focusing on prayer and the teaching of God’s Word. I guess you could say they stopped doing ministry, and encouraged others to do it instead. As a result of that, “God’s message continued to spread. The number of believers greatly increased in Jerusalem, and many of the Jewish priests were converted, too,” (Act 6:7).

People pay me to figure this out for them, but let me share this advice for free. If you’re doing all the ministry, you’re probably going to lead a small, ineffective ministry that’s not consistent with God’s plan for your life. So what are you going to do? Are you going to continue to do the work of God, or…

Are you going to do the work God called you to do?

Pride makes you do stupid things. One of the consequences is falling into the “I can do it better” trap. It’s what happens when you look at a situation and or a decision and say to yourself, “I can’t let anyone else have this one, because it’ll just be easier (and better) if I do it myself.”

Here are some thoughts for those of us who wrestle with this:

• If you are a perfectionist, people won’t like to be around you. It’s one thing to give our best effort. It’s another thing to think it always has to be perfect. Perfectionism isn’t attractive.
• Needing to be in control will kill you. It leads to anxiety and fear. It’s an indication that God’s not in control. It will paralyze you.
• If you always do it, no one else will learn to do it and you will always be stuck thinking you have to do it. It’s a vicious cycle.
• If you always do it, you’re denying other people the opportunity to live out God’s purpose for their life. That’s kind of like telling people you know better than God what’s best for their life.
• What if Jesus said, “I can do this better.” Because, if you think about it, he could do it better…but he still elected to give ministry away to others.
• When we don’t let others do it, we limit our influence and impact. Small organizations (and churches) have leaders who think they need to do it all.
• When we choose to do it ourselves, we’re taking the easy way out. It’s harder to find someone else, train them, coach them and check up on them. In other words, we’re basically admitting we’d rather not do the hard work that could ultimately lead to better results.

Just so you know, I’m a recovering perfectionist. This is something God is continuing to work out in me. The crazy thing about this mindset is that it directly conflicts with my ministry calling. Here’s what I believe my primary calling is in my life:

“[My] responsibility is to equip God’s people to do his work and build up the church, the body of Christ, until we come to such unity in our faith and knowledge of God’s Son that we will be mature and full grown in the Lord, measuring up to the full stature of Christ” (Ephesians 4:12-13, NLT).

For me to fulfill that calling, there’s really no room for “I can do it better.” In order for me to do what God is calling me to do, I have to equip God’s people to do his work. Which, not to state the obvious, must suggest that God thinks …

They can do it better.

You may have caught this article earlier this week on my twitter feed. Apparently it resonated with a bunch of you, because more than 1,000 people clicked the link to read it.

Jennifer Kahnweiler wrote about how many successful business executives describe themselves as being introverts. She reported the number may be as high as 40% including guys like Bill Gates and Warren Buffett. In church world, I’ve heard rumors “team introvert” may include a pastor like Andy Stanley.

Kahnweiler then went on to give these reasons why introverts make good leaders:

1. They think first, talk later.
2. They focus on depth.
3. They exude calm.
4. They let their fingers do the talking.
5. They embrace solitude.

It probably doesn’t surprise you to know that I’m an introvert. I don’t know whether or not those five attributes necessarily make good leaders, but I can certainly relate with each one of them. I’m guessing a few of you connect with those attributes as well.

So, what do you think? Do introverts make good leaders? And, more specifically, can introverts make good leaders in the church? After all, we’re in the people business. Can people who prefer solitude lead organizations that are all about people?

I’d encourage you to check out the full article. And, if you’re like me, you may also want to pick up Jennifer’s book on this same topic. Here’s my Amazon link to The Introverted Leader: Building on Your Quiet Strength.

A few days ago, I had the privilege of interviewing Charles Jacobs, the author of Management Rewired. I recently finished reading the book and sharing some of my highlights. The book challenged my thinking so much that I decided to connect with Charles and ask him a few more questions. Here’s the recording of our interview:

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

Interested in more information about the book? You can visit the Management Rewired website for more information including an excerpt.