Marathoners often describe hitting the wall as they run. It’s a stretch of time when everything in their body hurts and everything in their mind screams, “Stop!” They press through, and the pain lifts. But is “no pain, no gain” a good mantra for Christian leaders? It was an intense season at our ministry—a huge […]

Most Christian leaders worship, but aren’t worship leaders per se. So how do you lead your team to actively honor God when you don’t have a degree in music? And, more importantly, how do you follow God’s lead during a time of worship? Let’s take a look. A small group of leaders gathered for a […]

Staff meetings can be as satisfying as homemade bread or as stale as yesterday’s toast. As a leader, you want to serve up valuable meetings. The key is using the right ingredients and keeping it fresh. The word meeting has gotten a bad rap, and for good reason. Tell someone you’re going to one, and […]

The phrase “all systems go” harkens back to the era when space ships and missiles were in their heyday. It describes the pre-flight phase when all aspects of their complicated mechanisms were in sync and ready for launch. As leaders, we want every aspect of our ministries to function at optimal effectiveness. Since God is […]

Most of us can finish that sentence – “If you build it, he will come.” It’s from the 1989 Field of Dreams movie where an Iowa farmer built a baseball diamond for bygone players. Despite its fanciful Hollywood plot, the phrase contains a profound truth. If you put intentional effort into something, you usually reap […]

A leader’s world can spin so fast there’s barely an opportunity to focus on God. But like Olympic divers who regularly orient themselves to the water so they can enter it splash-free – being intentional in our pursuit of God is essential to good leadership. At our staff’s weekly Body of Christ time in early […]

When we’re offended as leaders, it’s tempting to keep track of every jot and tittle – especially when it’s a long-standing, multi-layered conflict. We want to hold court and hold the offending party accountable for each aspect. But is that Jesus’ way? In my early years of ministry, an offense from another ministry leader rose […]

If you’re a typical leader, hard conversations come with the territory. When human beings with their unique personalities and perspectives work side-by-side – sparks can fly. Let’s unpack the dynamics and look for ways to keep conversations productive, not explosive. Hard conversations usually follow disagreements, which often stem from different viewpoints. Let’s use the tale […]