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What the Church can Learn from U.S. Airways about Fun

Sunday, October 6, 2013

When you put the word “fun” and “airline” together in the same sentence what usually comes to mind for people who regularly fly is Southwest Airlines. They’re known for their comical antics and exceptional guest experience. But I can honestly say that I recently had one of the best flying experiences of my life, and shockingly it was with U.S. Airways! All of the credit is due to the lead Flight Attendant, a young lady by the name of Florence, who made the experience hilariously fun. Sadly most organizations miss out on what a powerful driver fun can be in the workplace.

1. Fun Can Change People’s Attitude

The guy sitting across from me on the flight came onto the plane frustrated and complaining about the poor experience he had in the airport and while boarding the plane. And yet Florence had him laughing and smiling within 2 minutes. Do you have people in your church who consistently complain? Help them have fun and you may be surprised how things change.

2. People Want to be in on Fun Stuff

Please don’t miss this simple but profound statement. Everyone on that flight is now more likely to be a repeat customer and fly U.S. Airways again because of the fun infused into the experience by Florence. Do people want to be a part of your church because it’s fun?

3. What makes it Fun is the Right People

The reason everyone on that flight had fun was because the Florence was having fun. If you want people around you to have fun, someone has to go first. Fun is just as contagious as complaining is.

4. You know when People are Having Fun

It’s easy to measure if people are having fun. Their face shows it with a smile and laughter. Within just 5 minutes of the flight being fully boarded, people on the plane were literally asking out loud how they could let U.S. Airways know how well she had done her job. And they were all smiles.

And U.S. Airways, if you’re out there and reading this, give Florence a raise! She’s worth it!

Posted in Leadership

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Does Your Church Need More Volunteers?

Tuesday, October 1, 2013

The best churches don’t hire ministers to DO all of the ministry; they equip and inspire volunteers and leaders to get ministry done. Check out this quote from Wayne Corderio.

“I’m convinced that the influence of a church has on its community will be determined in large part not by the personality of the pastor, the size of its building or how long the ministry has worked in the community. It will be determined instead by the percentage of involvement in the ministry of each member. This marks the transition from attendance to ownership, from being consumers to contributors.”

You may be a gifted speaker. Your church may have a beautiful building. Your team may lead large ministries. But without healthy volunteers, your church will struggle and you will be stressed. You’ve got to decide…will your church be led by a small band of superheroes or a large army of servants? The best churches don’t hire ministers to do all of the work. They mobilize volunteers and leaders to make ministry happen.

This is why I want to introduce you to Get More Volunteers

Whether you’re a seasoned pastor or brand new to the ministry, you can learn what’s working to attract new volunteers to your church and lay the foundation for a healthy volunteer ministry. This online event is designed to help you attract new volunteers to existing positions, mobilize more people for ministry, and sign up people quick.

My friend Tony Morgan and the team at The Rocket Company interviewed five leading pastors and will give you the latest ideas and the best strategies for bringing new volunteers into ministry roles in your church.

Here are 5 compelling reasons you should sign up to watch Get More Volunteers 2013.

#1:  It’s Fully Online

No travel required! I know you’re busy and your time is valuable. Gather your team around a computer or watch from your office.

#2:  It’s Free

Not only are there no travel costs, the event itself is totally free. You’ll have access to all of this great content without having to spend a penny. Finance Teams rejoice!

#3:  Fresh Ideas

You’ll hear from leading pastors and learn what they do in their churches to mobilize volunteers. This isn’t inspiration….it is practical help and new ideas to help your church.

#4:  Respected Pastors and Speakers

My friend Tony Morgan is hosting the event, and along the way you’ll hear from Perry Noble, Chris Hodges, Wayne Corderio, Reggie Joiner and Derwin Gray. Each of these leaders knows how to lead volunteers.

#5:  Rave Reviews

Thousands of church leaders around the world have completed free training events with the Rocket Company. They have trended on Twitter and been turned into eBooks.

Follow this link to register you and your team today!

 

Posted in Volunteers

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Who is Your Church Competing With?

Sunday, September 29, 2013

From the earliest days of the Jr. High lunchroom (as brutal as that can be) as young adolescents try to figure out the social pecking order it’s funny how little things seem to change even as we move well into adulthood and the workplace. It even shows up when you get a bunch of pastors in the same room. The first question that comes up? It may come out a bit more sophisticated than this but what they’re all thinking is, “How big is your church compared to my church?” It’s a question rooted in simple immature Jr. High insecurity. And it is derailing the Church from its mission. Competing with other churches only makes sense if you’re going after people who already know Jesus. And there is no shortage of people who don’t know Jesus. So how do you know if your church is competing with other churches?

1. Are you Genuinely Excited to see Other Churches in your Community Take Ground?

If you don’t feel like you’re winning when other churches in your community are winning and in fact become jealous when other churches win, you’re probably competing with other churches.

2. Do you Publicly (and Privately) Speak Well of other Churches in your Community?

If you speak poorly of other pastors and other churches then you’re probably competing with other churches.

3. Do you Learn from Other Successful Churches?

If you don’t think you have much to learn from other successful churches and they, “Don’t understand your church,” you’re probably competing with other churches.

4. Are you doing events for Christians?

If your first foot forward is to lead with events to attract Christians then you’re probably competing with other churches. By the way, that’s not growing the church; it’s what we call “Swapping Saints.”

5. Does the Language you use Create Clarity or Confusion for Outsiders?

If people outside of the faith need a “Beginners Guide to Understanding Church Language” to know what’s going on at your church then you’re probably competing with other churches. Click on the following link to discover if your church is Insider focused or Outsider focused.

Friends, other churches aren’t the Enemy. The Enemy is the Enemy. We’d do well to remember the words of the Apostle Paul…

“It’s true that some here preach Christ because with me out of the way, they think they’ll step right into the spotlight. But the others do it with the best heart in the world. One group is motivated by pure love, knowing that I am here defending the Message, wanting to help. The others, now that I’m out of the picture, are merely greedy, hoping to get something out of it for themselves. Their motives are bad. They see me as their competition, and so the worse it goes for me, the better—they think—for them.So how am I to respond? I’ve decided that I really don’t care about their motives, whether mixed, bad, or indifferent. Every time one of them opens his mouth, Christ is proclaimed, so I just cheer them on!” Philippians 1:15-21 (The Message)

Posted in Leadership

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Is All Scripture Equally Important?

Tuesday, September 24, 2013

It’s a commonly held belief among Evangelicals that all Scripture is God-breathed. After all, the Apostle Paul puts it this way in 2 Timothy 3:16…

“All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.”

But, is all Scripture equally important? Before you write me off as a heretic, really take a moment and consider that question. Is all Scripture really equally important?

I mean, you get one shot at sharing the Gospel with a thousand people…are you really going to lead with Leviticus? No? Why not? All right then, what’s the most important verse or two for them to hear in that moment? You could ask the same question about 100+ other scenarios and in each case you would be making judgment calls about what portions of scripture are more important than another.

I’m not saying that not all Scripture is not God-breathed. That would be heresy. What I am saying is that maybe it’s not equally important in preaching.

Want to grow and improve as a communicator? Check out my partner The Preaching Rocket and discover the methods, strategies and techniques that world-class preachers use to prepare, deliver and evaluate sermons.

Posted in Spiritual Formation

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What is a Campus Pastor?

Sunday, September 22, 2013

In August, 2012, Leadership Network released a report stating that over 5,000 churches are now multi-site churches (churches that meet in more than one location for worship). It’s a growing trend that first began with mega-churches, but has now expanded to churches of all sizes. With this new trend a new staff role has emerged, that of “Campus Pastor.” While a lot churches are still trying to figure out this new role, here are 6 things that great Campus Pastors do:

1. Reproduce Culture

In a multi-site setting you’re not building culture as so much as you are reproducing it. Somewhere along the line there was a decision made that the church had a culture worth replicating. That’s a big reason you’re multi-siting in the first place. Great Campus Pastors know how to reproduce culture in the context of the community of the new campus location.

2. Build Organizational Alignment

A Campus Pastor doesn’t have to come up with the mission, vision, values, spiritual maturity pathway, leadership distinctives, campus constants, and doctrinal statement. Again, those things probably already exist. But they do need to know how to build alignment around them and through them.

3. Big “I” Implementer

A great Campus Pastor makes things happen. They know how to see ideas through from concept to completion. They know how to set the staff up to succeed in the implementation of the goals, calendars and budgets of all ministries on their Campus in a manner that moves the campus towards the vision.

4. Cooperation

Great Campus Pastors know how to work with others. They know how to work with “Central Services” such as a centralized Business or Creative Arts Department to get the right things done.

5. Build a Leadership Culture

They know how to recruit, train, coach and mentor a Staff Team. They provide leadership and oversight to the Campus Staff and in so doing create a healthy staff team environment and leadership culture.

6. Shepherd the Congregation

At the end of the day great Campus Pastors love the local church. They have a shepherding gift and care about people becoming what God has dreamed up for them to look like. They know how to problem solve and shepherd through congregational matters.

Click here for a sample Campus Pastor job description brought to you by TonyMorganLive.

Posted in Leadership
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