Tag Archive - culture

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Discovering the Leadership Culture at Your Church

Tuesday, June 23, 2015

While many churches may have a list of Core Values that they’ve built, very few churches that I’ve come across have taken the time to do the hard work of defining and clearly articulating their Staff Values or Leadership Culture that they’re trying to build at their church.

Culture is tough to define. It’s the elusive, soft stuff in the organization that’s more on the art side than the science side of leadership. It takes hard work to articulate it. But it’s a must for any church that wants to actually be intentional about building a particular staff leadership culture. A clearly defined culture allows you to make decisions, hires, and take any number of other steps at a faster pace. After all as Peter Drucker famously said…

“Culture eats strategy for breakfast.”
– Peter Drucker –

Interested in discovering the Staff Leadership Culture at your Church? Start here. Gather your Sr. Leadership Team together and spend some time wrestling with the following two questions and build some lists together.

We Love when our Staff: fill in the blank

What are the stories of the hero’s on your Staff? What are the behaviors that you wish everyone on your Staff portrayed? What are the moments that make you the most proud of your team?

We Cringe when our Staff: fill in the blank

What the the stories that you hope never get repeated? What attitudes have you seen your staff adopt, behaviors have you seen your staff engage in, or things you’ve heard them say that simply makes you cringe?

Photo Credit: Luigi Mengato via Compfight cc

Posted in Leadership, Staffing

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5 Reasons People don’t Sing at your Church

Tuesday, March 3, 2015

I’ve been hearing a lot of concern about the fact that people are singing less and not engaging in the corporate time of worship at church. Most of the talk I hear seems to be finger pointing and critiquing the current culture of American churches rather than providing solutions that are within our control.

We all want people engaging in worship, but what is really in our control and how can we help people connect through the music? Here is a list of factors that contribute to how people respond and engage during worship in our churches.

1. Personal

Where are they at spiritually? Obviously if they don’t know Jesus they won’t be led to worship Him. But, on the other end of the spectrum, Jesus said that the person who has been forgiven much will love much. It’s all too common for a church person to forget how much grace they have received.

What circumstances are currently affecting their mental, emotional and physical health? There could be a crisis in their life. They may have just gotten in fight with their spouse or kids or friend. They may harbor bitterness toward the church or someone on stage.

 What is their church background? Some people grow up in churches where raising hands is forbidden. Others speak in tongues and jump wave flags.

 How do they prefer to connect with God? God has crafted us uniquely with different passions and personalities. Not everyone connects to Jesus by standing and singing songs. See “Sacred Pathways” by Gary Thomas.

2. Environmental

Does the space they are gathered in help or hinder? So many of us react to our surroundings and allow them to influence our emotions and thoughts. The lighting, size, temperature and smell of the room can all be a factor in whether or not someone chooses to engage, be distracted, overwhelmed, claustrophobic or even disgusted.

3. Relational

Do people feel welcomed and accepted? If I think the people around me are going to judge me based on how I respond in worship then my focus isn’t on God and I’ll play it safe.

Are others engaged? Nobody wants to be the only person with their hands up or singing at the top of their lungs. Most of us would rather fit in and do what everyone else is doing.

4. Musical

How well do they know the songs? If every song in the worship set is brand new then it’s likely the congregation won’t engage. If the average person attends church once or twice a month it’s likely they won’t know a lot of the music even if it isn’t new.

How much do they like the songs? Musical tastes vary. It’s subjective. Not every person that attends our church on a regular basis would choose to listen to the music we play on a weekend.

Is it excellent? This is about the musicianship, volume, mix, EQ, etc.

Do the lyrics make sense? If I have to consult with a theologian or English professor about the meaning of lyrics then I’m not singing. If the lyrics are too mushy or romanticized then most dudes won’t sing.

5. Visual

Are the worship leaders engaged? This is huge. Authenticity is as important as excellence. If the people on stage look like they’re not into what they’re doing then how do we encourage the people in the seats to engage?

Are there any distractions? Lights, moving graphics, people, lyrics being incorrect, camera angles, etc.

I don’t think this list is exhaustive. The point is this: there are many factors to whether or not someone will engage in the corporate worship music we sing at church on a weekend. Some of them we can control – the environment, the culture and the production. We are responsible as church leaders, not just the worship leaders, to create an environment where people can see Jesus and let their guard down; then we trust God to do what only He can do.

 

 

This is a guest post by Matt Thompson who serves as a Worship Leader at Sun Valley Community Church. To keep up with Matt you can connect with him on Twitter or Facebook.

Posted in Creative Arts, Leadership

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5 Core Behaviors of Churches that get Unstuck

Sunday, January 11, 2015

Churches all across America are stuck. Large churches, small churches, old churches, new churches, Baptist churches, Methodist churches, Nazarene churches, Presbyterian church and even non-denominational churches are stuck. Stuckness is no respecter of the “brand” or “flavor” of the church. It happens to all kinds of churches. Lead long enough in a church and it will happen to you.  In fact Thom Rainer, President and CEO of LifeWay Christian Resources has stated in his research that:

“Eight out of ten of the approximately 400,000 churches in the United States are declining or have plateaued.”

Churches get stuck for all kinds of reasons but there are a handful of core behaviors that I see over and over again in churches get unstuck.

1. They’re Outsider Focused

They’re consumed with the idea that the need for the Gospel in their community is greater than their capacity to meet it. And so they’re willing to go to extraordinary measures to bring people far from Jesus close to Him. So much so that their posture is towards those outside of the faith rather than those inside of the faith. They consistently make choices based on who they’re going to reach rather than who they’re going to keep.

2. They have a Strong Organizational Culture

They are clear about their vision, they know where they’re going. But it’s not just that they have some aspirational idea about where they think God wants them to be one day they actually have a clear plan to get where they’re going and they methodically work the plan. They’ve done the hard work of defining their leadership culture, and values, and aligning every ministry of the church to move in one singular direction.

3. They Develop People

They don’t pay everyone in the church to do ministry, instead they typically have a pretty lean staff (a ratio of 1:100+) and pay those staff to invest in and develop volunteers. They identify young leaders and give them real responsibility to make real decisions and own the ministry. Actually be the church instead of just come to church.

4. They view Spiritual Maturity Differently than most

They don’t view spiritual maturity as something that happens in a classroom. It’s not about content but rather your behavior. In other words it’s not so much what you know, it’s what you do with what you know. Ironically enough, that’s the same way Jesus defined it. They’ve also mapped out a clear pathway for people to run on. The moment they say yes to following Jesus there is a series of clear next steps for them to take to move forward with Jesus.

5. They’re Courageously Humble

The posture of their leadership is a humble confidence. They’re life long learners and incessant tinkerers. Willing to learn from anyone from any industry and any size organization. They’re not afraid to ask for help, even outsiders. They lead in their area of brilliance and submit in areas of weakness. They’re willing to confront the brutal facts and listen to the truth, even when it’s not pretty.

Does your church need help getting unstuck in 2015?  The Unstuck Group can help, follow this link to learn how.

Photo Credit: Lachlan Hardy via Compfight cc

Posted in Leadership

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What makes a Great Campus Pastor a Great Campus Pastor?

Sunday, November 30, 2014

Leading in a multisite setting I’m often asked by other church leaders, “What makes a great Campus Pastor a great Campus Pastor?” Often times when a church is thinking about moving to a multisite model the last thing they’re thinking about is who is going to be their next Campus Pastor. They’re stuck on logistics and most just assume they’ll stick an existing up and coming staff member on the next campus and hope for the best. That’s great IF you have the right person on the team already, but this can also be a fatal flaw. Trust me, I know and I’ve lived it. So here are 7 things I’m looking for when I’m looking for a Campus Pastor.

1. Relational Skills

They can influence people. They can influence people younger than themselves, they can influence their peers, and they can influence people older than themselves. Influence comes through trust and trust is given in the context of relationship. If they don’t have the relational skills to build trust with the congregation they’ll never be able to influence the congregation to move forward in a particular direction.

 2. Communication

They’re a good communicator. I’m not saying they have to be a good preacher, unless that’s how you are planning on handling the weekend teaching in your multisite model. But they have to be an effective communicator on stage, in large groups, in smaller groups, and one-on-one. A litmus test you can use to discover this is can they connect the mission/vision to funding? Can they talk about money from the stage and have people respond?

3. Lead Through Others

Great Campus Pastors don’t just delegate tasks they empower people. They don’t do everything themselves rather they get things done through other people. They know how to manage large multifaceted projects through robust teams and accomplish the stated goals. They know the team outperforms the individual every time.

4. Development

They don’t just lead through relationship they lead through development. In other words people don’t follow them just because they like them and enjoy them relationally but because they are developed into better leaders and better people by following them. They don’t just attract talent they develop talent.

5. Driven

They have a bias towards action. They are movement oriented and wake up every day thinking about moving things towards the vision.

6. They Deliver

They’ve already demonstrated the ability to deliver. They’ve built something from concept to completion; they’re not a novice. They’ve already done, what you want them to do. They know how to execute decisions and implement strategies.

 7. Culture

They don’t just know the mission, vision and values of the church but they live them out in their own lives. It’s not that they can simply repeat these things, but they deeply understand them, leading by making decisions through the lens of the core and unique identity of the church.

Interested in learning more about the role of a Campus Pastor? Check out this post: What is a Campus Pastor? Also you can take a look at a sample job description for a Campus Pastor here.

Photo Credit: kevin dooley via Compfight cc

Posted in Leadership

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10 Keys to Guarding the Gate to your Sr. Leadership Team

Tuesday, November 25, 2014

So who gets to be on the Sr. Leadership Team at your church? Is it based on who’s been there the longest? Is it based on who has the “in” and best relationship with the Sr. Pastor? Is it done, like Congress, by ministry representation so every ministry is represented? While all those things aren’t bad things in and of themselves, they aren’t necessarily strategic. And they certainly won’t move you any closer to accomplishing the vision that God has for your church. Here are 10 characteristics that you should be looking for when you’re thinking about adding someone to your Sr. Leadership Team.

1. Big-Picture Thinking

They think about the church before they think about their ministry. They understand that everything affects everything. If I’ve got a Youth Pastor who Youth Ministry is their first filter, they can’t be on the Sr. Leadership Team. The church has to be the primary filter before any one ministry.

2. Strategic

They naturally think about steps, movement, and alignment to vision. They’re strategic about how to get from here to there. They have a leadership intuition and can appreciate and move back and forth between the art and science of leadership even though they have a natural bias for one or the other.

3. Leadership

They have a leadership gift. While leadership skills can be coached and developed, the Scriptures are clear that leadership at its essence is a gift from God. I hate to burst your bubble, but everyone isn’t a leader.

4. Vision

They’re a stakeholder and vision carrier in your organization. They don’t allow the vision to be relegated to just the Sr. Pastor. They’re constantly asking themselves, “What did I do today to advance the vision of the church?”

5. Culture

They embody the culture of your church, or the culture you’re trying to create in your church. They embrace and live out the unique values of your church in their personal life not just their work life.

6. Team Builder

People are already following them. They have the ability to attract, recruit and develop teams of people to accomplish things that no one person could do alone. They are already moving people in a coordinated effort towards a destination. They don’t simply delegate tasks they empower people.

7. Execution

They actually get stuff done. They have demonstrated the ability to turn ideas into reality. They communicate action steps clearly, meet deadlines, and deliver on their promises. I’ve got to trust this person. I’ve got to know if I pass them the ball they’re going to catch it, turn up field and get a first down.

8. Likability

I put this one on the list at the risk of sounding shallow, but I’ve got to actually like the people that I’m leading with. If they don’t pass the “I like you” test, it’s not happening. Highly talented people can mess up a locker room if there’s not good chemistry between them and the rest of the team.

9. Biblical Requirement

They’ve got to meet the Biblical requirements for pastoral leadership. After all we’re not building a corporation, we’re shepherding the body of Christ. What we are doing is intrinsically spiritual and those leading the church need to meet the spiritual requirements to sit in that seat.

10. Humility

Humility is the context in which all the other fruit of the spirit thrive. They must have a teachable spirit and be a life-long learner. They need to be able to lead with the right questions, not just the right answers. Humility provides a pathway to access the true person and essentially is linked to trust. And the best Sr. Leadership Teams run on trust.

Interested about learning more about Sr. Leadership Teams? Check out my interview with Tony Morgan about his book “Take the Lid Off Your Church: 6 Steps to Building a Healthy Sr. Leadership Team”

Photo Credit: Thomas Hawk via Compfight cc

Posted in Leadership, Staffing
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