Monday I had some fun hanging out with my friends Tony Morgan, as well as Carey Nieuwhof, and Gabe Kolstad from The Unstuck Group‘s consultant team, for a webinar about one of my favorite topics: leading change.
We specifically dug into three big church changes that more than 600 pastors told us were the most important onesthey wanted to lead in 2017.
Is the church you’re leading everything you once dreamed it would be? Every week at The Unstuck Group, we hear from pastors who are disappointed with their church’s current state. It’s not that they haven’t made an incredible impact! But they recognize a need to refocus.
God calls ordinary leaders to spark significant change in His kingdom. The Bible is literally littered with stories of every day people who God used to lead this incredible movement of change called the Church. I believe that God has placed you in the leadership seat you’re in at your church to help it become everything God has dreamed up for it to be. So let me ask…
What are the significant changes you’ve been considering for 2017? The team at The Unstuck Group asked that question to several hundred church leaders a few weeks ago, and three important shifts came up most frequently in their responses:
We agree those are important shifts. In fact, they’re some of the most common changes our team helps churches make, and we’d love to help you make them as well.
So, we’re hosting a webinar to help you make these shifts in 2017!
Join Tony Morgan, Carey Nieuwhof, Gabe Kolstad and myself on Monday, Jan. 23 at 1pm EST for the free webinar:
“Leading Change: 3 Shifts for Healthy and Growing Churches in 2017”
We’re going to be unpacking the stories of change at some great churches and sharing key steps to help you make make those 3 big shifts around vision, leadership, and your discipleship pathway. You’ll walk away with the insight you need to lead your church forward.
Space is limited, so follow this link to register now and save your spot!
Jossy Chacko gave a fantastic (and witty) talk at the Global Leadership Summit about Expanding your Leadership. Jossy serves as the Founder and President of Empart Inc.
#1 Enlarge your Vision
#2 Empower your People
#3 Embrace Risk
Thank you for making July another great month here at Helping Churches Make Vision Real! It’s great staying connected with you through social media and hearing that these articles have been helpful. So, thank you for connecting with me through the content on this blog! You made these the top posts from this last month. If you missed out on any of them, here they are all in one place for your convenience!
It may be multi-congregational or even a family of churches, but it’s not a multisite church.
Before you buy into the idea that you need another staff person at your church, think again. That just may be the worst decision you make at your church this year.
Before you read this, please understand that I love and am for young leaders. After all, I was one once. But there are some really bad habits that young church leaders are exhibiting that need to be broken if they have any hope or chance of having the deep and broad Kingdom impact that they’re dreaming of.
Vision is a destination, not a statement. Many churches spend an incredible amount of time wordsmithing pithy vision statements instead of providing a clear picture of where they’re going. What a majority of churches view as their vision statement is usually a mission statement.
Lisa and I recently celebrated our 20th wedding anniversary. And while sitting on a white sand beach under an umbrella overlooking the ocean (don’t hate) we talked about these 9 reasons why we’re still married, and legitimately enjoying our marriage more than ever, after 20 years.
A lot of people are talking about a leadership crisis facing the church. Where are the next generation leaders going to come from to pick up the mantle of this movement called the church? While many are fretting and talking about it few are doing much about it.
After working with over 25 churches across the country this past year, I realized there is a common challenge that growing churches face. It’s a challenge that frustrates leaders, slows progress in critical areas, and causes an undercurrent of strain between teammates. This challenge is lack of clarity around decision making. When churches are small, and there are a few leaders who lead the church, it’s pretty clear who makes what calls. But as churches grow and more leaders are added to the team, it’s not long before confusion sets in around “Who gets to make what decisions”. Often all decisions start to feel like we have to have total consensus to move on anything. Did I mention frustration sets in?
I love helping churches and leaders get unstuck and make vision real. In fact out of all the stuff I get to do with churches and leaders one of the things I enjoy the most is Leadership Coaching. Recently I had the incredible opportunity to spend a day coaching a group of Pastors and Church Leaders from Australia (unfortunately their cool accent didn’t rub off). One of the topics we spent time digging into was the difference between shepherding and leading in relation to why some churches are stuck while others move forward. Here are couple of thoughts from the conversation.
A good plan that can’t be changed is a bad plan. If you’re inflexible you’re going to find executing a plan to be nearly impossible.
When you break it down, there are only two core approaches to multisite alignment. You can either lead through culture or you can lead through control. Which approach is best for your multisite team? Understanding their five differences can help you decide.
Photo Credit: justin fain via Compfight cc
Thank you for making June another great month here at Helping Churches Make Vision Real! It’s great staying connected with you through social media and hearing that these articles have been helpful. So, thank you for connecting with me through the content on this blog! You made these the top posts from this last month. If you missed out on any of them, here they are all in one place for your convenience!
Before you read this, please understand that I love and am for young leaders. After all, I was one once. But there are some really bad habits that young church leaders are exhibiting that need to be broken if they have any hope or chance of having the deep and broad Kingdom impact that they’re dreaming of.
Still my all-time most popular post in 5+ years of blogging: The language we choose to use is important because it both reflects and builds culture at the same time. And one of the most obvious ways to tell if a church is insider focused or outsider focused is the language that they choose to use. It either says that the church is “inclusive” or “exclusive.”
Before you buy into the idea that you need another staff person at your church, think again. That just may be the worst decision you make at your church this year.
It may be multi-congregational or even a family of churches, but it’s not a multisite church.
If you lead in a church long enough eventually you’re going to face a crisis. It may be a staff crisis, a financial crisis, a moral crisis, a personal crisis or even a crisis of faith. One of the differences between good church leaders and great church leaders is that while good church leaders manage through crisis a great church leader never lets a serious crisis go to waste.
Churches don’t change. In fact most churches avoid changing at all cost, even if it means not growing. It’s so bad that I’ve seen churches choose to close their doors over choosing to change. Below are 6 common reasons I’ve observed why churches choose not to change. One of these might be why your church won’t change.
One of the most common lids to growth in a church is structure. It can free you up to move toward the vision that God has given your church or it can chain you to the past. Either way, it’s your choice. But how do you know if a restructure is in your future? These helpful tips below will help you get going in the right direction.
When you break it down, there are only two core approaches to multisite alignment. You can either lead through culture or you can lead through control. Which approach is best for your multisite team? Understanding their five differences can help you decide:
Vision is a destination, not a statement. Many churches spend an incredible amount of time wordsmithing pithy vision statements instead of providing a clear picture of where they’re going. What a majority of churches view as their vision statement is usually a mission statement.
I’ve never worked with a church that has said they don’t need more volunteers. But I’ve worked with a bunch of churches that have trouble getting people to volunteer and stay engaged volunteering. This is a critical issue for churches to figure out. The reason why this has to be a front-burner issue is because at the heart of it, volunteering is an essential component of the discipleship process in someone’s life. Plainly put, volunteering is discipleship. Understanding that, here are 8 reasons people aren’t volunteering in your church…and subsequently aren’t growing in their relationship with God.
Photo Credit: justin fain via Compfight cc
I help churches make vision real. I am a pastor, speaker, strategist, and ministry consultant at The Unstuck Group.
Read more about me.
