Tag: leadership
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3 Things I’m Wondering About What Church Leaders Believe
Yesterday, Kristen and I went to the Willow Creek Global Leadership Summit. It’s an event I’ve always loved… I’ve gone 3-4 times in the past decade and the years that I couldn’t make it I always wanted to. Looking back, it’s an event where I always learn a lot. I’m probably a lot like you.…
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Leading without Anger
It’s hard to imagine what was going through Joseph’s mind. For 40 years he imagined this moment — He saw his brothers. (Reread Genesis 42, it’s fascinating.) When he was just a teenager these brothers staged his death, sold him to some travelers as a slave, and lied to their father about his disappearance. For 40 years his…
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Powerless
Breathing heavy and full of adrenaline I stood up from the knee deep waves among the kids and did a 180. With a massive smile I began the long push through the surf back to my fellow bobbing boogie boarders. It was a Sunday afternoon at Torrey Pines. One of my favorite beaches doing one of my…
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The Problem with the Cause of the Week
“Oh, I’m so going to use that with my students.” This week it was the Kony 2012 video. (And the backlash) Next week it’ll be something else because our cycle of interest is now about 96 hours. As the video went viral all of my youth ministry groups on Facebook were littered with questions from…
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High-trust, low-control
A movement cannot grow in a low-trust, high-control environment. But a dictatorship can. (Cuba) A corporation can. (McDonald’s) A gang can. (Al Capone) In a low-trust, high-control environment leadership is supreme. Decisions flow from top to bottom. A high value is placed on replication and copying and perfecting. Efficiency is more important than individualism. And…
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4 Things Negativity Guarantees
Negativity isn’t the opposite of positivity. It is the opposite of gratitude. When things are going great your response to success determines your ability to continue succeeding. And when things are going rotten your response can be the rally point your team needs to keep going. Here are 4 things that being negative will guarantee in…
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Stop. Collaborate. And Listen.
August beckons new life in ministry. School starts. Our programs relaunch. We recruit and train (hopefully) a batch of volunteers. And we find ourselves, emotionally, in this weird place of hopeful dread. We’re hopeful because fall is our spring. Fall is full of new life, new energy, new commitment, and new dreams for the school year…
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Do we live on the same planet?
Sometimes I’ll meet a person in ministry and think, “Do we live on the same planet?” I’ve got a really solid core group of kids each Wednesday night– I think they have a chance at winning the Bible quizzing championship. Our high school students are very involved in the community. Each year we get together…
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Finding Strength in Lonely Moments
Can you imagine what it was like to be Joshua? During your lifetime Moses did just about everything a leader could ever do. He had regular 1-on-1 meetings with GOD! He lead millions of people out of slavery in Egypt. He established the rule of law for those people. While they wondered the desert for 40…
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Homeless Teenagers Among Us
[Video enclosed] The poverty rate for those under 18 will soon hit 25% in America. This video from 60 Minutes broke my heart yesterday. While riding the trolley to work I listened to the audio and wept. 16 million kids in our country are currently living below the poverty line. That’s an increase of 2…