Equipping Students with the Tools of Leadership
Last year Angela and I were enjoying some downtime in Orlando Florida. The hotel we were staying at was also hosting a student leadership conference hosted by Student Leadership University. We had the chance to speak to the organizers there and came away impressed by their vision for student discipleship. Last week I had the […]
Preaching as a Craft to Be Cultivated.
I love preaching. I love the act of preaching and I love listening to preaching. There is something wild and mysterious and beautiful about God’s Word flowing through a flawed man empowered by the Holy Spirit as a primary delivery method for spiritual change. This week I had the chance to interview Matt Woodley, managing […]
The horrible social costs of gambling
I’ll never forget the one time I visited Las Vegas. I was in town for a wedding and was awed by the amazing architecture. It seemed to me, at the time, that no expense was spared by the developers. But while Christians can admire the beautiful architecture of Vegas, we must admit that there is […]
The One Thing Your Team Needs . . . That Only You Can Give
“Nobody has ever told me that before,” she said to me. Her tired voice and tired posture betrayed years of faithful ministry work that had gone unnoticed and unappreciated. It was my first week on the job as a Senior Pastor and I had much to learn about shepherding God’s people. But one thing I […]
Called to Stay
Today for Leadership Journal, I interview my friend, Caleb Breakey, a talented writer and speaker. Caleb has a heart for his fellow millennials. I love his tone, calling them to engage the Church rather than give up on it. This is the theme of his book, Called to Stay. In your book, Called to Stay, you […]
Every Member Has a Role
Today, for Leadership Journal, I talk to Thom Rainer, CEO of Lifeway Christian Resources. I always enjoy Thom’s insights on leadership and church life. His podcast Rainer on Leadership is a great listen and his blog is a go-to source for leadership content. I asked Thom about this latest book, I Am a Church Member where he […]
Teaching Civility
Today I interview the fascinating Mark DeMoss, president and founder of The DeMoss Group, the leading public relations firm for Christian organizations. DeMoss has represented organizations such as The Billy Graham Evangelistic Association, Prison Fellowship, and The American Bible Society. A few years ago, Mark launched The Civility Project, aimed at shaping a more civil […]
Healing Generational Divides
There is so much conversation lately about Millennials and the Church. Seems every blogger has addressed this subject from one angle or another. After reading the blogs and counter-blogs, it seems to me that the crux of the matter involves two things: a) a vast exaggeration of what generations think of each other, as if […]
Celebrating Father’s Day
As we celebrate Father’s Day, I thought I’d link to some of my posts on fatherhood: 10 Things Nobody Tells You About Being a Dad This is, by far, my most popular post. In this I share some serious and some not-so-serious reflections on the surprises of fatherhood. 5 Things Every Daughter Needs to Hear […]
Compassion for Those at the Back of the Line
I watched this message by Larry Osborne on compassion for those who may not be as spiritually developed as we’d like them to be. And, well, it convicted me in a million ways. You really should watch it. Here’s a quote: “If our definition of a disciple doesn’t have room for a Joseph of Arimathea, then […]
Resisting the Pound of Flesh
One of the best illustrations of leadership in the Bible is King David’s refusal, twice, to kill King Saul (1 Samuel 24, 1 Samuel 26). You don’t have to be well steeped in Old Testament history to know that Saul was the jealous king who had disobeyed God and took out his anger and wrath […]
What We Don’t Want to Hear: Leadership Is Hard
We live in an age when distrust of leaders is, perhaps, at an all-time high. I don’t have any statistics to verify that. However, if my Facebook and Twitter feeds are a reasonable sample, if the blogs and columns and books I read are an indication, people today just don’t like the people who lead […]