blog pause
Christmas has officially begun for me and Lacey as we finished up our last minute shopping and headed to her parent's house.
The only problem is I still have to buy her something. I have been racking my brain for so long... it doesn't help that she is difficult to buy for. Ha.
The adventurous and long trek around the region has begun. Sherman to Tulsa to Springfield, MO to Arkansas to Memphis to Arkansas and back to Texas. Sound fun.
The power supply also died on my laptop, so I am computerless for the most part. Blogging will be on pause mainly over the course of the next few weeks.
Happy Holidays.
Labels: personal
better delegation
I'm really liking this blog by Penelope Trunk I found about a month ago via Tony Morgan.
She's sharp and offers great advice concerning leadership and management.
Today she offers 7 ways to be a better delegator:
1. Get over your perfectionist streak.
2. Decide what's most important.
3. Focus on helping other people grow.
4. Give away your most interesting work.
5. Blame yourself if no one can do a task as well as you.
6. Take a vacation.
7. Practice at home.
For the full article visit here. Labels: development, leadership, management
lessons learned in 2007
Here's a recap of lessons I've learned over the past year. I'm sure I have forgotten some, but these are the major ones that stand out.
Who I am is more important that what I do. My heart must be right, including my attitude, humility, and submission to God-given authority. I must first be a complete follower of Christ before I can become an effective leader of people.
Pray God-sized prayers because God will come through.
God is the ultimate provider.
Money issues are not an excuse for a failure to work towards a God-given vision.
God will hold me accountable for what did with what He gave me. It's a stewardship issue.
When working alongside difficult people or personalities, understand they can make you or break you. I can pray for them and offer to help them to break down any conflict.
Never let personal struggles go beyond you.
People want to be involved. They are just waiting on someone to ask them.
Delegate authority, not just responsibility.
Build credibility to build a community of togetherness. If they can't trust you, they aren't fully committed.
Continually be growing.
Value people, not their work.
It is always best to take the high road. God will honor that.
Find an objective ear for your concerns, frustrations, and thoughts outside of the church.
Know your staff and volunteers on a personal level. It goes a long ways in helping them push past rough times when they want to quit.
Labels: christianity, development, leadership, ministry, personal
lacey's graduation
I am in Waxahachie today at SAGU for Lacey's graduation tonight.
I'm so proud of her for how hard she has worked the past couple of years to get done as fast as she did. She took summer classes, 18 and 19 hour semesters, and finished a 4 1/2 year degree in 3 1/2... all while being married. This past semester she even completed her student teaching while working another job.
I know she is glad to be done and return to a somewhat normal life.
She simply is amazing. Labels: personal
utility staff
Utility players are great in baseball. They can come in and fill essentially any role on any given day. If the left fielder, or the second baseman, or the shortstop is out, the utility player gives you a proven back-up who will get the job done. They will produce enough to keep you in the game, but they rarely ever win them.
When it comes to church staffing, many try to fit their pastors into utility roles. They do everything in the church from website design to youth ministry to finances to hospital visits. I'm not speaking of internships or special events or money-crunch times. Nor am I talking about fulfilling a couple of roles, as long as they are congruent with an individual's skills and giftings. Sometimes as a staff member, we are called for a short time to play a role that doesn't fit directly into our job description and that's ok. Ministry is a team sport.
But what generally doesn't work is a staff comprised of one to two people playing all the positions for the sake of getting the job done. Different people have different abilities and giftings and can't do everything well. I understand budget needs. Maybe money is tight because of size, lack of giving, or debt. The church I grew up in was very small... maybe 120 people on a Sunday morning. In these situations I believe it is vital to recruit, train, and develop volunteers. Isn't that the role of a pastor anyways according to Ephesians. Staffing holes have to be filled. Otherwise, the effectiveness of the church and ministry are greatly hindered. And not to mention the burnout that is too often coupled with these types of environments. No one can do everything.
Utility staff environments are kinda a scary place. They get the job done to maintain the quota, but long term growth is rarely produced. People are not being reached, and if they are, it is rarely at the level it could be with quality staffing in place.
God is returning, and our job is to reach people for Christ and build them into fully committed followers of Jesus. But utility players produce utility results. And in serving God, the stakes are too high to produce average results. Labels: development, leadership, ministry
college football
This has been the craziest year of college football I have ever seen.
No one put the final nail in the coffin as far as winning while they are rank number 1 or 2. USC, Oklahoma, and LSU are probably the most legitimate football teams this year but have had untimely losses.
West Virginia lost tonight... thank goodness. Seriously. No one wants to watch them play in the title game.
Missouri is losing to Oklahoma... yes, they've won all year, but they have been overrated. Oklahoma is about to go up by 3 touchdowns.
Who knows who will play where as far as the bowls. But it's sure to be fun as always. Bowl season is about to begin.
Labels: sports
