HERE I AM

It's been over a year since I last posted on this blog. Wow! Time flies while you're completing a Ph.D. and starting a new job as Chair of the Department of Graduate Studies at Beulah Heights University (BHU).

I'm still pastor at Conyers Church of God and my wife has taken on a larger role as a true partner in ministry with me. She is the Church Administrator, but she does not receive pay.

Anyhow, life is very interesting as the university is planning for me to travel to Brazil and to Belgium to organize extension sites from BHU. God is in this in that I will be working with Church of God churches in Belgium as the largest churches in the country are member churches of the denomination in which I am credentialed.
God has something significant going on in my life and the church and school I'm working with. It has always been my contention that if we will prepare ourselves for more, God will give us more to do. If we, through prayer and study, prepare ourselves for significance, God will do significant things with our lives.

Stay tuned.

Anticipating Change

Change. Sometimes it can be frightening. Also, sometimes, even after change has occurred, we can still be surprised and startling. I recently put a suit of armor in my office to store for a short while before returning it to its owner. I knew it was in here, but his morning when I came into my office, that suit of armor startled me. In fact, later in the day when I came out of my restroom, it startled me again.

Change is inevitable and we can either be afraid of change, or we can anticipate it, plan for it, even embrace it and triumph through change. Though not all change is good, change is unavoidable. By anticipating change, through something author Sam Chand calls “futuring” we can plan in advance and lesson, if not eliminate, being startled or surprised.

STRENGTH IN UNITY

I often hear negative and disparaging remarks about denominations and it troubles me. I was on TBN once and the host made a comment that indicated that a particular problem was unique to denominations. I quickly reminded him that that particular problem occurred in independant and non-denominational churches as well. He agreed and we moved on. The point being that there is this myth that being an independant somehow results in a superior church model. This is a myth because there are as many disfunctional independant and non-denominational churches as there are denominational churches.

Last week I traveled to North Dakota to preach the dedication sermon for the Dunseith Church of God (Wind of the Spirit Ministries) as they moved from their small wood frame building, into a stately stone building that was more than twice the size of their former building. Our church has supported the ministry of Pastor Daniel and Sandi Bean for about two years. When I arrived I found that the Solid Rock Church of God from Mobile, Alabama was there with 40 people, and another Church of God from Georgia was there with another dozen or so people. The state youth director from Kansas, Bill Harrison, was there where he took time to minister to youth in the area.

In addition the state overseer, Jeffery Robinson, his brother Jeremy and their father Julian Robinson were there as well. The pastor of Solid Rock Church of God is Glenn Barnhill and his associate pastor, who heads up home missions projects, Tommy Pike, were there for the celebration as well. Solid Rock Church of God purchased the new building for the Dunseith Church of God and at their request the building was dedicated in memory of Jeannie Robinson, the wife of Julian Robinson.

As I saw all the activity and the outreach, and knowing the contribution of time, talent and money to the Dunseith Church of God by so many Church of God faithful, it occurred to me that this is the strength of a denomination. We are a family and we celebrate with one another the success of each of our churches or ministries. Looking at all that was accomplished I was proud to say that I am a pastor in the Church of God of Cleveland, Tennessee.

Be Inspired

As leaders we need to be inspired. We may be inspired by a vision, by a great leader, or by the success of others. Most of the time we are inspired by great men who have done great things. One of the marks of a charismatic leader is that he or she overcame great obstacles to achieve their success.

I am inspired by the pastor of a small church in North Dakota. Daniel and Sandi Bean have been serving the little Dunseith Church of God for about five years now. They are from Georgia, but they went to serve a little church with about a dozen worshippers. Recently they've had about 45 worshippers. They both made great sacrifices to go to a church that few people would even have considered going to. They have worked tirelessly among the Native Americans and have seen lives transformed and have witnessed great tragedy among the people they love and serve.

Recently they were attempting to build a new building, nothing opulent; in fact two Church of God churches from Alabama had committed about 40,000 dollars. Instead, the Methodist church building not far from the Dunseith Church of God was for sale. It was appraised for around 60,000 (which is a lot in that area), and Daniel and Sandi knew it was beyond the possibility for their small congregation to purchase. After some inquiry and a number of serendipitous connections with the realtor, an offer of $20,000 was made and accepted. The a group from the Church of God in Alabama agreed to purchase the building outright for the Dunseith Church of God.

God honors faithfulness. I am inspired by Daniel and Sandi Bean and hope that others will be as well.

Leading like a coach

I like the coaching paradigm for leadership.  A coach should be looking at the long-term implications of the current practices.  He or she should be developing the current talent, constantly recruiting new talent, and then putting people into roles where they will be most effective.  When the individual is fulfilled and fruitful, the entire team benefits.  Think like a coach when you lead.

Lighten Up!

Miserable leaders make for a miserable organization. Too many leaders are miserable, defeated, fatigued, frustrated and angry, and then they wonder why everyone around them is the same way. I believe that a leader must have a sense of humor, even being able to laugh at him/herself. Joyful leaders create a climate for a joyful and hopeful organization.

Jesus came to give us joy and an abundant life (John 16:24; John 10:10). The Apostle John tells us that he writes so that our joy may be full (1 John 1:4). The Bible tells us that Jesus is going to present us faultess before the presence of His glory with exceeding joy (Jude 24). The joy of the Lord is our strength (Neh. 8:10). Yet I meet and read the posts of so many mad pastors. Lighten up. Enjoy the journey.

I once heard someone talk about "destination disease." They imagine that when they get "there"--wherever there is--then they will be happy, satisfied, and joyful. But it turns out that "there" is a moving target and few people ever get there, so I've decided to enjoy the journey. It's a good day to be alive and living for God.

It is doubtful that depressed leaders will be very attractive to the followers. If you look like you're about to jump off a cliff, don't expect many followers. Smile. Laugh. Laugh at yourself and laugh with others--not the other way around. As long as you're alive, all things are possible. One of the number one attributes of successful leaders is a positive attitude.

The Leader As Facilitator

Okay, I did it. I'm up with the times. I've downloaded a video blog on the topic of the leader as the facilitator. As someone who has both served as a staff member and now as a senior pastor, I believe that I have insight from both sides of the coin. The keys I've identified are:

1. Recognize the strengths/gifts of those around you.
   
2. Plug them in to a ministry/function about which they are passionate and which compliments their strengths.
   
3. Trust them. Do not micro-manage.
   
4. Praise them for their commitment, for their diligence, and for the outstanding job they do.
   
5. If they need help, let them know that it's perfectly alright to ask, and then invest yourself into them, providing the leadership, training, or guidance that they need. If you don't have the expertise, then find someone who does and let your staff seek training from them, or from an organization that can be of benefit.
   
6. Provide constructive feedback. Highlight the good things before addressing areas where improvement is needed. Never be condescending, but always assume a coaching/mentoring relationship and be willing for others to give you honest feedback about your performance as well.
   
7. Be willing to let them get the credit for successes. Do not hog the spotlight, but always be willing to highlight the achievements/accomplishments of others.