Follow Jesus. Lead the church. Change the world.
I wrote about parenting as character building a couple days ago. Since then I’ve reflected more on this and I’ve been thinking about the work of character building as the work of shaping a heart. The backdrop for this idea is Reggie McNeal’s book, A Work of Heart: Understanding How God Shapes Spiritual Leaders. God’s … Read more
As we’ve talked with many people over the last year about our adoption process, we’ve received two primary responses: 1) excitement about the prospect of an addition to our family, and 2) certainty that our lives are going to be turned upside down. 🙂 Well, with our adoption process nearing the end, much of our … Read more
Andy Stanley has written a must-read book for leader/communicators who want to maximize the adhesiveness of their vision! Andy Stanley, founding and lead pastor of North Point Community Church, is one of a handful of writers that I read everything they write. The latest book I’ve read is Making Vision Stick (see Google Books’ limited … Read more
The movie “Hitch” highlights the importance of believing in what you do. Hitch, starring Will Smith, who plays Alex Hitchens, or “Hitch,” known as the “date doctor,” and Eva Mendes as Sara Melas, is a great movie, especially if you like romantic comedies. Hitch basically helps guys get dates. Sara is a gossip columnist for … Read more
Helpful resource for leaders who love to read! In a previous post, we talked about the importance of lifelong learning. If you’re a leader, you must be a reader. If you need help knowing what to read, a great place to start is 800ceoread. For a while, 800ceoread operated InBubbleWrap where they gave away books … Read more
Football and leadership — learning leadership from coaches in the NFL. I have been a football fan since I was about 8 years old when I watched a game between the Dallas Cowboys and the Green Bay Packers. From that point on, I was a Cowboys’ fan. Over the course of the years, however, I … Read more
Leaders value learning. Lifelong learning is essential for leaders. Rick Warren, author of The Purpose Driven Life and The Purpose Driven Church, says, “All leaders are learners. The moment you stop learning, you stop leading.” I love to read the book of Proverbs. Once while reading in the CEV, I was surprised by a powerful … Read more
The desire to be recognized drives division in an organization. In preparation for last Sunday’s message, I briefly read 1 Corinthians 11. The chapter begins with a very interesting statement about division. I read it as something of a sarcastic statement by Paul, one of the Church’s premier leaders in the first century. “But, of … Read more
Lately, I’ve been thinking about good movies for leaders, movies teach, inspire, and challenge leaders to make a difference in the world. Here are some of my favorites … Coach Carter End of the Spear Freedom Writers (see our previous post here) Glory Road Mr. Holland’s Opus Pride Remember the Titans The Devil Wears Prada … Read more
Eugene Peterson on how life slowly, almost unnoticeably leaks. I love the stuff Eugene Peterson writes. He’s best known perhaps for his recent work, translating/paraphrasing the Scriptures in The Message. When I was in seminary I read some of his books; in fact, his book, The Contemplative Pastor, was one of the most impacting books … Read more