Follow Jesus. Lead the church. Change the world.
This week, I read Juggling Elephants by Jones Loflin and Todd Musig. The book tells a story to present “an easier way to get your most important things done—now!” (subtitle). Time management has been something of lifelong journey for me. I’m always looking to be more effective in the use of my time. Most of … Read more
Yesterday, I wrote 6 Takeaways from the 2011 Leadership Summit. Now I want to look ahead so that we can make the most of what we’ve experienced! We’ve attended enough seminars over the years to know that once you return from an event, no matter how great, it’s easy to put the notebook on the … Read more
Last Thursday, Joleen and I attended the Willow Creek Association Global Leadership Summit. We expected it to be a great event, but it exceeded our expectations. I knew it would be leadership intense, but I was blown away by how spiritually intense it was, especially Friday morning’s focus on “tough assignments.” Presenters at the Leadership … Read more
I often think about the prophet Jeremiah’s call. In part, God tells Jeremiah, “Do not be afraid of their faces, for I am with you to deliver you” (Jeremiah 1.8, NKJV). That was a meaningful reminder for me when I started out. Transformational leadership and communication is not for the faint of heart! Communicators can’t … Read more
We recently returned from vacation where we spent a week in York, Maine, on the coast of southern Maine. It was a great week, and the kids enjoyed it tremendously. They got to spend some time at the beach, mostly playing in the sand at Long Sands Beach. They also enjoyed climbing on the rocks … Read more
On this blog, we write mostly about leadership and other ministry-related areas. We sometimes post family updates, especially throughout the adoption processes for both Ethan and Sarah. But I’ve also been known to write an occasional post about fantasy football—Fantasy Football (2008), Life Lessons from Fantasy Football (2009), Fantasy Football 2010 Underway (2010). The thing … Read more
It’s been five years since I read Communicating for a Change by Andy Stanley and Lane Jones. Stanley and Jones propose a model for preaching one-point sermons. I embraced the approach immediately. I preached my first one-point sermon right after I started reading the book (I had completed the first two chapters, as I recall). … Read more
Earlier this year, I wrote about 15 Books That Have Shaped Me as a Leader. In posting the list, I realized there were a few books that I’ve never blogged about. One of them is Courageous Leadership by Bill Hybels. Few people inspire, challenge, motivate me like Bill Hybels, whether through his speaking or his … Read more
A couple of months ago, I listed some resources by Christian comedian and communicator, Ken Davis, in my post, Developing the Preaching Gift. Davis wrote Secrets of Dynamic Communication. He also offers CD and DVD sets from his 4-day Dynamic Communicators Workshops (DCW). Davis has developed a process he calls S.C.O.R.R.E. (Subject, Central Theme, Objective, … Read more
Almost exactly two years, at the outset of our second year here in Clearfield, I wrote a prayer in my journal. Little did I know at the time that that prayer would stick with me. I find myself going back to it every now and then. Now as we begin our fourth year here in … Read more