God lets us manage His gifts.

That is a weighty thought.

I am convinced that all operations of the church should be dictated by stewardship. It is the umbrella under which all decisions take place. From budgeting to hiring to firing, we are to manage all resources, whether monetary or human, to the best of our ability. This means that it is ok to seek efficiency in operations. It’s ok to make tough decisions. It’s also ok to make sure that resources are not overused.

Let’s have a conversation. What challenges have you experienced in stewarding church resources?

Church work can consume you.

Church work does not occur just on Sunday. Sunday is merely the result of a week’s, sometimes month’s work. If you think that you are escaping the long hours of work at a “normal” job, you are mistaken. Although it will vary depending on the size of the church, you will probably be working more hours than your prior job. A church is a complex organization that produces complex demands on its employees. Be prepared for anything.

You will quickly realize that you need to protect your time, specifically time spent with family. I have seen many church employees neglect their proving ground, their family, for church work. They speak proudly of how little they have seen their family because of their work. They treat it as a badge of honor. It is not. Do not fall into this way of thinking.

Church work can be stressful.

Again, a church is a complex organization that produces complex demands on its employees. Stress arises from a number of areas. Both the mechanical and relational aspects of church can be intense. Though the complexity will vary from church to church, many churches look like a small conglomerate offering not just a worship service but education, counseling, relationship building, missionary, and compassion ministries as well. And you may play a role in each one.     

Church work will test you.

Church work tests your spiritual maturity. Whatever God is for, Satan is against. The depth of God’s love for the church ensures Satan’s attack. And church leadership tends to be a primary target. Prepare yourself and your family to engage in spiritual warfare. Set up boundaries for your relationships, your finances, and your time. The pressure of ministry will test any cracks. Do not be caught off guard when temptations arise.

What else?

Here we go…

In 2008, Howard Schultz, CEO of Starbucks, made a decision that would raise eyebrows nationwide. They would close their stores. The company had experienced dramatic growth in the subsequent years, but this tremendous pace did not come without its consequences. According to Schultz, the quality upon which Starbucks prided itself was waning. One of their foundational products, espresso, was inconsistent and unsatisfactory. They had lost their focus, lost their identity. On February 26, 2008, Schultz mandated that all stores close their doors for 3 ½ hours. During those moments, baristas would participate in a re-training of espresso-making. Shultz wanted to ensure that, when the doors reopened, patrons of their stores would experience a world-class espresso drink.

 During those hours, nearly $6 million dollars was lost in employee costs and potential revenue.  It was a bold move, but, according to Shultz, necessary. To proceed into the future with their current product would only result in greater harm. Though customers found themselves crying, curled up in a fetal position in the corner of a lonely room (that may have just been my experience), Starbucks’ baristas emerged better prepared to create the perfect drink. Starbucks had rediscovered its identity that, for several years, did not know it had lost.

There is danger in success. Before success, it is the core that moves an organization forward. It is the foundation. All business elements are supported by the core. When an organization experiences success, new opportunities begin to present themselves. If these opportunities are not closely attached to the core, then pursuit of these opportunities will take focus away from the core. Eventually, the core will become brittle from neglect. The foundation upon which the organization is structured will become unstable. The organization will start to show cracks.

Many organizations have failed because they forgot who they were. Unlike Starbucks, they did not get a second chance. They forgot that their existence derived from their core and consequences ensued. Organizations must protect their core. The opportunities that success brings are just that, opportunities. Their presence does not necessitate a chase. Opportunities must be evaluated before the chase. If, both internally and externally, they draw focus away from and not towards the organization’s core, they are probably best avoided.

1.  The baby clothing industry is a scam

Most pre-birth gifts are baby clothes, particular of the new-born size. During the months leading up to our son’s birth, we were blessed to receive several of these gifts. Naively, I thought we were pretty much set until his junior year in high school. By our son’s third week of life, he had outgrown the majority of his infant wardrobe. Some, he never was able to try.

I have found this momentary wearing of clothes to be the norm. Rarely does a onesie last beyond a few weeks. And yet, we are stuck. We have somehow been warped into believing that our children must be clothed.  I have concluded that the only way parents can rationalize the constant purchasing of baby clothes is to have more babies. The key lies in the hand-me-downs.

2. Boppy is a word

My vocabulary has increased tenfold since the birth of Nathaniel. The baby world has its own, underground language, unbeknownst to those who have yet to venture into parenthood. After a few weeks of being indoctrinated in the ways of babyland, words like Boppy, ExerSaucer, and Bumbo became a mainstay in my vernacular. They fluently flow off my tongue as if I were not immersed but born into this unique life stage. I suddenly find myself as one of them. And as one of them, I no longer question the validity of any word that ends in “y.”    

(It should be noted that my spell check had a very difficult time with this paragraph.)

3. Every married man should desire to be a father   

Over coffee, a friend commented to me, “It seems that once a guy has a child, he becomes more of man.” To preface the comment, he was single and had observed a handful of his peers enter into this world of fatherhood. There is something to his observation. Fatherhood molds men in ways that can and cannot be verbalized.  I am different. I can sense it. The more I chase after God’s design for fatherhood, the more I understand God’s role as Father in my life. And I can only hope that I am different because of it.

What are some lessons you’ve learned as a father/mother?

In that moment, I understood God a little more. As God placed his Spirit on the men who inked His words onto paper, He was the Father. Though He was El Shaddai, God Almighty, leading a triumphant war against the darkest of powers, He was Father, desiring to lead his children through their daily struggles. Though He was Elohei Marom, God of Heights, He was Father, desiring the depths of our hearts.  Though He was Elohei Tseva’ot, God of Hosts, He was Father to each individual son, each unique daughter. Though He was El Echad, The One God, He was Father to all.  And though He was Elohim, the Creator, raising mountains from the deepest of seas, He was Father, wanting each of his children to understand the reason for their existence and how they are to operate on earth. 

God did not have to reach out to us through Scriptures, but He did. He could have let us wander this planet, struggling to figure out life on our own, but he didn’t. He could have left us without instructions, without an understanding of ourselves, without an understanding of Him, but He wouldn’t.

Because He is Father. Because we are His children.

Although the topic is not always light and the conversation is not always easy, He desires to tell each of us about our created design. Like my friend, I can imagine God’s excitement as we open His Scripture and listen to His guidance. I can imagine God cherishing His moment to be Father.

When you sense rumblings, pay attention. From the rumblings come movements that are ready to emerge without prompting. Energy spent drumming up artificial excitement for these movements is not necessary; it is a natural outflow of the people. It is what they want to do. It is their idea. It is their longing.      

Most of the time, we spend energy convincing others to join our movement, embrace our idea. We try to manufacture excitement.  Sometimes, it is best for us to step away from our own thoughts and ideas, and lead the thoughts and ideas of others.  Some of our most effective moments are when we embrace and guide the passion of others.

Keep your ear to the ground. Listen to your people, and uncover opportunities to capitalize on genuine desire. If the desire is strong enough, the unsettled energy will become something far more powerful than a rumble. In that moment, you will be glad you chose to be their guide and lead something that is far greater than yourself.

For many of us, our scars are reminders of dramatic moments in our lives that involved struggle, fear, and opposition. Like any landmark, they are points of reference placed on our body to let us know that something happened and our bodies will never fully restore to their original state.

We are still here, but we are not the same.

The blemish is a thing of marvel. Much like our physical bodies, our life is often filled with scars, some from the decisions we made, some from the ones we didn’t make.

For those of us who have not lived the perfect life and who bear the marks left by past errors, we understand the importance of those marks. One of the beautiful things about a scar is that it is a demonstration of healing. It represents an old wound from which we are no longer suffering. So when we see these imperfections, we look at them with joy of what was but is no longer.

We may always regret some of our past decisions, but we do not have to regret the person we’ve become because of them. God is in the business of healing. If we are willing, he can take those past mistakes and turn them into something beautiful. History reveals this type of supernatural handiwork over and over.   

Today, allow your wounds, your mistakes to heal. They heal when we decide to step away from our errors and make a change. If you’re lucky, a scar will remain. Use those scars as learning experiences, as markers of personal growth, lessons learned and survived.

Researchers are constantly attempting to understand the reasoning behind human decisions. A recent work on consumers explored the influence of a product being “sold out” on purchase behavior. As church leaders try to convey the importance of small group involvement, the findings of this piece may help leaders better present small group options to congregations. Contextualized through the lens of small groups, the results of the study revealed the following:     

The presence of a “sold out” small group may trigger a desire for another, similar option rather than a decision to hold off joining a small group.

Seeing that a particular small group is full may actually increase the choice rate as opposed to using it as an excuse not to join a group. The key to this happening is the availability of another similar option. If you publicize the closing of a group, be prepared to present simultaneously the alternative.

The presence of a “sold out” small group may create a greater sense of urgency to join another group.

If one is full, the next could fill quickly as well. The closed group may create an immediacy effect and encourage those on the fence to take the next step. Again, it is important to have a similar open group available.      

If individuals are not familiar with the small group concept, the presence of a “sold out” small group may increase the attraction of a similar available group.

We often trust the knowledge of those whom we have never met. Though we have never read a page of the bestseller, we pick it up because so many others have read the book. With so many eyes viewing the work, it must be decent at worst. According to the study, the advertising of a group that is at capacity may have the same effect. This cascading of knowledge may increase the attractiveness of a comparable open group.

In sales, the reality of limited time is ever-present. Nobody has an abundance of time to listen to an explanation of your church/organization/mission. If they do have the time, you are probably talking to the wrong person.

For those of us that work in the world of church, the time to tell our story is even more limited. We have all experienced the quick, purposeful shutting down that occurs when we tell individuals about our place of work.

Hence, the elevator pitch.

The elevator pitch is a brief, well-planned, explanation of your church or organization. The term “elevator pitch” originates from the idea that you should be able to understandably explain your church/organization/mission in the time it takes to ride up the elevator.

Here is suggested content for a church leader’s elevator pitch:

1. Your name, position, name of church, and church location: “My name is John Smith, the Adult Pastor at ABC Church located on the corner of 5^th and Green Street.”

2. Something general: “We believe that we are all broken, messed up, and need God to restore us.”

3. Something specific: “We come along side of families to help them become and stay healthy.”

4. Celebratory story relating to the specific: “This week, a couple with three children chose against the divorce they were pursuing.”

5. Invite with service times: “We would love to see you there at our 10:30am service.”

Then, present them with your business card. Some filler will be necessary to appear sane.   

We have the greatest, most critical mission humanity has ever known. Society may not always give us the time to tell our story so when the brief opportunity arises, we must be ready.  

 Floor 2.

Social media continues to be a hot topic among organizations because of its ability reach large audiences with minimal to no cost. With the ongoing attempt for organizations and researchers to understand this new media, statistics continue to abound.

Regarding the anticipated future use of social media, 67% of Millennials agreed with this statement:

By 2020, members of Generation Y (today’s “digital natives”) will continue to be ambient broadcasters who disclose a great deal of personal information in order to stay connected and take advantage of social, economic, and political opportunities. Even as they mature, have families, and take on more significant responsibilities, their enthusiasm for widespread information sharing will carry forward.

From Pew Research Center www.pewresearch.org

• For American 12 years and older, awareness of Twitter has dramatically increased from 5% in 2008 to 87% in 2010. Facebook’s awareness is 88%.
• Twitter still lags behind Facebook in usage. 7% of Americans (17 million) use Twitter. 41% use Facebook.
• Two-thirds of Twitter users access social media with their cell phone.
• 51% of Twitter users follow companies, brands or products on the various social networks

From Edison Research www.edisonresearch.com