A young man who attends our church is seeking a leadership degree. Recently he interviewed me for a paper he was required to write. I ask his permission and decided to share my answers here.
What type of leadership do you mostly exhibit?
The leader should paint the vision, hire the right people, and then release them to do their job. I try to get out of the way of people who are doing good work.
Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective. James 5:16
I look good online. I appear to be all the things I’m not. Here’s the truth you need to know:
Charles Stone is an author and pastor. He serves as the senior pastor of Ginger Creek Community Church in the Chicago suburbs. Charles is full of wisdom and loves investing in other pastors. You can follow him on Twitter HERE.
In addition to the interview today, I’m giving away three (3) copies of his newest book, 5 Ministry Killers and How to Defeat Them. This book focuses on how to overcome pastoral burnout, frustration, and depression to be able to fully serve Christ, their families and, their churches. Pastor Charles Stone uses his thirty years in the ministry to identify five potent killers in pastors’ lives and shows how to defeat them to regain the hope and enthusiasm they once had for ministry.
I had been eagerly reading the account of Moses and the Israelites on their journey to the promised land. God had provided for them each step of the way. Each morning they had their manna (bread), and in the evening they were provided quail. Now, I know that manna is a crisp and sweet tasting flaky bread type food, because the Bible tells me so.
But, what is an omer?
I knew that this pastor frequented a local diner every morning, so I decided at least once a week that it would become my first stop each day. Over time, we formed a friendship, he began to trust me, and, most importantly, he began to share his broken heart with me. He became one of my dearest friends.
My pastor friend passed away about six months into our relationship. I still think of him and his absence with a heavy heart. I miss him. I will never forget the last months of our friendship and how he consistently told me that God had sent me to him. He was so appreciative of our time together.
Michael Hyatt is one of the best leaders I know. I have had the privilege of getting to know Michael personally over the last couple of years, having met him first through Twitter. What I have come to understand is that Michael is the same online as he is in person. Michael is the C.E.O. of a successful organization (Thomas Nelson is the largest Christian publisher), he is extremely accessible and transparent through his online involvement, and he is a model husband and father. When I think of a well-balanced leader, I think of Michael Hyatt.
We are in a new series at Grace Community Church called Outsiders, looking at some characters in the Bible who aren’t as well known as other characters, yet who made huge impacts to the Kingdom. Yesterday I spoke about the disciple Thomas. Though some know him as Doubting Thomas, I prefer the title I have also heard by which I’ve also heard him referred, Thomas the Believer. In this message, I address the bottom line that doubts are not the major problem for a believer, unbelief is. Ultimately we must go from doubts to a solid foundation of faith; that God is who He says He is and will do what is best in our life.
Recently the staff at Grace Community Church talked through conflict and its benefit for us. Sometimes an organization can become too polite with each other and conflict is avoided or ignored in an effort to protect the relationship or to avoid the tension conflict creates. Other times one person tends to control a situation without allowing other people’s input, either for selfish reasons or to keep conflict from developing. The problem with these approaches is that some of the best ideas are never implemented because we don’t push through the messiness of conflict to get to the right answers.
Our children have become media junkies. The Kaiser Family Foundation recently released a study of children ages 8 to 18, which found, not surprisingly, that they are consuming a astounding amount of media entertainment each day. Children now consume an average of 7 ½ hours per day or 52 ½ hours per week of media saturation.
Daily media consumption of U.S. children:
Scripture is clear, however, that the role of a believer is to consider the interest of others, even before we consider our own. Paul writes, “Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves.†(Philippians 2:3…emphasis mine)
It’s hard to lead others when you are getting your butt kicked. (Excuse the word, but I think it is needed here if that is how you are feeling.) When your world is crashing in around you, you’ll be less prepared to lead well.
Recently, actually in the same week, I had a statement made to me and a question asked of me that made me stop and reflect. Does that ever happen to you? Can one word or phrase someone says jump out at you and challenge you to think about your life for a moment?
Whenever a discussion about leadership comes up in conversation, someone is always going to bring up the name John Maxwell. Maxwell, who is a trained and experienced pastor who passionately loves Christ and Kingdom work, has also greatly impacted the secular world with his leadership principles.
Nate asked me an important question this weekend. He asked, “When and how did you become disciplined in spiritual growth?†That’s a great question. I wish I could say I was most excellently disciplined, but I’m not…just disciplined. I wonder though if some of you may be equal curious as to the answers to this question.
Our discussion centered with the fact that we need to see our closeness to God as more of a relationship than a religion. In religion, we have a list to check and complete, but in a relationship, we wrestle through the highs and lows of various degrees of intimacy. When we treat the relationship as something of value, we are more likely to intentionally work to protect and develop the relationship.
