My friend Brook Brotzman calls it “The Art of the Hang.” If you get together with people who will challenge or encourage you, you’ll discover there’s no better way to spend your time. If you just hang with leaders who care about your ministry, your ministry will be better for it.
Read MoreEven though I have been leading in some form or fashion in the church for the last twenty years, I still am a very young leader with a lot to learn from other leaders. For a couple of years now it has been a desire of mine to start a podcast simply called, Learning To Lead. I have had a desire for it to be a podcast where I find and interview leaders from the church, business, corporate, and anywhere leadership is displayed and find out what makes them great leaders.
Read MoreAs I announced in this space two weeks ago, we talked about racism at church Sunday. People who haven’t been in church for awhile came to see what we would say, and more than one of them told me afterwards, “A church like this is the church I want to be a part of.”
Longtime members said the same. “Thanks for today. I want to be part of a church that addresses issues like this one.”
It was a stake-in-the-ground day not only for Christ’s Church, but for THE church. Too many congregations are looking away or accepting the status quo, staying silent about the problem of racism.
Summertime is the favorite time for visiting the amusement park you love. But you likely do NOT love one thing about the experience: the lines at the attractions.
You see the giant sign over the entrance to the coaster you want to ride. The thrill seems only a few feet away. And then you walk into the holding area and discover the winding maze of shuffling patrons sluggishly zig-zagging through a long path toward the fun you paid good money to enjoy. You know it’ll be awhile before you get there. The well-run parks post signs telling you how long it will be: “One hour from this point in the line.” They’ve become expert at rigging nylon barriers to keep the masses orderly for a lingering, lengthy wait.
Read MoreI remember the first time a biracial couple visited the small church where I grew up. Everybody there that day noticed, in a “you don’t belong here” sort of way. I felt uneasy for those two then. And today, many years later, I’m still troubled by the lack of diversity in many local churches.
I realized very quickly that I was growing up in a church bubble. The people in my church looked like me, thought like me, dressed like me, shared the same values and preferences. We were comfortable inside our white, middle-class boundary.
But today I’m not comfortable.
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