Monthly Archives

March 2015

Life The Church

Effective Habits for Developing Leaders

Posted on March 30, 2015

One of the very first decisions I made when I became a leader was I did not want to stop growing.  John Maxwell once said, ” Leadership is influence,” and that, “everything rises and falls on leadership.”  A lot of times within the ‘church world,’ we focus our attention on the spiritual or character development of a leader.  Now, these areas are quite important and I am not trying to negate them, but, sometimes we overlook some of the more practical aspects of leadership, namely effective habits.

Often times leaders are not born, they are developed and I want to share a couple of practical, effective habits I believe every developing leader should have.  I have compiled them in no specific order.

1.  Personal Reading

this is an effective habit which can increase insight, knowledge and understanding

2.  Prayer Life

you position yourself to hear from God.  You gain fresh insight and revelation

3.  People Awareness

be aware of the world around you

be aware of what others are going through as they may need you to point them to Christ

4.  A Continuation of Learning | Developing

as a leader it is important to continue to grow

5.  Accountability

develop authentic relationships

develop prayer partners

allow others to speak into your life

6.  Meeting with a Mentor

you gain a different perspective

someone who will listen to you

7.  Journal

you can track your progress

write about what you believe God is calling you to do

These are just a few of the effective habits that every developing leader should develop.  What would you add to the list?

Life

Creating a Culture of Generosity

Posted on March 27, 2015

Would you consider yourself as someone who is generous? Do you know many people who are generous? When you her the word generous, what are some of the first few thoughts which come into your mind? I have been reading through the book of Acts and I am blown away by the generosity of these people. Listen to what Acts 2:42-47 says:

42 All the believers devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching, and to fellowship, and to sharing in meals (including the Lord’s Supper, and to prayer.

43 A deep sense of awe came over them all, and the apostles performed many miraculous signs and wonders. 44 And all the believers met together in one place and shared everything they had. 45 They sold their property and possessions and shared the money with those in need. 46 They worshiped together at the Temple each day, met in homes for the Lord’s Supper, and shared their meals with great joy and generosity47 all the while praising God and enjoying the goodwill of all the people. And each day the Lord added to their fellowship those who were being saved.

We live in a culture which embodies the opposite; selfish, it is all about me, only the strong survive, taking care of me and so on and so on. One of the forgotten virtues is generosity. After contemplating these verses and observing the state of our culture, I begin to wonder if we could ever get back to a culture of radical generosity and if so, how would this be accomplished?

It begins with you and it begins with me. If I want to see radical generosity in operation, then it will need to begin when I am generous with my words, my time, my finances and giftings. May the ‘generosity revolution’ begin…

Blog

Reading

Posted on March 26, 2015

At the beginning of the year I set a goal to read 12 books in 2015. This would mean 1 book per month. Years ago, I hated to read! I had absolutely no interest in reading. It was painful. Then one day I picked up a book and it has been hard ever since then to put books down. I am a bit of a snob when it comes to what genre I will read. I don’t read fiction and have not yet been that interested in reading autobiographies – maybe one day.

Currently I am not reading anything as I got off to a pretty good start to 2015 and my goal of reading 12 books. Here is a list of books I have read thus far.

Circle Maker – Mark Batterson
Manhood Restored – Eric Mason
Mingling Of Souls – Matt Chandler
Barefoot Church – Brandon Hatmaker
To Live IS Christ – Matt Chandler

What are you reading right now? Do you have any suggestions for me?

Life

Best Places Online To Find Free Photos

Posted on March 25, 2015

Over the past year or so, I have been gathering intel on where to find free photos to use on my site. I use many of these images this site, for our church website and on Sunday mornings in our worship experiences. It has been a long, and difficult task, but I believe I have found some of the best sites to use. I know there are many more out there and I will continue the search. For now here are the ones I use on a daily basis. I hope you find these helpful.

Unsplash

Unsplash-Header

Jay Mantri

Jay-Mantri-Header

Magdeleine

Hand-picked free photos for your inspiration - Magdeleine - Page 1 2014-10-19 16-48-38

What sites do you use for photos?

Family Life

Being A Parent

Posted on March 24, 2015

I have been reflecting a lot on my parenting skills, or should I say the lack there of. Don’t get me wrong, I love my kids and know that I am not a horrible dad, but I recognize some areas I need to become better in.

None of my kids came with an instruction manual. Each are very different and have their own way of doing things. This is my first challenge. I need to understand and act as if my kids are not robots. I cannot lump them all into the same pile. I have to understand their needs, ways of communicating, interests, and ultimately, the rhythm of their hearts.

Some of the areas I need to improve as a dad are:

More patience

Stop being so selfish

Time: I need to spend more time with them individually

Lower my expectations: I expect way to much from them at such a young age.

These are a few of the areas I need to improve in. I know it is going to take time to make the necessary changes, but I am committed to the process. In the coming weeks I will be sharing more on the process and what I am specifically doing to make the necessary changes.

What, if any changes do you need to make in your life as a parent?