Leadership Development

Recommended Reading & Resources

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Over the past few months I’ve read a few books and tuned into a couple of podcasts, which I’ve found challenging both in my personal pursuit of  Jesus and in my approach to church planting.  Hopefully you’ll find the following resources helpful too.

BOOKS

Radical: Taking Back Your Faith From the American Dream by David Platt.  This book is as challenging as the title sounds.  After having some time to reflect on this, I believe it’s the most practically challenging and convicting book I’ve read in the past decade.  I realize that much of what David Platt writes does sound very radical- but no more radical than anything Jesus says to would be disciples.  I think every person who is serious about following Jesus and joining His mission to this world should buy and read this book… then ask for the grace to live it out. On a side note: I met David on a trip to S.E. Asia this past October.  I can honestly say after being around him for a few days, that he is the real deal.  That’s why I decided to pick up the book.

The Signature of Jesus by Brennan Manning.  A couple of friends have recommend this author and now I can see why.  He cuts to the heart of who Jesus is and what it means to know and follow Him.   Manning definitely does not come from the “normal” evangelical background  as a former Franciscan priest and recovering alcoholic.  His approach to contemplative spirituality sometimes perplexes me, but I enjoy reading authors who come from a different perspective and challenge my preconceived notion. This quote provides a good glimpse of what’s inside this book: “Littered along the Calvary road will lie the skeletons of our egos, the corpses of our fantasies of control, and the shards of self-righteousness, self-indulgent spirituality, and unfreedom.” (p. 9)

Launching Missional Communities: A Field Guide by Mike Breen and Alex Absalom.  As I began praying through the idea of starting a church that functions as a network of Home Fellowships serving the Burlington community, I knew I was not the first person to have an idea like this.  After doing some research, I discovered these guys who had taken a similar approach in Sheffield, England, with both an established church and a church plant.  If you’re considering a similar approach to ministry and/or church planting, you’ll learn a lot from their experiences and insights.

 

PODCASTS

GodPod by St. Timothy’s Theological Center in London, England.  My brother Brian who’s a Phd student at Cambridge clued me into this podcast.  Every week they address questions from listeners, and they don’t shy away from the challenging or controversial ones.  I don’t always 100% agree with every answer, but they challenge me to think through what I believe and why.  The British accents don’t hurt either- for some reason the Brits just sound more intellectual and witty.

Timothy Keller Podcast – pastor of Redeemer Presbyterian Church in Manhattan.  Keller knows how to exegete the scriptures and understands post-Christian culture.  The proof is not only in his sermons but the impact Redeemer Church is having through church-planting, serving the city, and influencing the Manhattan culture.  I’ve gotten a little tired of  Christian rock-star pseudo scholars asking lots of questions and giving fuzzy convoluted answers.  You won’t get that with Tim Keller.

The Andy Stanley Leadership Podcast– pastor of NorthPoint Community Church in Atlanta, GA.  I think Andy Stanley is one of the best communicators I’ve ever heard and he gets organizational leadership.

 

RANDOM VIDEO

This video has no true spiritual or ministry value.  I just found it funny.  Although I generally don’t make fun of other pastors, I sometimes make exceptions for Joel Osteen and Benny Hinn.  Enjoy!

 

The Core Group: Laying A Strong Foundation

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A few weeks have passed since my last post, so this may be a longer post than usual. Since we first began considering planting a church in Burlington, we’ve prayed that God would place the right core group of people around us. By core group I mean the initial team of people who are committed to taking this church from idea to reality. As we continue moving forward, I can sense God leading us to pray about this with even more urgency.
Hopefully the following thoughts and questions will give you direction on how to best pray…

When we talk about church it’s very easy to think in terms of a building, a strategy or ministry structure, or even the personality of the pastor. When the New Testament speaks of church it is always talking about the people. This is especially relevant when starting a church from scratch. I personally love to strategize, craft a vision, set projected goals, and dream of what could be. These are necessary components of beginning a church, but should never replace investing in a group of people. I’d go so far to say that developing a solid core group could be the most essential aspect of starting a church.

Think of it this way. If scripture refers to the church as a building made of living stones with Jesus as the chief cornerstone (2 Peter 2:4-9), then we can draw two conclusions. #1) Jesus and His gospel need to be central to all that we are and everything we do. Without this cornerstone nothing else matters. #2) Those foundational stones we build on are vital to how the rest of the building is built. The core group formed in the beginning of a church in so many ways determines the culture and DNA of the church as it grows. The core group communicates to others who are connecting to the church and the surrounding community who the church is, who the church is for, and what the church really values. The core group inevitably passes on to others their values, their experiences with God, and their beliefs rooted in the scriptures- remember that discipleship is caught as much as it is taught.

Jim Collins communicates this basic principle in his book “Good to Great.” Although in the following quote he’s talking about corporations and not churches, I think you’ll see the connection:
Most people assume that great bus drivers (read: business leaders) immediately start the journey by announcing to the people on the bus where they’re going—by setting a new direction or by articulating a fresh corporate vision. In fact, leaders of companies that go from good to great start not with “where” but with “who.” They start by getting the right people on the bus, the wrong people off the bus, and the right people in the right seats. And they stick with that discipline—first the people, then the direction—no matter how dire the circumstances.

This idea was around way before Mr. Collins. Take a look at Moses’ prayer in Exodus 33: Moses said to the LORD, “See, you say to me, ‘Bring up this people,’ but you have not let me know whom you will send with me…” Moses already knows he’s responsible for leading the Israelites to the promised land, but he also realizes it’s not a solo job. We see this principle of getting the right people on board throughout scripture: David & his mighty men, Jesus selecting his apostles, and Paul planting churches with a team.

The big questions I/we need to ask then are who are the right people? and correspondingly how do we choose the right people? I don’t have all the answers on this, but I have some additional questions I’m praying through which will hopefully lead to the right answers.

*Am I looking for people who are strong in the areas where I am personally weak? I love art, but I will never be mistaken for an artist. I love getting my hands dirty, but I’m hardly technically or mechanically proficient for anything practical. I’ve learned to do some administration, but get worn down dotting every i and crossing every t. We need artists who can live in the blurry line between sacred and secular, understand how their faith influences their art, and utilize their art to inspire the church. We need behind the scenes servants who care little about the spot light but thrive doing the “dirty work” of hands on ministry. We need organizers who love dealing with the details- the details that no one notices until they’re overlooked.

*Do I value character, maturity, and teachability over talent, ability, and giftedness? I want gifted and talented people to join our group (especially in areas where I’m lacking), so it’s easy to become “wowed” by someone’s exceptional abilities. It’s also easy to miss God given potential lying beneath the surface. Just like the prophet Samuel, God continues to remind me God sees not as man sees, for man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart (1 Samuel 16:7). Although I tend to be fairly intuitive, I need God to develop in me the spiritual radar to pick up on what He is doing in people. I need the capacity to see God-given potential and God’s activity in people’s lives that goes beyond even what they can see in themselves.

*Am I attracting people who bring different perspectives and experiences to the group? It’s very easy to surround myself with a bunch of “yes men” (and women) who see things exactly the way I do. I like it when someone tells me my ideas are perfect with no tweaking needed. Here’s the reality: I need the perspectives and experiences that others bring to the table. The core group’s diversity of perspectives and experiences in some way needs to mirror that of the people we’re trying to reach. I grew up in a white, middle-class, conservative Christian family, where I came to know Jesus at a young age. This is clearly not the experience nor the perspective of the overwhelming majority of people God has called me to serve and reach out to. We need a core group who share the same beliefs, values, and vision and who have also walked in the same shoes as the diversity of people in our community.

*Do I trust God to draw the people He wants to be a part of this core group? If I really believe this is God’s church, then I must remain open to Him drawing people I would not expect and possibly that I wouldn’t naturally choose. He will place the right people, in the right place, at the right time.

Here are a few specifics on how you can pray:

*Sunday, March 13, will mark the launch of our initial Home Fellowship- a big first step in beginning a network of Home Fellowships around Burlington. Three people from the Burlington area have committed to join us on Sundays: a married couple named Brian & Jan and single guy named Steve. Please pray that God would draw others from the surrounding community.

*Matt, Tirzah, and their baby boy Ben in New Jersey are still praying about joining our team as Matt searches for a job. Also, Miles from North Dakota will have an initial test with the Vermont State Police this spring and hopes to move by August. Please pray for God to open the door to the right job at the right time.

*On a personal level please pray that God will continue to surround us with a Christian community here in VT. We not only want but need a spiritual family around us. Please pray that as this spiritual family develops, that God would be our satisfaction and that He would use this time to strengthen our marriage and family.

Moses’ Prayer 4- God’s Presence

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“If your Presence does not go with us, do not send us up from her  here.”

-Exodus 33:15-

As I reread this scripture today, I cannot help but wonder if I sometimes become more passionate about completing the task and accomplishing the mission than about knowing and experiencing Jesus.  Moses realized that the Promised Land (and really any blessing from God) meant absolutely nothing without God’s presence.  Moses only wanted the Promised Land if it was the byproduct of knowing and following God.   I believe the BIG DANGER for me and every church planter is that starting a successful church can become more important than knowing, experiencing, and following Jesus.

The gut level question I must ask is do I really want to know and experience Jesus more than anything?

I’m reminded of some statements by Godly guys from scripture:

David- Psalm 42

1 As a deer pants for flowing streams, so pants my soul for you, O God. 2 My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When shall I come and appear before God?

Isaiah 26

8 In the path of your judgments, O LORD, we wait for you; your name and remembrance are the desire of our soul. 9 My soul yearns for you in the night; my spirit within me earnestly seeks you…

Paul- Philippians  3

8 Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ.

“How will anyone know that you are pleased with me and with your people unless you go with us? What else will distinguish me and your people from all the other people on the face of the earth?”

-Exodus 33:16-

Moses understood that the only thing that set him and the Hebrew people apart was the presence of God.  Whether I’m doing life and ministry in Atlanta, New Brunswick, Burlington, Mexico, Haiti or Indonesia, the only thing that sets me and the people I’m leading apart is the presence of God.  In fact, we can have the most talented people, abundant resources, cutting edge strategy, and even be doing all the right things and without God’s presence it just won’t matter.  It is only as God leads us and works through us that we can become the aroma of Jesus to the world around us (2 Corinthians 4).  It is only as we know, experience, and follow Jesus that we can make an eternal difference where God has placed us.

Here are some specific ways you can pray for us this week:

*Ask God to give me the discipline to guard my daily personal time in prayer and the scriptures as I’m experiencing the busyness of transitioning out of my role in NJ, preparing for Burlington, and just the daily grind of life.

*Ask God to give me a greater hunger to know and experience Him- that He would bring me to the point that He is what I desire more than anything.

*Ask God to give those who are considering joining our church planting team clarity and confidence as they seek to know God and His will.

*Ask God to prepare all those attending our Burlington Vision Trip on June 11-13.  Ask God to give all of us eyes to see what He is doing and wants to do  in Burlington.

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Moses’ Prayer 3- The Path

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Now therefore, if I have found favor in your sight, please show me your ways, that I may know you in order to find favor in you sight.  Consider too that this nation is your people.

Exodus 33:13

As I reread Moses’ prayer today, I am struck with the humility with which Moses asks God to continue revealing His ways.  If anyone had first hand experience of watching God work, it was Moses.  Here are a few examples:

*God speaks to him through a burning bush.

*God uses Moses to prophesy 10 plagues on Egypt.

*God works through Moses to split the Red Sea.

*God gives Moses the 10 Commandments on Mount Sinai.

*God speaks to Moses as a man speaks to a friend.

Moses had seen God do some amazing miracles.  Moses was the first person to read God’s law.  Moses had an incredibly intimate knowledge of God… Yet he prays, “please show me your ways.”

Here are a few lessons from this prayer:

1)Learners make the best leaders.

If Moses realized he had not arrived, then there’s a good chance we have not either.  Throughout scripture and history the best leaders are those who posture themselves as life-long learners.  Solid spiritual leaders continuously lead out of the overflow of what God is teaching them.  The moment I begin leading from my own well of wisdom, that’s a good time to JUMP SHIP and RUN!

2)Keep an open hand with assumptions.

Most of the time our assumptions are based on past experiences and what we see, think, and feel. My experiences from the past 6 years with the Point Church give me an idea of what God can do, but I must realize He is not limited by that.  I must remember that God operates outside of my experiences and my perspective, and He maintains the freedom to surprise me with His activity at any moment.

3)How matters as much as what.

Moses knows the Promised Land is the goal.  He also knows how they get there is important to God.  Embracing pragmatism over scriptural principles is always a temptation, and every time I choose pragmatism over principle I eventually regret it.  Maybe this is because scriptural principles are always pragmatic from an eternal perspective.

4)Scripture trumps everything.

When I make a decision, take a step, or choose a path based on my feelings, the latest greatest human strategy, or popular opinion without filtering it through the lens of scripture, I am basically telling God, “I know more than you.”  Still as I read the Bible, I come across scriptures that seem confusing and just don’t make sense to me.  90% of scripture, though, is incredibly clear and I need to make the decision whether I really believe or not.

If you have not made up your mind before you get started that the scriptures are sufficient, you will sell out. Because it will be the scriptures plus…

Matt Chandler, Pastor- The Village Church

Here are some specific ways you can pray for us this week:

*Pray that I will take on the posture of a learner- teachable to God and other Godly leaders He chooses to place in my life as we move towards Burlington.

*Pray that we will have an open hand with our church planting strategy as we get to know the Burlington community and see more of how God is at work.

*Pray that everything we do (not just church planting) would be rooted in scripture and the Gospel: our marriage, raising Jude, managing our money, serving others around us.

*Pray that God will give us a smooth transition in our last four months here in NJ as I transition out of my pastoral role at the Point,  new leaders step up with the church, we attempt to sell our home, and we prepare for the move to Burlington.

*Pray that God will strengthen mine and Christin’s marriage more and more every day.

Moses’ Prayer 2- The People

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Team “See, you say to me, ‘Bring up this people,’ but you have not let me know whom you will send with me…”

Exodus 33:12a

Moses knew God had called him to lead the people into the promised land, but he also knew he could not do it alone.  Moses is pleading with God, let me know who you will send with me.

I believe as Moses is praying this prayer he remembers his father-in-law, Jethro’s, advice in Exodus 18:18-27. Jethro sees Moses trying to lead all the people by himself and says,  What you are doing is not good.  You and the people will wear yourselves out, for the thing is too heavy for you.  You are not able to do it alone.  His father-in-law wisely knew Moses needed a team of capable, trustworthy, Godly leaders around him.

We see this pattern throughout scripture.  King David had his mighty men.  Jesus had his 12 disciples.  Paul always had a team of people involved in his missionary journeys and church planting ventures.

This idea of needing others can be tough sometimes.  If you are a church planter or know a church planter, you know we tend to be an independent, renegade, stubborn bunch.  I’m no exception.  If it wasn’t for God’s intervention I’d probably try to be a one man team (and a not very effective one either).

When I was 22 years old, fresh out of college, New Canaan Baptist Church offered me a job as their Youth Minister.  Initially I had this idea that I could be this amazing one man show for Jesus.  During that first year God did some amazing things.  We saw unchurched students embracing Jesus as Lord and Savior.  The youth ministry was growing numerically at a fast pace.  Only one problem: at the end of the first year I was about to have a nervous breakdown- I was hitting the wall.  Why?  Because although God had led me to become a youth minister, although He had given me a big vision for our community, although God was doing amazing things all around me,  I also realized I did not have what it took on my own.  I needed a team around me.  A team with people who were strong in the areas I was weak.  A team who would pray with me, encourage me, and hold me accountable.  A team who wasn’t afraid to get their hands dirty in doing real ministry.  A team who had this same sense of mission and calling from God .

Since that moment I have never attempted to lead a ministry without a team.  I cannot have imagined starting the Point in New Brunswick without our team of servant-hearted leaders, and I know I will equally need a team for this new work in Burlington.

Here some specific ways you can pray for us this week:

*Two couples and two single adults from the Point Church and one family from the Toronto area (yep I mean Canada) are prayerfully considering moving their lives to Burlington.  Pray that God would give each of them clarity concerning what He is leading them to do.

*Pray for Matt & Tirzah, one of the couples, who are expecting their first child any day now.  Also pray that God will provide Matt with an engineering job near Burlington in the near future.

*Ask that God would raise up more “workers for the harvest” to join our team in Burlington.  People who are committed to Jesus, who understand Vermont’s progressive culture, and share the same sense of mission and calling God has given to us.

*Ask God to provide financial partners, both churches and individuals, who will support this new church in Burlington during it’s crucial beginning phase as it gets off the ground.

Moses’ Prayer 1-

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“See, you say to me, ‘Bring up this people,’ but you have not let me know whom you will send with me.  Yet you have said, ‘I know you by name, and you have found favor in my sight.’  Now therefore, if I have found favor in your sight, please show me you ways, that I may know you in order to find favor in your sight.  Consider too that this nation is your people.”

Exodus 33:12-13

Many times when I’m not sure how to pray, I’ll take a look at specific prayers of people in the Bible.  I figure that’s always a solid place to start.  One of the prayers that God leads me back to over and over again is a prayer by Moses in Exodus 33.

God has given Moses a mandate to lead the people of Israel into the promised land, which was no small task.  They were a ragtag group of former slaves with no real military experience who were on their way to take over the land of Canaan (a.k.a. the promised land).  They also had a penchant for doing the wrong thing at the wrong time.  Exhibit A would be building a golden calf to worship and engaging in all kinds of immorality as Moses is up on Mount Sinai receiving the Ten Commandments.  I imagine they were breaking each commandment just as God was writing them with his finger on the stone tablets.  It is just after the golden calf incident that Moses prayers this desperate prayer in Exodus 33:12-13:

Moses said to the Lord, “See, you say to me, ‘Bring up this people,’ but you have not let me know whom you will send with me.  Yet you have said, ‘I know you by name, and you have found favor in my sight.’  Now therefore, if I have found favor in your sight, please show me you ways, that I may know you in order to find favor in your sight.  Consider too that this nation is your people.”

It’s pretty obvious from this prayer that Moses knows he is in over his head.  In fact, if you read through the Old Testament book of Exodus you’ll see that as Moses seeks to follow God and responds to what God is doing, he is constantly finding himself in over his head.  God keeps bringing this guy back to a place of desperation and dependence.  I believe if we take a step back and look at the narrative of scripture, or at people throughout history that God has used in significant ways, or even at our own lives, we’ll see this pattern: God keeps bringing those who desire to be used by Him back to a place of desperation and dependence.

Although this is far from exhaustive, here are a few of my opinions on “WHY?”

1)Most of the time we’re in over our heads and we just don’t know it.  Unless God puts us in situations that are obviously too big for us, we can quickly think we have it all together with our jobs, school, friendships, ministries, and marriages.  Think about it: when was the last time you desperately prayed for God to move in a significant way  at your work place, through your friendships, in your marriage, in your church, or simply to use you to make a major impact in the world around you?  Just to be clear- the idea that we have everything under control and that we have it all together is just an illusion anyway.

2)When God does significant things in and through our lives, we can unwittingly move towards arrogance and a sense of entitlement.  If we are not careful we can develop a mindset that we deserve God moving in our lives and somehow He owes it to us.  The journey of faith can quickly become more about God responding to us, our dreams, and our desires rather than us responding to His will and His activity.  We reduce God’s role in our lives to nothing more than a Genie in a bottle who is waiting to fulfill our wishes.  Is that really the kind of God we want to know, worship, and follow?  I certainly hope God and His plans are bigger and better than the bottle I try to confine Him to.

3)If we cease to be desperate for and dependent on God, we miss experiencing the one thing in the universe that is most valuable and satisfying.  Nothing compares to knowing God and experiencing Him working in and through our lives- NOTHING!

I believe Pastor John Piper has made this point much better than I ever could hope to. These quotes from him have challenged me to the point of tears:

“Woe to us if we get our satisfaction from the food in the kitchen and the TV in the den and the sex in the bedroom with an occasional tribute to the cement blocks in the basement! God wills to be displayed and known and loved and cherished and worshiped.”

“If you don’t feel strong desires for the manifestation of the glory of God, it is not because you have drunk deeply and are satisfied. It is because you have nibbled so long at the table of the world. Your soul is stuffed with small things, and there is no room for the great.”

“The critical question for our generation—and for every generation— is this: If you could have heaven, with no sickness, and with all the friends you ever had on earth, and all the food you ever liked, and all the leisure activities you ever enjoyed, and all the natural beauties you ever saw, all the physical pleasures you ever tasted, and no human conflict or any natural disasters, could you be satisfied with heaven, if Christ were not there? ”

As Christin, Jude, and I move towards Burlington, it’s easy for me to realize God is placing us once again “in over our heads.”  I know I don’t have what it takes ad that I desperately need Him.  May God give me that same sense of desperation and dependence on Him in my marriage and family, with my temporary part-time gig at the Census Bureau, in my ministry here in New Brunswick, and with the opportunities that are all around me every day to impact the world for Him.

May God bring us all back to a place of desperation and dependence.

THIS WEEK please pray for us as we travel to the Exponential Conference in Orlando, Florida. This is the largest church planting conference in the nation.  Please pray God will use this week to better strengthen and equip us for the journey ahead.