I have spent a lot of time the last few days in one-on-one interviews with staff members from a church I work with in Canada.  I have been consulting with this church for the last couple of years and have passed a lot of these staff members in the hallway.  We have exchanged the expected cordial greetings. I have been in ministry meetings with some of them.  But I didn’t really know them.... more

I want those who know me best to respect me most.  OUCH.  Would the people who know me best (wife, kids, friends, church staff) have the most respect for me?  I started thinking about this issue of respect for those of us who lead in ministry and about 3 respect busters. 

Respect is a big deal to me.  I am so blessed to have a wife who has always affirmed her respect for me.  I can’t begin to tell you how life-giving that is.  Through the years as a pastor, the most consistent message I have given to wives is this…”Your husband can do without a lot of things, but the ONE thing he cannot do without is RESPECT.”  If you want to crush a man’s spirit just let him know that you don’t respect him.  

But the flip side of this issue is that we must live and lead in such a way that we warrant respect. Read More>>

I recently talked with a pastor of a large church who was concerned that his staff was losing their passion for people.  He feared that they were spending more and more time in front of a computer screen and less and less time in front of a person.

I’m sure Aaron must have struggled with this just like we do.  I’m sure there were days when he came to the church, put on his breastpiece, carried out his ministry assignment… but his own heart was far from the people.  I am sure there were days when he just went through the motions. I’m sure there were times he felt the breastplate was cumbersome, heavy, even a nuisance.  Surely he could get the job done faster and more efficiently if he wasn’t wearing the breastplate. Read more >>>

I love this obscure passage tucked away in the Old Testament book of Exodus.  It is a vivid picture of God’s heart toward people.  It is the picture of a very personal God who puts a high premium on people.  God wants to make sure the priests never disconnect serving God from serving people. I really believe these two verses from Exodus 28 are a challenge to all of us who lead in ministry.

In the past few days I read a book called The Divine Commodity by Skye Jethani.  Apart from the content, I mostly wanted to read a book by a guy with such a great name.  But the content is compelling.  Don’t read it if you don’t want to be a little uncomfortable with the way we’ve been doing church the last 25 years. Read More>>