The Intersection of Mission and Market

No, this does not refer to an actual street corner in Spokane but to a merging of two components that have historically been kept apart – business and ministry. This story takes place in Portland, OR where I had the opportunity to sit down with Ryan Saari, a staff member of the Eastside Foursquare Church. What prompted our face-to-face was the surprising discovery that the motel my wife and I were staying in was owned by the church. I was intrigued. How does a non-profit run a for-profit business? How did they come up with the capital to invest in this property? What impact are they having on the community through this venture? Ryan agreed to meet with me at the Sacred Grounds coffee shop – also operated by the church. If you have read much of my blog you know that I am a strong cheerleader for Next Generation leaders. Ryan is one such leader and it was great to meet him and hear about the Eastside story and what God has in store for Ryan down the road.

A few years ago Eastside was looking for a location for their church and they came across this rundown motel that was for sale. They ran the numbers and determined that this would make a great location for their church and the motel could be a viable business operation for them. In order to operate the motel they had to form a for-profit LLC. The LLC pours it earnings back into the property and gives away the rest to ministries that the church is connected to – a rehab center that operates on the campus and a family shelter. The motel operation provides an income stream to ministries that generate little or no income themselves. This is the intersection of Mission and Market. A successful market (the motel) the supports mission (the church, rehab center, and shelter). It sounds pretty simple. It is. But it wasn't easy.

When the church approached their denomination for financial backing for the project they were turned down. No surprise here. Denominations are not in the habit of supporting marketplace ventures and are among the most conservative investors. So the church found financial backing from private investors. Later, when the motel was operating successfully the denomination backed the project. It took some time for the motel to turn a profit, though. The place looked like a crime scene from CSI. The majority of the rentals were hourly. This was not a place that most travelers would choose to stay. So Eastside poured money and energy into an amazing top-to-bottom transformation complete with pillow-top mattresses, granite slab tub surrounds, and granite counter tops. My wife and I stayed there for six nights recently and found it to be perhaps the quietest and most comfortable motel we've ever stayed in. It was exceptionally clean and the staff was extremely friendly and helpful. The motel has affiliated with the Choice hotel corporation operating as a Quality Inn and a Rodeway Inn. (The remodeling of the Rodeway side is not yet completed and so the room rates are a bit less.) They also operate a small conference center converting the space that the church uses into meeting rooms and banquet facilities catered through their on-site coffee shop operation.

As Ryan described it, the church was looking for a 7-day relationship with the community. They are so much more than a steeple on the corner where people can enter and partake in services on Sunday at 11. This is a church that very literally has their door open and their lights on 24-7. The model has been so positive for them that Ryan is making plans to plant another church in Portland in the next year that will also intersect mission and market. That's another story for another time!

The Move Has Commenced!

I am moving my blog to another site where I will be posting all new content as of today. Eventually I will move all previous posts there. Make note of the new location: secondchair.wordpress.com  See you there!

The Ultimate Small Group – pt. 1

Over the years I have attended and even led several different small groups. While most of them were good experiences there were some that just didn't meet up to expectations or the group members just never really jelled into a group. With the cumulative effect of those group experiences I think I can speak with some first-hand authority of what a typical church small group looks like and what an ideal small group should look like. The typical small group asks only three things of its members.


First a typical small group asks that group members attend – usually every other week. And that's a huge mistake because every other week is not really frequent enough for you to connect with others in the group. If you happen to miss a week or the group gets cancelled one week, then it can be four weeks – or more – between meetings. A group that meets only once a month begins to feel and function like a committee – not a small group. In order for there to be any sense of closeness, that group is now going to have to meet for several months – essentially meeting over a period that is 2-3 times longer than a weekly group – for group members to connect.


Beyond attending there is little else for group members to do. Some level of consistent attendance is seen as the best we can hope for in a typical group. There is no shared leadership, or shared responsibility for hosting. Beyond those two roles (host and leader) the only role left is to attend. Why is that a problem? The clearest reason is that if there is not shared leadership then there is not shared ownership. And without shared ownership there is a weaker commitment on the part of the attenders to even show up.

In part 2 of this series I will identify the next item that a typical small group asks of its members but I'd like to hear from you. How often does your small group meet? How does that work for you?

FEARLESS – A Review

Max Lucado is such a prolific author that we might understand if he had just wanted to "phone-in" his latest book by writing on a simple subject. Instead, Lucado tackles a tough issue that is common to all of us - fear. It might be fear of not mattering, fear of violence, or fear of facing overwhelming challenges but we've all been there – we're all there – at one time or another. Lucado writes in his classic story-telling manner addressing the reality of fear with both clarity and understanding. Woven through the narrative you will find the generous application of God's Word to each of fourteen different fears. This combination contributes to a powerful book that will challenge the way you view both life and death. It will help settle your anxiety over the future and even your doubts of God's existence.  Fearless opens by declaring that Jesus' most frequent command is some form of "do not fear."

On p. 13 Lucado writes, "Fear may fill our world, but it doesn't have to fill our hearts. It will always knock on the door. Just don't invite it in for dinner, and for heaven's sake don't offer it a bed for the night. Let's embolden our hearts with a select number of Jesus' "do not fear" statements. The promise of Christ and the contention of this book are simple: we can fear less tomorrow than we do today."
 In chapter 10 Lucado makes a strong case for a healthy (read: biblical) view of death and challenges us to face death not with fear, but with courage. It is a chapter worth reading more than once.

I have read many of Lucado's books and would consider Fearless to be among his very best. I am especially pleased with the discussion guide included in the book. While some of Lucado's previous books fell short when being used for small groups, I look forward to using Fearless as a small group study. Fearless should be on everyone's reading list.

Guide To The Almost Perfect Marriage – A Review

Rick Burgess and Bubba Bussey are a pair of very funny men. In their latest book, "Rick & Bubba's Guide to the Almost Perfect Marriage" they tell numerous stories about married life that will make you smile and even laugh out loud! You may even see yourself in these pages. Written in a 'Readers Digest" format with short chapters it is an easy book – especially for men – to have handy in certain rooms of the house when there is an urgent need for reading material. If you are looking a light-hearted commentary on the state of marriage be sure to pick up a copy. If you're looking for something that will help you wrestle with some of the struggles in your marriage and find helpful solutions for those struggles, then this is probably not going to be helpful. So throw a copy in your briefcase for your next flight or give as a birthday of Father's Day gift to the men in your life. Just don't expect it to unlock any of the secrets to living that almost nearly perfect marriage.

Facebook Trends

Like the rest of the world, the use of Facebook and Twitter has exploded at our church - and its spreading through all age groups. We have formed group pages for several of our key ministries and for our church. We are finding that targeted communication to the members of these group pages is much more effective than a general email announcement. (Maybe email is becoming the same as bulletin or pulpit announcements and being filtered out by most?) Among the staff I am probably the most active Facebook user and so recently I began to notice some trends that we needed to talk about with our volunteers.

For reasons I don't fully understand, it is clear that many people who use the internet think that their activity there is completely private - or at least limited to a handful of people. So they post comments that are somewhat questionable and crude. Things like: abbreviations for four-letter-word-filled phrases; quiz results that reveal a darker or even sinful side of themselves; suggestive videos; or embarrassing photos of other people. We can't (and don't want to) monitor the activity of those who attend our church but we do want to provide some guidelines for safe and sane use of social media sites by those who provide ministry through our church - especially when they have minors as friends & followers.

Here's a working list of suggestions:

[1] As a ministry leader you are strongly encouraged to post only those items to Facebook, Twitter, or your blog that you would willingly say to the entire church. Ephesians 4.28,29

[2] As a ministry leader it is generally  inappropriate for you to initiate a friend request with a minor. It may be appropriate to accept a friend request from minor if you have a ministry relationship with them.

[3] The creation of any Our Savior’s Baptist related Facebook groups should be done in a format that does not permit the general public from viewing the group page. Membership in the group page should be on an approval basis by the page administrator.
[4] Married ministry leaders should give their spouses full access to email, text messages, and social media sites. 

[5] Photos of minors (under age 18) who are part of our ministries should be posted only to the appropriate Facebook group and not to your own wall.
[6] Leaders should refrain from tagging minors in photos.

[7] Ministry leaders & volunteers should refrain from publishing the results of quizzes that are questionable.

[8] Ministry leaders & volunteers should refrain from using common abbreviations for foul language.

[9] Ministry leaders and volunteers should refrain from posting comments that are critical of Our Savior's members, leadership, ministries, or other leaders/volunteers. Philippians 4.13
[10] Be smart!

These guidelines are not yet in their final form. I would appreciate your feedback or suggestions of how they might be improved.

A NextGeneration Leader

One of the reasons I am on Twitter is for the opportunity to follow Next Generation leaders. I appreciate what they have to see and I enjoy learning from them. Because of them I have great hope for the church.

Recently, I had an opportunity to work with a Next Generation leader over several days. This was not your typical ministry project - it was a bathroom remodel! Jordan is 25. I'm more than twice Jordan's age. It was his house. I've known Jordan for about 4 years. He married my daughter. This was the first time I had worked on an extended project with him and I had a great time. In this situation I entered with the most experience when it comes to installing ceramic tile. Jordan has quite a bit of experience and skill with plumbing, construction, and electrical. He's a welder by trade. So while I came into the project with age and experience on my side it was Jordan who was the lead. The way we approached the project was his call and I was working (volunteering) for him.

I was amazed at how quickly Jordan became comfortable working with tile. He was able to shape pieces and make special cuts using a hand-held grinder - something I've never attempted. He was able to visualize the completed project and take the steps to get us there - even bricking in a glass-block window. I know that this is one guy that I would want on my team whenever tackling another project - whether its a remodel project or not.

Jordan is representative to me of so many Next Generation leaders who love Jesus, love their wives, and love ministering to others. It is great to find myself in the company of these men (and women) who are leading the way for the church of today and tomorrow and are willing to share their ideas and skills with those of us who've been around a little longer. I'm grateful that I have the opportunity to learn from them.

If you are a NextGeneration leader how well do you work with those who've been leading a while? Do you invite them to join the team? Include them in the process? Value their experience? Are you learning from them? If you're a current leader are you sharing leadership with the next generation? Do you value their ideas and perspective? Are you learning from them?

We have much to learn from one another in life and in ministry. Me? I'd like to learn how to shape pieces of tile with a hand-held grinder!

Are You GAP Insurance?

Okay, so I was one of the 250,000 people who bankrupted the CARS program in the first 4 days! I traded in my '01 Kia Sportage (avg 18 mpg) for an '09 Chevy HHR (avg 32 mpg) and with the CARS program and GM rebates I shaved more than $8,000 off the price of a new car. If you've ever sat in a new-car showroom you know the uncomfortable and even distasteful drill of having to dance with the salesman about the final pricing and then deal with the finance guy. His job is to get you to pay more - much more - for the car than you were planning on. It start with an extended warranty (which I can get elsewhere for half!), moves on to a complete protection package on the interior and exterior of the vehicle, and finishes up with an offer for GAP insurance. The basic idea behind GAP insurance is that this additional coverage will bridge the gap between what your car is worth and what you sill owe on it should it become 'totaled' in an accident. It's not a bad idea. What is a bad idea is buying this coverage from the dealer for $300 when you can get it added to your auto insurance policy for something like $2/mo!

Second chair leaders are in the business of providing GAP insurance for their first-chair leaders. Often we are called upon to fill-in or stand-in-the-gap between what needs to get done and our first-chair leader's ability to accomplish that task. Sometimes we act as a shield or buffer to protect our first-chair leaders from things that might derail them. When we get good as second-chair leaders we can see the gaps and fill them in before others notice them and often before our first-chair leader is even aware of them.

I encourage you to serve your first-chair leader today by being his or her GAP insurance. One word of caution: don't expect that what you are doing will get noticed. Your behind-the-scenes ministry will rarely become headline news. Be satisfied in the success of your first-chair leader knowing that his success makes your church or organization healthier, stronger, and more effective!

My Civic Duty

Thinking about getting another car - a Chevy HHR. The car I have runs fine. It's a 2001 Kia Sportage with 141,000 miles. Here's the deal. That's pretty much several thousand miles beyond the life expectancy of the Kia. My wife and I tend to hang on to our cars several years so we get our money's worth. We've gotten our money's worth out of the Kia but it's going to be a little hard to see it go. We drove from Spokane to Minneapolis in that car. Used it to take our only child to college and logged a ton of trips between Spokane and Seattle before we moved from the former to the latter. But now - in an act of patriotism - I am thinking about turning the Kia over to the federal government to have it destroyed as a gas guzzler. Contrary to appearances it only averages 18 mpg. In return for my sacrifice, my country will knock $4,500 off the price of a new car. In talking to a local Chevy dealer (I mean, I should buy American, right?) they will take another $3,500 off the price of the car for a total reduction of $8,000! That's more than 30% off the price of a new car. I want to do the right thing to stir the economy and show my loyalty to my country, so I'm willing to say good-bye to my foreign-made import and drive off in a new American made car - for the right price! And this new car gets over 35 mpg, comes with a new 100k warranty and 12 mo of On-Star. Now, we just wait for the official announcement from Joe Biden on July 29. Just thinking that this is change even I can believe in!

The Amazing Kindle

Amazon announced this week that they are lowering the price on their new Kindle2 for $359 to $299. That's good news for those of you considering adding this amazing book reader to your gadget collection (bad news for all of us who shelled out the $359!). I've enjoyed my Kindle for several months now so I'm okay with the price cut if it means more people will purchase a Kindle. After several months of using the Kindle book reader I'm ready to comment on its pros and cons.

Pros

First is the coolness of being able to read hundreds of books on a slim device that weighs only 10.3 ounces. It boggles the mind to think that this little hunk of metal and plastic could hold my entire library.

Second is the convenience of being able to tote around dozens of books. Gone are the days of packing 2-3 books in my carry-on for the outbound flight and having 2-3 others in my checked luggage for the return trip. I can flip between multiple books because the Kindle always remembers what page I was on. I brought my Kindle to a baseball game recently and my wife used it to read an entire novel while I enjoyed the game. Bonus!

Third is the correct price-point for purchasing books. Most are just $9.99. Some are more, lots are less and with over 300,000 books available I seem to be able to purchase any book I want (expect for John Grisham, what's up with that?).

Fourth are the many features built in to the Kindle including the always connected 'WhisperNet" that allows me to purchase books directly from the Kindle. No more being tied to my laptop and a Wifi connection. I also like the text-to-speech feature although I haven't used it myself except to demonstrate it to others. The variable font size is nice, too. If you know someone with limited vision the combination of these two features may re-open the door to reading books for them. That's pretty cool. You can download music to listen to while you read and you can download or send yourself text documents.

Fifth is the ease of reading. Since the screen emits no light eye strain is reduced and you can easily read the Kindle outside – even in bright light. This feature also is kinder to the battery which in turn means extended use between charges of 1-2 weeks.

Cons

The Kindle is a book reader – not a mini-computer. It has certain limitations. One is that it is not easy to jump around within a book. If you're following a sermon with the Kindle you can read along a passage but if you are directed to another book to read 1-2 verses you'll never get there in time. A Bible edition may be available that allows for quicker navigation but I haven't seen it yet. Another limitation is that you have no idea which page you are so you cannot reference a specific page number while leading a group discussion or teaching a class. You get a percentage bar across the bottom of the page that tells you how far along you are in the book but having corresponding page numbers would be nice.

Another con is that it might just be too thin! It feels a little fragile even though it is not but the thinness can make holding it over long periods a little fatiguing on the thumbs.

I would have to include the fact that its sleekness also makes it pretty slippery! A little non-skid material on the back would permit the reader to place the Kindle on your knee.

Some people have mentioned that they think they will miss the smell of a book and actually turning pages. I think these are pros! Musty old books are cool to look at but who knows where that book has been and where the stain on those pages came from? With the Kindle there are no more paper cuts or losing your place. Hopefully, the next generation Kindle will have a color touch-screen. I will probably buy one of those, too! All that said, I really like my Kindle. It is so easy to use and so convenient that I am reading more. I would recommend the Kindle to anyone who likes to read.

Doing It Right the First Time

Have you ever regretted not doing the "right thing" the first time? You change course because you think there might be a better way, an easier way, a cheaper way? We bought our current home almost two years ago. We had two rooms (dining room and master bedroom) that had wallpaper across the bottom 3 ft of the rooms with a chair rail and a wallpaper border above that. Before we painted these two rooms we sprayed texture over the wallpaper in the dining room but at the last minute chose not to do so in the bedroom. Instead, I stuccoed over the border and painted the stucco and wallpaper white and painted the rest of the walls a different color. The first color didn't work so well so I repainted it. Now, more than a year later I am removing the stucco by scraping off the paint and sanding down the stucco in attempt to re-create the image of the room. Our plan? To have the texture guy come back and spray over the old wallpaper so that I can paint the walls (floor to ceiling) yet another color!

This is one of those projects where we might be tempted to ask, "Why didn't we just do this in the beginning? Why didn't we stick to our original plan and just do the right thing?" Could the same question be asked of your spiritual journey? Perhaps you heard about Jesus when you were younger - maybe even attended church growing up. But then you got a bit older, began to have some questions (or maybe you were just bored with church?) and had a great idea to try another way - an easier way. This easier way eliminated church, eliminated the Bible, and likely even eliminated Jesus for a "religion" of your own creation. In your own way you repeated what the ancient Israelites did early in their history. "

In those days Israel had no king; all the people did whatever seemed right in their own eyes. Judges 21.25

We would like to think that we can live and worship any way we choose - and to a certain extent that is true - but we are mistaken if we think that it doesn't matter how we live and worship. God is holy and will not tolerate the worship of other gods. When we finally recognize the truth in that we endure quite a bit of scraping of the painted facade of pride and confidence and the sanding down of the stucco of self-will and arrogance.

Why can't we see this in the beginning? Why must we - like the ancient Israelites - go through a process of following God, turning from God, and then returning to God? For some of us this process is necessary for us to humbly recognize the joy of following Jesus and serving him. It's the battle of submitting our will to his. Somehow we just think that we can mold ourselves into a better person than God can so why bother worshiping him at all?

While I'm scraping down stucco I will be thinking about the bumps and high spots in my life that God is smoothing off. Sometimes painful, often stubbornly resistant, I know that the end result in my life (and with my painting project) will be worth it as he re-creates in me the image of his Son. And I will have to admit, it would have been easier to do it right the first time.

A Good Friend

Today I had the privilege of spending the afternoon at a Twins baseball game with Jay Kendall. I first met Jay at Bethel College in the late 70's. We volunteered at Trout Lake Camp together, went to the same church, even went on a spring break road trip to Florida together with a third guy named Tom Zdrazil. It was Jay that nudged me to ask Julie out on our first date. Just 370 days later, Julie and I were married on Bethel's campus and Jay was one of our groomsmen. That was 30 years ago. While Jay has stayed pretty close to the Twin Cities, Julie and I have roamed the country. We lived in Missouri, Massachusetts, Idaho, and Washington state (with a few stops in Minnesota mixed in along the way). With all of that roaming it was easy to lose touch with friends like Jay, always thinking that you'd be back in town some day and would catch up then. But 5 years turns to 15, and 15 years turns to 25. Jay and I have talked and handful of times over those years - usually at events on Bethel's campus that I had returned for. We had recently 'friended' each other on Facebook and 'followed' each other on Twitter and had begun to slowly catch up on each other's lives. Today was different. With the pastoral backdrop of a Twins-Indians baseball matinee at the Dome we talked about our wives, our kids, our work, and what God has been teaching us recently. Jay and I talked about what it's been like for me to sit in the second chair and asked me what God has taught me there. I had the joy of telling him about the great staff team that I get to serve with and the developing trust and partnership that I enjoy with my 'first chair' boss. We've lived very different lives and have pursued very different interests but Jay and I both worship the same God. We both want to grow in our faith and obedience to Jesus. We both want to be the best dads and husbands we can. When Jay dropped me at my car at Bethel we stopped to pray for one another - thankful for the way our paths had crossed through the years and had brought us together for a few hours on a classic Minnesota summer afternoon. In many ways it was if we were still students on Bethel's campus and that the conversation had not taken breaks of several years. I'm grateful for the technology that spurred our reunion but am even more grateful for enduring friendships. Today I was reminded of the value of a good friend.

The Noticer – A Book Review

As a book review blogger for Thomas Nelson I get to read a variety of books that I might not otherwise read. The Noticer was one book I had heard of but knew very little about. This was my first read by Andy Andrews but it won't be my last! He has a great ability to teach good life-transforming principles through the vehicle of fiction. The main character is a mysterious and charismatic older man named "Moses." He has a knack for appearing at just the right moment to speak truth into people's lives in a loving but surgical manner that cuts to the heart of the matter. I was especially gripped by the description of how Nobel Prize winner Norman Bourlag's hybridization of corn and wheat for arid climates has saved an estimated 2 billion people! But, Jones asks, should he really get all the credit? Perhaps Vice President Henry Wallace should have shared in the honor. Then again, maybe George Washington Carver or a farmer named Moses from Diamond, MO should have. What do these people have in common? For that, you will have to read the book yourself! I recommend this book to people of all ages who are wrestling with issues of personal significance, marital conflict, worry, finances, answers to life's questions, etc., in other words: everyone!

She Still Calls Me Daddy – Book Review

As the father of an adult married daughter I was eager to read this follow-up by Wolgemuth of his earlier book – She Calls Me Daddy. With my daughter I did some of the pre-marital counseling, gave her away, and conducted the ceremony! It's often difficult for Dad's to give their 'princess' away to a young man who is practically a stranger! The potential exists for there to be tension, conflict, and misunderstanding. I greatly appreciated Wolgemuth's willingness to tackle these potential relational landmines between dad's and their married daughters and son-in-laws with clarity and humor. Chapter 6 "Discipline: The Hard Work of Letting Go" was especially helpful to me. It caused me to examine whether or not the gifts we give them come with strings attached. Most Dads will see themselves on these pages. You might wipe away a tear or two. You will definitely laugh – especially as the author describes Christmas in his childhood home!

I plan to have all of my "Dad's with daughters" colleagues read this book as their daughters draw ever closer to marriage. I no sooner finished the last page when my wife began to read the book for herself. She suggested that it might be good for our son-in-law to read it, too, so that he might gain some insight into the father-daughter relationship.

(I am a member of Thomas Nelson’s Book Review Blogger program: http://brb.thomasnelson.com/)

Face of Betrayal – A Review

Lis Wiehl's first attempt at fiction scores big with "Face of Betrayal" which is part 'Charlie's Angels' and part public service announcement woven together into a dramatic murder mystery storyline. Using three women (whose friendships with each other are somewhat complicated) to solve a complex mystery, Wiehl keeps you guessing throughout the story. The senator? The homeless man? The childhood friend? Wiehl refreshingly selected Portland, OR as the location for her political murder mystery. Anyone familiar with Portland will recognize the locations and neighborhoods depicted in this great NW city. Perhaps there will be a whole series created based on these characters and on Portland. I read it on my Kindle2 with my wife reading it over my shoulder and then recommended it to a flight attendant! If you like John Grisham, Vince Flynn, or Margaret Truman you will enjoy Lis Wiehl's contribution to the murder-mystery genre.

The Hole In Our Gospel

The Hole In Our Gospel, (2009, Thomas Nelson) is a compelling call to Christ-followers to see the gospel as more than a just theological reality that paves the way for believers to be reconciled to God, but as a very real presence in our lives that calls us to respond to the needs of some of the most vulnerable around the globe. Stearns writes, "More and more, our view of the gospel has been narrowed to a simple transaction, marked by checking a box on a bingo card at some prayer breakfast, registering a decision for Christ, or coming forward during an altar call. It was about saving as many people from hell as possible – for the next life. It minimized any concern for those same people in this life." (p. 17). He sets forth the purpose for his book on p. 20: "Those words from the Lord's Prayer 'Your kingdom come, your will be done on earth, as it is in heaven' were and are a clarion call to Jesus' followers not just to proclaim the good news but to be the good news, here and now (Matt. 6.10). This gospel – the whole gospel – means much more than the personal salvation of individuals. It means a social revolution."

Stearns uses his own story to effectively challenge us and convince us of our own privilege and responsibility with the whole Gospel. In reference to Matt 25.40, Stearns states, "We learn that Christ's criterion for determining the authenticity of someone's profession to follow Him is whether or not he or she tangibly cared for those in need. And now we are told that when we do care for them, we are actually caring for Christ Himself – His identity merged with the least and the last. There is no "whole gospel' without compassion and justice shown to the poor. It's that simple." (p. 60).

Before I read The Hole in Our Gospel I shared my copy with Rev. Russell Baustian, a retired pastor who lives in Florida (and is my father-in-law). When I asked him what he thought of Stearn's book he replied, "I hated it! It's the worst book I've ever read! I've never been so convicted!" Within a few days this pastor of modest means had sent a check for a water filtration system being installed by Campus Crusade for a people he would never meet.

You might be tempted to think that this is just another call for the Christ-followers to give their money to relief organizations like World Vision. If that's what you think, you're mistaken. Stearn's challenges the church and those who follow Jesus to go beyond their support of social and economic causes, to do more than simply adding a few dollars to the offering plate, or even go on another missions trip. He challenges us to make a seismic shift in the way we think about our money, our possessions, and our priorities. "If we're in God's game, we need to put the American dream to death, because God's game is a different game altogether." (P. 209)

The Hole In Our Gospel is not an easy book to read but it is a book that should be read by all who seek to follow Jesus fully.

Ghost Twitterers

I sit on the board for Converge Worldwide (BGC). In the past month I have participated in a church planters assessment team, a board meeting, final interviews for five potential missionary candidates, and attended the ground-breaking for the new Converge/Vision 360 ministry training center in Orlando. In each of those situations I have had some exciting conversations with men and women who are following Jesus with abandon and who want to join with what God is already doing in our world through his people. These are exciting days!

Since I do not hold a leadership position on this board I have an opportunity to develop even more 'second chair' leadership skills. For example, I have noticed a reduction in communication between the board's leadership and board members the past six months. I first raised the matter with a friend who is part of the executive committee of the board hoping to catch up on what has been going on during a significant period of historic transition. To my surprise he knew nothing more than I did. So next I emailed one of our key leaders and followed up with him in person. I suggested a number of communication vehicles to address the perceived lack of communication. There can be passive communication through our website - even through a password-protected page for board members if there are sensitive items not ready for public consumption. More active pieces might include a periodic email (what organization doesn't have an e-newsletter these days?), a leadership blog, or even a Facebook page.

I lobbied pretty hard for Facebook and Twitter accounts for the president and other key leaders. Most of the next-generation leaders in our movement live on Facebook and Twitter. I already follow several of them and appreciate the training and mentoring I am receiving. The ability for these next-generation leaders to hear from the current leaders of our movement through FB & Twitter would begin to connect them more fully to the mission God has given us.

As a second chair leader you might find that an effective form of communicaiton between your key leader and those in your organization is through FB and Twitter. You may also find that your key leader is not inclined to agree and very likely would not use these social networking tools to their best advantage. That's where we come in. As second chair leaders we can become 'ghost twitterers' for our key leaders maintaining their status and friends/followers lists for them. It's not that difficult since we have lots of first-hand communication with them already that we could adapt for FB & Twitter.

Communication vehicles are changing rapidly. While we still have some people in our churches who do not own cell phones or have email accounts, we have others who communicate solely through their Blackberry or i phones. The challenge for us as second chair leaders is to is to find - and USE - all of the communication vehicles available to us to enhance the effectiveness of our key leader and the Gospel which we serve.

A Good Question

My second chair role is a little different than most. My title is: Associate Pastor of Ministry Development. My charge is to "make all ministries better!" The great thing about my position is that it is very broad and undefined. The bad thing about my position is that it is very broad and undefined! Techinally, I am not responsible for any specific area of ministry but am to work as a coach or consultant with several different ministry team leaders helping them to improve their ministry effectiveness. The challenge comes in helping to shape these ministries while not actually being in charge of any of them. How do I (and my boss) evaluate my effectiveness? Am I to identify areas that could be improved? Present models for more effective ministries? Persuade leaders to embrace these models? Or is it enough just to try? I mean, we are a volunteer organization. What if the the head usher believes his team is doing well and doesn't need to change? Or the small group leaders just say "no" to the Activate model we are shifting toward (see the April 6 post)?

My sr. pastor and I had an interesting conversation the other day. Along with my duties I lead a small group, teach a class on Sundays, and lead a men's small group during the week. My sr. asked me if those activities (specifically the men's group) were the "best use of my time?" It was a good question. I like teaching and as a pastor I should be teaching - shouldn't I? Does leading these classes/groups maximize my ability to fulfill my charge? Here's the dilema: Can I be an effective second chair leader without a "public" ministry? Every other staff member has a group of people they lead and stand before at least weekly - especially on Sunday mornings. Why should I be any different? Is it enough for me to coach our greeter/ushers/welcome desk people for our three services making sure that everyone is equipped and prepared to care for visitors and guests, that our space is expanded between services, and that the offerings are securely placed in the safe?

At my ordination years ago I used Ephesians 4.12 as my charge for ministry: "...to equip God’s people to do his work and build up the church, the body of Christ." My second chair role is ideal for fulfilling this charge to equip others for minstry. So part of the answer to my sr.'s question is to detemine whether or not those specific groups that I lead are actually "equipping" others to do the ministry of the church. If they are studies unto themselves, probably not. If they are specifially designed to train and equip then there is a greater likelihood that they would contribute to my specific calling.

I appreciate that my sr. is watching out for me. He's trying to protect me from falling into a trap of busynesss that may not produce the spiritual results that the church and I desire to see. I would appreciate your input as I take time to evaluate my ministry activities -not to determine their value, but to determine if they are allowing for maximum impact for the ministries of the church.

The Second Chair

I enjoy sitting in the second chair! It allows me to use my gifts and skills to help my organization (a church) fulfill it's mission in our community. In my unique role I am charged with helping all of our ministries to be more effective so that means that I perform a variety of tasks with a lot of different groups and individuals with the goal that my involvement will be a positive experience. Mostly it is, but sometimes its not. That should come as no surprise since most of what I do is to tweak, nudge, change - even eliminate - various ministries and programs.

I like to read and so staying current in these varied areas allows me to read pretty broadly. I've been reading some church management and structure stuff (Simple Church, Purpose Driven Church, Activate, Fusion, Becoming a Healthy Church, etc.) and quite a bit of spiritual formation stuff (Sacred Marriage, God Is The Gospel, Authentic Faith, Beautiful Fight, Don't Waste Your Life). I've been doing some thinking on how to synchronize these varied subjects in our ministries but I'm not yet ready to draw any profound conclusions. My current read on my Kindle2 is Missional Renaissance by Reggie McNeal. It is my sense that once I finish that my thinking may become clearer. The challenge in the second chair will be the ability to introduce this change to those who make the final decisions.

Over the past several months I have been working to introduce a new approach to small groups as outlined in Nelson Searcy's book Activate. After nearly six months of presentation, discussion, sharing of resources, etc. I have now been given the green light to implement the model this Fall. It has been a longer process that I imagined but not really very difficult. The difficulty will come over the next several months as we move from design to implentation! But I appreciate the opportunity to read and conduct the research for these changes. I'm grateful that the leadership here values my involvement in that research, too.

As one who has made a career of sitting in the second chair I know well the challenges and limits of leading from this position. It's often much more about relationship than position. Building that level of trust and influence takes time. The more I can demonstrate that I am fully supportive of the leadership and the team with which I serve, the more likely it is that I will be invited to implement change and lead from the second chair.