Exploring the good news of the kingdom of God
I’ve been thinking about leadership a lot lately.
It’s probably because of the uncertainty in my life, as well as the uncertainty of what lies ahead for my church.
My wife and I just sold our home in the suburbs and moved into the heart of downtown in one of the largest cities in the country. We are also in the process of trying to buy a building downtown for my office and shifting the focus of my law practice. Continue reading “One Trait All Great Leaders Have”
I’ve had the unusual opportunity to have done church from both sides of the pulpit.
A few years ago, our church was left without a pastor and I became responsible for the preaching every Sunday and leading the church.
It was an incredible experience, which I do not care to repeat but will never regret either. I learned why churches grow and why they fail.
I learned that the success of a church has a lot less to do with a pastor’s so-called “anointing” than his leadership.
I learned to see churches from a pastor’s perspective, a perspective I now realize far too few churchgoers understand.
There was an ad in the 1990s where Dallas Cowboys owner, Jerry Jones, watches Deion Sanders make a spectacular play and Jones turns to the camera and says, “Hot dang! If I had 11 men like that I could rule the world!”
If your pastor is a leader and has a vision for the church, he’s wishing he had a church full of Deion Sanders. Here’s three traits he is looking for in you: Continue reading “3 Traits Your Pastor Wants You To Have”
This is the time of year for New Year’s resolutions.
While personal improvement is always a good thing, one of the goals of GSB is to help people become better Kingdom citizens.
Each of the five habits listed below will help make a believer a more productive member of the kingdom of God.
Here are the five habits, in no particular order:
1. Spend time daily with the Lord. Without spending time daily in prayer and reading the Bible there is no success in the kingdom of God. Make this the year it becomes a habit in your life. If you don’t know how to start, read this post.
I try to read at least 50 books per year.
That may seem like a lot, but I’ve read that Teddy Roosevelt read 250 books per year, which makes me feel pretty lame since I’m sure he was pretty busy being President and all.
I read because I want to be better at my job, have a greater influence for the kingdom of God and be a better leader.
Over the years I’ve learned some tricks on how to read a lot of books, which I’ve shared here.
Currently, I’m preparing for a trip to Europe (which I’ll announce here soon) during which I intend to blog daily in the form of a travel journal, as I’ve done here before on trips to Israel, the Black Sea, and the National Prayer Breakfast.
Also, I’m always trying to improve my skills as a trial attorney, and I’m currently thinking through with my pastor and our leadership team how our young church can better incorporate into our church culture Jesus’ mandate that we make disciples. Continue reading “What I’m Reading (July 9, 2012)”
Leadership is essential to the progress of the kingdom of God.
And reading is essential to leading.
I used to read serially, that is, I wouldn’t start a new book until I finished the one I was reading. Not smart.
One of the secrets to reading quickly is reading with interest. When you read many books at once, it’s easier to pick up one you are interested in and make progress. You can always come back later to a book when your interest is piqued again on that subject.
With that in mind, here’s what’s currently on my bedside table–or more likely–on my iPad. Continue reading “What I’m Reading”