Archive for General

Engaging the Future as Leaders and Congregations

by Grady D. King, D.Min Most leaders and congregations know the term “normal” means the future will not be like the past. What it looks like in terms of people in the pew, programs, and mission is uncertain. The loss of regular attendees is a pandemic reality. Empty pews translate to anxiety. If we only […]

Who Are We Called to Be in These Turbulent Times

by Lynn Anderson A Larry McMurtry novel takes us back to the 1870s, where we meet Mr. Brookshire,  standing on the windy streets in Amarillo, Texas. He is a railroad accountant from Brooklyn, New York, and has come west to line up some Texas Rangers to help him catch a train robbers gang. But Brookshire […]

What I’m Learning in HOPE Network

Grady D. King, D. Min grady@hopenetworkministries.org   The call went something like this. Church Leader: “Could you help us find a minister?” Me: Tell me about your church. Church Leader: “We have some good people. We just need the right minister.” Me: Why would a minister with the characteristics you describe want to come? Sounds […]

The Vanguard Principle for Leaders

by Tod K. Vogt, guest contributor from Mission Alive Near the end of the movie The Patriot, in the climactic battle scene between the British forces and the American Continental Army, two leadership styles emerge. British General Lord Cornwallis and his junior commanders sit safely atop their mounts at the rear of the battlefield. Mel […]

The Incredible Potential of Mentoring

by Jim Martin I was a young minister who was eager, passionate, and committed to ministry. I was also keeping a counseling schedule that was intense and demanded long hours. I was seeing people not only from our congregation, but also from other congregations in our community. Afternoons were often difficult and emotionally raw listening […]

Leading from Your “Why”- [What I learned from a TED Talk (part 5)]

This post is a continuation of our posts on a TED Talk.  (part 1, part 2, part 3, part 4) In a 2009 presentation, Simon Sinek spoke on the subject of “How great leaders inspire action.” His talk focused on characteristics of inspiring leaders and organizations and asserted “all the great and inspiring leaders and […]

Change and the Church [What I learned from a TED Talk (part 4)]

This is a continuation of our posts about a TED Talk. (part 1, part 2, part 3) In my experience, this Bell Curve describes what we experience when dealing with change in the church. We can anticipate that half of our members will be open (to some degree) to changes in thinking or action. They […]

The Law of Diffusion of Innovation [What I learned from a TED Talk (part 3)]

This post is a continuation of our previous posts about a TED talk. (part 1, part 2) Simon Sinek, having addressed the idea that “people don’t buy what you do; they buy what you believe,” moves on in his TED talk about inspiring leadership to teach me something else about church. He speaks to the […]

What I Learned about Church from a TED Talk (part 2)

The Golden Circle and Church I suggest most of our churches (and many of our leaders) are perfectly conditioned to be ordinary. We have been trained to “sell” our “product” based on What and How rather than Why. “Hey, we do church right here. Our name is right. Our organizational model is right. We worship […]

What I Learned about Church from a TED Talk (part 1)

In 2009, Simon Sinek spoke to an audience of 50 people on the subject of “How great leaders inspire action.” TED (conferences on Technology, Entertainment, and Design) video-taped the event. From such humble beginnings, Sinek’s speech went on to become the second most-watched presentation on TED.com. If you haven’t see the speech, here’s the link. It’s […]