Leader Development

Squared off to Bunt (part four)

I was in Memphis one snowy morning recently. A CRM teammate we affectionately call “Hound Doggie” and I were designing curriculum for the upcoming reFOCUS:Atlanta conference when his cell phone rang. “Hi Honey… OK… Are you OK? Are the kids OK? Don’t worry about a thing. Stay put and I’ll be there in ten minutes.” […]

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Squared off to Bunt (part two)

This is the 50th blog entry on distinctions I often make in coaching. For close to a decade, it’s been my privilege to coach pastors, primarily. Invariably, our conversations center on leadership. And, because of the inseparable link between the two: on character. Pastors who lead well do so because of who they are. Who

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Squared off to Bunt (part one)

In some sectors of the church today there’s great momentum, clarity of mission, risk-taking experimentation, courageous leadership, and fresh reliance on the Holy Spirit for direction, empowering, and transformation. Churches are breaking out of the attractional paradigm and are moving their ministry focus off their facilities and into the community where those who need Christ

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Which Will? (part three)

We’re examining destiny. You have one. Waiting for you. As Buber says, you must pursue it with your whole being, not knowing where it waits. You have a ‘great will’ that wants to live a noble, heroic, God-honoring, and history-impacting life. And, you have a ‘little will’ that above all desires to: Look good.  Feel

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Which Will? (part one)

No book has been so confounding to me and, at the same time, so powerfully influential as Martin Buber’s I and Thou.  Large chunks of the book, clumsily translated from Buber’s original German, for me are indecipherable. Then, like a flash of lightning, a paragraph or a page will suddenly illuminate the sorry condition of

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The Long View (part three)

How does a minister develop tenacity … particularly when the surrounding culture is increasingly committed to relieving tension—in the short run—without regard to the long term consequences? Tenacity is defined as the capacity to stick—like super glue—to one’s commitments.  The word comes from the Latin tenere which means “to hold”. In a culture that, over the

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The Invitation (part four)

The concept we’re examining is being an invitation. Everyone you’ve ever met is an invitation. So are you. For pastors and Christian influencers it’s a great advantage to determine: what is the invitation that you will be, from now on. In other words, what do you intend to invite? The clearer you are, the more

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The Invitation (part three)

We’re looking at distinctions employed coaching pastors and Christian influencers.  I hope coaches find these helpful with their clients. Pastors read this blog to more effectively lead those God’s entrusted to them. So, whether you’re a pastor, a coach to leaders, or both, this is for you. Christian ministers have a tricky leadership challenge. With

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The Invitation (part two)

I’ve invited you to consider that, regardless of your personality, you are an invitation. All day every day, you invite … something. To discover what you invite, notice what keeps coming your way. Why would you want to know?  If you’re not intentional about it, you’re likely inviting what you don’t even want. I coach

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The Invitation (part one)

Have you noticed that some people consistently attract what they don’t want?  Maybe it’s true for you, too. It’s as if you’re wearing one of those sandwich boards — visible to others, but not to you.  And, the distinction between what you invite and what you want may be subtle. Years ago I attended a

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