This election season has kicked the snot out of me. One thing that I’m hopeful for come the 4th is the hope that regardless of who wins this November… maybe, just maybe…
… Rolling Stone will get back to covering music. I know I’m asking for a lot but I really hope that they will.
Well, all my teens officially go back to school this week. Some started last week, most went back today, and some head off tomorrow. It was an incredible summer and I am so thankful to God for keeping us safe but also for making sure we never got comfortable. It was a big summer for our group and I loved every second of it.
With the start of this school year I am entering into my fifth year of full-time ministry. I can’t believe it. Five years.
I am excited about what God has in store for me but I am also humbled knowing that many never make it this far.
To be honest, there is no other place I want to be than in full-time ministry.
So here we go. Year Five.
Thank you Father for letting me work with your children. Guide me, strengthen me, mold me into your servant. Give me wisdom and discernment. Help me finish my race strong. Thank you Father. Thank you.
I’m out of pocket this week while we are on our mission trip in Kentucky. I thought a good idea for posting this week would be to share with you some of my favorite passages from the different books sitting on my desk. It is in these passages where I found myself being hooked by the ideas and concepts contained within their pages.
I hope that these quick takes will encourage you and connect with you in some way this week. Enjoy.
Today’s passage comes from chapter 1 of Deadly Viper Character Assassins by Mike Foster & Jud Wilhite
Emerson wrote, “The force of character is cumulative.” We need leaders to slip into the rhythm of making right choices. Imagine character just naturally flowing from you because you have trained and disciplined your mind, body, and soul. Choosing honor, nobility, and the good can become extentions of who we are. We reject the small-minded-ineffectual approach of those who focus simply on specific bad behaviors and miss the lifestyle approach. All of us want to get to the point where living with integrity is as simple as clubbing baby seals over the melon (BTW, we love baby seals so don’t miss our point)
You can get good at this if you want to, but ultimately it’s your choice. It will come with a cost, and there will be a sacrifice. You can treat this like all those other “nice thoughts” or “leadership concepts” you’ve heard from well meaning folks, or you can train your mind, body and soul to flow with integrity.
Get the audiobook for FREE: Deadly Viper Character Assassins Audiobook
Session IV: The Leadership Challenge
When Jud started at Central they were an older, declining congregation. So the leadership…
1) Reevaluated their vision
2) Tweaked programs to strengthen and reach anew
3) Reviewed/Reworked strategies
4) Rewired for growth
Old Core vs. New Core– at about year 3 there were roughly two groups. The (smaller) old core of people who were stuck on doing things the old ways (memorial/monument) and a new core of people who had caught the vision. This caused a bit of stress and problems as the old core fought to retain power and it did a number on the overall health of the church.
During this time Jud learned some things about leadership.
1) Lead yourself because no one else will. Jud was at lunch with one of his mentors and he was complaining and stressing over the situations surrounding him. the mentor stopped eating looked at him and said, “Grow up! If you can’t learn to lead yourself than you don’t deserve to lead.” Boom.
Question: Are you leading yourself well?
2) Lead with a Team– know your strengths; know your weaknesses. Have the humility to discern between the two.
Don’t lead with jealousy
3) Structure for growth more than control– as a program grows it becomes harder for one person to control it
4) Structure for effectiveness more than excellence
5) Don’t overestimate the event; don’t underestimate the process
God’s method of accountability:
Event thinking- “Wow! The event was awesome! We made all sorst of contacts, the numbers were out the roof!” Then the next week your numbers are lower. Nothing lasting happens.
Process thinking– The process of connecting, leading, challenging is long term
The event is a good short term opportunity but don’t overestimate its effectiveness
6) The Blessing of Financial Constraint
Constraint is a blessing. It causes you to simplify, trust, build faith
Houdini principle- When his life was on the line he absolutely had to figure a way out
7) The Summit is a State of Mind- “There is no there there.”
If we could just reach _____________ then we will have arrived. You get there and feel like you still haven’t arrived. There is no there there.
The Leadership Challenge Q&A
As you become larger your small groups become more important. Identify the next step —> ask for a commitment
Move beyond using the word “Volunteer”- Disney: Cast Member Starbucks: Partners
use language like “make an impact” “make a difference”
I’m on my way back home after a great conference. It was truly a blessing to be here at Unplugged over the last two days. I dreamed much and learned even more. Definitely a big win! Over the coming weeks as I process the conference I’ll post my thoughts here.
I wish everyone a great weekend. I’m on the road again starting… tomorrow(!!!!) so continue to keep me in your prayers.
Blessings to you and yours.
Felker
It was quite the weekend here at Casa de Felker. I hit up a concert VIP-style, I wogged a 5k, spent the evenings with my beautiful wife, and reached a milestone with my online relationships. For more on each of these events keep reading.
RUSH Concert
I have never considered myself a fan of RUSH before but I have enjoyed and appreciated their music in the past. This concert was incredible. It is hard to believe that three people could put out that level of sound. Their musicianship, stage presence, and visuals were outstanding. Perhaps my favorite part of the night was when the South Park kids (as “Lil’ Rush”) introduced the song “Tom Sawyer” on the video screen. Hilarious!!! I got the VIP hook up from a friend at church and was able to enjoy the second half of the concert from the VIP box. It was a great concert and and great night. Except…
Race for the Cure
I shouldn’t have stood for three hours at the concert because I had the Race for the Cure bright and early on Saturday morning. This was my very first 5k and although the main goal was to just finish I was able to finish just under my target time. I lost a few minutes of time waiting on the portajohn and i wasted some time maneuvering around moms and their strollers but all in all I finished strong. I can’t wait for my next race!
501
Today I added my 501st friend on Facebook. This is kind of a big deal for me as I have personally met every one of the people listed as my friends (even Dave Ramsey). This is a pretty big milestone and I appreciate everyone of you who have added me as your friend. If you haven’t added me as your friend please drop me a message on Facebook. I was going to offer a prize for my 500th friend but the number snuck up on me and I wasn’t prepared. Maybe I’ll have something planned for the 550th. 🙂
Hope you have a great week!
I have been sick for the last 3 days. I spent most of yesterday holed up in bed and today I plan to do more of the same.
I hate being sick. I feel like I’m wasting precious minutes and hours doing nothing. Being sick isn’t productive. It’s anti-productive.
It is tough to understand but taking time to just stop and catch my breath (between bouts of hacking my head off) is what brings health and healing.
I’m heading back to sleep now. I’ve got my cough-drops, I’ve taken my Robitussin (yummy), and that Tylenol is about to kick in.
Have a great weekend everyone. Get some rest and stay healthy.
Peace.
Everyone loves to dabble in the fine art of Name Dropping every once in a while. It makes us feel cool, it gives us a story to tell, and because it is a little naughty we feel like we’ve walked the social etiquette tightrope and lived to tell about it.
I too like to name drop. I am by nature a story teller and usually when I’ve run into a minor celebrity or personally talked with someone who is well known I love to “wow” people with the circumstances of my brush with greatness.
Let me tell you about a better form of name dropping.
The form of name dropping I want to talk about has nothing to do with building up your own ego but has everything to do with building up others. In this crazy holiday season this form of name dropping will impact the world around you in subtle yet rewarding ways.
I’m talking about saying hello to retail workers by name when you check out or leave a business.
Every employee at Best Buy, Starbucks, McDonald’s, the local grocery store, Wal-Mart, Target, and you name it wears a name tag with their name on it. These people work long hours for very little pay and for even less thanks. It doesn’t take anything away from you to say, “Have a great day, Bruce!” as you leave the store.
I picked up this habit back in college and I find myself doing it almost everyday. Today I said thank you Latesia at Taco Bell. She paused from her work, stood there with a wide smile, and breathed a sigh that said, “Holy crap! Someone talked to me and said MY NAME!!!” She chirped, “You’re welcome!” back at me but I was satisfied with that wordless look she had given me. I knew she was thankful/grateful that someone acknowledged her.
So, take this form of name dropping for a test drive this holiday season. Get out of your comfort zone and be willing to be different from the hundreds of other people who file through the checkout lines unaware of the people scanning their items. See how many smiles you get. Count the number of astonished looks. Make a difference by saying hello to someone.
Be a Name Dropper.
I was able to preach this morning for our main service. My message was on Transformation. Of course it gave me an excuse to talk about Transformers and Optimus Prime but I really talked about how we need to move from Christian theory and into Christian living.
We are called to know and understand the Gospel but if we stop there then we’ve failed. We too often forget that we are to obey. Like my golf game, I need to work on my spiritual follow through.
My parents came over to see me preach and they took us out for some Southwestern Chicken Tacos (my fave) at On the Border.
Then it was home for a quick Sunday coma nap.
We had a great night with the teens during our teen worship time, Catalyst, and enjoyed a great dinner together of grilled cheese and sweet tea.
Today was a good day.
I wish everyone a great week.
Peace,
Micheal