Thom S. Rainer's Blog, page 400
October 13, 2011
Who Is Your Favorite College Football Team?
It's time to take a break from the more somber topics to one of my favorite pastimes: college football. Many of you know that I'm a big Alabama Crimson Tide fan. I work with several Tennessee fans on my hallway. But we also have a Clemson fan, a Nebraska fan, and an LSU fan. The LSU dude is convinced that the Tigers will beat the Tide and, ultimately, win the national championship.
Here's the deal. Tell me your favorite college football team and why you like that team. I will look at your comments and judge the best one by 10:00 PM CDT tonight. The winning entry will get any book of your choosing (up to $50) mailed to you.
I promise that I will not give preferential treatment to Bama entries. I will let you know which entry I chose and why.
Feel free to give trash talk (within reason) to others.
You can comment more than once.
Time is short, so sound off with your favorite team now.
October 12, 2011
Twelve Questions for Leaders
I am fascinated by the topic of leadership. Obviously, I am not alone because the quantity of books, conferences, and other resources on leadership is abundant. There are times, though, that I need to simplify some of the material into a few reminders. In this context, I have framed them as questions.
What then are some of the most important questions leaders can ask of themselves? Allow me to suggest twelve.
1. Am I spending sufficient time in prayer to be the kind of leader God wants to be?
2. Am I spending sufficient time in the Bible so that God's Word frames all that I do?
3. Am I a leader first in my family?
4. Do I seek to walk with humility in my daily leadership?
5. Do I seek the best for others and give credit to others?
6. Am I continual learner?
7. Do I seek wisdom from others?
8. Am I a better leader than I was one year ago? Five years ago?
9. If I am not the right leader for where I am now, am I willing to step aside?
10. Am I willing to admit my mistakes?
11. Do I attempt to learn the world and culture better in which I lead?
12. Am I willing to make tough and courageous decisions?
These are some of the questions I ask myself regularly. The list is far from exhaustive, but they are critical to my leadership. I wish I could say that I always have good answers for each question. Unfortunately, I fall short too many times.
What questions are important to you as a leader? Let me know.
October 10, 2011
Closing the Back Door in Churches: Four Keys
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I had an extended conversation with a pastor of a church this past week. The topic was not that different from those I've had with church leaders for nearly twenty-five years. The pastor's words were similar to those I've heard repeated hundreds of times: "We have a pretty good front door with a healthy number of guests. And we've had a steady increase in our number of new members. Our problem is really not the front door; it's the back door. If we could just keep a fourth of all those who become involved in our church for a few months or more, we would be triple our size."
He then asked the questions I was anticipating: "So how do we close the back door? What do we do to keep people from leaving our church or just becoming inactive?"
The Trend
I wish had sufficient historical data to know when the trend began. All I know is that every year for the past quarter century, assimilation rates in American congregations have been poor. For example, in the largest Protestant denomination in America, the Southern Baptist Convention, the reported membership is over 16 million. The realistic membership is around 12 million, and the average weekly attendance is 7 million. So the largest denomination cannot account for four million of its members. Less than half of the members attend on a given week. And millions more have been lost who are no longer on the membership rolls.
And that's the report of just one denomination.
Of course, aggregate numbers of denominations are nothing more than the sum of the local congregations. The problem of the open back door is endemic to hundreds of thousands of churches.
The Solution
In our research of thousands of churches, we have found four common characteristics of congregations that have effective assimilation by almost any metric. But these churches that have effectively closed the back door are few in number, suggesting that the solution is easier said than done. Look at the four keys to effective assimilation. They are obviously not mutually exclusive.
Key #1: Membership high expectations. More is expected of members in high assimilation churches. Church discipline is more likely to be exercised in these churches as well. These churches typically have required entry point or membership classes. Becoming a part of these congregations is more than completing a card or walking an aisle. Members are expected to be involved and stay involved.
Key #2: Small group involvement. A concerted effort is made to get members and attendees involved in small groups. The form of the group may be a Sunday school class, a home group, or a small group meeting elsewhere. The key is to get people connected to others, typically in weekly groups. The majority of small groups study the Bible or biblically related material.
Key #3: Ministry/missons involvement. High assimilation churches encourage people to be involved in ministry. A few even require ministry involvement prior to accepting someone into membership. Members who are involved in missions and ministry feel connected to the church. The Millennial generation, those born between 1980 and 2000, will not likely stay with a church at all if they are not involved in the ministries and missions of the church.
Key #4: Relational connections. In any organization, people stay connected more to other people than the organization itself. We are relational creatures. Local congregations are no exceptions. People are more likely to stay connected to the church if they have developed meaningful friendships and relationships with others in the church.
The Practice
If these four keys are the solution to assimilation problems, why do relatively few churches practice them? Simply stated, the solutions require hard work. Often getting people in the front door is easier than keeping them from leaving through the back door.
Also, many churches have established traditions of low expectations. Changing almost anything, particularly expectations of members, can be a challenge. Members who came into the church with low expectations often resist the change. Their desired comfort is greater than their concern for the overall health of the congregation.
Our most recent research indicates that the American population as a whole is not resistant to visiting a church. The potential for an open front door is good. The greater challenge may be closing the backdoor.
And that challenge can only be met if congregations are fundamentally willing to change their attitude of "we've never done it that way before."
October 7, 2011
HindSight (October 7, 2011)
October 5, 2011
Courageous. A Movie. A Movement.
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I had the opportunity to view the movie Courageous a few times before it opened in theaters across the country. I was not alone in sensing that this movie was special, that it might very well become the beginning of a movement to restore and bring health to millions of families.
The movie premiered this weekend. I waited with anticipation to hear early results and feedback. My expectations were greatly exceeded.
A Weekend of Great Results and Greater Promise
I kept looking at my smart phone as news of the movie came by nearly hourly emails. By the time the weekend concluded, I saw results that were nothing less than the blessings of God.
· Courageous was the number four movie in the country, though it opened against
six other movies that had almost three times as many screens.
· It was the number one new movie of the weekend!
· More than one million people saw Courageous this weekend.
· Total box-office earnings were $9.0 million, $2.2 million more than Fireproof on opening weekend.
· Thanks to the amazing turnout, Courageous will run in every opening theater again next weekend.
The numerical results are impressive. But, even more, I am praying for a greater promise. I am praying that God will do a great work in the lives of those who viewed the movie.
My Prayers for Those Who Viewed Courageous
Some of the reports I am hearing already are incredibly encouraging. Here are some of my specific prayers for those who have and will view the movie.
· I pray that many will follow Christ as a result of the clear gospel message of Courageous.
· I pray that men will accept the God-given responsibility to be the spiritual leaders of their families.
· I pray that broken and damaged marriages will be restored.
· I pray that church leaders will use the message of this movie to help strengthen the families in their congregation and their communities.
· I pray that men will be courageous in their stand for their families.
· I pray that many will see that God can use tragedy for His glory and greater good.
· I pray, above all, that God will be glorified in every aspect of this movie and all the resources connected to it.
From a Movie to a Movement
Over 31 years ago, I sat in a church sanctuary on a Sunday evening and watched a reel-to-reel video presentation by a new and upcoming Christian leader named James Dobson. The presentation was called Focus on the Family. It had a tremendous impact on my life. The timing could not have been better. My first son, Sam, would be born the next month.
During that video, I prayed that God would use me to be the kind of father and husband who would honor Him.
I was not alone in that prayer and commitment. I would later learn that many men prayed a similar prayer.
A movement was born.
Now, over three decades later, I am convinced that God will use yet another media presentation to change lives and impact families. Courageous is indeed a great movie. But, even more, it could very well prove to be the beginning of a movement. And that movement will have a tremendous impact on husbands, fathers, wives, and mothers.
I am no longer the father of three young boys. I am the father of three grown men who are fathers themselves. In this second half of my life, I pray again that I will be used of God to honor Him as a husband, a father and, now, a grandfather.
And the movie Courageous reminded me just how important that commitment is.
I would love to hear from you about this movie. I would love to hear stories of lives changed and families touched. What is your story from the movie Courageous?
Let the movement begin!
October 3, 2011
Suggestions for Pastor Search Committees
Congregations across America call pastors to their churches in a variety of ways. As church polity varies, so do the approaches of calling a pastor. A bishop or other authority appoints some pastors. Sometimes an elder board decides who will be considered as the next pastor. Many times, however, the responsibility for recommending a pastor to a congregation falls upon a pastor search committee.
The search committee is typically comprised of lay leaders voted on by the congregation or nominated by some group in the church. Occasionally, the membership may include a current pastoral staff member.
It is this latter approach, the utilization of a pastor search committee, which I would like to address in this article.
The Pastor's Perspective
In the past few days, I have heard from a number of pastors who have been contacted by pastor search committees. What I have heard from these pastors recently is consistent with that which I have heard for the past few years. The concerns and desires are very consistent from pastor to pastor.
So I am admittedly presenting a one-sided view, that of the pastor who has been contacted by a search committee. I am certain that members of pastor search committees could offer their unique perspectives as well.
The Pleas and Requests
When a pastor is contacted by a search committee, his life is often disrupted. Even if he has no sense of call to change churches, the very fact that a search committee contacted him at least causes him to pause. In some cases the contact is very disruptive to his life and ministry.
For that reason, pastors have shared with me a number of requests (and sometimes pleas) that they would respectfully ask search committees to consider.
Understand the potential disruption caused by your contact of a pastor. Most pastors at least pause and pray when they hear from another church. They often include their spouses in the early discussion. They may wonder if the contact is indicative that God may be leading them to another place of ministry. If a search committee contacts a pastor, at least be aware of the disruption that could take place. Perhaps it's not best to send 200 inquiry letters to 200 different pastors to see if anything sticks.
Have a clear plan for the process of calling a pastor. Let the contacted pastor know that plan on the front end so he won't be left wondering what the next steps are.
Prepare any questions before you contact the pastor. I have heard from many pastors who meet in person with search committee, as well as those who first communicate via phone or Skype. They are often frustrated at the randomness of questions asked, and how different members of the search committee don't know what the other members will ask.
Do your homework thoroughly before showing up in the pastor's present church. Many congregations recognize a search committee immediately when they attend a worship service. These church members soon become worried, frustrated, or angry at either the pastor or the inquiring church. The presence of a search committee can be highly disruptive. Many pastors do not even know that a committee is visiting his church. He too is caught off guard.
Communicate regularly and clearly with the prospective pastor. As long as the process is open, stay in touch with the pastor. Many times the greatest frustration is the lack of communication. One pastor recently told me that he resolved not to talk further with a church because he had not heard from them in such a long time. He assumed that they had moved in another direction. The search committee was shocked when they heard that information from the pastor several months later.
If the search committee decides to move in another direction, let the pastor know immediately. A courtesy call, even an email, will always be appreciated even if the committee concludes that the pastor is not a fit for the church. Many pastors have told me that they thought they were still under consideration, only to discover sometimes later that the church had called another pastor.
An Imperfect Process
There is no perfect way to call a pastor to a church. Regardless of church polity, mistakes and miscommunication will take place. But these suggestions by pastors who have been contacted by search committees could prove very helpful.
At the very least, they could help minimize frustration and disruption in the lives of pastors and the churches they serve.
September 30, 2011
HindSight (September 30, 2011)
Amazon's new Kindles, what you need to know. Here are the specs for Amazon's Kindle refresh and an introduction to the new Kindle Fire.
Being a gentleman at the office. Some good bits of wisdom about the dos and don'ts of business etiquette.
Gospel or justice, which? Russell Moore's provoking piece concludes, "The short answer to how churches should 'balance' such things is simple: follow Jesus. We are Christians. This means that as we grow in Christlikeness, we are concerned about the things that concern him. Jesus is the king of his kingdom, and he loves whole persons, bodies as well as souls."
Google makes 5 Dead Sea Scrolls searchable. The benefits of technology are amazing, and Bible students reap many of them from this new capability.
When rich people do really stupid things. "The Rube Goldberg Claim" example is both humorous and priceless (pun intended).
Women use social networks to stay in touch, men still prefer the phone. "Overall, email emerged as the most popular way of communicating with friends, with 83% of respondents connecting in this way, ahead of the phone (74%) and social networks (61%)."
How to have a rational discussion. Forbes offers a helpful infographic on this subject.
A rough decade for American congregations. CNN reports that aside from economic realities, "religious health and vitality are weaker than they were 10 years ago."
Honor your missionaries. "Missionaries should be recognized, welcomed, and appreciated by our churches. Most of our churches could do a better job at this. ... If we only celebrate our victories at home, we will be a local church for the local community, with little to no impact worldwide. But if we celebrate missionary service in all its forms, we will become a missionary force that pushes back the gates of hell as the Lord uses us to draw more people to Himself."
~~~
The movie Courageous opens today in theaters across the nation. I'm so excited about how the Lord can and will use this film to strengthen families. From Sherwood Pictures (who did Fireproof), the movie's theme "honor begins at home" is traced through the lives of four police officers. You'll love this movie, as I do. Here's a clip to whet your appetite:
Randy Alcorn is right: the time is ripe for Courageous. Go see the full version tonight! Pastor John Piper offers this recommendation about the film:
I watched Courageous with my wife and was thoroughly engaged. I like action, and I like reflection, and I like affection—explosive moments, wrack-your-brain moments, and break-your-heart moments. Rarely do movies combine them all. For me this one captured me. Does the movie preach? Well, it sure has a point. But about the time you think you might get preached at, a bullet may cut through your car door. I would willingly take anyone to see this film, assuming they can handle suspense. And I think the conversations afterward would not be superficial.
September 28, 2011
Grammar Cop
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I really was reticent to write this article. There are, after all, many more important topics. Indeed, it could be argued that most topics are more important.
I confess: I am a grammar cop.
On too many occasions, I find myself cringing when I read something where the grammar is obviously bad.
Certainly, I could offer an article of greater import. Like something on soteriology. Or ecclesiology. Even eschatology.
What kind of nerd writes about grammar?
I do. I am indeed a grammar cop.
The Concern
My concern, I guess, is one of trajectory. From my experiential perspective, writing skills are diminishing. Is it possible that we are directionally headed toward unintelligible written communication? I have read papers, manuscripts, emails, and memos where I had great difficulty understanding the author's intent. I have seen PowerPoint and other presentations that left me more confused than not.
On a more important note, are we not told to do all things for the glory of God? (1 Corinthians 10:31). Or am I stretching the text a bit for my own argument?
The Specific Issues
Okay, I've made enough prefatory comments. You are either with me or not by this point. What, then, are some of the more common grammatical errors I've noticed in written documents? My list is not exhaustive, but allow me to note a few.
· Random capitalization. I have an email that I've saved for a few weeks. It illustrates my concern: "The Meeting will be held in the Sanctuary at 7:00 PM on Saturday. All Concerned people are encouraged to attend." So why is "Meeting" capitalized? Or "Sanctuary"? Or "Concerned"? There are no rules of capitalization that apply to those words. The upper case letter was applied just because someone thought it looked right.
· It's and Its. It's is a contraction. It means "it is" or "it has." Its is a possessive pronoun meaning "of it" or "belonging to it." Too many times I see both of those words used incorrectly. And there is absolutely, positively, no such word as its'.
· The reflexive pronoun. Those pronouns that have the suffix "self" are meant to reflect off another pronoun and not stand alone. You do not say: "The team included Judy, Mike, and myself." Instead say, "The team included Judy, Mike, and me." It is correct to say "I will go to the game myself" since "myself" reflects off the pronoun "I."
· Your and you're. Your is a possessive pronoun. You're is a contraction that means "you are."
· There and their. There has many usages. The more common usages include a reference to a place (We need to go there), or as a pronoun (There is no hope in this situation). Their is a possessive pronoun (I lifted their luggage).
· Dangling participle. This error seems to be one of the more egregious writing errors. Here is an example: "After rotting in the basement for several weeks, my brother threw away the apples." According to the sentence structure, my brother has been rotting in the basement for several weeks. Pretty gross. "My brother" is incorrectly connected to the participle phrase, so the intended subject (apples) is not clear.
· Incorrect word. Sometimes we simply use the wrong word because it sounds like it belongs in the sentence, or because it sounds similar to the correct word. I recently received an email that included the following sentence: "We are dealing with a reputed company." The author of the email was obviously referring to a "reputable company."
The Importance of Communication
Clear communication is important. Clear written communication is important. How we speak and write says much about us.
The trend in clear written communication seems to be deteriorating.
Be careful about how you speak. Be careful about how you write.
You never know when a grammar cop may be following your words.
September 23, 2011
HindSight (September 23, 2011)
How Campbell's Soup went from stale to innovative. The former CEO explains how internal culture change and external culture awareness led to a better brand awareness.
Generation X stymied by Baby Boomers refusing to give up jobs. A Generation X survey mentioned in the article "found 41 percent are unsatisfied with their rate of advancement and 49 percent feel stalled in their careers."
5 ways to redeem your ride to work. "Americans now spend more than 100 hours a year commuting to work. The nationwide average drive-time is about 24.3 minutes, which tops the average two weeks of vacation time (80 hours) taken by many workers during a year."
SBC president announces task force to study denominational name change. Big news coming out of my denomination this week.
Harnessing your creativity. Trevin Wax reviews Todd Henry's book, The Accidental Creative. Some good organizational insights here.
Adam's apple: preaching from an iPad. Interesting and helpful post. I wonder how many of you preach (or want to) from an iPad?
12 attributes of a truly great place to work. What would you add or desire as a part of this list?
September 21, 2011
Thinking about Mentoring
One of the great blessings in ministry is the opportunity to walk alongside others in a relationship of discipleship. Often, deep friendship arises from such relationships—which is exactly the case for me with Chuck Lawless.
When I was dean of The Billy Graham School of Missions, Evangelism and Church Growth at Southern Seminary in Louisville, Kentucky, I had the privilege of being Chuck's professor and doctoral supervisor. He demonstrated great academic skill and Great Commission passion.
Eventually, Chuck became a faculty member in the Graham School and then replaced me as dean when I accepted the call to become president of LifeWay Christian Resources. Now he's serving the International Mission Board as vice president for global theological advance. I'm incredibly proud of him.
Chuck would be the first to tell you that mentoring has changed his life. He's been mentored and mentors others, which makes him more than qualified to speak about this important topic. As a result, he's written a new study to help others pursue meaningful and effective mentoring relationships, called Mentor: How Along-the-Way Discipleship will Change Your Life.
Chuck has some helpful insights about mentoring. Let me share a few of my take-aways from reading his book:
Mentoring is about relationships. "It is a God-given relationship in which one growing Christian encourages and equips another believer to reach his/her potential as a disciple of Christ."
Mentoring is rooted in Jesus' Great Commission mandate to make disciples. "To be like Jesus is to be willing to reproduce ourselves in disciples, release them to do ministry, and support them as they invest in others—just as Jesus did."
Mentoring is costly and risky. "We have to prioritize; spending time with others usually means deleting something else from the calendar. We have to put our egos aside; our own sins are magnified when others are watching. We often have to spend money; the costs of study resources, shared meals, and occasional travel expenses quickly add up. We may be misunderstood; mentors sometimes get accused of having favorites. And too often we experience disappointment; mentees often fail. Any mentor might wonder at times if mentoring is worth the effort."
Mentoring is unique to each relationship, not a "one size fits all" kind of pursuit.
Mentoring is about multiplication. "Mentoring is about reproduction. Multiplication. Growing influence. Making disciples. It's about finding someone like Paul in your life, someone to learn from, so that you can turn around and teach a Timothy, someone who can learn from you."
Mentoring is easily derailed by unclear expectations. "One of the most common problems in mentoring relationships … is unmet expectations. In mentoring relationships, talking about expectations at the start can protect the relationship from hurt feelings and awkwardness later."
These highlights are just a glimpse of the practical wisdom and many rich lessons that Chuck offers in his book. Much more could be said, but let me encourage you to do this study for yourself and then get busy with the work of mentoring others.
People are looking for deep, meaningful relationships and connections. The Great Commission compels us to "make disciples." Thank you, Chuck, for helping us understand how to fulfill that mandate with effective and purposeful mentoring.
Mentor by Chuck Lawless from Threads on Vimeo.
