Thom S. Rainer's Blog, page 404

Leadership and Decisiveness

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I just returned from the premier of Courageous, the incredible new movie that will be in theaters on September 30. I came away from the movie inspired and convicted. The Sherwood team has done a great job of portraying via the big screen those things that really matter.

The movie ends with the question, "Who will take a stand?"

Indeed that is the question for leaders today.

The Courage of Decisiveness

One of the outstanding resources to accompany the movie is Courageous Living by Michael Catt. In the book, Michael tells the story of Ed Freeman, a helicopter pilot in the Vietnam War. Freeman flew into the middle of enemy fire thirteen times to rescue thirty wounded warriors who would have otherwise died. He would later receive the Medal of Honor for his incredible acts of courage.

You see, Ed Freeman did not have to be the smartest person to know what he needed to do. He did not have to have the most strategic mind or the greatest leadership skills. He did not have to possess the most elite academic credentials.

He had to have courage – the courage to act.

The Power of Decisiveness

Many leaders fail simply because they refuse to make a decision. Some insist on more and more information. They fail as they experience analysis paralysis. Others will not make a decision because they fear failure. Ironically, they experience the failure they feared because of their failure to make a decision.

During the last budget crisis in our nation, millions of people became angry and frustrated with our president and congressional leaders on both sides of the aisle. People were looking for leadership and decisiveness, not gridlock and the blame game.

Though it is certainly possible to act too quickly, to make a decision without even the basic facts, most leaders do not have this problem.

Many leaders fail because they do not make decisions when decisions must be made.

There is power in decisiveness.

Our organizations, our families, and even our nation are pleading for those who will have the courage to act. That is the power of decisiveness.

The Path of Decisiveness

How then, do we become more decisive leaders? May I suggest three initial steps?

First, pray for courage. The decisions we must make will not likely be as dramatic as those of Ed Freeman, who decided to risk his life multiple times to rescue his wounded comrades. But our decisions do have impact on people and the organizations we serve. We cannot be frozen into inaction; we must be decisive.

Second, get the minimal facts necessary to make a decision, but be willing to act without all the information you would like to have. Delays in decisiveness can cripple an organization. On the battlefield, they can result in loss of lives.

Finally, be willing to live with imperfection. You will not make perfect decisions. But you can be assured of failure if you are unwilling to make courageous decisions.

The Example of Decisiveness

The main character in Courageous is a police officer named Adam Mitchell. Various plots and subplots revolve around him, his job, and his family. Ultimately, Officer Mitchell realizes that many people depend upon him to be courageous and to be willing to make decisions, even if those decisions are difficult. In one of the more poignant moments in the movie, Adam Mitchell says bluntly, "I'm accepting the fact that I need to learn to do the hard things."

So he seeks courage from the Lord.

So he gets the basic facts he needs to make decisions.

And so he decides.

God give us leaders who will demonstrate your courage.

God give us leaders who will take a stand.

And God please give us leaders who are willing to make courageous decisions.

The Retirement of Steve Jobs: Thoughts and Quotes

Steve Jobs' retirement marks one of the most significant transitions in the modern history of American business. I am not sure what you think about him as a leader, but Jobs spoke a lot about the brevity of life which shaped his vision for Apple. Though he is not a Christian, I do think Christians could learn a lot from some of his ideas, legacy, and decision-making.

One of his most unique leadership traits: he is one of the only leaders I know that is celebrated for being a micro-manager.

Here are some fascinating quotes from Jobs:

The Real Importance of Technology

"The problem is I'm older now, I'm 40 years old, and this stuff doesn't change the world. It really doesn't.

"I'm sorry, it's true. Having children really changes your view on these things. We're born, we live for a brief instant, and we die. It's been happening for a long time. Technology is not changing it much — if at all.

"These technologies can make life easier, can let us touch people we might not otherwise. You may have a child with a birth defect and be able to get in touch with other parents and support groups, get medical information, the latest experimental drugs. These things can profoundly influence life. I'm not downplaying that.

"But it's a disservice to constantly put things in this radical new light — that it's going to change everything. Things don't have to change the world to be important." [Wired, February 1996]

The Downside of Technology

"I think it's brought the world a lot closer together, and will continue to do that. There are downsides to everything; there are unintended consequences to everything. The most corrosive piece of technology that I've ever seen is called television — but then, again, television, at its best, is magnificent." [Rolling Stone, Dec. 3, 2003]

The Beauty of Simplicity

"For something this complicated, it's really hard to design products by focus groups. A lot of times, people don't know what they want until you show it to them."

"That's been one of my mantras — focus and simplicity. Simple can be harder than complex: You have to work hard to get your thinking clean to make it simple. But it's worth it in the end because once you get there, you can move mountains." [BusinessWeek, May 25, 1998]

The Need for Innovators

"This is what customers pay us for–to sweat all these details so it's easy and pleasant for them to use our computers. We're supposed to be really good at this. That doesn't mean we don't listen to customers, but it's hard for them to tell you what they want when they've never seen anything remotely like it. Take desktop video editing. I never got one request from someone who wanted to edit movies on his computer. Yet now that people see it, they say, 'Oh my God, that's great!'" [Fortune, January 24 2000]

What Really Matters

"Being the richest man in the cemetery doesn't matter to me … Going to bed at night saying we've done something wonderful… that's what matters to me." [The Wall Street Journal, May 25, 1993]

"No one wants to die. Even people who want to go to heaven don't want to die to get there. And yet death is the destination we all share. No one has ever escaped it. And that is as it should be, because Death is very likely the single best invention of Life. It is Life's change agent. It clears out the old to make way for the new. Right now the new is you, but someday not too long from now, you will gradually become the old and be cleared away. Sorry to be so dramatic, but it is quite true.

"Your time is limited, so don't waste it living someone else's life. Don't be trapped by dogma — which is living with the results of other people's thinking. Don't let the noise of others' opinions drown out your own inner voice. And most important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow already know what you truly want to become. Everything else is secondary." [Stanford commencement speech, June 2005]

So, what is your perspective on Steve Jobs?

HindSight (August 26, 2011)

101 inspiring aerial photographs. Stunning photos, unless you're acrophobic.

8 ways to communicate your strategy more effectively. Inspire. Educate. Reinforce. Tell a story. Good leadership insights here.

Why McDonald's wins in any economy. You can judge for yourself, but I still think the secret is hooking in us parents and grandparents with the Happy Meal.

7 steps to finding time for social media. Bottom line: make time.

So you want to be a senior pastor? Incredibly helpful advice and reflection for those interested in pastoral ministry by Pastor Jay Thomas.

Google cuts churches out of nonprofit program. Faith-based groups must now pay for Google's toolbox.

What's fueling Bible Belt divorces? Could low education and getting married younger be to blame?

Steve Jobs's resignation letter. He said, "I have always said if there ever came a day when I could no longer meet my duties and expectations as Apple's CEO, I would be the first to let you know. Unfortunately, that day has come."

Inflatable church pops up on demand. Sadly, "No traditional sermons are on offer in the Transparent Church, however; rather, an open format is presented, with an emphasis on philosophy and discussion of life's important questions."

Women own the majority of e-readers. Sixty-one percent, to be exact (according to recent data from Nielsen).

Megachurches in the Southern Baptist Convention

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In my previous blog, a commenter asked how many megachurches are in the Southern Baptist Convention, the largest Protestant denomination. Of the 46,000 churches, 177 are megachurches.

The churches are listed below. All of the attendance numbers represent average primary worship attendance. Also, all of the numbers are self-reported by the churches. If you happen to see an obvious omission, it is likely that the church did not report its statistics for 2010.

1. Second Baptist Church, Houston, TX 23,121 2. Saddleback Valley CC, Lake Forest, CA 19,193 3. Woodlands Church, The Woodlands, TX 18,322 4. Prestonwood Baptist Church, Plano, TX 14,323 5. Thomas Road, Lynchburg, VA 13,500 6. Potential, Fort Lauderdale, FL 11,000 7. NewSpring Church, Anderson, SC 10,807 8. The Fountain of Praise, Houston, TX 9,000 9. Lake Pointe Church, Rockwall, TX 8,699 10. Saint Matthews Baptist, Williamstown, NJ 8,300 11. Bay Area Fellowship, Corpus Christi, TX 8,000 11. The Village Church, Flower Mound, TX 8,000 11. Brookhollow Baptist Church, Houston, TX 8,000 14. Shepherd of the Hills, Porter Ranch, CA 7,600 15. Shadow Mountain Community Church, El Cajon, CA 7,177 16. Elizabeth, Atlanta, GA 7,000 17. Sharon Baptist Church, Philadelphia, PA 6,800 17. Voices of Faith Ministries, Stone Mountain, GA 6,800 19. Cross Church, Springdale, AR 6,528 20. Bellevue, Cordova, TN 6,509 21. Pinelake, Brandon, MS 6,500 22. First Baptist Woodstock, Woodstock, GA 6,368 23. Christ Fellowship, Palmetto Bay, FL 6,345 24. Saint Paul's, Richmond, VA 6,257 25. Albuquerque Sagebrush, Albuquerque, NM 6,155 26. Brookwood Community, Simpsonville, SC 6,103 27. Idlewild, Lutz, FL 5,897 28. Brentwood Baptist, Brentwood, TN 5,637 29. Orlando First, Orlando, FL 5,587 30. Hope Community Church, Raleigh, NC 5,397 31. Church by the Glades, Coral Springs, FL 5,392 32. Long Hollow, Hendersonville, TN 5,272 33. Lenexa Westside Family, Lenexa, KS 5,100 34. Clear Creek Community Church, League City, TX 5,000 34. Crossing, Tampa, FL 5,000 36. First Baptist Atlanta, Atlanta, GA 4,931 37. New Faith Baptist Church International, Matteson, IL 4,900 38. Hillvue Heights Baptist Church, Bowling Green, KY 4,825 39. Houston's First Baptist Church, Houston, TX 4,655 40. Hickory Grove, Charlotte, NC 4,539 41. Green Acres Baptist Church, Tyler, TX 4,537 42. Champion Forest, Houston, TX 4,442 43. Cascade Hills, Columbus, GA 4,420 44. Jacksonville First, Jacksonville, FL 4,300 45. Hebron, Dacula, GA 4,266 46. Greater Cornerstone Baptist Church, Dallas, TX 4,250 47. Johnson Ferry, Marietta, GA 4,133 48. Biltmore, Arden, NC 4,070 49. Franklin Avenue, New Orleans, LA 4,000 50. Sagemont Church, Houston, TX 3,984 51. West Ridge, Hiram, Dallas, GA 3,922 52. Mt Calvary Baptist Church, Fairfield, CA 3,800 53. Higher Dimension Church, Houston, TX 3,700 54. Gardendale First, Gardendale, AL 3,530 55. Naples First, Naples, FL 3,523 56. Riverbend Baptist Church, Austin, TX 3,500 57. McGregor, Fort Myers, FL 3,453 58. Faith Promise Church, Knoxville, TN 3,432 59. Greater St Matthew Baptist Church, Houston, TX 3,400 59. Southwest Community Baptist Church, Houston, TX 3,400 61. Sevier Heights, Knoxville, TN 3,389 62. Bell Shoals, Brandon, FL 3,378 63. Sugar Creek Baptist Church, Sugar Land, TX 3,335 64. Hunter Street, Hoover, AL 3,320 65. Metropolitan Baptist Church, Houston, TX 3,304 66. Valley Baptist Church, Bakersfield, CA 3,266 67. Celebration Church (SBC), Metairie, LA 3,260 68. Highview Baptist Church, Louisville, KY 3,254 69. First Baptist Church, Pasadena, TX 3,250 70. Lake Hills Church, Austin, TX 3,204 71. Church at the Mall, Lakeland, FL 3,200 71. Spartanburg First, Spartanburg, SC 3,200 73. Olive, Pensacola, FL 3,137 74. Crossroads, Azle, TX 3,093 75. Liberty-Hampton, Hampton, VA 3,023 76. Brentwood Baptist Church, Houston, TX 3,000 76. Central, Bryan, TX 3,000 76. Church at the Springs, Ocala, FL 3,000 76. Sandals Church, Riverside, CA 3,000 80. Indian Rocks First, Largo, FL 2,908 81. Pleasant Valley, Liberty, MO 2,905 82. The People's Church, Franklin, TN 2,901 83. Blackshear Place, Flowery Branch, GA 2,875 84. Concord First, Knoxville, TN 2,860 85. Highlands-Abingdon, Abingdon, VA 2,828 86. Dawson, Birmingham, AL 2,800 87. Baptist Temple, Mcallen, TX 2,786 88. Grace, Knoxville, TN 2,783 89. Shades Mountain, Vestavia Hills, AL 2,756 90. Brandon First, Brandon, FL 2,750 91. Apex, Kettering, OH 2,724 92. Bear Creek Baptist Church, Katy, TX 2,714 92. Kingsland Baptist Church, Katy, TX 2,714 94. Beltway Park Baptist Church, Abilene, TX 2,700 94. Bethel's Family Baptist Church, Houston, TX 2,700 96. East Bayou, Lafayette, LA 2,692 97. Silverlake Church, Pearland, TX 2,675 98. Hendersonville First, Hendersonville, TN 2,653 99. Carmel, Matthews, NC 2,647 100. First Baptist Church, Dallas, TX 2,632 101. The Heights Baptist Church, Richardson, TX 2,623 102. Crossroads, Newnan, GA 2,607 103. Central, Jonesboro, AR 2,604 104. North Spartanburg First, Spartanburg, SC 2,600 105. Mud Creek, Hendersonville, NC 2,590 106. Edmond, Henderson Hills, Edmond, OK 2,584 107. Shadow Hills, LV, Las Vegas, NV 2,547 108. Springfield, Second, Springfield, MO 2,543 109. Indian Trail First, Indian Trail, NC 2,537 110. East Brent, Pensacola, FL 2,500 110. FBC Jackson, Jackson, MS 2,500 110. New Faith Church of Houston, Houston, TX 2,500 110. Oasis, Pembroke Pines, FL 2,500 110. Park Cities Baptist Church, Dallas, TX 2,500 110. Rock Springs, Easley, SC 2,500 110. Russian Baptist Church, West Sacramento, CA 2,500 110. Shandon, Columbia, SC 2,500 118. Rock Bridge Community, Dalton, GA 2,498 119. Valley View Baptist Church, Louisville, KY 2,497 120. First-Norfolk, Norfolk, VA 2,462 121. Oviedo First, Oviedo, FL 2,461 122. Oakwood Baptist Church, New Braunfels, TX 2,447 123. Opelika First, Opelika, AL 2,443 124. First Euless, Euless, TX 2,435 125. Calvary, Clearwater, FL 2,419 126. Oakwood, Chickamauga, GA 2,415 127. Alief Baptist Church, Houston, TX 2,406 128. First Baptist West Monroe, West Monroe, LA 2,402 129. Sunnyvale First Baptist Church, Sunnyvale, TX 2,400 130. Arnold First, Arnold, MO 2,385 131. Englewood, Jackson, TN 2,380 132. North Phoenix Baptist Church, Phoenix, AZ 2,350 133. First Baptist Church, Mckinney, TX 2,301 134. Bethany, Council Road, Bethany, OK 2,300 134. Glenview Baptist Church, Fort Worth, TX 2,300 134. Greenforest Community, Decatur, GA 2,300 134. New Vision Church, Milpitas, CA 2,300 138. First Baptist Church, Arlington, TX 2,292 139. Crossgates Bapt Church, Brandon, MS 2,286 140. Global Harvest Church, Dallas, TX 2,260 141. Iglesia Bautista High Pointe, Austin, TX 2,219 142. Ames, Cornerstone, Ames, IA 2,200 142. Fort Lauderdale First, Fort Lauderdale, FL 2,200 142. LifePoint, Tampa, FL 2,200 145. Willowbrook, Huntsville, AL 2,198 146. Lenexa Baptist, Lenexa, KS 2,194 147. Eagle's Landing First, McDonough, GA 2,170 148. East Cooper, Mt Pleasant, SC 2,166 149. New Vision, Murfreesboro, TN 2,150 150. Taylors First, Taylors, SC 2,145 151. Alamo City Christian Fellowship Church, San Antonio, TX 2,125 151. Colonial Heights, Colonial Heights, VA 2,125 153. Mobberly Baptist Church, Longview, TX 2,118 154. Northwood Church, Keller, TX 2,106 155. First Baptist Broken Arrow, Broken Arrow, OK 2,100 155. Casas Church, Tucson, AZ 2,100 155. First Baptist Bossier City, Bossier City, LA 2,100 158. Geyer Springs First, Little Rock, AR 2,097 159. Broken Arrow, BattleCreek, Tulsa, OK 2,092 160. First Baptist Simpsonville, Simpsonville, SC 2,081 161. Temple Bapt Church, Hattiesburg, MS 2,077 162. Hyde Park Baptist Church, Austin, TX 2,067 163. Burnt Hickory, Powder Springs, GA 2,065 163. Silverdale, Chattanooga, TN 2,065 165. First Baptist Church, Amarillo, TX 2,050 166. Cleveland Community, Clayton, NC 2,025 167. Cleveland First, Cleveland, TN 2,010 168. Skyland, Kannapolis, NC 2,006 169. Fielder Road Baptist Church, Arlington, TX 2,001 170. Central, Hixson, TN 2,000 170. First Baptist Jonesboro, Jonesboro, GA 2,000 170. Great Commission Baptist Church, Fort Worth, TX 2,000 170. New Song Church, Carrollton, TX 2,000 170. Northstar, Kennesaw, GA 2,000 170. Spotswood, Fredericksburg, VA 2,000 170. St Paul Missionary Baptist Church, Sacramento, CA 2,000 170. Travis Avenue Baptist Church, Fort Worth, TX 2,000

Inquiring Minds about the Local Church

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Over the years I have accumulated thousands of questions about local churches in America. Due to the sheer volume of questions, I have not been able to answer many of them. And despite the many gracious offers to take me to lunch and "pick my brain," I have not been able to accommodate most of those requests either.

But this blog provides me a new forum to listen to those who have burning questions about local congregations or about trends among churches in the aggregate. I understand that I am not the fount of all knowledge about churches, but I have been researching congregations for 25 years. It does not take a genius to discover new insights with that much information flowing.

Some Interesting (Funny?) Questions

Looking in my computer folder for some questions over the past few years, I found myself chuckling at some of the inquiries. Let me share a few of my favorites:

· Who is the worst pastor in the United States?

· Is it illegal to kill a bad deacon?

· Should I be concerned if most of the members are complaining about the length of my sermons?

· Should we report our church split as a new church start?

· Can you give me a list of all the churches in America that are either growing or not growing?

· Would you please recommend me to serve as pastor of the largest 100 churches that don't currently have a pastor?

· Our church had 210 in average worship attendance a year ago. Today the attendance is 640. Is that good?

· Would you serve as a reference on my resume? I'm sorry about what I said about you on that blog.

· Can you please provide me all the statistics on all the churches in the United States?

· My wife does not like my sermons. Can you help me?

· Our church has run off seven pastors in the past eight years. Do you think we have a problem?

What Is Your Question?

Okay, your question may not be as amusing as some of the examples above. But I would like to hear from you. Do you have questions about trends in churches? Are you interested in specific issues and ministries in local churches? Are there some statistics about churches that interest you?

I do hope to begin to answer your questions via this blog and future blogs. Indeed, if there is one particular question that I can handle, I will make it the topic of my blog this Wednesday. While I'm not making promises to get to all of your questions, I will do my best.

So . . . what is your question about local churches?

I look forward to hearing from you.

HindSight (August 19, 2011)

Campus Crusade is no less committed to Christ. Changing their name to CRU doesn't mean they've abandoned the gospel, as pastor J.D. Greear points out.

How to get young people interested in global news. Fascinating concept: "talking about journalism as the embers of innovation might encourage young thinkers to devour more" news and information.

Keep emails brief, organized, and on topic to get responses from busy people. I agree with this whole-heartedly. I shared some similar thoughts about email (and Millennials) here.

10 steps to an effective apology. Helpful thoughts on owning up and making things right.

SEC decides against adding Texas A&M. There's a surprising complexity behind a school attempting to switch conferences. Insightful.

The NASCAR prayer that won't end. Please don't hold this against Nashville.

50 ways to inspire your wife. Nellie Jo is a ten cow wife. Please read this to understand what I just said!

Need a mentor? Good post by Jon Acuff. He's also giving away copies of Chuck Lawless's book Mentor: how along-the-way discipleship will change your life.

The psychology of Twitter. Additional proof that #ff is meaningless. If you use Twitter, you know what I mean by this hashtag.

Tell Us About Your Small Group or Sunday School

Small groups in churches are touted to have many benefits. Indeed, some of my own research has tested and demonstrated the value of small groups. Some churches value the relational connections that take place. Some believe that content is best disseminated and discussed in small groups. Others view the small group as a great evangelistic arm of the local church. And a number of churches see multiple benefits, but particularly see the benefits of retention and assimilation of those in these groups.

We would love to hear from you about the small group or Sunday school structure in your churches. So we would greatly appreciate your taking the time to let us learn from you via this blog.

Consider some of these questions in your responses:

· What is your primary form of small group? Is it a Sunday school structure or something different?

· Do you have more than one type of small group structure in your church?

· Where do your small groups or Sunday school classes meet?

· How long do they last?

· When do they meet?

· What is the primary purpose of your groups? Relationship building? Community? Evangelism and outreach? Ministry? Teaching and content? What is the format for the group?

· Who is eligible or qualified to lead/teach your small groups?

· How often do your groups meet? Once a week? More or less frequently?

· Are your groups open or closed?

· How would you assess the value or effectiveness of the groups in your church?

· Roughly what percentage of the members or worship attendance is in the groups?

· How do you determine the material that is used in your groups?

· What are some of the challenges present in your groups?

· What would you like to change about your groups?

· What are some great ministry and life change stories from your groups that you can share?

· Does the pastor and other leaders in the church emphasize the value of small groups or Sunday school classes?

Of course, these questions are listed as suggested topics. You may want to address just one or two of them. And there are likely some topics I haven't even considered.

As you enter this discussion, I want you to know how your comments benefit others for the Kingdom. I hear again and again how people get as much or more from the comments in the blog as they do from the blog itself.

So thank you in advance for taking time to comment. For good or bad, you and your church have stories to tell and lessons we can learn.

We are listening.

Tell us about your small groups.

Five Thoughts on Innovation in Organizations

Every organization must deal with change. The crux of the matter is not if change will take place, but if the organization can lead change rather than just react to it. The most common type of proactive change is innovation.

Innovation is simply an attempt to do something new or differently in order to achieve better results. It sounds simple, doesn't it? But any leader knows well that introducing innovation in an organization is easier said than done. Volumes have been written or change, change agents, and organizational response to change. My purpose in this brief article is to discuss just one facet of change: introducing innovation to the organization.

Five Thoughts

Most organizations do not naturally embrace innovation. Those who therefore attempt to introduce it to the organization often meet both active and passive resistance. We must be astute students of innovation to understand how we can best move new ideas forward. Allow me to suggest five thoughts on the matter.

1. Leaders must lead and model innovation. New ideas and initiatives cannot just be theoretical rhetoric. Leaders must hold themselves accountable for introducing innovation on an ongoing basis. The leader must persistently push the organization to embrace innovation as a value and priority.

2. Innovation must be embraced by the organization as a whole. This thought is naturally corollary of the first. Innovation cannot be autocratically dictated. Without ownership at all levels, innovation is likely to fail. Passive aggressive behavior is common unless people truly believes that innovation is critical for their own success as well as the success of the organization.

3. Leaders and others throughout the organization must resist the common objections to innovation. The challenge is that the objections are often valid. So it's easier to yield to the objections rather than to find ways around them. Some of the more common words of resistance are: "We don't have the capacity to do something new"; "We tried that before and it didn't work"; "It costs too much and the payback is too long term"; and "We just need to focus on that which is already core to our organization."

4. Innovation is a step of faith. Introducing innovation to the organization would never be problematic if we knew we had guaranteed success. So many organizations get involved in analysis paralysis to demonstrate why something won't work.

5. Some innovation failure should be normative in organizations. It is unlikely that there will be any tolerance for innovation if there is little tolerance for failure. If the members of an organization expect that innovation failures will be punished, you can be sure that few, if any, will ever be innovators themselves. It is easy to fall back on the comfort of pain avoidance.

A Time for Change

The writer of Ecclesiastes reminds us "there is an occasion for everything, and a time for every activity under heaven" (3:1, HCSB). Never have I witnessed such a time of change. Sure, change has always been a reality. And certainly we have clear evidence that the rate of change is ever increasing.

But what our world and our organizations are experiencing today is seismic change. It is the type of change that will permanently alter the landscape of our reality. Those organizations that fail to grasp that reality and fail to respond to that reality are already on the path of failure.

Never before have organizations needed to change and innovate like they must do so today. Certainly the infusion of innovation must be measured and introduced with great discernment.

But the failure to innovate is a huge barrier for entering the future.

And it may be the beginning of a certain path to death.

HindSight (August 12, 2011)

Are we the generation that destroyed the concept of communication? Probing questions and pithy statements from Justin Kownacki about the intent behind today's communication.

. I'm sure you could guess for yourself, but here it is. 10 characteristics of great teams. Brad Lomenick from Catalyst nailed it here. Just a sampling: "Great teams fight consistently. About ideas. About direction. About strategy. And the best ideas win. Trust is crucial. And everyone on the team trusts each other enough to fight for their ideas, and argue, and debate. And leave it at that. Great teams are competitive, but equally collaborative." 30 practical ways for pastors to love their wives and families. If taken to heart, these ideas can yield great fruit for families in ministry. Radical obedience: a conversation with David Platt. Insightful Q&A by Trevin Wax about Dr. Platt's newest book, Radical Together. Innovative companies demand innovative leaders. The Harvard Business Review points out, "top executives who value innovation need to point their fingers not at others but themselves. They must lead the innovation charge by understanding how innovation works, improving their own discovery skills, and sharpening their ability to foster the innovation of others. Moreover, they must actively populate their organizations with enough discovery-driven innovators to make innovation a team game that translates into tangible and sustainable innovation premiums." Amazon brings social reading to Kindle. What does this mean? "The service aims to augment the reading experience by 'bringing readers together and by helping them to learn more from the books that they read.' In other words: it's social. You can follow people 'to see their Public Notes and reading activities, and review your books, highlights, and notes.'" Statue of Liberty to close for a yearlong renovation. Lady Liberty, some $27 million later, will be code and security compliant. Kids and technology: the developmental health debate. Take away: "There's no doubt that children are growing and developing differently than they did even 15 years ago. But it may still be too early to determine the lasting effects on today's iGeneration." Apple overtakes Exxon as the most valuable company, as Forbes reports here:

When Hope Comes to Church

The reports can be discouraging. The statistics can be demoralizing. The trends can be disheartening.

Year after year we hear about the dismal state of American congregations. We hear that the number of members connected to churches is down. We hear about declining conversion rates. We hear about change-resistant churches and discouraged pastors, staff, and laity.

And the bad news is not made up. It's reality. The overall macro-trends in churches in America are simply not that great.

Looking for Hope

What seems to be missing, however, in most of our reports of reality, is a message of hope. Though the situation may seem bleak, we serve the one true God who always gives hope. Local churches may be down and discouraged at times, but God is not done with His Church.

I am an obnoxious optimist about American churches. I do not have my head in the sand, and I am not ignoring the dismal reports. Indeed, I have authored some of those reports. But, in the final analysis, I believe that most of our churches have a great future with great possibilities.

The Reason for Hope

My hope first and foremost resides in our Lord Jesus Christ. And He is the reason I believe that the churches will prevail with great hope.

And almost every day I hear from a church leader or a church member who tells me something exciting about his or her church. I hear those stories. And I hear great hope. Listening to the stories reminds that God is still doing great works in so many of our churches. And I am instilled with hope and encouragement.

Listening to Your Story

I want to abbreviate this blog even more than usual. I am hoping that most of this blog will be completed with readers' comments. I respectfully request you share some story of hope in your church. Let us know what great things are taking place. Share with us some stories that will remind us that God is still working in our churches.

Here are some questions to get the discussion started:

· What effective community ministries are taking place in your church?

· What are some examples of answered prayer in your church?

· How is your church reaching people with the gospel?

· How has your congregation become a part of reaching the nations for Christ?

· What is a recent story of someone who became a Christian through a ministry in your church?

· How are members in your church becoming more effective disciples?

· How are members in your church spending time in the Word?

· Do you have a brief story of someone whose life has recently been transformed by the gospel?

· What is your church doing to minister to widows or orphans?

· How are your church members demonstrating the love of Christ in your community and beyond?

· What are some examples of gospel unity in your church?

· What exciting prayer ministries are taking place in your church?

· How have families been impacted positively by the ministry of your church?

The list is obviously not exhaustive. The questions are merely starters for discussion. There could be countless other examples.

Please share with us some great things God is doing in your church. Let us hear your story and be both motivated and encouraged.

Let us hear your stories of hope.

What's God doing in your church?