Thom S. Rainer's Blog, page 405
August 8, 2011
Leadership by Plan B
Most leaders receive due recognition by the great decisions they make. They are often lauded by way they have led people and organizations to change.
But what if change is extremely difficult? What if a leader does not have the positional authority to engender change unilaterally?
Simply stated, what if leadership decisions fail because some individuals or groups say no? Is that leader no longer a leader? Is that leader a poor leader?
Another Perspective
Leadership studies are indeed fascinating. There seems, however, to be a preponderance of attention given to leaders who make quick and large-scale decisions. They are the change agents who get the most recognition.
While I would not diminish the value of studying such leaders, I am also fascinated by effective leaders who persistently push forward after they have been told no on one or more occasions. I call it "leadership by plan B."
The Dangers of Failed Decisions
First, we must admit that a decision that fails is fraught with danger. Foremost, the leader can easily become discouraged. He often moves forward on an idea with enthusiasm and vision. When he subsequently runs into a roadblock, the effects can be devastating, particularly if a failed leadership decision would have had major impact on the organization.
A second danger is the discouragement of the followers. The "no" decision is often a big letdown to those who had enthusiastically bought into the new idea. It became their decision as well as the leader's decision.
Third, the organization can lose momentum. If a significant part of the organizational energy was spent on the idea and process toward seeking approval, there is often a palpable sense of failure and weariness that seeps into the entire organization.
For these reasons and more, leadership by plan B is critical. Every leader at some point will not get his way. The key issue becomes what that leader does next. Does he give up or does he move forward with new ideas and new momentum?
A Brief Case Study
I recently observed the pastor of an established church handle leadership by plan B masterfully. He had little positional authority because so many of the decisions required congregational votes. Indeed it was a common case of bylaws that require micromanagement by business meetings.
He urged the church to adopt some stylistic and time changes in the worship services that would be more contextual and practical. From an outsider's perspective, the changes were not drastic. From the perspective of some vocal persons in the congregation, Armageddon was imminent.
The leader actually had the votes to make the changes. But he realized that the church would be divided if he moved forward. He wisely withdrew his plan and offered another plan that met the same resistance. He finally offered a third plan that was embraced by the congregation. He either won the dissidents over or wore them out. His was actually leadership by plan C.
The Wise Plan B Leader
It's not easy to move forward with new ideas and new enthusiasm when you have been shot down on one or more occasions. But few leaders ever get their way on every idea. Sometimes the true test of leadership takes place when the leader meets a brick wall.
Ironically, I have heard from many effective plan B leaders who now are enthusiastic about their second or third choice plan being embraced. It was not what they wanted or expected, but it was the best that could be accepted by the organization at the time. And over time, the organization has rewarded the leaders' wisdom and persistence.
By its very definition, plan B is not our first choice.
But the wise leader understands that "no" is neither final nor fatal.
And leaders and followers are often surprised that the new reality is really a good choice after all.
August 5, 2011
HindSight (August 5, 2011)
Best airlines for 5 types of fliers. The best -- and worst -- carrier options for everything from price to comfort.
Google+ draws 25 million visitors in a month. The growth trend for this new social platform is already outpacing Facebook and MySpace in their early days. A fad or something more here?
Affluent Americans prefer print over social media. For those making $100K or more: "The pattern is clear across all media. The vast majority consume content through its most traditional outlet: magazines and newspapers in print, websites on computers, video content through TVs and so on."
Ways to engage global poverty right now. "You cannot read the Gospels without hearing God's concern for the poor." A good word from Ed Stetzer.
The Nines. Leadership Network's online conference and gathering for is coming up, and registration is now open.
I don't struggle with pride, I'm just an introvert. These helpful insights match up nicely with what I wrote about the introverted leader.
Why your passion for work could ruin your career. The type of passion one has matters -- but if it is "obsessive" it will lead to fatigue and burnout.
The importance of fathers. Key insight: "Fathers are their children's first pastors—the most influential humans in terms of life direction. Children are shaped by their father's love or hate, interest or disinterest, presence or absence."
Al Pittampalli argues that the typical "meetings" system in most organizations is broken, and he offers a solution to reinvent what it means to have a "meeting." I concur. And his book "Read This Before Our Next Meeting" is free on Kindle right now.
August 1, 2011
When Hubris Comes to Church
For nearly the past three decades, I have been studying the life cycle of churches. I continue to be amazed at how a certain pattern plays out repeatedly in most churches. And I continue to be challenged to discern how churches can avoid the last two stages of the life cycle: irrelevance and death.
In this brief article I won't take the time to review all the stages of the life cycle of churches. I am working on a complete book on that topic. Instead, I will focus on one particular stage, a part of the cycle that may be the most dangerous for the health of churches. I call this stage "hubris."
When Hubris Happens
Simple defined, hubris means pride or arrogance. It has its origins in Greek tragedy where an excess of ambition or pride ultimately causing the transgressor's ruin.
In churches hubris is an insidious enemy. It comes at a time when members are typically feeling great about the health of the church. Indeed, it often comes when the church is on its best growth trajectory, and when the congregation is receiving accolades for its ministries and programs.
The feelings of well-being and the abundance of accolades can cause church members and leaders to get comfortable and proud. If and when that happens, the church is already on a downward trek. Decline may not manifest itself right away, but it is inevitable unless serious steps are taken toward a corporate attitude change.
Why Hubris Happens
So-called success in local church ministry often creates a sense of self-sufficiency. "Look what we've done," some members may say or think. "We have truly become a great church," others may opine. But self-sufficiency is the opposite of God-dependency. And when church members and leaders lean on their own strength and understanding, they are headed down a dangerous path.
Hubris often manifests itself in the idolatry of ministries, programs, or preferred styles of worship. Those ministries that were once a means to the end of glorifying God become ends in themselves. Inevitably the church will experience conflict when any leader attempts to change or discard those ministries, programs, or worship styles. They have been become idols. They represent in the minds of some the accomplishments of the church rather than just an instrument to glorify God.
Likewise, hubris comes to church because we enjoy the accolades of others. We believe that we are as great as others say we are. We like the recognition. We enjoy the attention. We forget the Author of all good things in our church.
How Hubris Leaves
Churches that are experiencing numerical attendance decline eventually understand that not all is well. Churches whose budgets are shrinking grasp that the elimination of ministries and personnel is the result of being an unhealthy church. But, by the time a church has such a wake-up call, it is often too late to reverse the trend. Numerical and budgetary declines are not the real problems. Numbers are not the ultimate gauge of the health of a church. But those declines are typically the result of an attitude of hubris that took place years earlier when all seemed well.
The presence of hubris in a church often leads to the stages of irrelevance and death. But such a downward spiral is not inevitable. When a church seems to be experiencing its best days of growth and community impact, its members and leaders should constantly be asking themselves questions. "Are we proud of our accomplishments?" "Have we implicitly given glory to ourselves rather than to God?" "Would we be willing to let go of anything in our church, even if it has become a sacred cow for many members?" "Do we compare our church to others with some level of pride?" "Have activities replaced prayer and time in the Word?"
Hubris is a dangerous and deadly attitude in churches. But it can be overcome.
It begins in our own hearts with repentance, and a willingness to do whatever our Lord asks for His glory.
July 29, 2011
HindSight (July 29, 2011)
In Memoriam: John R. W. Stott (1921-2011)
On Wednesday of this week, one of evangelicalism's most influential voices fell silent and met his Savior face to face. History will certainly prove the impact of Dr. John Stott's ministry. His preaching, writings, missionary passion and pastoral example have given several generations of pastors and preachers a rich fountain from which to drink. My own life and ministry have been enriched by his work and witness.
Many have already offered insightful commentary on this faithful servant of our Lord, including:
Christianity Today issued the first obituary for Dr. Stott Denny Burk remembers hearing Stott preach in person. He concludes, "I still remember the basic outline of the sermon because it matched the structure of the text. It was a model of faithful, biblical exposition, and in that moment I caught a glimpse of his life's work. Would that all preachers would leave behind such a legacy of compelling, biblical preaching. He was a model for all of us." Nathan Finn provides a fine snapshot of Stott's life and influence, then adds: "I pray the Lord will raise up a new generation of pastors who will write books, articles, and blog posts that help the church reflect on these issues. There would be no more appropriate way to honor John Stott, a brother who was arguably the most important missional pastor-theologian among evangelicals in the last fifty years. Thank God for his life and ministry." Reflections on the life and ministry of John Stott, from those at The BibleMesh blog Tim Challies allows others to produce a "Twitter tribute" to Dr. StottThere will many more tributes to honor Dr. Stott in the days to come. He was not without fault or controversial opinion, but will be remembered as a faithful expositor of God's Word and a champion for Christ.
John Stott Ministries (Langham Partnership) has produced a memorial video for Dr. Stott:
The death of His faithful ones is valuable in the Lord's sight.
~ Psalm 116:15 ~
July 25, 2011
The Dash
When my son, Art Rainer, began work on the book we co-authored, Simple Life, he spent a good bit of time in a cemetery.
That's right. A cemetery.
He found a cemetery near his home in Boca Raton, Florida, and simply walked from grave marker to grave marker. Listen to his simple explanation for this strange type of research.
"I came to this cemetery to gain perspective. I could not think of a more inspirational location than to be surrounded by those whose earthly story had come to an end. If they could, what would they tell us? Now that their lives are over, what wisdom would they want to pass on? What were their regrets? Where did they get it right? Though the sands of time in my life's hourglass are still running for me, with every breath I breathe, I am moving toward my physical closure.
"My body will become like theirs.
"On each grave marker is a dash between two years. The dash is time, and that is where we are, in our dash. And before there is some year placed on the other end, we need to figure this thing out."
The Dash Hits Home
This past week was tough. My older brother, Sam Rainer, had open heart surgery. The surgery went well. The road to recovery looked great. But two days later he had a stroke.
As I sat next to him in the intensive care unit, I reflected about our family. Our parents died years ago. Our sister died as an infant. In our original family, it's just the two of us. And there he was with a newly repaired heart dealing with the aftermath of a stroke in the intensive care unit.
The dash got really rough for him this week.
I love my brother. But we haven't spent a lot of time together the past several years. Our families have grown. We both have grandchildren. And we both have jobs that keep us busy.
But sitting next to him in ICU, I realized how much I missed him. And I prayed for his recovery and healing. Most of the prayers were for him, but some of them were selfish prayers. I want to spend time with him. I want to have long conversations with him.
I need to work on my dash.
The Incredible Brevity of Life
I turned 56 years old several days ago. How did I get this old this quickly? By actuarial standards, I've entered the fourth quarter of my life. But the end could come much quicker. The dash will have a number on its right side in the blink of an eye.
How am I doing in the dash? Pretty good, but not good enough. My lack of time with my brother the past few years was a clear reminder that I sometimes get too busy for my own good.
You and Your Dash
So how are you doing in your dash? Are you spending lots of time with your family? Are you spending time with God in prayer and His Word? Are you cherishing and developing your friendships?
How are you doing in your job? Are you joyous in your work? Or are you miserable, fearful of taking a chance somewhere else for the wrong reasons?
Do you have broken relationships that need to be restored? Do you need to take the initiative to see those relationships healed?
Are you so busy doing "things" that you fail to take time to do the things that really matter? Do you need to call or write someone? Do you need to go see someone?
How would someone else view your dash? Would they see you as a joyous person, full of life and energy? Or would they view you as hypercritical, never happy, never satisfied?
How is your dash? Mine could use some improvement.
And please pray for my brother.
That's one part of my dash where I pray I'll be given another chance to get it right.
July 22, 2011
HindSight (July 22, 2011)
How the gospel makes us generous and content with our money. "Generosity is not poverty theology. Contentment with thankfulness is not a prosperity theology. The gospel motivates us to be generous and gives us ultimate contentment."
Pastoral lessons learned from a 106 year old church member. Good insights and reminders here for ministers of all ages and contexts.
Borders forced to close all stores and liquidate assets. The second largest bookstore chain in the US failed to receive any offers to keep it alive.
10 simple things good pastors say. Pastor Jared Wilson nails it in this excellent article.
50 most extraordinary church buildings in the world. These photos are fascinating!
Should we still hand out tracts? Christianity Today explores this question in light of recent legal decisions.
July 20, 2011
Leadership by Looking in the Mirror
I recently spoke at a place where I had not been in years. Many of the same people from years ago were still there. I noticed something disturbing about these people: they had really gotten old! I was stunned by their obvious aging while I marveled at my own youthful appearance.
Yeah right.
One honest look in the mirror and I could see that the years had taken a toll on me just like my aging friends. My self-awareness had two elements in it: honesty and a willingness to look in the mirror.
Leadership and Self-awareness
I have much to learn about leadership. I have been given incredible opportunities in my life to lead people and organizations. I wish I could say that my track record is impeccable and that I am the paragon of leadership excellence.
But that would be both a joke and a lie.
When I reflect on those times when I have made some positive strides as a leader, I realize that many of them took place when I had greater self-awareness. It's not a very pleasant experience to learn of my shortfalls as a leader. Those exercises of looking in the mirror are typically painful for me. The cliché "no pain, no gain" certainly applies here.
Toward Greater Clarity in the Mirror
So, how does a leader see himself or herself more clearly? How do we go about the process of looking in the mirror? Allow me to suggest a few steps from my own experience and the wisdom of others.
· Be intentional about seeking greater awareness. Looking in the mirror is not usually something we do or seek every day.
· Be willing to accept pain. I have learned by looking in the mirror some not-so-pleasant aspects of my leadership style, personality, and attributes. Frankly, I much prefer to hear good things about me.
· Find someone who will shoot straight with you, someone who cares enough about you and your leadership to risk offending you.
· Keep sycophants at a distance. Those who "kiss up" to you are more concerned about themselves than your leadership. And they give you a very distorted view about reality.
· If possible, seek anonymous surveys about you and your leadership. In my organization, a third party surveys employees to get their views of on nearly 100 matters. Several of the questions pertain directly to our organization's leadership. The employees have complete anonymity in their responses. We do those surveys at least once a year, and sometimes twice a year.
· Be diligent spending time in prayer and in the Bible. God and His Word remind us how much we have fallen, and how much He still loves us.
Learning the Great Example of Humility
One of my favorite books of the Bible is Philippians. On 17 different occasions, Paul uses the word "joy" or some derivative of the word. It's truly a God-inspired book about joy.
Prominent in the second chapter of the book, Paul tells us that our attitude should be modeled after Christ. It's a fascinating excursion in the midst of a treatise on joy. Note these words on humility: "He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death—even death on a cross" (Philippians 2:8). True leaders follow the example of Christ. True leaders have an attitude of humility. True leaders find joy in that humility.
John Calvin's words hit home: "He who is most deeply abased and alarmed by the consciousness of his disgrace and nakedness, want, and misery, has made the greatest progress in the knowledge of himself" (Institutes of the Christian Religion).
It is not easy to seek to be humble. Indeed the person who thinks he is humble is not. But we can become greater leaders by looking in the mirror. Those painful glances at reality will remind us again and again that we have not arrived.
We will then seek His strength and His wisdom since the mirror clearly shows us that are not nearly as smart and wise as we sometimes think we are.
July 18, 2011
When Pastors Experience Depression
Depression was once a topic reserved for "other people." It certainly was not something those in vocational ministry experienced. Perhaps it would be more accurate to say that ministers rarely admitted that they were depressed. After all, weren't these servants of God supposed to have their acts together? How could pastors and other ministers who have the call of God on their lives experience the dark valley of depression?
Ministers often feel shame and failure when they go through bouts of depression. And their reticence to tell anyone about their plights has exacerbated the problem.
But today more and more ministers are willing to talk about this issue. Recent articles in Christian Post, the New York Times, and Paul Tripp's Gospel Coalition blog address the problem candidly and proactively.
A Growing Problem
The articles note that the problem of depression in the ministry is not only real, but that it is growing. Further, the rate of depression among ministers is now higher than the rate of the general population.
What are the causes of the depression? More importantly, what can be done to help ministers who are walking through this valley?
The Possible Causes
My list of possible causes is not exhaustive. It is based on the research of others as well as my own anecdotal conversations with pastors and other Christian leaders who experience depression.
· Spiritual warfare. The Enemy does not want God's servants to be effective in ministry. He will do whatever it takes to hurt ministers and their ministries.
· Unrealistic expectations. The expectations and demands upon a pastor are enormous. They are unrealistic. But if one person's expectations are not met, that person can quickly let the pastor know that he is a failure.
· Greater platforms for critics. In "the good old days," a critic was typically limited to telephone, mail, and in-person meetings to criticize a minister. Today the critics have the visible and pervasive platforms of email, blogs, and social media such as Facebook and Twitter.
· Failure to take time away from the church or place of ministry. Workaholism leads to burnout. Burnout leads to depression.
· Marriage and family problems. Too often the pastor neglects his family as he cares for the larger church family.
· Financial strains. Many pastors simply do not have sufficient income from the churches they serve. That financial stress can lead to depression. Some pastors do not know how to manage they money they do have, leading to further financial strain.
· The problem of comparison. Every pastor will always know of a church that is larger and more effective. Every pastor will always know of another pastor who seems more successful. The comparison game can be debilitating to some pastors.
Seeking to Help and Offer Solutions
Pastors need our prayers and support. I challenge you church members to organize intercessory prayer warriors for your pastors. Get each person to commit to praying for him five minutes every day. Fight the battles of spiritual warfare with prayer.
Likewise, make sure your pastor has sufficient time for his own prayer life. As he spends more time with God, he will be able to deal with the demands of ministry more effectively. He will handle the barbs of the critics better. He will not be prone to compare his ministry with others. His hope and identity will be more dependent on his relationship with Christ.
Make certain your pastor takes time off every year. Vacations must be mandatory. He likewise needs to take at least one day off each week. Look for signs that he is not giving sufficient time to his family, and help him to find the time to do so. His wife and children cannot be neglected.
Find out if your pastor is compensated adequately. If not, work quietly and prayerfully with key leaders in the church to rectify that problem.
Thank God for pastors. Thank God for their lives, their families, and their ministries. May we who sit under their ministries and serve in their churches do all we can to keep them focused and healthy: physically, emotionally, and spiritually.
