Christ Like Leaders

People Matter

I was re-reading my notes from attending the Hawaii Leadership Practicum back in 2012, and I stumbled upon a powerful reminder for leaders. The leader of the practicum, Wayne Cordeiro, told us A mind can reach a mind, but only a heart can reach a heart – Wayne Cordeiro Another way to say this is…

Continuous Improvement or Continuous Control

I am a geek. Moreover, I am a systematic geek. In fact, I am a geek about the very idea of systems. This might make me a sick individual, but at least I’m systematically sick. One evening while I was geekily reading research articles about systems and productivity, I came across this article about the Seven…

What’s the Problem?

I recently read a fantastic article at the Alban Institute by Susan Beaumont. Her article begins by telling a fable about a church with a “traditional worship problem.” Before I write anything else, let me ask you: given that description of the problem, what comes to mind? The “traditional worship problem” could be the color…

How Many Heads Do We Need…and When Do We Need Them?

How many artists do you know who rely on committees, consumer research, and group brainstorming to stoke the flames of their creativity? I come from the Presbyterian tradition, and for some reason we believe that committees are the answer to everything. Now don’t get me wrong, here, because meetings can be very productive and separation…

The Productivity of “Thank You”

Our church ran an event where a group of students donated a bunch of their time to help out a ministry they normally never interact with. The event had some extra money at the end, so I suggested they buy a gift card for the team leader to say “thank you.” They declined, fearing the…