Book Review: Practicing Greatness

I've read a lot of books on leadership but rarely have I come across one that delves so deeply to the core of what makes a truly great leader. If you're looking for a book that will help you with the mechanics of organization or time management then look elsewhere. If, instead, you want to understand those aspects of a spiritual leader that make them worthy of following then I heartily recommend Reggie McNeal's book, "Practicing Greatness: 7 Disciplines of Extraordinary Spiritual Leaders".

You can read the reviews on Amazon or other sites but to whet your appetite here are the seven disciplines:

• 
  The discipline of self-awareness—the single most important body of information a leader possesses.


• 
  The discipline of self-management—handling difficult emotions, expectations, temptations, mental vibrancy, and physical well-being.
  


• The discipline of self-development—a life-long commitment to learning and growing and building on one's strengths.
  


• The discipline of mission—enjoying the permissions of maintaining the sense of God's purpose for your life and leadership.
  


• The discipline of decision-making—knowing the elements of good decisions and learning from failure.
  


• The discipline of belonging—the determination to nurture relationships and to live in community with others, including family, followers, mentors, and friends.
  


• The discipline of aloneness—the intentional practice of soul-making solitude and contemplation.
  

I've also read McNeal's book, "A Work of Heart : Understanding How God Shapes Spiritual Leaders" which I also found great value in. I'm looking forward to reading more books by this author and other books in the J-B Leadership Network Series.

Software Review: Foldershare

I don't know about you but in this age of technology and complexity when something comes along that simplifies things I get excited. And Foldershare is just such a "something".
I have a couple of computers at home, a laptop, and one at work. In addition, my wife has a computer at home, a laptop, and one at work. Each of us has files that we would like to keep synchronized across all of our own computers and sometimes we like to share them with each other. There are even times when we are at a computer that is not our own and we would like to have access to our files. And that is exactly the problem that Foldershare solves. All you have to do is have your computer connected to the internet. As soon as you update a document it will be updated on your other computers as well (assuming you have configured the folder for Foldershare updating). You can also synchronize your browser's favorites.

Wow! And you get all that for $0 (at least for now).

I've been using this for almost a year and I've never had a single problem. The only limitation I have run into is that there is a limit of 10k files per share. I exceeded that once and had to reorganize.

So, if you want a little something to make life easier then I suggest you download Foldershare and get it installed.

Building a Tower

Quote: "If you aim at nothing, you'll hit it every time." - Author Unknown

I've been working recently on a Seven Year Plan for my life. It has been a very challenging process. At first I thought it would be easy and that I just needed to put down the significant goal for my life (my Big Dream) and then a few steps that I would need to take to achieve it. However, it has proven to be a lot more involved than that. My goal is big so there are a lot of things I need to do to achieve it. Also, there are a lot of secondary considerations that don't relate directly to the goal but influence my ability to achieve it or the quality of life I will have at the end of the seven years.

So why am I doing this? Well, I met with the senior pastor (Tri Robinson) of my church recently to talk about my Big Dream and he suggested that a Seven Year Plan would be a good start. I didn't know exactly what a plan like this looked like so I did a little research on the internet. I found some good material and cobbled together my own format. My plan includes the following categories:

Spiritual, Personal, Relational, Ministry, Educational, Financial, Health, Vocational, Pleasure

I fretted for a while over the various categories but the list above works for me. Some of them are broken down into sub-categories. For example, the Relational category is broken down into Marriage, Family, and Friends. For now that’s about as deep as I want to go into the mechanics of the plan itself. What I really wanted to talk about is the value that I am getting from the process.

I was reminded of the alleged Harvard study that was conducted over a ten year time period. The findings of the study revealed that only 3% of the individuals in the study regularly committed their goals to writing and pursued them. The study also revealed that the net worth of that 3% exceed the remaining 97% ten years later. I don't know if the story is factual or not but I suspect that the message conveyed is true regardless. Every course I have taken that is designed to increase personal effectiveness has espoused the merits of written goals.
I also remembered the passage in Luke where Jesus talked about planning to build a tower:

Luke 14:25-33 - Large crowds were traveling with Jesus, and turning to them he said: "If anyone comes to me and does not hate his father and mother, his wife and children, his brothers and sisters—yes, even his own life—he cannot be my disciple. And anyone who does not carry his cross and follow me cannot be my disciple.
"Suppose one of you wants to build a tower. Will he not first sit down and estimate the cost to see if he has enough money to complete it? For if he lays the foundation and is not able to finish it, everyone who sees it will ridicule him, saying, 'This fellow began to build and was not able to finish.'
"Or suppose a king is about to go to war against another king. Will he not first sit down and consider whether he is able with ten thousand men to oppose the one coming against him with twenty thousand? If he is not able, he will send a delegation while the other is still a long way off and will ask for terms of peace. In the same way, any of you who does not give up everything he has cannot be my disciple.

I looked that passage up and read it because I wanted to grasp the broader context. I was taken aback by what I read. Jesus used very strong language here to communicate the cost of discipleship. He gives us two examples of the necessity of planning and they are book ended by reminders of the cost of true discipleship. I must admit that sometimes my enthusiasm for ministry wanes. In fact, at times I am downright afraid of what it will cost me. And then I am reminded that nothing else matters. When this thought makes its way down into my heart I am at peace. If only I could trap it there and make it stay.

The plan helps to stay on course by reminding me where I am headed. I think I will also add some encouraging scriptures and thoughts to it that remind me why I need to stay on course.

Grafted into the Vineyard

Last week Sharon and I attended the Vineyard USA National Conference. I was honored that our church staff invited us to attend. At the same time, I was experiencing a bit of trepidation. You see, I previously had a lot of concerns about the whole Vineyard movement. In fact, when my wife and I moved to Boise eight years ago a Vineyard church was about the last place in the world I wanted to visit in search of a new church family. But my wife’s sister and her family were attending Vineyard Boise and they insisted that we at least give it a try. So we did and we fell in love with Vineyard Boise and Pastor Tri Robinson in short order. I couldn’t put my finger on what it was that enamored me so quickly but I figured out later that it was the authenticity and commitment to be true disciples of Jesus.

The reason for our reservations was that we had personally experienced three churches in the Seattle area that had been affected by the “Toronto Blessing” which was conceived in the Vineyard (and subsequently shut down by its leadership). I won’t go into great detail here regarding our experiences but suffice it to say that we were two of many people who were wounded and disillusioned as a result of the unhealthy, imbalanced perspectives and behaviors resulting from it. Several of our friends and acquaintances walked away from the church as a result of these influences and have yet to return to church life to this day.

So, I went to the conference with high expectations of connecting more deeply with our church staff but I suspended judgment and set my expectations low for other aspects of the conference. I didn’t want to be disappointed. I am glad to report, however, that it was a great event. I saw and experienced a few weird things from some of the attendees that made me uncomfortable but the AVC leadership carried themselves in what I considered to be a very healthy and balanced manner. More importantly, I saw in the Vineyard movement the same deep commitment to the core values of the Christian faith and the same authenticity that I had experienced at Vineyard Boise.

I couldn’t be more proud to be a member of the AVC. The conference ended with a message from Bert Waggoner, AVC President, entitled “New Kingdom Horizon” that was the highlight of the conference for me. In this message he specifically addressed and laid to rest all of the concerns that I had. He also demonstrated the heart of God for this world and established a vision for how the Vineyard movement should walk in alignment with God’s purposes in the next 25 years. Rock on!

We all make mistakes, sometimes individually and sometimes corporately. I am proud to be a part of a church movement that can acknowledge its mistakes, learn from them, and move forward in greater maturity and unity.

[The train has left the station and I am on board!]

Musings on Mother's Day

I wrote a bulletin article for my church this Mother's Day that I thought I would share. Some of it is specific to goings on at Vineyard Boise but most of it is relevant to anyone:

I want to talk to you about three things today: Pursuing your dreams, Vineyard Leadership Institute, and Mother’s Day. It’s going to be challenging and fun to combine those three topics. Here we go…

Do you have a dream to serve God and share His love with others? I bet you do. I think God places a dream in all of us. Sometimes we refer to these dreams as a vision for our lives. Although the shapes of our dreams may differ, they are part of our spiritual DNA. Maybe you have followed your dream and are already realizing it. Or perhaps you, like many, have had your dream on a shelf for a long time and haven't been pursuing it - or you've followed after one dream but you now see a bigger one on the horizon.

We'll talk more about dreams later but for now I'd like to tell you a story about an amazing woman named Ann Maria Reeves Jarvis who followed her dreams. That's a really long name so let's just call her Ann for short. Ann was born in 1832 and was the daughter of a Methodist minister. She married the son of a Baptist minister when she was nineteen and gave birth to eleven children. Sadly, only four of them lived to adulthood. I can only imagine how painful those losses were for her. In fact, the deaths of her children motivated her to educate others and address some significant needs in her society. She was deeply troubled by the poor health and sanitation conditions in her community and felt God calling her to do something about it. At the age of twenty-six Ann grabbed hold of her dream and began to follow it.

The realization of Ann's dream was the founding of a community organization that provided health care essentials for the poor, especially children. The organization grew and many chapters were established in other communities. Despite the outbreak of civil war, Ann fought to ensure that her organization did not take sides and that it provided the same level of care to everyone no matter the color of their uniform. When typhoid fever and measles epidemics put her ideals to the test she passed with honors.

Despite her incredible civic efforts and responsibilities, Ann found time to serve in her church. When her church's building program was completed she became the assistant superintendent of the primary department of the church school and devoted twenty-five years serving in that capacity. Ann understood that education was of primary importance. She was considered an excellent teacher as well as a knowledgeable public speaker. One of Ann's surviving daughters, Anna, shared her mother's values for education and also became a teacher.

I'd like to ask you to stop for a moment and think about your dream. Maybe you already know what it is or maybe you need some time to recognize it. Do you have it in mind? Okay, now if that is truly a big dream then you probably realize that it's more than you are capable of taking on by yourself. It's funny how God works isn't it? You're going to have to depend on God and others to make that dream happen. It's also quite possible that you are going to need further training to assist you. The good news is that there are programs designed to meet your needs and they are available to you here at the Vineyard. If you are a young student then VCOM is your best course. However, if you are a working adult with a household and/or career then Vineyard Leadership Institute (VLI) might be exactly what you need to help you reach your full potential. Remember, “God doesn’t call the equipped, He equips the called.”

VLI is a two-year, part-time, accredited (ACE), college level program (http://www.vli.org/). This excellent program was the dream of Steve Robbins, a Vineyard pastor from Southern California. You do not need to be a church planter or a pastor-in-training in order to qualify for VLI. I know from talking to some of you that this is a common misconception. What you do need is a heart to serve and to lead others. You will also need an abundance of commitment because this journey is going to result in a lot of growth and growth always takes effort. In VLI you will read and be taught through the entire Bible. I’ll bet a lot of you have always wanted to do this. The quality of instruction is excellent. You will have the privilege to learn from the best of the best. During VLI you will have an opportunity to learn who God created you to be. Your gifts and abilities will become much clearer to you as you put them to use and as you engage in real, hands-on ministry leadership in the church. You will also have the opportunity to be mentored personally and in small group settings in various areas of ministry leadership, some prescribed and some of your own personal choosing.

I’m getting excited just writing this and thinking to myself that you may be making a decision to pursue VLI at this very moment. My wife and I pursued a dream—we are VLI graduates. It was an enriching and life changing experience for both of us. I have also had the privilege of facilitating the weekly class for the past couple of years which has allowed me to see others finish the journey and pursue their dreams. I would encourage you to consider whether VLI might be the next step in your discipleship journey.

Here is a verse that harmonizes beautifully with the idea of being equipped to pursue your dream: Proverbs 16:9 says, "In his heart a man plans his course, but the Lord determines his steps." I believe that life is not truly lived until it is lived for a purpose. That was essentially the message of Rick Warren's, "Purpose Driven Life" and why it had such a tremendous impact in our culture. I would invite you to take that concept and turn it into a reality. I hope that this is striking a chord in some of you. What would it be like if you could start living a life of purpose? If you think that VLI might help you do that then I invite you to simply note your interest on the v-mail in this bulletin and we will be in touch with you. You can also attend any of the VLI intensive weekends which are open to anyone. The next one is Team Building and it is a particularly good one. It will be held the evening of Friday, June 1st and finishes Saturday, June 2nd. Watch the bulletin for an announcement.

I like how songs capture ideas in poetic form that communicates with our hearts as well as our minds. Michael W. Smith wrote a song titled “Pursuit of the Dream” that I think has some insightful and passionate lyrics:

Wake up and dream about

The plans you have in store for you

But keep in mind

It's not just what you do

But what you do it for-and who

There are roads to discover

There are stories yet to be told

As you see the big picture

Just beginning to unfold

Now, let me weave Ann’s thread back in. You see, today is Mother’s Day and Ann is known as the Mother of Mother’s Day. Shortly after her death in 1905 her daughter Anne wanted to honor her mother and all mothers so she pursued that dream and a few years later it became a reality. Today we honor mothers across the U.S. and in several other countries because of these two ladies who pursued their dreams. Therefore I would invite you to pursue your God given dreams also. What could possibly be a better Mother’s Day gift than for you to live a life of purpose as you follow your dreams and add to your mother’s legacy?

To all of you mother’s I thank you for the blessing of life and I pray that you are blessed this day. Happy Mother’s Day!

Vineyard Leadership Institute

Christian leadership development is something that I am passionate about. A few years ago I enrolled in a two-year academic program called Vineyard Leadership Institute (VLI). It’s a college level course which has recently received ACE accreditation. My wife had enrolled the previous year and I was inspired by the changes I was seeing in her so I signed up too. Through VLI I experienced a period of significant personal growth in the area of Christian leadership. I learned the importance of transparency and authenticity. My heart also grew for others. Instead of serving mostly out of a sense of obligation and obedience I grew to a point that I began to truly have a heart for others more than I ever had before. For two years I was pulled out of my comfort zone and stretched in ways that I hadn’t expected. The VLI motto pretty much sums it up:

“Act like a leader. Think like a scholar. Love like the Lord.”

Here is a description of the program from the VLI website:

Vineyard Leadership Institute (VLI) was created to integrate hands-on training, ministry experience, spiritual formation, and academic understanding with an uncompromising commitment to excellence in biblical-theological, ministerial and spiritual-formational training.

Perhaps the coolest thing about VLI is the hands-on training. Part of the program includes the execution of a leadership project during most quarters in which you must lead others in a ministry endeavor. Basically, you must actually “do the stuff.” I also learned a lot about the Bible too. I especially valued learning more about the Old Testament, parts of which I just didn’t understand well and had studied very little. I began to understand myself better and also discovered a new passion to engage in spiritual disciplines, especially prayer and devotional study of the Word.

Some of you who read this could enroll in VLI and others live in areas where that would not be feasible. Whatever the case, I would encourage you to consider the importance of lifelong education and spiritual growth as you continue on your discipleship journey.

2 Timothy 2:15 - Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a workman who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly handles the word of truth.