Publishers Rev. Antwon D. James, President/CEO Pastor Tremaine M. Combs, Vice President-At-Large/Chief of Staff Elder Matthew D. Ray, First Vice President Pastor Cordell E. Fields, Second Vice President Bishop Umiko D. Jones, General Secretary
Rev. Jerome L. Williams, Executive Administrator Vacant, Director of Communications & Public Relations
The Kingdom Herald – Editor-In-Chief
In This Issue
5 Reasons Why Staff Leave Churches 4
5 Ways to Inspire Teens
to Share the Gospel 17
3 Ways to Win the Congregation 6
Rookie’s You’re Out 21 How to Become a 360Degree Leader 26
5 Major Distractions in Ministry
Ten Tips for Preaching from an iPad 27
8 Spotlight on Members
The Secret Pain of Pastors
10 The Saints and Social Media 14
29 Churches, Businesses & Ministries 36
© Copyright 2013. All Rights Reserved. Kingdom Builders Association of America, Inc.
5 Reasons Why Staff Leave Churches by Will Mancini We have all heard this when a staff member leaves our team … ”God is calling me away.” I have no doubt that is true because God has moved my family several times over the course of 14 years of ministry. God calls people away, but there are factors that push staff members to change churches. God uses “holy discontent” to help people make moves in new directions.
staff members don’t feel supported, many times they leave.
Making a ministry move is not a bad thing. I know church members and leaders take it personally. The question many people wonder is … WHY DID THEY LEAVE “US” … WHAT IS WRONG WITH “US”? If you want the truth … there are many more unhealthy churches than healthy churches out there. Here are five reasons I see staff members make ministry moves …
Chasing THE LADDER — Many times it is just this simple … sometimes staff members are not given the freedom to move into other ministry areas in their current church. Staff members have to make moves in order to go in a new direction … focus on their passion … have more influence. I hate the ministry “ladder,” but we know it exists.
Disconnection from the “church” — Many times, staff members leave because they just do not connect with the vision and direction of their current church. A staff member can only serve in a church they don’t fully believe in for so long.
Burnout — When leaders place ministry ahead of everything else, burnout is on the horizon. So many times, staff people leave because they are have been beaten down by the system, wrong priorities and lack of balance.
Lack of support — When leaders lack support from the lead pastor or overall church leadership … when they have an insufficient budget … when they have no hope of ever getting needed space in a facility. Yep, those three will do it. When
Maturity — This happens when a staff leader discovers who they are and who they are not. That powerful combination leads many staff members to new adventures.
What do you think? Why do staff leave a church? Why have you left?
3 Ways to Win the Congregation by Jamie Harvill
W
hen I set out on my professional music career in 1980, the first thing I learned from my mentors was to connect with the audience. I was taught that the stage is not like a fish bowl, where the audience peers statically at the action happening on stage. The potent energy that flows back and forth from performer to the audience is a very important aspect of the presentation. That is why live performances haven’t been completely obliterated by movies and television; people still desire that back-and-forth, “being there” camaraderie of a live program. The concept of “entertainment,” in the context of church, is forbidden in certain circles. But as I’ve said before, using musical and dramatic techniques to enhance the art of storytelling can help create a flowing and enjoyable experience — one that allows the audience to lose self-awareness, to the point where they are fully engaged in the action on the stage. To make sure that I’m not misunderstood, I want to emphasize that delivering the message of Christ and His redemptive power is, by far, the most noble and virtuous use of the stage, cutting-edge
technology and excellence in all genres of performance. Performance Myths The perspective of the audience differs from that of the performer. Tom Jackson, a professional live performance producer, helps bands develop their live shows to effectively deliver a powerful performance. In a teaching from one of his DVDs entitled Stage Performance: Making Our Services Rock, Tom spoke of several myths from a performer’s point of view: If we feel the music then the audience must feel it too. It’s all about the song (that the song is strong enough to carry the performance). If we play well, sing well and the audience hears the words, we win. There are no performance rules — we just “wing it” because we are spontaneous. “I’ve been doing it for ‘X’ amount of years; I know what I’m doing.”
I feel comfortable onstage, so it must be The #2 thing to remember is: The audience wants to great. be led. We help the audience along on our journey If I’m uncomfortable, it must not be “me.” through: If it worked for a bigger church then it will Directing their attention toward important work for me. aspects of the performance through visual and verbal cues (please stand; please sit; The difference between a great performance and an “let’s welcome to the stage X, Y or Z”; average or poor performance is essentially the “Please direct your attention to the video connection with the audience. Jackson made a screens”; musical cut-offs; receiving humorous but accurate observation of a great applause; etc.) performer, using Bono, lead singer of U2, as an Giving them permission to respond example. He said Bono is “married” to the appropriately. audience, when most of us are just “dating” the Helping them move through transitions in audience. It takes a great amount of work and skill the performance without losing focus. to create a great performance, and in doing so, we earn the audience’s respect. I’ve personally seen U2 perform live, and Bono had that huge indoor Don’t take for granted that the audience knows what to do … they don’t! Your job as a leader is to lead sports arena in the palm of his hand! them! Three Performance Basics: The #3 thing to remember is: The audience is 1. Connect with Your Audience (Love Them and unaware. I could say ignorant, but that seems a little harsh. What I mean to say is that the audience is not They’ll Love You Back) as aware of the intricacies of our performance as we 2. Lead Your Audience (They’re Gonna Follow are. Things aren’t always as obvious to our You!) audience until we direct their attention toward something. Many times, our mistakes will go 3. Your Audience Is Less Aware Than You unnoticed if we simply don’t bring attenuation to Think (Keep Your Flubs to Yourself) them. Therefore, we must remain confident and in control. The #1 thing to remember in a performance is: Connect with your audience. Therefore, be prepared I once heard it said, “My play was a complete and confident. Practice to the point where success, but the audience was a failure!” Sometimes everything you do flows from the subconscious — as performers we may think that way, but in reality as if the effort was second-hand. That way, your we cannot blame our poor performance on the body language will emit an air of confidence and audience. Our lack of preparation and planning will fluidity rather than being stiff and awkward. A hurt our performances. performer’s ability to be authentic, warm and engaging, yet humble toward the audience, helps Very few great artists “wing it.” A wise performer’s them build confidence in you. When you exude a every move and spoken word is scrutinized for lack of confidence, your audience feels unsure, effectiveness, whether in worship or on a secular expecting you to make a mistake or misspeak. stage. The key for every performer, worship leader Preparedness begets confidence! and preacher is to make what they do seem effortless!
James Taylor, the great singer/songwriter, has said that a live performance is a common emotional experience for the performer and the audience. As performers, we must plan, prepare and practice for a performance. But there comes a time when we must
Five Major Distractions in Ministry
surrender to the moment — to be fully “present” in our live performances and let things unfold. That’s why each performance, even though they contain the same elements, can be received and enjoyed in various ways by different audiences.
can distract and dilute our ministry efforts.
disguise, it will be hard to say “no” to the next seemingly “good” thing.
Think about how many kinds of opportunities cross a pastor’s path:
See if these sources clarify the point:
The term “scope creep” is a term consultants use when their clients expect more than what the project originally outlined. The idea is that the scope of the project is slowly getting bigger, usually in imperceptible increments.
We serve a congregation that’s a bottomless well of members’ needs.
Opportunity Becomes Distraction #1: The New is Askew.
We are captured by the buzz of new ideas, new people and new initiatives happening in church space.
Who doesn’t love something new? Especially for us creative types, it's easy to feel the rush of the next.
Of course, no consultant wants scope creep to happen, but in an effort to please the client, it's hard to prevent sometimes.
We live in communities riddled with issues that we would love to “missionally” engage. We are digitally connected to an ocean of information and “friends.”
But the lure of the new can drive us to do too much at the same time, or too much too fast.
by Will Mancini
The same dynamic is ever present in ministry. It’s called “opportunity creep.” What is “opportunity creep?” It's roughly the same idea, just applied to all of the positive ministry opportunities a pastor may face in the days and weeks of church life. By calling it “creep” we are acknowledging that it’s all too easy to say yes too much. By positioning this as a problem, we are highlighting that a lack of “opportunity management”
The bottom line: Church leadership is rich soil for opportunity creep. It’s easy for opportunity after opportunity to press in and vie for the precious little time God has given you. The first step to dealing with opportunity creep is to identify the sources of opportunities in a way that repositions them as distractions. If we don’t understand that most opportunities are distractions in
The opportunistic personalities among us will look for the next ministry “find” before going deeper with what we already have. This week, I was with a church that lamented, “Our people aren’t clear about who we are because we repackage ourselves every six months.” In short, make sure the next new thing is a deeply “you thing.” Opportunity Becomes Distraction #2: Off-Mission Permission. In the desire for more ministry, it's easy to say “yes” to the ideas
of well-meaning members. The problem is that most of their ministry aspirations are misdirected because they want to create more church structure and programming rather than living out their gifts and calling in life. The church very quickly becomes over programmed and underdiscipled. The “more is more” default mode of program permission clutters a simple discipleship experience in and through the church. Helping people dream big for Jesus is beautiful, overcomplicating church is not. Opportunity Becomes Distraction #3: Funny Money. There is nothing more freeing than an abundance of resources, unless it comes with the proverbial attached string. Beware of that check-cutting, money-slinging individual — whether it's a new member or an influential elder — that’s ready
to fund the next thing (that they brought to the table). If a new idea is connected to designated giving, always ask, “Would our vision really have taken us in this direction?” If people are not willing to subordinate their giving to the existing vision of the church, then it’s probably a distraction in disguise. (Sorry to break the bad news.) Opportunity Becomes Distraction #4: Knowledge Trafficking. I enjoy learning, as do most called into vocational ministry. But when our pursuit of knowledge outpaces our put-inuse of knowledge, we’ll get used to living with distraction. To make matters worse, now you can get a direct feed of whatever-you-want-to-learn, whenever-you-want-to-learn through the 50 devices in your life. Don’t let your smart phone turn you into a not-so-smart leader.
One of the greatest benefits of organizational and personal clarity, by the way, is the ability to ruthlessly filter out nonrelevant new data. Opportunity Becomes Distraction #5: Platform Jacking. The last source of distraction meddles a bit more than the others. Platform jacking is when we divert too much time and energy to gaining influence through opportunities outside of direct, day-to-day ministry responsibilities. There is certainly nothing wrong with wanting to “bless the capital ‘C’ church”— a noble aspiration for sure! Yet, I am amazed at how quickly the favor of God on a pastor can back-fire on the mission of the ministry. The success of the local church can become a “success distraction” for the pastor who spends increasing amounts of time growing his or her platform. Most of us have seen this in someone else, so just be discerning for yourself.
Elder Dwalunda Ray was born and raised in Houston, Texas where she graduated from Booker T. Washington High School for Engineering Professions. She went on to Texas Southern University where she received her Bachelors of Arts in Psychology in 2005. From the age of four, Elder Ray attended The Church Without Walls (TCWW) where Dr. Ralph D. West is Pastor. Elder Ray actively participated in the young adult choir at TCWW, as well as the gospel choir on the campus of Texas Southern, but in 2002, she felt a higher calling from God in the pursuit of ministry. At the age of nineteen, Elder Ray accepted her calling to preach the Word of God. Along with that call was the charge to attend seminary in order to sharpen the tools that God had given her. She moved to Fort
TKH: How did you feel when you were informed that you would be in the “spotlight�? EDR: I was extremely honored and excited! I love KBA and it is an awesome feeling to receive the love in return. TKH: How did you become aware of the association? And what prompted you to join? EDR: I had the esteemed honor of attending the same church as our illustrious founder and president, so I saw firsthand what the purpose and
Worth in 2005 and attended Brite Divinity School on the campus of Texas Christian University where she received her Masters of Divinity with a concentration in Black Church Studies in December 2008. She was ordained through the Rhema Fellowship of Churches by Bishop David E. Martin in May, 2009. Elder Ray is a member of The Fellowship Church in Fort Worth, TX where Patrick D. Joubert is her Pastor. She is the founder of Antioch Kingdom Ministries (AKM on Facebook) and her own marketing business, D. Ray Consulting. Her organizational memberships include: Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc., Kingdom Builders Association of America, Inc., and The Young Clergy Women Project.
vision was for KBA. I had a desire to become a part of something that I believed was and is great and a God-ordained organization that can bring unification amongst denominations and believers across the world. TKH: So tell us a little bit about who you are, family, your origin, current church/ministry; and what you do there. EDR: I am originally from Houston, TX, born to Keith and Debbie Ray and I have a younger brother, Keith II. I was one of those children who basically went from the hospital to the church! The
church is literally all I’ve known. I grew up singing in the choir and eventually began to teach the children’s classes at my church. I accepted my calling to the preaching ministry at the age of 19, and after graduating from college in Houston, I moved to Fort Worth to attend Brite Divinity School. I graduated with a Masters of Divinity, was ordained as an Elder in 2009, and have since been using my gifts and degree knowledge while serving as an associate at The Fellowship Church of Fort Worth, TX. I am a preacher, praise team member, Co-Director of the Singles Ministry, and the Director of P.D.J. Ministries, my pastor’s personal/media ministry. TKH: Do you operate any other ministries outside or your church? EDR: Yes, as the founder of Antioch Kingdom Ministries, I host workshops and conferences and travel for preaching engagements in the name of AKM. TKH: What do you desire to see happen in a greater way through your work with KBA as well as your personal ministries? EDR: I would love to see more women get actively involved in KBA. In order for us to truly represent the Kingdom, all of its citizens have to be represented. As far as my personal ministry is concerned, I want to see people focus on their relationship with God and not the religiosity of man CONCERNING God. TKH: Given the current state of the church with scandals among those in ministry and leadership; where do we go from here? EDR: We need to get real relationships with God. I don’t question anyone’s salvation because I wasn’t there when they got saved, but it is increasingly evident that deliverance still needs to take place for a great number of leaders and those who claim to represent the church. We need to get back to the basics: prayer, studying God’s word, and being
better DISCIPLES. If we could all get on one accord and do that, the church could start looking more prepared for its Groom. TKH: So many of us in ministry and leadership seem to have no life, what is that you do to have fun? EDR: I live my life! I listen to live bands, I go to the movies, bowling, poetry houses, etc. My sorority also keeps me busy with functions and community service. I advise everyone to not be ashamed to like going places other than church. IT’S OKAY! TKH: So what’s next on your agenda? (As in books, albums, singles, ministry related) EDR: I have quite a bit going on right now. Antioch Kingdom Ministries is hosting “The Heart of a Woman” Workshop on September 21, 2013, and I am VERY excited. We’ll have some dynamic teachers/preachers and expect for women to leave in a better condition than when they came. I’m also in the beginning stages of planning “Women with Power” 2014, which will be the second major conference hosted by AKM. Our Singles Ministry at The Fellowship Church will be hosting its first conference in 2014, so I’m excited about that as well. Finally, I am working on a devotional entitled “Think On It A Minute”, which was birthed from several thought provoking and scriptural posts that I used to make on social media sites. Someone suggested that I consider putting those thoughts into a devotional, and God began to move on me concerning it, so I’m expecting to release that by the end of 2014. TKH: What could you offer as encouragement to your fellow KBA members and our readers? EDR: Keep yourselves aligned with the will of God, listening to the voice of God, and seeking after what’s on the mind of God. If you do that, you can’t lose at ANYTHING that you desire in life.
The Saints and Social Media Seven Reasons for the Saints to be fully engaged in Social Media! By: Larry W. Robinson During one of my recent LIVE webcast, I asked J. Richard Byrd, founder of The ChurchBrand Architects, “what exactly is social media?” He stated that, “social media is a platform used to connect with other people.” As our conversation progressed, the thought came, if that is the case then, the saints must be exactly where the people are. Matthew 28: 18-20 (NIV) says, 18 Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.” (Emphasis added…) The fact of the matter is millions of people are using social media. Many of those people “may” never step foot in your church, but I believe you are still obligated to reach them with the Gospel. I would like to present to you seven reasons why you should be fully engaged in Social Media. 1. People are looking for the “Good News”. Humanity’s soul has a void and only God can fill that void. People are trying to substitute that void by engaging in things that distract their mind. Social media is one of those things. Engage yourself in social media by sharing your day to day journey on
how God is bringing you true peace, joy and happiness. 2. Lost souls are thirsty for inspiration and encouragement. People are trying to find satisfaction in a myriad ways: pictures, video, audio and the written text. You can be a conduit to provide content to help them drink from the Living Well of eternal nourishment; Jesus Christ! 3. People are talking! They are posting status messages, comments, pictures and videos about their struggles, issues and everyday life. You can be there to provide enlightenment and to direct those to the true source of their strength when life seems stormy and uncertain. 4. People really do long for human connection. Even though people may initially connect through a social network, eventually they may want to connect in person. If you are marketing and promoting actual events people will want to come. They may not readily want to come to a church service at first, but they might attend a concert, workshop, seminar or conference that provides solutions to problems they have been talking about in social media. 5. People have changed their hangout location. Our message of Jesus Christ has not changed, but the methods of communicating the message should. Your neighbors may dodge your knock at the door, but they will rarely ignore your message if they are connected with you through social media. 6. It is not cost effective to spend your entire outreach budget on traditional forms of media. More and more people are getting
stroke of a few keys on your keyboard, an audio upload to a podcast or a video upload to video sharing site, you can communicate a message of hope, love and encouragement that many people so desperately need. In closing, there is a great opportunity for you to reach a lost generation. Get 7. Do it today. Each day more and more people plugged in, share a status, tweet, send a are feeling like they are losing hope. As a video; connect with somebody and share the Good believer, you have the answer; Jesus. There News. is no time to waste. The time is NOW. Become social and use the new forms of Through the power of media, Larry W. Robinson media to share God’s Love for ALL has created an unparalleled connection with people humanity! around the world. Larry has informed inspired and their news and current events from social media. Since people are looking at news feeds and trending topics on social media, be there to provide content that captures their eye and engage their heart.
We are positioned in one of the unprecedented times in human history. We have the ability to reach more people in less time with fewer resources than our forefathers. You no longer have to have a “mega ministry to reach the masses�. With the
ignited listeners and viewers globally. His achievements as an international media personality have established him as one of the most notable and inspirational public figures today. Visit www.larrywrobinson.com to connect with Larry today.
Coming Soon to KBA! Digital Member Center
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5 Ways to Inspire Teens to Share the Gospel
years) and view it as the real key to multiplying change makers across the planet. 2. Share a lot of stories.
by Greg Stier Teenagers can be a tough audience and sharing the gospel a tough subject. So how do you inspire a tough audience to engage in the tough stuff of evangelism? As the leader of a ministry called Dare 2 Share, an organization that annually equips tens of thousands of teens to evangelize, I am in the motivation business. I have to be. If a clinical approach to evangelism were enough to motivate teenagers, we could just do a video-based training series for youth groups and leave it at that. But it takes way more to motivate teens to actually go beyond talking about evangelism to actually doing it. Here are the five essentials I have discovered about motivating teenagers to share the gospel: 1. Reposition evangelism from being just another Christian duty to being the ultimate cause. Jesus rebuked the religious grumblers and mumblers of his day with a crystal clear comeback: “For the Son of Man came to seek and to save what was lost” Luke 19:10. The driving mission of Jesus was a hands-on search and rescue mission for the lost, disenfranchised, too-evil-torescue sinners. Specifically in this passage, he was referring to Zacchaeus, the tax collector who was despised by the Jews and used by the Romans. But once this tree climbing traitor put his faith in Jesus, he gave half of his possessions to the poor and quadrupled payback for any social injustices he had committed. Help your teens see Luke 19:1-10 as the key to eradicating poverty, stopping human trafficking and advancing social justice. The more we can lead people to Jesus, the more they can create change in their circle of influence. Stop separating social justice from evangelism (like I did for
The more stories of changed lives your teens hear, the more motivated they will be to evangelize. Stories can capture the hearts of teenagers in a way that mere lecture cannot. Maybe that’s why Jesus was such a prolific storyteller. He bypassed intellectual objections and went straight to the hearts of his hearers. But Jesus wasn’t the only storyteller in the New Testament. When Paul and Barnabas were headed back to Jerusalem, they told stories of changed lives along the way: “The church sent them on their way, and as they traveled through Phoenicia and Samaria, they told how the Gentiles had been converted. This news made all the believers very glad. When they came to Jerusalem, they were welcomed by the church and the apostles and elders, to whom they reported everything God had done through them” Acts 15:3,4. Have teenagers share stories of those they are engaging with the gospel. Tie stories into your weekly talks. The more stories you share, the more inspired your teens will be to share their faith. 3. “Create” more stories by taking your teens out to evangelize. If you want to have more stories to share, then create them. In other words, go out and evangelize with your teenagers. Go to a park with some of your teens and have a pick up game of basketball with the teenagers who are there, and, afterward, share the good news of Jesus (or get one of your teens to do it and you be their wingman). There are many ways you can get your teens involved with evangelism. Here are a few: -Do a community survey. Use it as a way to take the spiritual temperature of your neighborhood as well as a springboard for evangelistic conversations.
-Sponsor a free car wash and take prayer requests of those in the cars (which can lead to more gospel conversations). -Take your teens to a local shopping mall, break up in twos, and engage in conversations with other teenagers. -Give out free bottles of water at a busy walkway on a hot day and use it as an opportunity to talk about the living water with those you are serving. There are many ways for teens to engage evangelistically. Ultimately, the best place for them to start sharing their faith is in their own circle of friends. Hold them accountable to do just that and let them do the same with you. As you lead your teenagers to evangelize, you’ll create more and more stories that you can share with the rest of the youth group to inspire them to do the same. 4. Talk about hell. There I said it. Teenagers need to be reminded of what’s at stake for those who die without Christ. In a very real way, those who don’t know Jesus are unknowingly headed 100 mph at a cliff that leads to everlasting destruction. Our job as caring Christians is to jerk the steering wheel … and to get our teens to do the same with their friends. Paul put it this way in 2 Thessalonians 1:8-9, “He will punish those who do not know God and do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus. They will be punished with everlasting destruction and shut out from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of his might.” Jude put it this way in Jude 1:23, “Save others by snatching them from the fire … ” John put it this way in John 3:36, “Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life, but whoever rejects the Son will not see life, for God’s wrath remains on them.” Jesus put it this way in John 5:24, “Very truly I tell you, whoever hears my word and believes him
who sent me has eternal life and will not be judged, but has crossed over from death to life.” We need to inspire our teens to help their friends cross from death to life. We must equip them to rescue their friends from the hell they are headed to and the one they are going through apart from Jesus Christ. (By the way, there’s an app to help you do just that!) 5. Pray Ultimately, the power to truly inspire teenagers to share the gospel is rooted in the Holy Spirit. Pray for your teenagers consistently, specifically and fervently. Pray that they will be inspired to live and give their faith in powerful ways. Intercede on their behalf, that God will fill them with an unstoppable passion to spread the good news. As God answers your prayer, your youth group meetings will be filled with an air of excitement and more and more new believers! And that will inspire everyone!
Coming soon . . . visit www.antoinejackson.org for more information.
Showing interest in people’s children. Listening without interrupting. Teachability (especially learning from elders). Apologizing for failings. Avoiding unnecessary offense.
by David Murray That’s the question Josh Tandy, a real rookie pastor, asks here. I have a simple two letter answer.
ABOVE ALL — Understanding the vital difference between what you say and what people hear. Having spent a lot of time with seminary students and young pastors over the past 10 years, I find it’s getting easier to identify those whom the Lord is most likely to use to bless and build his church in pastoral ministry.
EQ. Or rather, the lack of it. EQ is the emotional equivalent of IQ. Sometimes called “emotional intelligence” or “social intelligence,” and the lack of it is the primary reason for the majority of pastoral failures. That’s right, the main reason for rookie pastors getting fired or, even worse, rookie pastors destroying a church, is not intellectual, moral or theological failure, but failure in basic common sense humanity. We’ve all seen it, haven’t we: Exceptionally clever, technically skilled and self-disciplined people utterly fail in pastoral ministry. They just couldn’t connect with people at even the most basic levels: Saying hello/goodbye/please/thank you (especially “thank you”). Asking people, “How are you?” (and waiting for an answer). Being friendly. Remembering names.
The Lord is sovereign, of course, and can blow all our analysis and predictions out of the water, but usually He uses “ordinary” means. And EQ is one of the major means. (Have a look at the comments on the Rookie Pastor article for vivid confirmation.) Which raises a huge question: How can we train for this? Robert Anderson offers one suggestion in The Effective Pastor: In the seminary in which I teach, as a part of a course in philosophy of ministry I regularly bring in our assistant librarian to teach a class in etiquette. Unfortunately, it probably is one of the classes that is received the most poorly. I say unfortunately because it is the class that often is needed the most. Not many of our graduates fail in the ministry because they fall prey to doctrinal errors. Numbers, however, have made an improper impact on the ministry simply because they are “klutzes,” are continually making themselves offensive to people — and they will not change.
If they learned a few social graces in addition, and were able to remember to express gratitude to people for every kind action no matter how small, they would be making major progress toward becoming the type of respectable person the Bible demands for the position of pastor.
build understanding of other personality types and learning styles.
The person who basks in his crudeness and considers it a necessary part of his “macho” image probably should seek another vocation besides the pastorate.
4. Work experience.
Etiquette classes? Hmmm. One friend I mentioned this to suggested “living in the Proverbs more, having mentors, and having friends who are willing to critique and correct you in love.” I agree wholeheartedly and would add:
The difficulty is that the ones who need it most are usually most skeptical of such tools and just go through the motions.
Wherever possible, students should spend a minimum of five years trying to hold down a job and even progress in a career before studying for the ministry. I know there are exceptions to this rule, but they are very rare. It would root out a lot of doomed candidates, and it would tell us a huge amount about whether they have the EQ for the ministry. As a bonus, the work experience would also be worth any number of seminary classes in terms of preparation for the ministry.
1. Internships. Multiple, structured internships in local churches. 2. Growing in grace. Greater focus on spiritual formation in seminary years (this can be done in the seminary or in the local church). To the traditional emphasis on “growing in knowledge” we need to add “growing in grace.” Why so many knowledge courses with multiple specific learning outcomes, and so few (if any) “grace courses” where specific graces such as humility, patience, teachability, peacemaking, gentleness are taught/cultivated/tested? 3. Personality testing. Working on the assumption that no one can counsel others without some measure of selfknowledge and self-understanding, the first few weeks of my counseling courses are taken up with “self-counseling.” We’ve used Myers-Briggs, DISC and other helpful tests, and encouraged a strengths/weaknesses self-analysis, which also
I have to admit, though, every time a young man has told me that he’s called to the ministry and I’ve recommended that he go away and work for five years before seminary, not one has taken my advice. Thus far, the results speak for themselves. 5. Tougher love. Churches and seminaries should be much more ruthless in who they admit for training. Accepting obvious “klutzes” does no good to the “klutz” or his future “victims.”
How to Become a 360 Degree Leader by Michael Bayne
T
he question we all have as we lead is, how can we make a lasting impact? What I have learned over the years is, to make a lasting impact you have to learn how to be a 360 degree leader. You have to make sure and lead those above, across and below you in the organization. Easier said than done! In a messy leadership situation, in a church without clear direction, we often struggled to know how to lead. Truth is that you simply have to commit to lead through the mess or walk away. You have to lead with a 360 degree mindset …
Embrace Authority — treat those in authority over you as you want the people whom you lead to treat you. Build the Relationship — you have to work on getting to know who your leaders are … connect with them. Support them. Hang out with them. Don’t avoid relationships with people in authority over you no matter how you feel about their leadership ability. Influence flows from relationship. Deliver Consistently — when we do great work, our superiors learn they can trust us. Build trust by doing great and consistent work, make your area one that thrives.
Lead Up The need to lead up never ends because no matter your role, you are going to have people in authority over you. For some of you, it’s a pastor. For some of you, it’s a board or a committee. For some of you, it’s an executive pastor, a board, an administrator and a senior pastor. You have a list of people over you. If we walked around the room and were honest, we could all list off five things our senior leaders are doing wrong and could reveal their weak spots in leading. You can do this because you are a LEADER and LEADERS see these kind of things. We are consumed with forward progress and problem solving, so it’s natural to see the problems of those above us. Let go of the guilt, stop complaining, start leading up.
Discover
Your Leaders' Strengths — your senior leader is good at something. Discover that and then add value to that strength. Fill the Gap — add value to your organization by working carefully to fill the gaps being left by your senior leadership. Publicly Support — public support leads to private influence and access. Lead Across The strength of an organization is revealed in the strength of the leaders in the middle of the organization. Leading across is not a one-time event, not a project, it’s an ongoing process!
Care About More Than Just What is on Your To-do List — leading across well starts with the heart. When I care about the health of my church, I can start caring for the leaders of the church.
are not born a great leader, you become a great leader as you lead. As you lead, you are actually in a continual leadership lab.
Don’t Pretend to Be the Perfect Leader — that leader does not exist and if you are trapped in trying to appear that way people will naturally resist your influence. Be real, not perfect.
Walk Slowly — walk the halls of the ministry you lead slowly and get to know the people you are leading. Slow down long enough to actually connect with people you are leading. Quality relationships are the foundation of effective leadership.
Build Bridges, Not Silos — see how each ministry in your church can support the other and stop keeping your resources and influence trapped in a silo safe for only your ministry.
Believe in Your Team — look at potential and ability when you look at your team, not always at their weaknesses. Everyone needs someone to believe in them … be that to the people you lead.
Develop Authentic Friendships — discover who the people around you are, not just what they do for the organization.
Give Away Opportunities to Lead — make sure and take the spotlight off yourself and shine it on other leaders.
Strive for Production, Not Politics — resist the temptation to advance your ministry as you step on the people around you. Think long term, not short term.
Model the Behavior You Desire — it’s not what a leader says that will last, it’s what a leader does day-to-day that will be repeated in the organization.
Lead Down
Continually Repeat the Vision — people have to know the why if they are ever going to be able to do the what with passion.
Lead the people who serve under your leadership with the same principles you would embrace if you led the entire organization. Don’t ever allow the frustrations you have with the direction of your organization to deter your effort to provide effective leadership to the people you lead. You
Reward Results — when you see the results you want REWARD IT, don’t take it for granted. What is rewarded and recognized will be repeated.
The Kingdom Builders Association of America, Incorporated (KBA) is a multicultural 21st century interdenominational association of Kingdom Leaders. KBA is a Christian organization whose God given command is to equip, encourage, and edify Kingdom leaders. The criteria for membership within KBA is to be licensed or ordained clergy; be an active appointed or elected lay leader in your national, state, or local denomination, fellowship, ministry or community. As well as be in agreement with our adopted Statement of Faith. Our members represent diverse backgrounds, and serve in all fivefold ministry gifts. We take pride in knowing that with Christ, all things are possible. Our primary purpose is to Equip, Encourage, and Edify Kingdom Leaders, with a biblical foundation from Proverbs 27:17, Ephesians 4:4-7 and 1 Corinthians 3:9. We press to continue to be a source of outreach and help to our co-laborers of the Gospel.
Ten Tips for Preaching from an iPad by Brandon Hilgemann iPad preaching is a growing trend. I have been using an iPad to preach since mid-2011. I just use a single page outline with only scripture references, the essential big ideas and any quotes/statistics that I need to reference. If not anything fits on the one page, it is cut. I have learned a few things from experience. So today, I bring you ten lessons learned by experience. 1. Turn Off Notifications. The only thing worse than a cell phone ringing in the middle of a prayer is the preacher’s iPad ringing in the middle of a prayer. Make sure to turn on the Do Not Disturb switch in Settings. I also turn on Airplane Mode just to make sure I don’t have anything popping up from Wi-Fi. At one location where I preached, there was a very weak Wi-Fi signal that I did not have the password to. A Wi-Fi connection message kept popping up while I was preaching. You do not want any distractions from the message God has given you. 2. Turn Off Auto-Lock. I have forgotten to do this a few times. Five minutes into the message, my iPad blacked out. It totally threw me off. I had to pause what I was saying, open the iPad and swipe to unlock before resuming the message. This is even worse if your iPad is password protected. Always make sure to open up Setting, tap General and set Auto-Lock to Never. 3. Lower The Brightness. If the stage is dark and the brightness is too high your iPad will make your note stand glow. In addition, your face will light up like you are
telling scary stories around a campfire. If you wear glasses, the iPad can also reflect off your lenses. Eliminate this distraction. Adjust brightness accordingly. The goal is easy readability for you while glowing low enough so the audience does not notice. A cool trick that many people don’t know is that you can invert the colors on the iPad to make the screen dark. In Setting, tap General, then Accessibility, and switch Invert Colors to On. (Update: A great tip is that you can set up a triple click of the home button to invert colors to save time. Setting > General > Accessibility > Triple Click.) 4. Do Not Draw Attention To Your IPad. Do not show off your new gadget. Don’t say, “Look at this amazingly awesome piece of technology. Don’t you wish you were as cool as me?” You are not an Apple commercial. This is a tool to help you as you proclaim God’s message. Don’t let the iPad become a distraction from the main focus. I recommend getting a case that covers the logo. I use this amazing case that looks like a vintage book. Yes, it is as awesome as it looks. I definitely recommend it. 5. Use A PDF Reader App For Notes. I love having an editable Pages doc in case I want to make last second changes but hate preaching off the Pages App. One wrong tap and you deleted your notes and brought up the editing tools, keyboard, etc. It can be highly distracting. A PDF viewer eliminates distractions and keeps it simple. You easily convert a Pages doc to a PDF. Tap the wrench-looking Tools icon in the upper right
corner. Hit Share and Print, then Open in Another App. Choose PDF as a format, then Choose App. You will then have the option to select any App that handles PDFs. Some people like using free apps like iBooks or Kindle. However, my favorite is GoodReader, because it lets me add notes, highlight text (I color code illustrations, scripture, videos, etc.) and crop the document to eliminate margins and make the text larger and more readable. It is worth the extra couple of bucks, in my opinion. 6. Still Carry A Bible. This is just a personal preference, but I still like to have a physical Bible on stage with me. Yes, I read and study the Bible almost entirely online or in my iPad or iPhone, but I find that there is just something powerful about a preacher holding a physical Bible. It shows the audience that your authority comes from God, not Steve Jobs. 7. Make Sure The IPad Is Fully Charged. Always make sure your iPad is fully charged. You do not want the battery dying mid-sermon. Have a charger with you just in case you need a lastminute power up before walking onto stage. Fortunately, the iPad has such an incredibly long battery life that this has rarely been a problem for me. 8. Have A Backup. Always, always, always have a backup. Either a physical copy of your notes or a
Dropbox/Evernote/Google Doc you can pull up with your phone. You never know when technology might fail you. The battery could die unexpectedly, you could accidentally spill coffee on it or it might freeze up for no reason on you. Always be prepared just in case. I have had to pull out my backup a few times (more on that in #9). 9. Don't Leave your iPad Unattended. I set my iPad down one time … just once! I forgot about it, walked away, and when I came back it was gone! Someone had the nerve to steal my iPad only two minutes before I stood up to preach! I was upset, but not as upset as I would have been if I did not have a backup. I will never make that $400 mistake again! Just because you are in church does not mean that someone won’t give into the temptation to steal an easy target. 10. Don't Have an Open Beverage Next To Your iPad. I am all about baptism by full immersion—just not for my iPad! If enough liquid spills on an iPad, it is game over. You do not want an open water bottle on your note stand. You might get excited while preaching, swing your arms around and accidentally knock it over. Not only will you lose your iPad, you will have to explain to the elders why you cussed on stage. (Just kidding.)
www.Liberty.edu
New Haven Missionary Baptist Church 3418 Schofield Avenue Indianapolis, Indiana 46218
Overseer Charles H. McClain Jr., Pastor www.newhavenmbc.org
Ebenezer Missionary Baptist Church 1901 Amanda Avenue Fort Worth, Texas 76105
Dr. Bruce D. Datcher, Pastor www.theebenzerchurchorg info@theebenezerchurch.org
Empowerment Temple Community Church 3114 North Main St. Taylor, Texas 76574
David Henderson, III., Pastor
Greater Hope Missionary Baptist Church 2521 Bishop Street Fort Worth, Texas 76105
Rev. Sherman L. Johnson, Pastor
Greater Hope Christian Center COGIC 3733 North 7th Street Milwaukee, Wisconsin 53212
Lynell Ray Sr., Pastor
Mount Zion Missionary Baptist Church 2100 Randolph Street Saint Charles, Missouri 63301
Tremaine M. Combs, Pastor
The Fellowship Church 908 Crawford Street Fort Worth, Texas 76104
Patrick D. Joubert, Senior Pastor
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