Leadership, Technology, Innovation, Campus, City
I highly recommend that you check out the Campus Crusade blogference blog. It’s got some great interaction from Campus staff all over the place. The recent discussion about how large evangelistic events do more harm than good was intriguing.
I may be tooting my own horn but I posted over there today about getting better at listening in evangelism. I’d love for you take a look, but only if you promise to mix it up in the comments. Tell them Matt sent you.
Maybe I preaching to the choir when I ask that question, but I want to know! What online technology has spurred spiritual growth in you?
Examples:
Are there any specific stories you can point to where the Lord used an online resources to grow you as a follower of Christ and as a spiritual leader?
You’ll hear about one of mine on Monday, when I post on the Campus Crusade for Christ, ReThink Blogference site.
Charlene Li is the master of social media and has coined the term open leadership. Companies like Google call her to consult on social media plans. This a great primer on the subject of leadership in the technologically rich culture we live in. I heard Charlene speak at Catalyst last spring and it was intriguing and challenging.
This is what my life feels like right now. My staff team is officially launching the ministry in Portland right now and I’m in Boise waiting for our son to be born. Not the way I planned it.
Writing a plan makes you feel in control of things you can’t actually control. Why don’t we just call plans what they really are: guesses. Start referring to your business plans as business guesses, your financial plans as financial guesses, and your strategic plans as strategic guesses. Now you can stop worrying about them as much. They just aren’t worth the stress.
Rework – Fried and Hansonn
Things just don’t go as planned do they? Don’t get me wrong, there is great value in planning and thinking about the future. But we must build into our plans enough margin to seize opportunities and improvise if needed. And sometime we need to stop having meetings and start working on today.
Do you have tendency to overplan? I do. How do you balance necessary planning with being nimble enough to take advantage of God opportunities?
Part of my job as Operations Director of the ministry in Portland, Oregon is building the necessary manpower and team to move us toward our vision of every student having a chance to hear about Christ. Below is simple tool that I just revamped that I like to talk through with graduating students and potential volunteers.
I wanted something that was simple, clear, visionary and yet gave specific enough details that a potential staff member could see themselves working here.
If they don’t live here I also show them this video…dispelling the myth that it’s miserable to live here.
We’re a little different cause we’re starting from scratch, but do you have any go to recruiting methods or tools?
Pictures are courtesy of Portlandground
Here are the top 5 books that have shaped and challenged me the most in the leadership category. These are the ones I keep coming back to and I’m not sure what I’d do without.
Next Generation Leader – Andy Stanley. Far and away this has been the most helpful book for me to grow as a leader. I’m revisiting it right now!
Master Plan of Evangelism – Robert Coleman. A hard look at the way Jesus did discipleship, his plan to change the world and how it applies to us today.
Five Dysfunctions of Team – Patrick Lencioni. A must for helping you and your team grow and function well.
Changes that Heal – Henry Cloud. For personal growth that has bounces all over your ability to lead well, this is a great one.
Communicating for Change – Andy Stanley. Increase your ability to leverage communication opportunities for the Kingdom
Am I missing any? What leadership books have shaped you the most?
I think Jim Collins say’s it something like this. “If you have more than 3 major initiatives, then you’ve really got none.”
In the context of a metro student ministry with 15+ campuses, where every other day we are invited into a new ministry opportunity, we have decision after decision of what to say yes to. If we say yes to everything, then we really say yes to nothing. (Keep in mind we don’t always say no, sometimes we say, “not yet.”)
But the reality is, this is true wherever you are in ministry right? I didn’t forget about you Pullman, Washington and Bozeman, Montana! You’ve got more job security than you can handle right?! You have so many things tugging for your attention, so many plates spinning it could drive you crazy.
Stop it! Stop trying to do it all. Instead start to….
bring clarity. You can do this a number of different ways, but you must have organizational clarity. In other words, your team needs to know where you’re going and what you’re doing for significant periods of time to get there. You better have the lens of your vision, top goals and top strategic path-steps for the year clear, because you’re about to filter a boatload of ministry opportunities through that lens. I mean come on, we’ve all experienced those crazy-maker ideas that freshmen in your small group has to reach people in Kentucky for Christ (Sorry if you’re from Kentucky…I’ll send that freshmen your way).
If you want to see where you’re at with the clarity issue, just ask your team “what is it that we do best, what is that drives us and that we are deeply passionate about?” In other words, what is it that only you can do? You, your team and your organization need to be able to answer that question because…duh, you should do that. Live in your strengths and your DNA, it’s way more fun.
Once you know what you and your team does best then you can answer the question, what do you need to stop doing? Regular evaluation of this for you, your staff team and your organization will lead to greater effectiveness and less burnout.
Just a little glimpse into what we’re thinking about over here in Portland. Enjoy!
What about you, what are some of the best resources, tools for bringing clarity to your team you’ve used?
Today was a historic day.
We got about the business of launching the ministry at Portland State University today. By the way, PSU is the largest university in Oregon and the third largest in all of our Campus Crusade region, behind U. of Washington and U. of Utah. Didn’t know that, did you?
We started with a short discussion on this powerful article by Tim Keller to give us a framework for our heart to see this urban campus transformed.
Keller’s stuff is what pushed me toward making the decision to move to Portland. For Keller fan boys, here’s a link to all his stuff.
Then believing God to breakthrough on campus in powerful ways we braved 97 degree temperatures and pounded the streets for information. Joined by five of the regional office interns today that will be working with us 1 day a week this fall we gathered information that will shape our initiatives, outreaches and strategies.
Looking forward to the day when at PSU there is a community where the gospel captures hearts, transforms lives, and launches men and women into a lifelong adventure with Jesus Christ.
**I stole that last line from another Cru ministry somewhere. I’m pretty sure they don’t mind.
***I love my job
Just a few items of note from the interwebs last week.
Just read a fascinating article by LV Hanson on the Church Marketing Sucks blog about Catalyst’s experience in the Northwest. These are my highlights of the things Catalyst has learned about ministry in Northwest:
Getting a leading Christian organization’s perspective on our region was extremely helpful. Identifying the difference is a much needed step toward increasing effectiveness.
The biggest takeaway for me is that a general distrusting culture (non-believers and believers) is a significant barrier for us to overcome as we seek to grow movements and communicate the Gospel. Authenticity must reign in our ministry culture!
What context are you in? If you’re in the Northwest do you agree with these statements?
