The War OF Christmas
It was no silent night There was a war cry A shot in the dark at the heart of the dark It was a war cry The gates of hell are trembling ‘Cause they heard the war cry A volley of light that shattered the night It was a war cry
Priorities and other Oxymorons
We hear a lot about priorities these days and their importance in leading healthy lives. But as Greg McKeown points out in Essentialism, the concept of “priorities” (plural) is an oxymoron (you know, like “jumbo shrimp” or “a new classic”). For 500 years after its introduction to the English language, the word was always singular…
The Myth of Balance
I’m not the first person to ever say this, and I’m confident that I won’t be the last, but here it is anyway: balance is a myth. More critically, it’s terribly misunderstood. As we talk about it in Christian circles, this elusive thing we call “balance” seems to mean everything in our lives getting equal…
The Blessing of Scary Waters
It’s been a few weeks since I’ve posted here, not because I haven’t been learning lots about leading a mega-church, but just because leading a mega-church is far more demanding and time-consuming than I could have ever anticipated. But as Coletta and I were talking this morning after a workout, I shared something I’ve come…
The Power of Touch
One of the clearest things I’ve been learning during my first few weeks here in a mega-church concerns the power of touch. I’m not talking about physical touch, though I do think there is great power in a quick, entirely chaste, touch on someone’s shoulder. I’m talking about the power of gently touching an idea…
Bonus Post: What It’s Really Like
Some people want to know “what’s it really like becoming the lead pastor of a mega-church?” In terms of meeting all the people and trying to learn names and who’s who, here’s what it’s really like: it’s like standing in front of an avalanche, trying to catch individual snowflakes…and even when you manage to snatch a…
Moving Forward
A couple of weeks into this thing and I’m realizing that yes, as I mentioned before, a mega-church isn’t just a larger version of a small church, but also that there are some fundamental similarities. For instance, one of the challenges of any church is striking the balance between the past, present and the future.…
My First Week In a Mega-Church
Well, I made it through my first full week as the senior pastor of a mega-church. And, in spite of more preaching, team meetings, lunches, dinners, consultations and “I just need a minute”-moments than I would have thought possible to fit into a single week, I even managed to finish up this coming weekend’s sermon…so…
Loving and Learning
Coletta and I were privileged to be able to spend a couple of days last week with the former pastor of Mission Hills Church, Mike Romberger, and his wife, Jane. They were both very gracious in welcoming us and spending a very sizable chunk of their valuable time telling us their story and answering our questions.…
And So It Begins
I have always liked big churches. I realize that’s not really the “in” thing to say, but it’s the honest truth. What I like about big churches isn’t necessarily spiritual, just personal. I like the resources big churches have to do big things for God. I like the momentum big churches have to keep moving forward…