Leadership
Should I Stay or Go?
We received a knock on our front door a couple weeks ago. Ms. Rebecca’s daughter had come to deliver a giant box of peanuts. Ms. Rebecca had passed away, and our kids had been asked to carry on Ms. Rebecca’s legacy of Read more…
Leadership
Three Kinds of Human Support Ministry Staff Need
Church and ministry staff, especially pastors, need a lot of support from other people. The work is hard, emotional, and isolating. One source of support is just not enough, and there are joys and challenges for each kind of support. Read more…
Leadership
Three Reasons for Hope for the Church Right Now
The world is really messy right now. The church in the US is in its most challenging season in history. Working with pastors, ministry leaders and churches I see a lot of conflict and crisis, especially lately. It is really Read more…
Leadership
Spiritual Health Plan
Preparing for Amazement focuses on the health of people and congregations. To aid you in thinking through such health, I want to take a moment and consider what it means for congregations to ask the following question focused on spiritual Read more…
Leadership
Ugly Jug
My oldest daughter once brought home from junior high school an art piece she had sculped from clay. She presented it to me with no explanation other than, “Hey mom, look what I made at school.” “Oh,” I replied trying not Read more…
Leadership
Messages for the Younger me
I grew up in the 80s, and I engrossed myself in movies we call classics now. Star Wars, Goonies, Ghostbusters. I loved all of them. One of my favorites was Back to the Future. While the time hopping in the film gets Read more…
Leadership
Oz Leadership
The Wizard of Oz was one of my favorite movies as a kid and I see its reemergence as something worth noting. Recently I found myself reflecting on three of the characters from the original movie and realized each has Read more…
Leadership
Spiritual Disciplines
Preparing for Amazement focuses on the health of people and congregations. To aid you in thinking through such health, I want to take a moment and consider what it means for congregations to ask another question focused on spiritual health: Read more…
Leadership
The Dramatic Rise of Church Hubris
In working with churches around the world for more than two decades, I have had the opportunity to observe trends, good and bad throughout the years. One of the more challenging trends recently has been the dramatic rise of church Read more…