If you haven't pre-ordered my blogging buddy Mark Batterson's new book, In a Pit With a Lion on a Snowy Day, do so today!
Here's a description:
Your greatest regret at the end of your life will be the lions you didn't chase. You will regret the risks not taken, the opportunities not seized, and the dreams not pursued. Stopping running away from what scares you most and start chasing the God-ordained opportunities that cross your path.
In a Pit with a Lion on a Snowy Day is inspired by one of the most obscure yet courageous acts recorded in Scripture: Benaiah chased a lion down into a pit. Then, despite the snow and slippery ground, he caught the lion and killed it (II Samuel 23:20-21).
Pick it up today! A review will be coming soon!
You need this book...
Leadership Blog Interview Wishlist
There are several leaders I'd like to see take the Leadership Blog Interview. Here's the ten great leaders I'd most like to do the Leadership Blog Interview:
-John Maxwell (Waiting)
-Andy Stanley (Response: No)
-Mark Driscoll (Response: No)
-Tommy Barnett
-Ed Young
-Rick Warren
-Bill Hybels
-T.D. Jakes
-Joel Osteen
-Billy Graham
If you have any connections, shoot me an email!
The Leadership Blog Interview: Rob Ketterling
Rob Ketterling
Bio: Rob is the Senior Pastor of River Valley Church in Apple Valley, MN which he started in 1995. He has a wonderful wife Becca and two awesome sons.
Church: River Valley Church
Blog: Rob Ketterling
The Leadership Blog Interview Questions
1. Rob, What gives you the greatest joy in being a leader?
Rob: “I have two joys that get me choked up. One is when someone comes to faith in Christ. The other is when we send someone out from RVC to be part of a church launch or to be a Pastor, Teacher, Evangelist or Missionary. We're called to be a sending agency and not a keeping agency so I love it when we've discipled someone and they want to be sent out from us. Ron Wilson, (My best friend from Kindergarten) came to faith in our church and now after 10 years at RVC has been sent out as a missionary to Mexico, that's a home run for me!”
2. What is your biggest pet peeve as a leader?
Rob: “People in the church that pull a flea flicker. For us a flea flicker is when a pastor delegates something to a person in the church and then after a little while the person gives it back to the pastor unfinished! This is usually accompanied with an excuse of being too busy and some lame spiritual excuse.”
3. Who made the biggest influence in your life as a leader?
Rob: “It has to be my dad. He lived it and was the real deal. He was in the military, active in the church and the best employee anyone could have ever asked for. He could have written Maxwell's book "The 360 Degree Leader" because he lead from the middle of the organization. Second to my dad is Bill Hybels, one visit to his church was all it took for me to realize that we could do things differently in our church than we were doing them.”
4. What books have changed your life?
Rob: “The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership, The Externally Focused Church, The Foxe's Book of Martyrs”
5. What's your biggest challenge as a leader?
Rob: “Time Management. How do all of these pastors of really large churches answer emails, lead their churches, meet with everyone, spend time with family, develop leaders and maintain their devotion life? Whenever my wife thinks I work or travel too much I have her read Mark Batterson's Blog! “
6. What goals do you have as a leader?
Rob: “To make a global impact. I started with a goal to impact a city, then it turned to a state and I skipped right up to the world. God really hit me with something when I was thinking that "Other churches, the big ones" would change the world and I realized, He wants to use us, we're part of the global plan and everyone has to do their part.”
7. Where do you see yourself in ten years?
Rob: “I would love to be at RVC and the only thing that would tempt me to leave would be to do something with a greater global impact. I've heard it said that following God is like traveling on a winding road, you never know what's around the next corner, so I wouldn't be surprised by anything that's up ahead.”
Leadership Blog Book Review: Chazown
Chazown by Craig Groeschel
I loved this book! I loved Craig's illustrations to bring home the points. This book is a must read. I hope to soon give this to new Christians at our church. It's kind of similar to Purpose Driven Life but I thought it was better. I can't wait until Confessions of a Pastor by Craig comes out in September!
Chazown: 4.5 stars out of 5
Leadership Blog Book Review: Go Big!
Go Big!: Lead Your Church to Explosive Growth! by Bill Easum & Bil Cornelius
I have to admit I was a little hesitant on ordering this book, just because of the title but once I started on it, I couldn't put it down. I've read hundreds of leadership and church growth books but this book was very practical. There are several insights in the book that all pastors can implement quickly. Not that it matters but there was no foreword by Ed Young though, as the cover suggests.
Go Big! 3.5 stars out of 5
The Leadership Blog Interview: Matt Carter
Matt Carter
Bio: Alongside worship leader Chris Tomlin, Matt is the Senior Pastor of The Austin Stone Community Church in Austin, TX, one of the 100 fastest growing churches in Amercia. Matt has been the featured speaker at Houston Metro and various camps and conferences nationwide. He currently lives in Austin with his wife Jennifer and his three children, John Daniel, Annie and Samuel.
Church: Austin Stone Community Church
The Leadership Blog Interview Questions
1. What gives you the greatest joy in being a leader?
Matt: “Seeing those that I have poured my life into flourish in ministry. In some ways, it must be like the joy of seeing your own children succeed in life, yet in a spiritual sense. I firmly believe that God calls pastors to not only to lead, but to be a leader of leaders. Watching those young leaders succeed and even supersede my ministry is a thrill to me. “
2. What is your biggest pet peeve as a leader?
Matt: “Critics. Especially those not associated with our ministry. Some people just love to complain. I love what Theodore Roosevelt said about it once: “It behooves every man to remember that the work of the critic is of altogether secondary importance, and that, in the end, progress is accomplished by the man who does things.”
3. Who made the biggest influence in your life as a leader?
Matt: “Two men. The first is Greg Matte. Greg is now the pastor of Houston’s First Baptist Church, but I met him when he was the speaker for Breakaway Ministry at Texas A&M. Greg is one of those rare individual who is a great preacher and a great pastor. Most of us tend to be one or the other. I learned a great deal from him about how to love my people well. The other is man named Chris Osborne who is the pastor of Central Baptist Church of Bryan, TX and the former president of the Southern Baptist of Texas Convention. I learned from him the power that can come from expository preaching, which I employ in my ministry today.”
4. What books have changed your life?
Matt: : “With the obvious exception of the Bible, I would say that Philip Yancey’s “The Jesus I Never Knew” and John Piper’s “The Supremacy of God in Preaching”, have both effected me greatly.”
5. What's your biggest challenge as a leader?
Matt: “This year it has been trying to lead well in the midst of personal struggles. This last year I was diagnosed with cancer, and I pretty much mentally checked out for about six months. Trying to maintain focus and leadership in the midst of personal health issues has been ridiculously hard, and one that God’s grace has been amazing throughout.”
6. What goals do you have as a leader?
Matt: “To grow in the area of servant leadership. I believe strongly that the days of CEO pastor are coming to a close. People are looking for leaders who exemplify Jesus and Jesus was a servant leader.”
7. Where do you see yourself in ten years?
Matt: “ Hopefully alive, preaching the Word of God, and pastoring people here in Austin, TX.”
The Leadership Blog Interview: Troy Gramling
Troy Gramling
Bio: Troy Gramling is the Lead Pastor at Flamingo Road Church in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Over the last three years, Troy has led Flamingo Road Church through a transition in leadership and into a new facility as the church has grown to a weekly attendance of 4,200.
Church: Flamingo Road Church
Blog: troygramling.blogspot.com/
The Leadership Blog Questions
1. What gives you the greatest joy in being a leader?
Troy: Partnering with people to reach their potential...one of the great things about being in ministry is that we get the opportunity to partner with people in so many different areas...Of course the most important being their eternity...but I also love to watch someone reach their potential as a spouse, student or business person.
2. What is your biggest pet peeve as a leader?
Troy: Disloyalty...when people go on the journey and use up resources, you pour your life into them,; and then when they shoot you in the back and say don’t take it personally...how can you not take it personally; it’s your blood.
3. Who made the biggest influence in your life as a leader?
Troy: John Maxwell - his conferences and books challenged me to take responsibility for my leadership and quit blaming the people that I was leading. The statement, “If you grow, the organization you are leading will grow”, changed my life!
4. What books have changed your life?
Troy: Developing the Leader within John Maxwell
Courageous Leadership Bill Hybels
Good to Great Jim Collins
Experiencing God Henry Blackaby
5. What's your biggest challenge as a leader?
Troy: Focus: With success comes more opportunities. And opportunity can move us toward our potential or distract us from our potential, and effective leaders know the difference.
6. What goals do you have as a leader?
Troy: To add value to the people I lead. To help people reach their God potential. To have a positive impact on the diverse community called South Florida. And eventually to leave a legacy that inspires.
7. Where do you see yourself in ten years?
Troy: Leading Flamingo Road Church into new territory, encouraging and mentoring young pastors, and blogging my journey with friends and family!
I'm Going to Catalyst?
I threw out the question a week or more ago about anyone helping me go to the Catalyst Conference and I received an interesting email today! More details to come soon....
The Leadership Blog Interviews: Toby Slough
Toby Slough
Bio: Toby Slough is the Senior Pastor of Cross Timbers Community Church. Founded in January 2000, Cross Timbers currently offers six services at three locations each weekend and is ranked #21of the 100 Fastest Growing Churches in the U.S. Committed to active involvement in his community, Toby and his wife Mika live in Argyle, Texas.
Church: Cross Timbers Church
1. What gives you the greatest joy in being a leader?
Toby: Watching people’s lives radically change as they come to know Christ. Seeing a man begin to really love his wife and lead his kids—knowing that the generations to come are going to be different because of God’s work in this dad’s life is indescribably exciting to me.
2. What is your biggest pet peeve as a leader?
Toby: Unwillingness to risk. A “play it safe” mentality will stagnate most organizations, especially a church family. Growth always means risk, and we are called to grow both personally and corporately.
3. Who made the biggest influence in your life as a leader?
Toby: It would be difficult to name just one. I had a high school coach who showed me the power of influence, a college professor who taught me the impact of investing in the lives of others, and a boss in my early years of ministry who mentored me as a pastor, a husband and a father. All of these men played a huge role in shaping me as a leader.
4. What books have changed your life?
Toby: The book of Proverbs would be at the top of the list. Too Busy Not To Pray by Bill Hybels affected me deeply. All of Max Lucado’s early books shaped my devotional life as a young pastor. Peter Drucker’s books on leadership have always been the standard for me leadership-wise.
5. What's your biggest challenge as a leader?
Toby: That’s easy—patience. I have very little of it, and I have come to learn that timing is everything in leadership. My impatience has rarely served me well.
6. What goals do you have as a leader?
Toby: I want to be a better leader this year than last year. I want to hear God more clearly, be more sensitive to the needs of others and make a significant impact in the lives of the staff team that I lead so that it will flow through the lives that they lead.
7. Where do you see yourself in ten years?
Toby: My dream is to be a 55 year old man who is still learning and leading. My address and my job really don’t matter as long as that is happening. I really mean that. If God sees fit to allow me to continue to pastor at Cross Timbers, that would be great. If He has another plan for me, I am in. My heroes are the men and women who continue late in life to learn and grow and make a difference in the lives of people. I pray that I am one of those people
Thanks Toby for taking time for the interview, may God continue to bless your ministry.
The Leadership Blog Interview: Thom Rainer
Thom Rainer
Bio: Thom S. Rainer is president and CEO of LifeWay Christian Resources in Nashville, Tennessee. He was founding dean of the Billy Graham School of Missions, Evangelism and Church Growth at The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary. His many books include Surprising Insights from the Unchurched, The Unexpected Journey, and Breakout Churches.
Site: Lifeway
The Leadership Blog Interview Questions
1. What gives you the greatest joy in being a leader?
Thom: "I find great joy in leading others to be passionate about sharing the good news of Christ. If my influence as a writer, speaker, and president of LifeWay Christian Resources has that impact, then I believe God has truly used me as a leader."
2. What is your biggest pet peeve as a leader?
Thom: "People who seem obsessed with insignificant issues, and fail to grasp the big picture. Also, people who want to debate about everything and anything. And people with grumpy dispositions."
3. Who made the biggest influence in your life as a leader?
Thom: "My three sons: Sam, Art, and Jess. I have learned so much about being a leader in my struggles and joys as a father. Now that they are all grown, I am still influenced and motivated by them."
4. What books have changed your life?
Thom: "The Bible, of course, but even before I became a Christian I read the Bible from Genesis to Revelation. The witness of Scripture and the witness of my high school football coach were instrumental in my becoming a Christian. J. I. Packer’s Knowing God shaped my view of Scripture. All of the works of Francis Schaeffer impacted me greatly. The Christian fiction work In His Steps by Charles Sheldon helped me to match my behavior with my beliefs. I was motivated to become a greater man of prayer after reading Calvin’s Institutes. And I loved the leadership/business book Good to Great by Jim Collins."
5. What's your biggest challenge as a leader?
Thom: "My single greatest challenge is to be a greater spiritual leader. I must model more passionately what it means to be a disciple of Christ. On a lesser note, I tend to be thin-skinned when I am criticized. And in my position criticisms are common."
6. What goals do you have as a leader?
Thom: "My first goal is to be a better and more devoted follower of Christ. Second, I want to be a better leader and husband for my wife, Nellie Jo. Third, I humbly seek God’s face that LifeWay Christian Resources, the organization that I lead, will become the best and leading provider of Christian resources in the world."
7. Where do you see yourself in ten years?
Thom: "I am 51 years old. God willing, I will still be leading LifeWay and writing books in ten years."
Thom, Thank you, your books have made a difference in me!
The Leadership Blog Interview: John Ed Mathison
John Ed Mathison
Bio: Dr. John Ed Mathison has been senior minister of Frazer Memorial United Methodist Church in Montgomery, Alabama, one of the fastest growing United Methodist churches in America, for the past 34 years. Under his leadership, Frazer has grown from 400 members to more than 8,400 members, and has the largest Sunday School attendance for United Methodist churches in America.
Church: Frazer UMC
The Leadership Blog Interview Questions
1. What gives you the greatest joy in being a leader?
John Ed: "The greatest joy I find in being a leader is to have people discover God’s purpose for their lives."
2. What is your biggest pet peeve as a leader?
John Ed: "My biggest pet peeve as a leader is that sometimes we leaders don’t perceive that we are actually leading."
3. Who made the biggest influence in your life as a leader?
John Ed: "The biggest influence in my life was my dad."
4. What books have changed your life?
John Ed:
5. What's your biggest challenge as a leader?
John Ed: "The biggest challenge I have as a leader is to not to get too far out in front of people but be sure that I am close enough to people so that they follow."
6. What goals do you have as a leader?
John Ed: "My goal for leadership is to be effective and help people get where it is that God wants them to be."
7. Where do you see yourself in ten years?
John Ed: "In ten years I see myself, at age 78, continuing to do ministry and being excited about what God is doing."
Thanks John Ed for taking time to share your thoughts.
Help a Brutha Out...
I've always wanted to go to the Catalyst Conference. But I've never been. Would anyone want to help me get to the Catalyst Conference? Email me at leadership.blog@gmail.com if you would be able to help.
The Leadership Blog Interview: Erwin Raphael McManus
Erwin Raphael McManus
Bio: Erwin is the lead pastor and Cultural Architect of Mosaic in Los Angeles. Known around the world for its spiritual creativity and cosmopolitan diversity, Mosaic is a community of followers of Jesus Christ committed to live by faith, to be known by love, and to be a voice of hope. Since the early 90’s, Erwin has led Mosaic in a pioneering enterprise whose primary focus is to serve the post-modern, post-Western, and post-Christian world.
Erwin is the catalyst behind Awaken, a collaboration of dreamers committed to creating environments that expand imagination and unleash creativity. Convinced that the world is changed by dreamers and visionaries, Awaken serves the purpose of history by maximizing the divine potential in every human being.
He is also the author of An Unstoppable Force, a Gold Medallion Award finalist; Chasing Daylight; Uprising: A Revolution of the Soul (also companion The Uprising Experience life storyboard); The Barbarian Way; Stand Against the Wind and Soul Cravings, soon to be released at the end of 2006.
Church: Mosaic
Site: ErwinMcManus.com
The Leadership Blog Interview Questions
1. What gives you the greatest joy in being a leader?
Erwin: creating environments that unleashes the God given creativity in others.
risking everything to create the future.
doing it with friends.
2. What is your biggest pet peeve as a leader?
Erwin: that i'm not a better one.
3. Who made the biggest influence in your life as a leader?
Erwin: Jesus -of course.
who knows where i would be going if he had not redirected my entire life course.
4. What books have changed your life?
Erwin: every book i have ever read.
even more so every book i have ever written.
the one that changes me the most is the one i have not yet written.
5. What's your biggest challenge as a leader?
Erwin: caring about more than i can do.
finding the best idea among an infinite number of possibilities.
fusing imagination with action.
holding tight to both ideals and realities.
holding a thought long enough to act on it.
leaving the universe inside my head and reengaging planet earth.
chosing one idea, one thought , one dream, one answer, one challenge.
yes, its caring about more than i can do.
6. What goals do you have as a leader?
Erwin: i would like to change the course of human history.
i'm pretty sure we cant pull this off alone-
so we're doing every thing we can to
identify,
develop,
maximize,
and unleash
the god given potental in every person we touch-
to awaken humanity-
any one of them might be the key.
mosaic exists to create the future.
other than that i dont make goals.
7. Where do you see yourself in ten years?
Erwin: with kim.
Erwin, Thank you for being such a great leader, you've made a huge impact on my life and ministry!
Who needs interviewed?
Check out the current list of Leadership Blog Interviews and let me know who I need to interview that people will actually want to read!
Teamwork Makes the Dream Work!
We're expanding! If you are a leader or pastor and is interested in writing a weekly leadership post for "The Leadership Blog" or would like to share a leadership post from your site , please email me at leadership.blog@gmail.com. Thanks.
Back from death
Check out this interesting article about Steve Sjogren's incredible story of his brush with death.
Rick Warren to buy Saints, build Purpose-Driven Field
Pastor and author Rick Warren has signed a deal to purchase the New Orleans Saints football franchise for $320 million from current owner Tom Benson, and has pledged to pour his time and energy into helping the city and team rebuild. Read the "Lark News" article here.
FYI: Lark News isn't real but funny.
Teach on Tithing!
I just got an email from a Newcomer to our church, thanking me for teaching on "Stewardship" this past Sunday and explaining tithing. We have to get over the complex of teaching on finances. The church isn't after their money, the credit card industry is! The only people I've ever had get upset after someone teaching on giving is someone that doesn't give. And if they leave your church, subtract their giving, take zero from zero and it's still zero.
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