My Favorite Blogs

It’s been a while since I’ve posted here. I’ve had a lot of thoughts going through my mind of late. Blog reading for me has been down a bit because of the increasing stress of moving our church to a storefront and the end of the school year work I have in my college courses! Still, a few good posts have caught my eye…

Dan Edelen has a good post on the word “Avarice” using the Green Pepper Index or GPI as his starting point. (The GPI is his term..and a good one I think!). The post deals with our increasing gas crunch and how we as a nation are looking long term. Is it just me or have we seen unprecedented inflation in fuel in the past 2-3 years? You can’t tell me it’s market correction, etc.. If the Chinese are so gas hungry, let them buy the oil and let’s start drilling in Alaska. The Caribou can cope for the next decade or so while we develop alternative fuel sources but I can’t see us paying upwards of $5-6 dollars for a gallon of gas. Families will hurt and the minimum wage isn’t going up again anytime soon for those on the cut line.

Quote from Chris Elrod’s blog: “A good video, cranking worship and relevant marketing…can’t take the
place of one older gentleman speaking truth from the Word of God.”

Another good quote, this time from Ben Arment on the subject of the church planter who gets beaten up and finally comes to his senses: “Money isn’t quite as important… he gets closer to the people… he
reexamines his motives, slows down for his family… invests in kingdom
growth, not just his own church.” Been there, done that. I’m as driven as ever to see our church grow into a self-supporting work but God has used this time to really shape me as a Christian.

Jacob Riggs at “AFrayedKnot” shares an interesting story about a trip to Wendy’s for a burger and the message we as Christians send. Good words Jake!

And for the song of the day….My son comes home from middle school singing “Kites Are Fun” by the Free Design (some groovy 60’s group) and tells me his band teacher played the song for them as a novelty. Apparently somebody else thinks this song is a bit crazy too because they created a video for it on “You Tube”

That’s it for now! Thanks for dropping in and reading. Let me know your thoughts if you have time. God Bless.

I felt like jotting down a few thoughts after seeing that my blogging friend Ben Arment turned his blog comments off due to time constraints. Seems folks were engaging him in some debate and it was hard for Ben to keep up. Recently, he was fielding some comments from others about church success and his well planned “Whiteboard Sessions” one-day conference he has coming up. It seems every time the subject of church “success” is discussed, it never fails that a lively debate ensues; usually dealing with such non-essential things as music styles and bible translations. Not that those things aren’t important, but they are NOT essential in the large scheme of what the function of the church should be.

So what IS a successful church? As a church planter, I am under pressure to raise money to stay on the field. I’m also under a lot of stress to build a church that will quickly pay its own bills so that we do not have to rely on others to survive. It does take time. We began this work nearly $30,000 in the hole. That was the debt load I inherited when I brought my family here from Missouri. All of that aside, one thing I have learned is what Nelson Searcy would call RTL’s, or “Radically Transformed Lives”, is the key to success in ANY church. I simply tell folks we are in the business of “Life Transformation”. Of course, that transformation must begin with our commitment to Christ and whether or not we have truly repented and given our hearts to him. But honestly, I measure my success these days by the lives I’ve seen the ministry of our church change. It’s a work in progress and always will be.

Funny stuff! After reading Chris Elrod’s blog and seeing a video by the same folks, I went and checked out their other stuff. Thought this one was funny too!

“Your church is so nice and friendly…it’s just that it’s a bit small and we need something bigger…”  Those are words I’ve heard many times over the years as a church planter.  Truth is…I’m sick of them.  Our culture feeds this myth of the large church and the consumerism mindset of shallow people.  Even in Christian blogging, I’m beginning to see it.  When I entered the blog world a few years ago, I was discovering other writers, men whose churches were similar to mine.  Even amongst some of the larger churches, I found solace from friends who understood because everyone starts somewhere right?

So why all of a sudden are we seeing this alarming trend in blogging that lists the “top churches” and “top blogging pastors”?  I’ve nothing against those guys.  I’m sure many are solid, sharp folks but it appears the very cliques we disdain in our congregations are forming on-line in the blogosphere.  Don’t believe me?  Take a look at the most popular pastors (you know them…they are in your feed readers) and check out their blogroll.  I keep seeing the same 10-15 names on every single blog!  Really?  These are the only guys you get insight from?  All across the country, it’s the same “top ten” on the blogroll.  Personally, I think the creation of tags has made the blogroll useless on a site.  One can list their favorite links in a post and update the post with new links and just tag it with favorite blogs if someone is interested in searching it.  I’m likely going to do the same thing on this site in the near future.

Back to the issue of “top tens”, we now have other sites featuring blogs from the same guys.  Really?  Like nobody has heard of these fellas right?  If you’re blogging as a church planter or “progressive, missional, (insert name here), etc..” type of pastor or layman, you know these folks already.  I understand the concept of viral marketing thoroughly.  This is a small microcosm of that.  I read a lot of productivity blogs too and have been turned on to new sites by the recommendation of others.  There’s nothing wrong with it.  I guess my thought is what criteria do we use to recommend these blogs?  Is it purely church size?  Does size matter?  It appears so.  I’ve yet to see anyone list a guy whose church is running 200 and he’s “knockin’ it out of the park” to quote one of the famous blogging pastors.  How about guys under 100?  Perhaps we need to subcategorize the church blogosphere so we can identify those guys that are “nailing it” that aren’t seeing hundreds and hundreds of folks come through their doors.

The reality is, the blogrolls we see today will be gone in five years.  The churches will likely still remain but will begin to transition into another category much like the favorite sons of the 90’s are doing.  by 2013, I’ll be nearing 47 years of age and by the church planting standards in the blogosphere, I’ll be a dinosaur.  The truth is, I’ll be entering my very best years and my dream is to have my graduate degree by then and enter the sweetest time of fellowship with Jesus I’ll have ever had.

Most of my favorite reads in the Christian blogging world aren’t even a blip on people’s radars.  Many aren’t subscribed to by 100’s but the meat of their words sure beats much of the pablum I read on a daily basis.  Here’s just a few…

Michael Quicke
Quicke’s blog is relatively new.  He is the writer of 360-degree preaching and 360-degree leadership.  He’s so new to this stuff (starting in his 60’s!), that he’s just using the blogspot format to get started.  A professor of preaching who has pastored a church that was thought to be dying revived, he has great wisdom in the scriptures.

Church Matters
This is the blog of the 9Marks organization.  I don’t always agree with EVERYTHING they write about, but I do believe this blog is spot on with many of its statements.  It makes some folks a little uneasy and angers others because they don’t want to be “attacked” but taking to heart what’s written here is good for us to chew on when we want to assess what it is we are doing.  Again, multiple authors post here so I do not agree with all of them, but I enjoy reading all of them.

John Atkinson
John is the small groups pastor at Bil Cornelius’ church.  Bil is the co-author of “Go Big” lest you think I’m against the mega-church which I’m not.  John’s blog is nice because the guy is transparent many times.  “I’ve been too busy to post”, “It rained on our cookout”, “People frustrate me”, etc…This is the kind of guy that I could hang out with at a hot wings place over a ball game and enjoy learning from.  His friend G. Brandon Cunningham also blogs and heads up men’s ministry at the church.  I include Cunningham in that offer of hot wings too.  Both are enjoyable reads when they can post and both are real in the struggles they face as Christians.

Terry Glaspey
Glaspey is one of my favorite writers.  I’ve had the pleasure of interviewing him twice when I worked in the broadcast industry and he is as nice in person as he comes across in his writing.  His book “Great books of the Christian Tradition” now re-released as “The Book Lovers Guide to Great Reading” was outstanding in its recommendations of classic Christian literature.  The books he recommends are not what you see being written about in the blogosphere.  With so many new books entering the publishing world each year, it’s getting harder and harder to pick good books from today’s writers but Glaspey’s book ensures you will get the sweet cream of the crop of writing centuries old with his reading lists.  He’s written other books but “Great Reading” is still my favorite.  His blog recently went online and I am so glad.  I think it will be another extension of his creative, humble, writing self that we’ll see on a semi-regular basis.

There are many others that I need to include.  But these are some you just don’t see getting any plugs in the blogosphere.  They deserve as much kudos as any other site I’ve read in the past year.  Enjoy..and ENOUGH ALREADY!

If you or your church is looking for an outstanding Easter outreach, let me recommend “Simple” by Robert J. Morgan.  You may have read Morgan’s books on the classic hymns and the stories behind them in the “Then sings my soul” series.  You might have heard of him when you’ve used the “Minister’s Annual” that’s printed each year by Thomas Nelson but I believe this little booklet is one of his best works ever.  Why?  Because it gives you a chance to put a quality resource into the hands of first time attenders and new believers that gives them the basics of the Christian faith without being wordy or “over their head”.

Click Here to visit the SIMPLE website and check it out yourself.

The video features an opening statement by a good friend, Matt Markins, who himself is in leadership at a church in Tennessee.  I know these guys personally and they will take great care of you if you choose to use this resource.  For those who might want to use this for a message series, sermon outlines are available also if you ask for them!  We used this last year with great results…so much so that I now keep a case of SIMPLE in my car along with my New Testaments, to give to people I meet.  A new study guide is available as well to help you in your efforts to use the materials in the book.

As a church planter, I review a lot of materials for use in guest follow up.  This is among the best I’ve seen.  Many of us blog about wanting to keep things “simple” in our ministries.  Well, this is a great tool to do that while still being very, very effective.

My advice?  Buy it, use it, use it again…and again…with each new guest that comes through your doors! (and no, I’m not being paid nor am I with the company.  I just endorse what I believe in.)

Check it out and let me know if I can help you by sharing with you how we used in here at our church!

Here’s a great post from “The Daily Saint” on productivity.

For a time, my gadgets DID own me. I’ve shed much of the tech toys for a moleskine and a telescopic pen which easily fits in my pocket. A few habits from “Zen to Done” and I’m more productive and happier than I used to be with all the toys. Several of them are up on Craig’s List for sale…

As a pastor and church planter I’m constantly looking for better ways to utilize my time.  Since there are no time clocks to punch and I am my only overseer, I’m probably tougher on myself on my use of time than I would be with an employee.  I keep a pretty wore out day planner and I combine both my personal and work calendars in it.  I like what Trapper Woods espouses in his book “Forget the 7 habits and Break all the Rules”.  Essentially, he says because we have to be flexible in both areas, we need to think of our days as fixed amounts of time that cannot be expanded and then, find the best balance of how we fill the amount of time we are given.  Also, he points to the fact that technology now blurs what is set apart as “work” time and what is considered “family” time and that each is different for each person.  In short, we need to make the most of the time we are given.  He then gives several helpful ways to account for our time.

I mention this because two excellent blog posts came across my desk today.  The first is from author Seth Godin.  His post: “(Are you) Getting in your way?” discusses our execution strategy and applies to everyone but has something to say to us as church leaders.  One quote:

“So, as a percentage of the time you spend at work, what percent would
you say qualifies as “marketing”? I’m going to count educating
yourself, networking, creating products, creating media, spending
money, building networks of sneezers, inventing great stuff, executing
great stuff, motivating front-line people and telling stories.”

I like this quote.  To me, it says: “How much of my time am I thinking about reaching others with the gospel message?”  Granted sermon preparation is the number one priority as set apart in the book of Acts.  But after that, where is my time going with people?  Am I building a network of “sneezers” as Godin asks?  By that, he’s speaking of “contagion” which means spreading the “germ” of the gospel.  Am I building a network of outreach to increase opportunities to share the gospel?  I think sometimes as church leaders, we get this turned around.  We think it’s our sole responsibility to be the lead evangelist when the bible tells us to train others for the work of ministry.  That doesn’t mean not doing it but it does beg the question “Am I building others to do this too?”  That’s the crux of Godin’s thought.  Using our time wisely.  Unless you want to be up at all hours of the day and night doing work that others could and should be doing, you need to be utilizing your time in “motivating front line people” as Godin states, building your network of evangelists to take your message, GOD’S message, out into the marketplace!

That ties in with second blog post.  On “lifehack.org”, Steve Pavlina writes about how to “Set an appointment with yourself”.  Among the questions to ask yourself during this appointment?

1. What are the results I’m getting in the different areas of my life?
2. What mistakes am I making frequently?
3. What do I need to stop?
4. What extra energy/money/time do I have to invest?
5. Where would that investment create the best returns?

We can again think in terms of the ministry here.  Have we analyzed our results lately?  Are they what we want both in our personal growth and in the development of our church?  What mistakes are we making then that we need to correct?  He then touches on time in numbers 4 and 5.  Again, ask yourself how you are wisely spending your time?  Are there things you are doing now that others could do to free you up to focus on the more important aspects of your main task?

So much of this advice applies to us if we take the time to prayerfully consider it.  Many times, pastors will turn up their noses at this type of information because it’s not “spiritual”.  It didn’t come from some great Christian author so why consider it?  The fact is, while we are not in the business world, conducting and managing ourselves as professionals honors God.  If we can glean the items that WILL work in our context, we can benefit greatly from them.  Consider that as you look at these articles and see how you can better use your time.  Can you free up some hours by better training and delegation?  If you can, how can you now use those free hours to extend and expand the vision for the church’s ministry?

One of my favorite authors is blogging now.  Michael Quicke, author of 360 degree preaching and 360 degree leadership, is now online.  You can catch his thought by visiting here:

http://michaelquicke.blogspot.com/

I’m looking forward to reading his thoughts.  His series on Trinitarian preaching in the last few “Preaching” magazines was good stuff too.

So what is “Shelfari“? Good question. With props to Bob Hyatt over at PastorHacks.com, I checked out this site and was blown away by it’s setup. Shelfari adds the social networking dimension to the book reading habit. I’ve set up my own “shelfari” here and over at my “M” network site and have invited a few of my friends to check it out. I’m always looking for suggestions for new books to read. The setup on my network site is preliminary. I’ll be adding more books and perhaps changing the widget a bit. The neat thing about shelfari is you can network and actually have online book discussion groups about the texts you’re reading. Set up your page today and add me as a friend! Check out my “M” network site for what I’m reading and give me your suggestions! It’s a fun way to connect with other bookworms (both text and audio!) on the ‘net. Thanks for the tip Bob!

For all of my friends that visit here, I am now linking this blog with the new “M” network set up by Alex McManus of Voxtropolis.  Check out the new site by CLICKING HERE.

The “M” network is a relatively new social networking system similar to Facebook and MySpace but it offers some neat extras like linking this blog to the page site.  I don’t have to maintain separate blogs on the various sites.  On my “MySpace” page, I have a separate blog that is hosted by MySpace.  With “M”, I simply added a widget (Thanks Alex M.) that links “Faith Untamed”  to the “M” network site.  You have the option of hosting a separate blog but I like this option better.  Now, I can post to one blog instead of three (which is what it would be if I had to maintain separate blogs here and at “M”).

I’ve given thought to combining all of my blogs, save for my other missions weblog specifically designed for my missions supporters,  onto this one site.  Perhaps I will in the near future!

‘Til then, enjoy the “M”.  Sign up if you like.  Ask me to be a friend.  I waited a while to join simply because of my time but, like Voxtropolis, Alex McManus has set up something that is quality for all users.  Check it out!

Seth Godin has an excellent post on his blog today. Since today is Labor Day, he writes about the work habits of today compared to those of years past. While this is written more from the business perspective, church pastor/leaders have much to benefit from his thoughts. To wit:

The meaning of hard work in a manual economy is clear. Without the leverage of machines and organizations, working hard meant producing more. Producing more, of course, was the best way to feed your family.

Those days are long gone. Most of us don’t use our bodies as a replacement for a machine — unless we’re paying for the privilege and getting a workout at the gym. These days, 35% of the American workforce sits at a desk. Yes, we sit there a lot of hours, but the only heavy lifting that we’re likely to do is restricted to putting a new water bottle on the cooler. So do you still think that you work hard?

The ways we work change. When I was younger, I was more of the mindset of the manual worker that Godin quotes. Just work harder and the results increase. That may be true in some jobs but not in pastoral ministry. I see many pastors beating themselves up by trying to grind out what they did 20 years ago with more intensity and the people they are trying to reach have changed. Needs haven’t changed. They still need God but the ways in which we reach them HAVE changed. Peter Senge wrote a great book several years ago called “The Fifth Discipline” which again is a business book but speaks of systems thinking. The key in Senge’s book and the crux of Godin’s thinking is that we must be constantly learning from our outside environment (the things that drive people both to and away from church for the purposes of this discussion) and finding ways to learn and adapt to overcome those obstacles. If we are constantly mindful of the changing world around us, we can be successful in reaching people. Again, this is spiritual work so not EVERY aspect of business applies here but why not use the best thinking in that arena to increase the percentages of those we CAN reach. This thought was reinforced by another quote from Godin in the same post:

Robyn Waters, the woman who revolutionized what Target sells — and helped the company trounce Kmart — probably worked fewer hours than you do in an average week.

Notice, he mentioned the success here. Target still lags behind Wal-Mart in retail sales but what it has done is establish itself as a niche retailer. I will shop my local Target stores for this very reason. There are many things I find in a Target store that never show up on Wal-Mart shelves and that’s OK. Wal-Mart claims the lion’s share of my retail dollar because I’m on a budget and have to save money and for the things Wal-Mart does sell, they usually have the best price. Target is competitive because they offer me choices I can’t get at Wal-Mart. I buy clothing, gifts, certain beauty items my wife likes, and other niche items from Target.

To put this in the church perspective, I realize I’m not going to have a church that’s everyone’s cup of tea. In fact, my loyalty to the historic doctrines of my denomination will cause me to say NO to many a good idea if it doesn’t fit within the context of those principles I see as vital to the sucess of the church. That doesn’t mean I can’t have a church that’s constantly learning, growing, and changing to meet the needs of a lost community we need to reach. You can do all of those things while staying true to your principles. It just takes HARD WORK as Godin states. The problem for many pastors I know is that it’s easier to coast and continue doing the routine things they’ve always done rather than embrace a new paradigm and making it work in their church context. Nobody wants the extra work and/or the risk that goes with it. My favorite quote from Godin’s article makes a fitting closing for my thoughts:

Hard work is about risk. It begins when you deal with the things that you’d rather not deal with: fear of failure, fear of standing out, fear of rejection. Hard work is about training yourself to leap over this barrier, tunnel under that barrier, drive through the other barrier. And, after you’ve done that, to do it again the next day.

Isn’t Jesus worth it?

My friend Ron Hunter has put together a nice post on why the “IPhone is not my phone” on his blog.  It had nothing to do with the phone…just the exclusivity of the service carrier.

I’m cheap.  I’m a Cingular/AT & T customer and even I don’t want the IPhone at this point.  Why?  Too expensive to start with and the service plan needed to operated the phone efficiently is too rich for my budget.  I see a lot of other church planters using theirs.  I wonder how they can afford it!  Nah, I think I will stick with my Samsung slimline phones I purchased at Christmas.  I’m too addicted to my GTD+R system of task management anyway to switch again.

By the way, I’ve added some new stuff to my alternate blog “The Productive Pastor.”  Feel free to drop in and tell me what you think.