Aug

22

There’s A Monster At The End of This Post

Post Category: Authenticity, Church, Church Leadership, Makes You Think 

One of my favorite Little Golden Books as a kid was The Monster at the End of this Book. It was a great moment when we received this book as a gift and I was able to read it to my kids.

I got hours of enjoyment sitting down with Emily and pleading with her in my best Grover voice,

PLEASE DON’T TURN THE PAGE!!

She would of course. With each new page turned poor Grover would beg and plead to stop turning pages for fear of finding the monster at the end of the book.

Until we turned the last page and found that the monster at the end of the book? Yup, turns out it was lovable, furry old Grover the whole time.

Anger & Disappointment
This past week the church world was rocked with another disappointment. I don’t need to add any additional commentary to what has already been said by other bloggers I respect. I want to talk instead about how we as Christians are supposed to react to this kind of news. Because if the scandals of the last 24 months serve as an indication of future failures, we have many more of these stories yet to be uncovered.

I’ll be honest with you. My first reaction to these kind of stories is a mix of disappointment and anger. Disappointment, because yet another person I admired let me down. And anger, because I know that once again, the name of Christ will get drug through the mud because of another person who thought they could live a double-life and get away with it.

Looking For Monsters
Why do we find it so easy to point our fingers at the “monsters” we see in the church today? Sure we’re upset about it but can we so arrogantly cast blame when it could have just as easily been you or me?

Far too often I’m so busy trying to remove the splinter from my neighbor’s eye that I’m tripping over the plank in my own.

Don’t get me wrong - I am in no way excusing deceit and hypocrisy in the church. What Michael did was wrong. Nor am I condoning sweeping stories like this under the rug. However, let’s remember that we’re really not that different.

The moment that we begin to think of ourselves as immune to these kind of shortcomings it the moment we’re most in danger of falling. As Paul warned, If you think you are standing strong, be careful, for you, too, may fall into the same sin. (1 Corinthians 10:12)

Like Grover, we may find that if we keep turning the pages, WE are in fact the monster at the end of the story. We’re all capable of lust, greed, hypocrisy and deception in the worst way.

There, but for the grace of God, go I.

May

22

No More Flat Tires

Post Category: Blog Posts, Church Leadership, Leadership, Makes You Think 

Photos of a radical new tire design have been floating around the net recently. These innovation could redefine transportation by changing how “the rubber meets the road.”

This integrated tire/wheel combination was designed by Michelin and is called a TWEEL (tire/wheel). It represents signifcant changes in the future of mobility.

Imagine what this could mean:

  • Not having to fill up your tires at the gas station
  • No more flat tires on the side of the road
  • No more dangerous blow-outs while you’re driving down the expressway.

This technology is still being developed and could be years away (assuming it’s even viable at all). But it represents an important reminder for all of us.

NEVER STOP QUESTIONING THE PROCESS!

The way it’s “always been done” isn’t necessarily the best way. It may just be the only way we know right now. It’s simple innovations like an airless tire that can redefine an entire industry and change our day to day lives.

I don’t care what you do or where you work I GUARANTEE that there are things you or your organization do that can be improved upon. There are probably processes that can be replaced or even eliminated that no one has thought to change.

Ask yourself these questions of yourself or your organization on a daily basis:

  • What things do I do that can be improved?
  • How can I simplify complex tasks?
  • What processes can be eliminated entirely?
  • What am I doing right now that is no longer relevant my clients or industry?
  • Am I doing things the way that I am because it’s the best way to do it or because it’s the way I’ve always done it?

Never underestimate the power of paradigm shifts and NEVER stop looking for them.

May

14

My _________ Sucks Because _________

Post Category: Authenticity, Blog Posts, Church, Church Leadership, Technology, Videos 

Church leaders blame their lack of growth on many things. If only we had more lights, a better sound system, more videos, a better band. Visiting churches like Granger or North Point leaves most Pastors repeating the tenth commandment to themselves (thou shall not covet…thou shall not covet…).

Worship leaders aren’t immune from the “if only…” game either.

Worship Pastor to Senior Pastor: “Pastor, we’re kind of running into a wall. My musicians (it sounds better if someone else is asking) are telling me that if we bought ______________ (new amp, processor, instrument or whatever) we could really take the sound and quality of our worship up another notch.”

As a designer and self-professed geek I’m constantly scanning the horizon for the latest plugin, font, software or upgrade to buy. I try to convince myself that I could be so much more productive with this or that tool.

I remember my Uncle (who is an amazing finish carpenter) telling me about the importance of using the right tool for the job. But he also reminded me that no amount of good tools will make up for bad workmanship. A poor workman always blames his tools.

I was reminded about making the most with what I’ve got when I watched this video at AlphaBlogDesigns yesterday. Bob Staake is an illustrator who creates amazing illustrations for clients like Sony, Target and Hallmark using only Photoshop 3.0! That’s right, the version that I learned on and used back in 1994! I thought I was pretty good in Photoshop CS3 but this guy makes me look like a hack.

Watching videos like that remind me that having the latest _________ or the greatest __________ is not an excuse. In our high-tech society where hundreds of new gadgets or upgrades come out ever day it can be easy to be swept up in the “If only I had…” game.

We can do so much if we only utilize and master what we already have.

Trust me, I’m as guilty of this as anyone.

What about you? What has your excuse been?

Fill in the blank: “If only I had ________ I could ________.”

Comments