Entries from Off the Agenda tagged with: difficult people
April 10, 2008
So Many Bosses
Is it possible for a church leader to live with margins in his or her life?
I know a thing or two about living in the parsonage. As a pastor's kid, I spent 10 years living in the house next door to the church. And later, as a youth pastor's wife, I spent a few more...
Tags used in this post:
difficult people, family, time management,
April 2, 2008
When Group Members Talk Too Much
Practical tips for managing a dominant personality in your small group.
Few barriers can subvert the depth and transforming power of a small-group discussion faster than one or more group members who dominate the conversation. Such members can monopolize entire gatherings with their problems and perspectives and can hinder the participation...
Tags used in this post:
difficult people, leadership, small groups,
March 24, 2008
90 Minutes with Rich
Leadership insights from one of the world’s wealthiest businessmen (who is also a committed Christian).
Last year, I was at the Leadership Summit Debrief in Chicago. It's a gathering of all the lead pastors from different churches that serve as satellite sites for the Leadership Summit. This group gathers to review the Summit and be...
Tags used in this post:
administration, difficult people, leadership, money, tithing,
March 17, 2008
Colin Powell: 15 Tips on Leadership
A general's tips on leadership principles might be worth bearing in mind as church leaders.
I remembered the value of cleaning the office desk recently as I happened upon my notes from Willow Creek's 2007 Leadership Summit. During the conference, I made a specific point not to capture every single word possible, which I am...
Tags used in this post:
conflict, current events, difficult people, leadership, team,
March 3, 2008
The Long Goodbye: Can Small Groups Break Up Well?
What should church leaders do when a group's on the decline, but no one is willing to pull the plug?
I recently joined the leadership team for my church's small-groups ministry. During a recent Saturday breakfast, one of the church's longtime small-groups leaders (we'll call him Tim for this post) shared an unusual, and uncomfortable, predicament. For several reasons I'll...
Tags used in this post:
conflict, difficult people, leadership, small groups,
February 21, 2008
The Best Defense for Conflict is a Good Offense
Church leaders who focus first on building a healthy church stand a better chance of weathering warranted--and unwarranted--battles.
After looking at the diverse dragons that can threaten a church, what are the best defenses? Landscapers know the best way to prevent weeds is not to attack them individually. Uprooting stubborn dandelions or chickweed one by one will improve...
Tags used in this post:
boards, community, compromise, difficult people, mediation, pastors, politics, vision,
Several years ago, I had to look in the eyes of someone and tell her she could no longer be part of our team. Her final day would be in two weeks. She looked back, unblinking, almost uncomprehending, and then...
Tags used in this post:
difficult people, hiring, recruiting, staff, team, vision, volunteers,
February 11, 2008
Holding Leaders Accountable
Picking up the church discipline conversation where the Wall Street Journal left it
In mid-January, the Wall Street Journal published an article about church discipline, choosing for its focus a case in which a 71-year-old woman was expelled from her congregation. The article made almost no use of concepts that are central to...
Tags used in this post:
community, difficult people, failure, pastors, politics,
December 3, 2007
Directionally Impaired Leadership
Church leaders can’t afford not to ask for directions.
It was 2:45 p.m., and my son, Cameron, and I were lost and already 15 minutes late for a birthday party for his 7-year-old friend. True to the male stereotype, I was bent on finding my way without directional assistance....
November 5, 2007
Stop Oiling Your Church's Squeaky Wheels
Learn to honor those who minister, not those who demand it
A ministering laity doesn't happen naturally. Many people still expect the pastor to do the ministry while they watch - and criticize. Changing that image requires shaking up time priorities. Pastors who develop strong lay leaders have learned to honor...
Tags used in this post:
administration, boards, burnout, difficult people, mediation, pastors, recruiting, training,
October 18, 2007
The Looks in Our Eyes
The look of bewilderment and hurt in my friend's eyes caught me off guard as we ate lunch together last April. It was just after Easter, yet that look still remains vivid in my memory five months later. And our...
Tags used in this post:
burnout, community, difficult people, pastors, staff, stewardship, team, vision,
Off The Agenda: Conversations for Building Church Leaders is a blog where people in church leadership positions — pastors, staff members, and volunteers, among others — gather for discussion, where they encourage, equip, and prepare each other for the joys and challenges...
Tags used in this post:
administration, Bible study, boards, budget, buildings, burnout, children's ministry, community, compromise, current events, devotions, difficult people, elections, evangelism, failure, family, fund-raising, giving, hiring, legal, liability, mediation, meditation, men's ministry, missional, missions, money, multimedia, outreach, pastors, politics, pop culture, prayer, quiet time, recruiting, risk, sample forms, seniors, small groups, spiritual gifts, staff, stewardship, study, team, technology, time management, tithing, training, vision, volunteers, women's ministry, worship,
October 15, 2007
The Secret Resistance to Church Growth
"Every church wants to grow, right? Not necessarily. Some leaders and members subconsciously may see growth as threatening and prefer to keep things ?the way they used to be.' This secret resistance among key people will surely inhibit growth." -...
Tags used in this post:
budget, buildings, difficult people, evangelism, fund-raising, outreach, recruiting, stewardship, vision,
October 15, 2007
Dr. Alvin Sanders
Following years of urban ministry in Chicago and Cincinnati, Alvin and his wife, Caroline, founded River of Life Church in downtown Cincinnati in the midst of civil unrest over the shooting death of an African American teenager by a white...
Tags used in this post:
community, compromise, difficult people, mediation, outreach, pop culture, training, vision,
October 15, 2007
Marshall Shelley
Marshall Shelley is editorial vice-president of Christianity Today International, and editor in chief of the Leadership Media Group, which includes Leadership journal, PreachingToday.com, BuildingChurchLeaders.com, FaithVisuals.com, SmallGroups.com, and ChristianBibleStudies.com. He served as general editor of The Quest Study Bible, a best-selling...
Tags used in this post:
boards, burnout, compromise, difficult people, evangelism, family, outreach, pastors, staff, stewardship, team, time management, training, vision,
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