Posts by Mark Howell
What’s Your Wiring? Ready. Aim. Fire. or Ready. Fire. Aim.?
What’s your implementation speed? Are you the “Ready. Aim. Fire.” type? Or are you more of the “Ready. Fire. Aim.” type? We were having a great conversation yesterday*…the really good kind that leads either to a great idea or a brawl (figurative for us). Suddenly I found myself allied with the proponent of “Fire. Fire.…
Read More5 Ways Your Small Group Ministry Is Being Throttled
Did you know that a number of factors can throttle your small group ministry? Did you know that there are certain factors that can limit your ministry impact? A Brief Example In some ways it’s like what I found out this week from the company that hosts my blog. For several days in a row…
Read MoreAn Unexpected Upside to Asking Questions
One of the most important voices in innovation is Harvard professor, Clayton Christensen. His book The Innovator’s Dilemma has long been on my recommended list. In a recent conversation with 37signals founder Jason Fried, Christensen had this to say when asked why someone has to be ready to be taught before they can learn: “Questions are…
Read MoreHow to Build the Organization You’ll Need Sooner Than Later
A quick tip today. Got into a really good conversation with a groups guy over the weekend. Talking about how to build the organization he’ll need sooner than later. He’s at the stage that many of us are in right now. We’re at the stage where we don’t have enough staff or volunteers to delegate…
Read MoreNew from J.D. Greear: The Gospel According to Jonah
Had an opportunity to preview The Gospel According to Jonah: A New Kind of Obedience, a new DVD-driven study from J.D. Greear. The lead pastor of Summit Church in Raleigh-Durham, North Carolina; Summit Church has been one of Outreach magazines top 25 fastest growing churches in America for several years running. Six sessions, the video…
Read MoreDilbert on Trust vs Suspicion
Sometimes you just need to laugh:
Read MoreMaking Critical Strategic Choices
If you’ve been following the conversation here for any length of time, you know that I am always intrigued by great questions. Working my way through Playing to Win: How Strategy Really Works right now and discovered a great question/concept over the weekend. I knew I had to share this with you. See also, Supercharge Your…
Read MoreSkill Training: Healthy Groups Integrate Four Components into Every Gathering
How do you answer the question, “What does your group do?” Probably the most common answers would be, “Our group… meets to discuss their pastor’s last message works their way through a book of the Bible always has a DVD-driven study eats a meal together twice a month chooses a service project to do together…
Read MoreQuotebook: What Disciples Learn
I was working my way through an article by Dallas Willard and was stopped in my tracks by this: “As a disciple I am learning from Jesus to live my life as he would live my life if he were I. I am not necessarily learning to do everything he did, of course; but I…
Read MoreHow Do You Best Utilize Gifted Teachers in a Church OF Small Groups?
How do you best utilize gifted teachers in a church of small groups? That was the question recently over in the Small Group Ministry Practitioners Facebook group. See also, A Church WITH Groups vs a Church OF Groups: What’s the Difference? That’s my paraphrase. The actual question was: How do you best utilize people with…
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