Posts by Mark Howell
Question-Storming: An Incredibly Valuable Tool
I am always looking for great questions. I’m inspired by Peter Drucker’s line that “the important and difficult job is never to find the right answers, it is to find the right question. For there are few things as useless–if not dangerous–as the right answer to the wrong question (The Practice of Management).” Last week…
Read MoreThe Truth about Building an Effective Coaching Structure
I’m frequently asked how to build a truly effective small group coaching structure. It’s one of my most frequently asked questions. And it’s almost always the case that the person asking the question has tried more than once and has already bought the best books on the subject. Sometimes they’ve even invested in some coaching…
Read MoreLaying Foundation for a Leadership Culture
I’ve been thinking a lot since the re:group conference about the development of a leadership culture. I’ve written about it. I’ve wondered if it can be developed inside a groups ministry and then spread to the rest of a church. It’s been on my mind constantly. See also, My Most Intriguing and Haunting Takeaway from…
Read MoreWhat Some Small Group Pastors Know…that Others Don’t
There are a few things that all of us need to know. Some of them are obvious (i.e., how to identify and recruit small group leaders, how to train leaders, etc.). And some of what we need to know is just not obvious. In fact, I think it’s very possible to function in the role…
Read MoreBe the Message: A New Church-Wide Campaign from Kerry Shook
Spent some time this week reviewing a new church-wide campaign that I think you’re going to want to hear about. Be the Message is the newest campaign from Kerry and Chris Shook, founders of Woodlands Church, a multi-campus church with attendance of over 18,000 outside of Houston, Texas. No strangers to the development of church-wide campaigns, their…
Read MoreMy Most Intriguing and Haunting Takeaway from re:group
I don’t know about you, but I usually come away from a conference with lists of ideas to definitely try, statements to ponder and strategies to learn more about. This year’s re:group conference was no exception. I’ve got a notebook packed with underlined, starred and scratched out/rewritten takeaways. I’ve already written about Yesterday’s Big Idea…
Read MoreYesterday’s Big Idea (Literally)
I think this is a big idea. You might already be on to it, but it was big to me. Usually, when I tell you about the latest and greatest idea it’s pretty well baked. That is, we’ve already tested it or we’re about to tweak a strategy that we think you might like to…
Read MoreAndy Stanley on “Matters of the Heart”
I am at re:group today. Yesterday’s main session was so good and so important I thought I’d better let you in on one of my most important takeaways. In Andy Stanley’s main session to start the conference, he used a series of statements to make a point that all of us–every single one of us–need…
Read More5 Main Causes of “Failure to Thrive” in Small Group Ministry
Failure to thrive is a term used primarily in pediatric medicine “to indicate insufficient weight gain or inappropriate weight loss.” Because I write so often about building a thriving small group ministry, failure to thrive seemed like a good term for a small group ministry that struggles or where growth is stunted or blocked. There…
Read MoreGrowth’s Counterintuitive First Step
What do you do when you’re trying to grow your ministry? Read a book? Go to a conference? Hire a consultant? Brainstorm? According to Peter Drucker, “The first step in a growth policy is not to decide where and how to grow. It is to decide what to abandon (Inside Drucker’s Brain, p. 101).” Peter…
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