New from Max Lucado | Before Amen: The Power of a Simple Prayer
Spent some time with a new study from Max Lucado this week. Before Amen: The Power of a Simple Prayer is Lucado’s newest study. Dubbed “America’s Pastor” by Reader’s Digest and named one of the most influential leaders in social media by The New York Times, Lucado is the Preaching Minister at San Antonio’s Oak Hills Church, and no stranger to…
Read MoreThinking Thursday: Confessions of a Futurist
You might be thinking, “What does this have to do with small groups or discipleship?!?!” And you’re right in wondering that. It doesn’t…directly. Learning how to think about the future, though, has everything to do with building thriving small group ministries. This is a very interesting talk. I hope you watch it. Sheryl Connelly is…
Read MoreGreat Question: How Can I Recruit Leaders from the “Crowd”
I get a lot of questions. I got a great question yesterday and I thought many of you might be interested in this answer. After reading Do You Know This Game-Changing Connection Secret? a reader asked, “What are the best tactics to recruit leaders within the circle?” Interpreting the Question If you haven’t read the article,…
Read MoreThe Truths Only Fresh Eyes Can See
I was hanging out with some dear friends; friends I’ve had for many, many years. We were having a great morning. Many laughs. So good to see them. And then the subject of their church came up. Trying to help, I said what turned out to be a buzz kill and then spent the next…
Read MoreThe 5 Biggest Ministry Mistakes I’ve Made
All of us have made mistakes. I have made plenty. You have too. The key is to learn from your mistakes and only make them once. What are the biggest mistakes I’ve made? Using the same strategy and expecting different results. Albert Einstein said it well, “The definition of insanity is doing the same thing…
Read MoreDilbert on Worst Case Scenario Planning
Sometimes you just have to laugh.
Read MoreHere’s a Quick Overview of a January Connecting Plan
Hard to believe it but the fall ministry season has come and gone. Hopefully, you and your ministry reached the goals you set back in the spring for groups launched, unconnected people connected, coaches recruited, etc. Have you already planned for January? Are you making final tweaks to your plan or do you need to…
Read MoreWill You Take Your Ministry to a New Level in ’15? Join My Network!
Join my 2015 Coaching Network I want to invite you to join my 2015 Small Group Ministry Coaching Network; an experience designed to give you the tools and strategies you need in order to build a small group ministry that works in the 21st century. Several of my 2014 alumni from quite a cross section of churches…
Read More7 Rules at the Essence of Small Group Coaching
I was on a coaching call yesterday and as we talked I realized that there are certain ideas, rules really, that always pop up in my conversations about small group coaching. Here are 7 rules at the essence of small group coaching: 1. Whatever you want to happen in the lives of small group members…
Read More5 Crucial Small Group Ministry Dashboard Indicators
How healthy is your small group ministry? How do you know? What are you measuring? The dashboard in your car monitors fuel level, speed, RPMs, oil pressure, engine temperature, etc. What should your small group ministry’s dashboard be monitoring? How do you know whether your ministry is healthy? Before we begin Before we talk about what…
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