My 2020 Hope, Desire and Commitment
I begin every year with a sense of what I need to do differently.
I think about what I need to do differently for three reasons:
- First, I believe Einstein was right when he said, "The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results."
- Second, I believe Andy Stanley was right when he said, "Your life* is perfectly designed to produce the results you are currently experiencing." *Okay, he said ministry but life is a very helpful substitute.
- And third, I believe Craig Groeschel was right when he said, "If you want to connect* people no one else is connecting, you need to do things no one else is doing." *Yes, he said reach instead of connect, but you get the point.
Clearly, if I want different results than last year (and the years before that), I need to do what I am doing differently. I cannot do the same things in the same way and expect different results.
Can you hear me now?
So I begin every year with a sense of what I need to do differently.
Some years it is only a vague sense and hard to clarify.
Other years it is crystal clear and there is never any doubt.
2020 is a no doubt kind of year.
As I begin this year I am more convinced than ever that I need to work more diligently at doing TO and FOR (and WITH) our coaches and directors (coaches of coaches) the things they must do TO and FOR (and WITH) the leaders in whom they are investing.
Why? Because the best way to ensure that the members of our groups are having the life-changing experience we want them to have is to make sure their leaders are having that experience first.
The conclusion no one wants to admit
And that conclusion leads directly to a true truth about me that I cannot ignore.
Unless I am already having the life-changing experience I want the members of our groups to have...our hope is doomed to fail.
Unless I am experiencing ongoing life-change, I cannot expect it to happen in the lives of our coaches and directors, and leaders and ultimately the members of our groups.
Can I get an amen?
So what's next? Or better, what's first?
The first thing I need to do is work on myself, making sure I am exposing myself to the relationships that will help me get better; that will help me take the steps that move in the direction of a better disciple.
I don't know about you, but I know this first step must be a top priority and requires great intentionality.
I will not drift into it. And it won't happen today unless it becomes the most important thing I am doing.
The second thing on my to do list
So I have a short list of things that must happen today. And tomorrow. And the day after that.
And because of my responsibilities, the second thing on that short list is to schedule the conversation with those on my team that do the heavy lifting of doing TO and FOR (and WITH) our top tier of coaches and directors.
How does this affect you?
I'm betting you have a similar issue.
I'm betting you need to work on yourself.
And I'm betting you need to set in motion the conversation with the top leaders in your small group ministry (which might be staff, but are most likely high capacity volunteers).
So I'm praying for you
I know the challenge that this is. It is personal to me.
So, I'll be praying for you and your ministry.
Do you need help?
The reason I'm launching REFRESH 2020 is that I believe all of us actually need the encouragement of a few others on the same path. My newest mini-course is designed to help small group pastors and directors take the steps they must take in order to (1) set this hope in motion and (2) develop the patterns and strengths that will make staying the course more likely.
REFRESH 2020 includes 3 of the usual 60 minute video sessions, but it also includes a 60 minute personal coaching call, designed to provide a real conversation with a guide (a practitioner, not a theorist, a tour guide, not a travel agent).
You can find out more about REFRESH 2020 right here.
*The Early Bird price goes away on Tuesday, January 14th.
