Because He Lives

Free Online Storage

[From Planting Space by Doug]

Most church plants cannot afford to have office space in the early days. One of the problems that creates is how to share files easily between staff members who are working out of their homes.

Many companies are now offering free online storage for files. ADrive is currently offering 50GB of free online storage. You can use this service as an easy way to exchange files or as a cheap and secure backup solution.

Happy Easter

Happy Easter greetings!. On this day, Christians around the world join in celebrting the Resurrection of Jesus Christ, the Son of God and Son of Man.

For Christians everywhere, Easter is a day when, in the words of the ancient Exultet hymn, the earth "rejoices in shining splendor, radiant in the brightness of its King." It is a time to be humbled by and grateful for God's sacrifice and boundless love and to rejoice in the sheer wonder of life and the promise of victory over death.

Easter comes at the end of the Lenten season, a period of penitence and solemnity in many Christian traditions. The Lenten season prepares Christ' s followers for the joyous affirmation that "Christ is Risen!" Holy Week activities, including Palm Sunday, Holy Thursday, and Good Friday, remind the faithful of the events leading up to Jesus' crucifixion and resurrection.

Many traditions associated with Easter have become a part of our American way of life. Although these customs may differ, the universal message of Easter draws all Christian communities together. As families and friends gather to celebrate, we renew our commitment to follow the example of Jesus Christ in loving our neighbors and giving of ourselves for others. On this joyous day, let us also remember all those in need and those Christians around the world who are persecuted for their faith.

Yvonne joins me in sending best wishes for a wonderful Easter.

Don & Yvonne Brock

Revised Year End Report Released

The revised Year End Report has been released by the COGOP.

To download in PDF, CLICK HERE.

You will also find the link under "Downloadable Documents" in the right column of this Blog.

Five Rules For Meeting With Your Mentor

[From Perry Noble dot com by Perry]

I have had the privilege of being mentored by some incredible leaders, some you would know, others you might not – but nonetheless, God has used them to teach me SO MUCH about life and ministry.

Over the years I have developed five rules for meeting with a mentor that I would love to share here today … you may agree or disagree, all I know is that they have worked for me.

#1 - I Always Adjust To Their Schedule–ALWAYS!

When I am attempting to set up an appointment with someone I want to meet with – I always ask them (or their assistant) to throw two or three dates at me that is most convenient for them … and then I adjust my schedule to make the meeting happen.

I NEVER send them the times I want and then ask them to adjust their schedules. I am the one who wants the meeting … and if they are available to me I will bend over backwards to hang out with them.

#2 - I Am Always Early For The Appointment.

If I am driving from out of town I always make sure I arrive around 30 minutes early. If I get their TOO early then I will find a coffee shop – OR break out a book (ALWAYS have a book with you.)

Usually I will arrive at the person’s office to meet them about 15 minutes early … and quite a few times the person I am meeting with has been ready, thus giving me “bonus time!”

#3 - I Have A List Of At Least Five Questions That I Want To Ask.

I remember John Maxwell saying to me once, “I will mentor you, but you have to ask the questions. I am not preparing a lesson for you … YOU guide this meeting. If you want to know something – ASK. If you don’t ask anything then we don’t really have anything to talk about.”

SO … anytime I meet with a mentor (especially JOHN) I am LOADED with questions. Sometimes I get them all answered … sometimes I don’t … but I NEVER walk into a meeting without having a list of what I would like to know.

#4 - I Don’t Talk About Myself Unless They Ask.

When I meet with a mentor I don’t spend 30 minutes telling them about myself, my daily routine and how good I think I am. I ask questions and then SHUT UP! If I disagree I do not argue. If they ask me a question then I will answer … if not then I will keep on asking them my questions. They didn’t ask to meet with me … I wanted to meet with them – TO LEARN from them, not debate them.

#5 - I Always Send A Note/Gift Saying Thanks.

I haven’t done this until recently … but anytime someone gives me time I will send them a Starbucks gift card or a restaurant gift cardn – just to thank them for the time. (And I jot them about a four sentence note – NOT A BOOK, but a note.)

Those are my rules … hope they help!

Update - Dr. Charles W. Conn

Dr. Charles W. Conn, who served in the highest capacities of leadership in the Church of God, passed away on March 18. He was 88.

Charles Conn’s ministry spanned a wide spectrum of positions throughout his ministerial career. A native of Atlanta, Ga., Conn’s first denominational appointment was in Louisiana where he was the 20 year-old Sunday school and youth director for the state. Two years later he accepted his first church where he served as a pastor for six years at two Missouri churches , St. Joseph (1942-44) and Leadwood (1944-48). By 1948, Charles Conn had earned his ordination and the Church of God had recognized his emerging leadership by appointing him director of Sunday school and youth literature. Four years later, at the age of 32, he would be appointed editor-in-chief of all Church of Godpublications. For the next decade, Charles Conn’s integrity and respect as a church leader, author and historian would rise. In 1955 he released perhaps his most enduring legacy to the Church of God, Like A Mighty Army, the first comprehensive history of the Church of God. The publication would be the first of nearly two dozen titles Conn would pen throughout his career, including Pillars of Pentecost, Where the Saints Have trod, The Bible: Book of Books, A Guide to the Pentateuch, Acts of the Apostles, Why Men Go back, Cradle of Pentecost, the Pointed Pen and Anatomy of Evil.

In 1962 Dr. Conn was elected assistant general overseer on the Church of God Executive Committee, the denomination’s highest governing body. He would serve eight years on the Committee, rising in 1966 to the office of General Overseer, the highest role of leadership within the Church of God. During his tenure from 1966-70 the church of God would grow around the world and a new general offices building would be dedicated at the current site of the international offices in Cleveland, Tennessee. During his years on the Executive Committee he represented the Church of God in several interdenominational capacities such as the executive committee of the Pentecostal Fellowship of North America, the presidium of the Pentecostal World Conference and the board of directors of the National Association of Evangelicals.

In 1970, General Overseer Conn became President Conn when he accepted the presidency of theChurch of God’s flagship educational institution, Lee College. His leadership over the next twelve years would be marked by a time of unprecedented growth and advancement, both in student enrollment and standing in the academic community. New enrollment records were set during his tenure and a new 1,800 seat auditorium – the Conn Center – was constructed.

From 1982-84, Charles Conn would serve for two years as state overseer for the Church of God inVirginia. In years to follow he would devote his time to Church of God history as the official Historian for the Church of God. He would lead the Historical Commission and serve as a valuable resource of knowledge and history of the Church of God.

During his appointed and elected positions throughout his life, Conn received numerous recognitions, honors and awards and served on boards and ministries. Including his service on the Executive Committee and excluding the years off due to tenure limitation, Dr. Conn served for 30 years on theChurch of God Executive Council, from 1952-1990. He was a member of the National Radio and Television Board (1962-64), director of Ministry to the Military (1962-66), member of the national Layman’s Board (1964-66) and the Centennial Commission (1980-86). He is the recipient of the Doctor of Letters degree from Lee University (1962) and a Doctor of Divinity from Berea TheologicalCollege in South Africa (1977).

In addition to an honorary doctorate, Charles Conn’s alma mater Lee University has honored him in various ways over the years. In 1960 he was the first recipient of the Distinguished Alumnus Award. A Charles W. Conn scholarship was endowed for needy students by the Collegiate Sertoma Club . The annual Charles W. Conn Leadership Award and scholarship was established several years ago and the Lee board of directors bestowed the title President Emeritus in 1999.

First and foremost in the life of Charles W. Conn was his wife Edna, who passed away in 1997, and their twelve children Philip, Sara, Stephen, Paul, Sharon, Raymond, Camilla, Mark, Cathy, Bruce, Jeffrey and Melody.

The family will receive friends on Friday, March 21, 2008 at Ralph Buckner Funeral Home, 4:00-7:00 pm. The funeral will be Saturday, March 22, 10:00 am. (location to be determined).

Please continue to keep the Conn family in your prayers.

How To Reduce Desk Clutter

[By Bill Reichart]

One of the best practices in ministry is trying to stay organized.

I have never seen your office, but if it is anything like mine - you are constantly fighting against the clutter.

Crown Financial Ministries has some thoughts on the high cost of clutter. Here are some highlights:

• National studies have shown that the typical executive spends four and one-half hours a week looking for lost papers. At a salary of $30,000, the cost of searching for important papers, measured in lost time, is $3,376 per year. At $60,000, the cost is $6,752 per year. At $100,000, the annual cost jumps to $11,250.

As staggering as these costs are, the majority of managers and business owners with whom I've worked report that they lose even more. I have found that the cost often jumps to 15 percent of their yearly income.

Just think—at this rate, nearly two years of each life is lost looking through clutter.

Penelope Trunk thinks that simply having a messy desk alone can undermine your career.

Clutter isn't just paper. It is also electronic. The History Channel show "Modern Marvels" recently aired a show about 90s technology that proved this startling statistic:

• In 2007, over 170 billion email messages were sent per day. That's almost 2 million messages every second. 70% of them were spam and viruses.

Our lives are filled with clutter and information overload!

I don't presume to have this issue fixed and settled, but here are some ways that I help reduce clutter:

• Limit paper - I tell everybody, don't send me paper. I don't want to have to file it and then try to find it later. I am pushing most of my information online. Google Docs and Google Notebook are my big "go-to's." It is easier to store and find my documents on Google Docs rather than search email attachments or my hard drive. Also, with Google Notebook I clip and save any interesting fact or illustration for a future sermon/save online receipts/store important information etc. I believe that Google Notebook is one of the more underrated tools within the Google stable of online apps.
• Use a good email client - Gmail is the king. I use labels and filters to make sure only the email I need to read reaches me. Also they have an awesome spam filter that significantly reduces the clutter in my life..

Wife of Former AG General Superintendent Passes Away

Wife of former AG general superintendent passes away Elizabeth H. (Price) Zimmerman, wife of former General Superintendent Thomas F. Zimmerman, passed away March 18 at Maranatha Village, Springfield, Missouri, after short illness. She was 93.

Visitation to be held 4-8 p.m. Thursday, March 20, in Maranatha Village chapel. Funeral services to be held 10 a.m. Friday at Central Assembly of God, Springfield. Arrangements are under direction of Greenlawn North.

COGOP Releases Year End Review

To download PDF document, CLICK HERE.

Or, download from "Downloadable Documents" in the right column of this Blog.

Benchmarking

Benchmarking (also "best practice benchmarking" or "process benchmarking") is a process used in management and particularly strategic management, in which organizations evaluate various aspects of their processes in relation to best practice, usually within their own sector. This then allows organizations to develop plans on how to adopt such best practice, usually with the aim of increasing some aspect of performance. Benchmarking may be a one-off event, but is often treated as a continuous process in which organizations continually seek to challenge their practices.

Benchmarking is a powerful tool because it overcomes "paradigm blindness." Paradigm Blindness can be summed up as the mode of thinking, "The way we do it is the best because this is the way we've always done it." Benchmarking opens organizations to new methods, ideas and tools to improve their effectiveness. It helps crack through resistance to change by demonstrating other methods of solving problems than the one currently employed, and demonstrating that they work, because they are being used by others.

Churches and ministry organizations can benchmark and track many things:

• Attendance
• Offerings
• Tithes
• Reports
• Outreach
• Evangelism
• Growth
• New Births
• Baptism
• Membership
• Volunteers
• Web Hits
• News Articles

Each of these can be tracked in many ways. Whatever the specifics, benchmark the things that reflect your goals, objectives, and priorities.

Metrics

Metrics are used in business models, CMMI, ISM3, Balanced scorecard and knowledge management. These measurements or metrics can be used to track trends, productivity, resources etc. Typically, the metrics tracked are key performance indicators, also known as KPIs. For example, metrics are used to better understand how an organization is performing compared to other similar organizations.

Most methodologies define hierarchies to guide organizations in achieving their strategic or tactical goals. An example can be:

• Objectives
• Goals
• Critical success factor (CSFs)
• Key Performance Indicators (KPIs or Metrics).

The intention is to identify future-state objectives, relate them to specific goals that can be achieved through critical success factors or performance drivers which are then monitored and measured by key performance indicators. Through this hierarchy, organizations can define and communicate relationships between metrics and how they contribute to the achievement of organizational goals and objectives.

Metrics are important in IT Service Management including ITIL; the intention is to measure the effectiveness of the various processes at delivering services to customers. Some suggest that data from different organizations can be gathered together, against an agreed set of metrics, to form a benchmark, which would allow organizations to evaluate their performance against others to establish, objectively, how well they are performing.

Church goals and objectives that cannot be measured, are not effective.

An example of a church metric is the show-up-rate of volunteers. This number can give insight into the leadership and vision-buy-in at a church.

It is important to know how many serving spots are necessary for a church. One measurement is the percentage of people who show up. (This number is rarely 100% because of sickness, conflicts, etc.)

If the show-up-rate is 90% at one church and 68% at another, this probably indicates a problem at the second location.

• You may not be placing the right people in the right roles.
• You may not be adequately training volunteers.
• You may not be appreciating volunteers.
• You may not be communicating well.
• You might consider tracking the show up rate over time to see if you are improving or slipping in helping your volunteers make a difference by serving.

Former COG General Overseer Passes Away

Former Church of God General Overseer Dr. Charles Conn, 88, died Tuesday in a Chattanooga hospital.

He served the denomination in several capacities, including pastor, editor in chief of the Church of God Publications, member of the Executive Council and president of Lee College.

A native of Atlanta, Ga., he has lived in Cleveland since 1948. He served the Church of God as general overseer from 1966 to 1970.
For 12 years, Conn served as president of Lee College, now Lee University, from 1970 to 1982. He has been serving as president emeritus of Lee University.

In 1955, Conn published his acclaimed history of the Church of God movement, “Like A Mighty Army.” The book was the first printed by the Church of God’s publishing arm, which emerged as Pathway Press.

He has edited and written 23 books.

Under Conn’s leadership at Lee College, Carroll Courts, a married student apartment complex was constructed and a new auditorium, which later was named the Charles W. Conn Center by the board of directors.

“Dr. Charles W. Conn served as a statesman for the Church of God for many decades. Currently president emeritus at Lee University, he also served as general overseer, president of Lee University, church historian, and in many other leadership positions. Dr. Conn strategically impacted the church and the Pentecostal world. His influence and legacy will endure for generations to come,” noted G. Dennis McGuire, general overseer, this morning.

Raymond F. Culpepper, assistant general overseer, said, “Dr. Charles W. Conn not only touched the minds of hundreds of thousands of people through his writing and historical research, he brought profound influence to me personally. Charles W. Conn has exemplified holiness, dignity, respect and love for his family and church.”

“Dr. Charles W. Conn was a minister of the gospel whose faith was founded in the Word of God and translated into a life of committed discipleship which is reflected in the legacy he leaves to the Church of God,” said Dr. Paul L Walker, secretary general for the Church of God.

“Few times in life do we realize that a giant has come our way. Such a person was Dr. Charles W. Conn. A talented writer and author of Like a Mighty Army, the story of the development of the Church of God, his leadership – including service as general overseer of the denomination and president of Lee University – established significant milestones in the church’s ministry and worldwide growth,” noted Beecher Hunter. “Not only did he write about the history of the church, but he helped make it. While editor of The Cleveland Daily Banner during some of those important years, it was my privilege to help chronicle his decisions and achievements. Despite the important roles that he played, Dr. Conn remained humble, filled with a vibrant faith in his Lord and passionate about the work of the church. I have lost a dear friend.”

Conn was married to Edna Minor Conn. They had 12 children.

Complete survivors and funeral arrangements will be coming from Ralph Buckner Funeral Homes.Church of God officials, members, and friends are mourning the passing of Dr Charles W Conn, who was promoted to glory last night!

A Personal Note ...

This is a relatively new Blog. As the Blogger, my original intent was to offer information and tools to encourage, support, and assist pastors everywhere. To me they are the unsung heroes of today. The posts have primarily been limited to professional musings by me or others.

Some of my old readers from the Harvest News Blog have requested that I include more COGOP and personal news from time to time.

That is fine with me, but how do you feel? Let me know.

Today's Prayer

Oh Lord; Help me be strong and courageous. Empower, lift up, and encourage me that I will not be terrified of any thing, person nor circumstance, neither let me be discouraged, for You, the Lord my God will be with me wherever I go (Joshua 1:9). No matter what I face today, I know that You are with me and Your Holy Spirit lives within me. I know that the blood of Jesus has covered my sin and washed me white as snow, that I may be righteous in Him and live unto Him. I praise You and thank You Lord Almighty for Your strength, power, grace, mercy, and love. May You be glorified in all the earth, and through my life. In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.

Raymond Culpepper on Church, Culture, and Leadership