Don't Forget What Sabbath Is For

5 Ways To Get More Volunteers

[From Ministry Best Practices by Bill Reichart]

It doesn't matter if you are a church of 50, 500 or 50000, - encouraging and mobilizing volunteers seems to be the perennial challenge in ministry. At Big Creek Church, we are constantly wrestling through this issue. I don't presume to have the final word on this, but here have been some of my thoughts and teachings about how to more effectively get more volunteers.

1. Develop leaders first. Volunteers will only work under competent leaders. Therefore it is your job to develop, to coach and to pour into leaders. Emerging leadership is one of your most important assets. Make sure you have good leadership first and then from that volunteers will grow.
2. Stop fishing from the same pond. You can only know so many people. Malcolm Gladwell says that most people connect within only small and intimate circles of relationships. Therefore the key to recruiting is to be able to get into other relational circles. In order to do that, you need to ask your key volunteers to intentionally tap into their circles. Ask your volunteers to recruit their own team themselves because chances are they know people you don't even know.
3. Equip your volunteers. People are not merely tools in order to accomplish your ministry goals and objectives. But unfortunately, too often, we treat them that way. You need to value your volunteers. Train, equip and develop your volunteers. Make sure they know that they are going to walk away with an added value for volunteering, in other words, a free prize inside. In other words, it isn't so much about "getting" from your volunteers, but rather "giving" to them.
4. Simply ask. Most of the time, the people you need to serve in your ministry area are simply sitting in your church doing nothing. The reason for this is because all they hear are asks, pleas and challenges from the platform. And suffice it say, "Everyone's challenge" is too often "No one's challenge". Not everybody will respond to a corporate challenge (also read my post about Communication from the Platform). Sometimes all you need to do is to take the initiative and ask.
5. Communicate Vision, not Need. To often when churches communicate the need for volunteers it sounds like begging. "We need to fill spots!" "We need your help!" Most people don't respond to that kind of plea. People will respond to vision and outcomes. People want to know that their serving will have purpose and gives them a real opportunity to impact the Kingdom of God.

Baptist Church Planters Convene

[By Jennifer Riley, Christian Post Reporter]

Nearly 340 church planting missionaries and strategists gathered in Atlanta this week for the annual church planting forum hosted by the mission arm of the Southern Baptist Convention.

The 2008 Church Planting Missionary and National Missionary Forum, Feb. 27-Mar. 1, is hosted by the North American Mission Board’s Church Planting Group. The forum’s theme this year is “Live with Urgency.”

"Live with Urgency’ reflects a challenge to all Southern Baptists to live as missionaries because the time to accomplish God’s vital mission is limited,” explained David Meacham, NAMB’s senior strategists for church planting, according to NAMB.

In a forum presentation, NAMB president Geoff Hammond discussed what it meant to be a missionary. Hammond said a missionary is a born-again Christian who is called by God to transcend significant cultural barriers and work through relevant cultural channels in order to share the Gospel, according to the church planting blog by Mark Weible, who attended the forum.

The NAMB president – in his presentation entitled “What is a Missionary?” – said a missionary is someone who recognizes their own culture and adapts to other cultures, networks for evangelism, partners with sending churches, engages in peacemaking/conflict resolution, builds relationships, works as a team, engages in indigenous work, focuses on principles, and identifies and equips new leaders, among other characteristics.

Fellow NAMB leader Meacham shared on the topic of “The Church Planting Process.” “Each forum session is designed to offer valuable learning opportunities to stimulate growth and sharpen missionary skills,” Meacham explained about the forum’s structure. “We pray the participants will take away new knowledge and skills as well as new relationships with church planting partners from all across North America.”

One attendee, Gary Hawkins, is a Native Indian church planting missionary from Henryetta, Okla., who focuses on multi-ethnic church planting in eastern Oklahoma. Hawkins said he sees the forum as a good place to gather new ideas.

“I like to hear from other ethnic groups about how they’re doing things, training, and locating potential church planters,” said Hawkins, who is an NAMB-appointed church planting missionary. “I like to hear different ways of resourcing church planters.”

This year’s forum break-out sessions will emphasize character development, knowledge and skills for missionaries, while contextual sessions will focus on collegiate, urban core, arts, African-American, Asian, Anglo, Hispanic, Middle Eastern, Multi-ethnic and Native American people groups.

“This will go down as one of the most significant Church Planting Missionary Forums ever,” contends Hammond, adding that most of the training material is brand-new. “We’re really excited about the new curriculum.”

Also planned are special break-out sessions for missionary wives who are attending. They are being led by Debbie Hammond, wife of NAMB president Geoff Hammond.

On Friday night, NAMB will hold its annual church planting recognition and celebration dinner.

President's Religious Liaison Resigns

WASHINGTON (AP) - White House religious liaison official, Tim Goeglein, resigned Friday after admitting twenty columns he wrote for an Indiana newspaper were determined to have material copied from other sources without attribution.

Goeglein, who has worked for Bush since 2001, acknowledged that he lifted material from a Dartmouth College publication and presented it as his own work in a column about education for The News-Sentinel in Fort Wayne, Ind.

The White House said Goeglein has apologized for not upholding the standards expected by the president. A White House statement says the president was disappointed to learn of the matter and was saddened for Goeglein and his family. It said Bush has long appreciated his service and knows him to be a good person who is committed to his country.

COGOP Ministers On-Line Reporting

[From Cliff Haven News by Pastor Brian Sutton]

If you submit your quarterly report online through http://www.cogop.org/ , you will encounter a problem this quarter. The online feature does not include an option to report for the quarter ending February 2008.

I have sent a couple of emails to Cleveland regarding this. Until it is repaired, you might want to submit your report through "snail mail."

Death Announcement - Bishop J. C. Palmer

[From Pastor MIlton Gordon]

Bishop J. C. Palmer went to be with the Lord early this morning around 1 am. He is survived by his Son Tony. At this point we do not have funeral details but will post them when they come in.

Also, please pray for Tony who has been by his father's side.

The Mississippi Squirrel Revival

Today's Prayer

Dear God, I am so sorry for the times I have just stood by and said nothing when I could have spoken or acted to make a difference to impact the kingdom of darkness for You, the Lord of light and life. Please help me to be bold, through the power of the Holy Spirit, and to speak the words that need to be said, even if they may be an affront to those around me As long as I am in Your will, I should not fear. Please, God, use my words and life to draw others to You. Help me to become the ambassador You want me to be, to offer hope and extend life to those who live in darkness. Protect me and all of Your true children from harm and evil. "For thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever." In Jesus' name, amen.

Today's Quote

“Unless the pastors wake up to avert judgment, there will be judgment on America. If we don’t respond we are going to lose this nation.”—Larry Stockstill

Pastor Brady Boyd Speaks Out On Church Security

New Life Church Pastor Brady Boyd speaks out on church security preparedness. One place where leaders made a conscious choice not to wait until their kids die was New Life Church in Colorado Springs, CO. The story of concealed handgun license-holder and New Life Church member Jeanne Assam's brave actions to stop a murderous rampage killer when he stormed onto the church campus on that December Sunday morning won't soon be forgotten.

>>> Read more

What Kind of Team Members Does a Pastor Need?

As a pastor/leader, what kind of people do you surround yourself with? What kind of leadership team is needed to accomplish the Great Commission in a community of faith?

After years of working with successful teams, and teams that failed, let me offer the following suggestions:

1. An Awesome Team Member ALWAYS Tells The Truth. You might consider invoking the following rule; nothing but the raw, honest, painful truth about ANYTHING that is being discussed in a leadership team meeting. As a leader YOU must make sure to do all that you can to create this type of environment. You MUST invite conflict. It does create tension … but this is how the best decisions are made. If the leader shares an idea and it is not good, he needs to know. If a team member is not truthful, he/she should be removed form the team. Life is too short to waste time and effort by being surrounded with people who avoid the truth.
2. An Awesome Team Member ALWAYS Respects Everyone Else On The Team.
   Respect is absolutely necessary. I am convinced that the only reason that I am where I am in life is because of the favor and blessing of God, NEITHER of which I deserve. So, the leader deserves no more respect than any other member of the team. The leader must respect the team, the team must respect the leader, and the team must respect one another. If you have members on your team that you cannot respect for some reason, they should be removed from the team. You must love and listen to every team member. When they speak, you must listen. God has used them to fire you up, inspire you, teach you and humble you. If there is disrespect among the team members, the team will always drift toward dysfunction.
3. An Awesome Staff Member Is Always Loyal. Loyalty is the highest on my list. The team must have one another's back. Now let me be very clear … the team should never conceal any type of sin and disguise it as “being loyal.” That, to me, is overriding a Biblical mandate with a desire for comfort. But, when someone else comes to a team member and tries to talk smack about someone else on the team, it should never be tolerated! That should not be put up with - ever. –we don’t put up with that–EVER. Trust is ESSENTIAL for a team to achieve its maximum potential. You can’t sit around a table with people who you believe are going to go out of the room and bash you to their friends and co-workers. Any team member guilty of being disloyal to the leader or any other member of the team must be removed immediately. Behind closed doors anyone should be free to say anything to anyone … but when the team walks out of that room, they must do so with one vision …and do not allow people to take your eyes off of it.
4. An Awesome Team Member Never Seeks To Do The Minimum. If you have someone on your team who is constantly trying to get out of work (or who wants a divine marching band to play for him/her every time they seemingly go above and beyond) – WATCH OUT! Every team member must have a divine Call and a passion for that calling. When a project comes along, and gets assigned to someone on the team, it cannot be half-way done. God expects and deserves no less than our very best. Good team members make things happen. They are part of the solution, not part of the problem. Take time to make sure that God’s work is done with EXCELLENCE. Jesus Christ did not change the world with half-hearted, lazy, self seeking people whose biggest desire was to play solitaire on their computer! He turned the world upside down with men and women who were willing to go wherever and do whatever He asked of them … and He’s still seeking the same type of people today.

Engage 21 Conference Tomorrow & Friday

The Engage 21 Conference starts tomorrow at North Cleveland Church of God in Cleveland, Tennessee.

There will be a COG Theological Seminary alumni breakfast on February 29 at 7:30 a.m. at the Seminary.

3 Ways to Cultivate a Culture of Risk

[From Ministry Best Practices by Bill Reichart]

Most churches say that they risk. Most pastors believe that they are risk takers. But too often risk just becomes a buzz word. Also, most often our commitment to risk will only tolerate success - not failure. If when we risk, roll the dice and it comes up craps - we blame, we recoil and we won't risk again. If, as a leader, that becomes your response and reaction, your staff and ministry leaders will pick up on the message, "Don't RISK!" loud and clear. The staff and leaders may hear from you in the pulpit or within the staff meetings that you desire "risk," but the ata-boys really only come when you play it safe and produce mediocre success. You are sending mixed messages. Cultivating a culture of risk isn't easy and it won't come naturally, so you will need to be intentional.

How to cultivate a culture a risk:

1. As a Leader -You need to Lead by Risking Boldly! If you really want your church to risk boldly, there is no shortcut than you leading out front. I can't say it any better than Bil Cornelius said at the recent Evolve conference for church planters. Therefore, if you want to hear about risking as a leader, I recommend listing to Bil Cornelius' talk given at this past Evolve Conference. You can find it HERE.
2. Empower your leaders. If you are micro-managing your leaders, then you are not willing to risk. Cast the vision, define the outcomes and then release and empower your leaders. How do you empower them? One way is to make sure that they know your budgets. Budgets should give them freedom. They shouldn't have to be apologetic when they spend money - that is what the money is there for. (It is wise to have accountability though - for purchases over $1000 our leaders must have their supervisor's approval). But for most stuff - make sure they have permission to spend it in order to accomplish their objectives.
3. Evaluate! Evaluate! Evaluate! You should always take the time evaluate. With risk there is going to be failure. Not everything you attempt is going to be a home run. That is why evaluation is important. You can LEARN from failure for the next time you risk. Do you remember your school experience growing up? I certainly do. In elementary school I spent my time split between two places - my 3rd. grade classroom and the principle's office. The classroom was the place where I learned. The principle's office is where I got disciplined. Failure should be like a classroom and not a principle's office. Failure should become a classroom to learn within and not the principle's office to be punished. Allow yourself to learn from your failures.

“Far better it is to dare mighty things, to win glorious triumphs, even though checkered by failure, than to take rank with those poor souls who neither enjoy much nor suffer much, because they live in the gray twilight that knows neither victory nor defeat.” - Theodore Roosevelt

Death Announcement - Carol Howell

Carol Howell passed away this morning following a long illness.

Carol was the wife of television producer Dan Howell of World Impact (Voice of Salvation), and Chattanooga local television.

http://www.vosministries.org/home.cfm

The National Pastor Conference Opened Yesterday

Nearly 2,000 pastors and ministry workers convened in San Diego Tuesday for the opening day of the National Pastors Convention (NPC). The four-day event is designed to be a Christ-centered vacation spot for pastors and ministry leaders each year to re-energize them physically and spiritually while offering opportunities for leaders to grow.

"This year marks the 8th annual National Pastor Convention and we're excited to welcome returning attendees from previous years as well as new people experiencing the NPC for the first time," says Joe Sherman, vice president of pastor and church engagement for Zondervan, in a statement. "These next few days are designed to meet the unique needs of those in ministry through nourishment, engagement, and connection."

NPC is presented by Christian publisher Zondervan in partnership with InterVarsity Press. During the convention, attendees can participate in critical concern courses, an educational track on Hispanic ministry, and over 60 seminars featuring more than 50 speakers on a variety of relevant topics. Seminar speakers include Chuck Colson, Krista Tippett and John Ortberg. Musical and comedic entertainment, including The House of Blues Gospel Choir, Ken Medema, and Sylvia St. James, will also be featured.

“This may have saved my life,” testified an attendee last year identified as Darrin H. from Pennsylvania. “I reflected, wept, was convicted, refreshed, encouraged, broken, filled, appreciated, entertained, and motivated to pursue Jesus in a new way.”

Pastors are encouraged to unwind during the convention for a week without a “hectic ministry schedule.” “No meetings. No late-night phone calls. No sermon preparation,” the NPC 2008 brochure enticed. “A week where you can nourish your soul, engage your mind, and connect in meaningful conversation,” it offered. “Or, if you prefer, you can just kick back in the warmth of the sun, relax by the pool, and appreciate the wonders of God’s creation in sunny San Diego.”

The National Pastors Convention will conclude Friday.

[http://www.zondervan.com/cultures/en-us/npc]