Category Archives: Leading Change

A few years ago, I learned a new church term: “spiritual formation.” In fact, for a while, my congregation had a man on staff called “minister of spiritual formation.” It’s all the rage. The classic text in support of this … Continue reading →

So am I opposed to the notion of elders being shepherds? Well, yes and no. There is unquestionably a deep need for elders to be more involved in the lives of the members. Whether its counseling, comforting in times of … Continue reading →

Let’s talk a little more about power. In the secular world, most fights are about money, sex, or power. I asked the elders at Tulsa what the church fights they’d seen are usually about — not what those involved say they … Continue reading →

Disciples So what’s a disciple? (John 13:34-35 ESV)  34 “A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another.  35 By this all people will … Continue reading →

How do we do this? Teach Jesus. Jesus is the missing piece. Teach Jesus as our ultimate example, as our model, as who we were meant to be like. John Howard Yoder demonstrates in The Politics of Jesus that every … Continue reading →

It’s easy to get caught up in the details and miss the big picture. Feed the sheep what? What’s a “green pasture”? Elders are to be examples of what? I think the answer — or the most important part of the … Continue reading →

We church leaders have a language problem, I think. I mean, we’re just so bad to use words that aren’t very well defined, as though everyone knows exactly what we mean. Recently, the elders at my church and the staff … Continue reading →

[The following is NOT an attempt to replicate the class but to present the same material in a blog format. I’ll expand on the material quite a bit to include some thoughts we didn’t have time to cover. This will be a … Continue reading →

Here are links to the materials I referenced in my Friday lectures: Order CDs of the three classes Ray Vander Laan audio lectures (free download) Faith Lessons (7 DVD Set) Ray Vander Laan The Five Dysfunctions of a Team: A Leadership … Continue reading →