Change | haRdLy NOrMal

Posts Tagged ‘Change’

Tech is changing things

Published by October 5th, 2008 in My Big Mouth

After reading that you are probably saying, “like duh”, but yesterday I had an epiphany (or maybe a brain hemorrhoid) while shopping for speaker stands. I was at the Best Buy in West Hollywood. I like Best Buy but this one is always a mad house. As I waited for service I started to tweet about how even if I set myself on fire I would not get help. Well, it is a public place, and gas is so expensive so I didn’t try it. What I did do is continue to tweet about the bad customer service. Ok, I tried but the manager kept interrupting my typing.

Now think about that. As we move forward we are becoming a mobile technology society. There is no privacy anymore. There isn’t!

Let’s say you have 20,849 people following you on twitter like Guy Kawasaki and you receive a damaged product, or horrible customer service – you can instantly let a mass of people know about your experience. That really changes everything.

Now let’s take this one step further and bring it into the church world. The preacher is telling everyone the bad economy including gas prices is their fault because they don’t have enough faith. A person sitting in the sanctuary can easily broadcast to the world the preacher is full of crap!

From my experience many church leaders work very hard to keep all communication controlled. Heck, for many writing a post like this is still considered a rebellious spirit yet nothing could be further from the truth. Open and honest communication is healthy. “Control or growth. Pick one.” -Rick Warren

Today I heard a preacher say that most church leaders try and control a person’s behaviors because it is easier than allowing God to change the person’s heart. WOW!

Too me I could not be more excited. Because of the advances in technology more and more people are speaking up against years of oppression, religious gimmicks, and wrong! I am sure this is scary for many leaders because their need for control is fueled by deep rooted insecurities.

The solution is to be real. Not just say you are real, but actually be authentic at all times. Leaders also must be vulnerable. I follow several Christian leaders on twitter and I just love and respect them even more when they show their real self.

Be real – always. Be honest – always. Do what is right even when others don’t and without exception! You just never know how many people are following that guy who is typing on his iPhone!

Blogging is work rant.

Published by September 15th, 2008 in Blogs, Change, Learning, Life's Lessons, Marketing

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Don’t let anyone tell you different. Blogging is work. As far as work goes, though, it leans to the more enjoyable side. My issues are 1) I just hate to write 2) finding the time 3) remembering all the cool ideas I had during the week

For those of you that subscribe or stop by often you’ll notice that I have not posted in a few weeks. For those of you that actually enjoy my rants please forgive me. And those of you who have been sending me emails asking for new “stuff” – thanks for giving me a kick.

Part of this is a result of having a life again. Pinch me! I still work in fulltime ministry and my employer makes it a priority that people have a life outside of work. I get to be like normal folks and I now have the time to “do things” – which I am! I started to play drums every week with a cool worship team and I am taking classes. Besides that I am catching up with old friends I have not seen in years. And let’s be real. Los Angeles has so much fun stuff to do I am always going. I am moving so fast just yesterday I had to look at a calendar to schedule laundry days.

I believe Seth once wrote about the hardest part of blogging is trying to figure out what not to post. I completely agree because I do my best to post only what I feel will help others. I know some probably think I am negative but I am the exact opposite. Lots of people go through the same madness and for whatever reason keep quiet. By reading about somebody else going through the same “junk” it helps with understanding and eventually healing. Just read the comments to my post Real Faith Is… to see that in action. One person commented about my blog saying they loved it because it was “insightful and vulnerable”. Their words not mine. Another blogger who I didn’t know linked to me with the comment -learn how to be a good weird and make a difference – THAT IS AWESOME! And still to this date the #1 entry search word is “breathalyzer” that takes people to a post I did about being honest with yourself, which you can read here. If you are searching to beat a breath test you have a problem! It is so cool they land on this post.

Throughout the week I get hit with ideas I want to post. It seems that a new idea pushes out the old ones and so on. I forget lots of great stuff and then when I sit-down to type, like I am now, I end up ranting about something completely different, like I am now.

Blogging takes a lot of discipline, courage and time. The actual time writing is minimal yet the backend energy required to be vulnerable and come up with the “right” posts can be exhausting. In hindsight if I knew what it takes to be a blogger I may have never started. One of the great benefits now is that before I recommend a client blog as a marketing strategy I can be really honest about the logistics. Nonetheless if I can help just one person become self-aware and change it is well worth it.

We can end homelessness. It is doable!

Published by September 1st, 2008 in My Big Mouth

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This thought kind of just happened by accident through two events.

I was working on a marketing strategy for a retreat and conference center on the East Coast in a very rural city and I happened to put the address into google maps and did a search on how many churches there are nearby. The results shocked me!

Then last Thursday Pastor Matthew stated he had heard that if every church took in just 2 homeless people the problem will be solved. Hmm…I started thinking about that I went back to google maps.

Let’s play a little game. Go to google maps and enter your church address. When the box appears click on “Search nearby”. Type in the word “church” and hit enter. Then on the left menu column you’ll see the option to “refine by:” Click on “distance” and look at the number. Now click on “15 miles”. Take that number and multiply by 2. If the churches in your area just helped 2 people each that would be the total amount of people helped and the end of homelessness or poverty is doable. Very doable!

Now I am not talking helping people by leading them into the “sinner’s prayer” and leaving them with toothpaste and a bottle of water. I mean really extending yourself and actually helping just 2 people out of poverty! Every church can help 2 people, can’t they?

As an example I didn’t want to use Los Angeles just because it is a large metropolitan area. The number is so huge it freaks me out! So this example will be more real I used my last physical address in Missouri. Within 15 miles of my old address there are 2,580 churches. Within 45 miles there are 9,243 churches. If each church helped just 2 people (a month? a year?) that would be 18,486 people helped out of poverty in St Louis. I might be wrong here but I believe the number of homeless in the St Louis area is less than 500 on any given night.

So I realized two things here. Solving homelessness is doable and the Body of Christ can actually make a serious impact if we just put our words into action. Also, as is right now, the church is selfish and blind. We believe we are helping people but if we just step back and see the real truth we would be aware of how little effect most churches have on the world.

I sure hope this is a wakeup call for someone!

Real faith is…

Published by August 18th, 2008 in Change, Character, Church, My Big Mouth

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Again I need to give you a disclaimer. I am not a bible scholar and I am not a theologian. Agree or disagree these are my views on a subject matter that I feel has been greatly abused.

Writing down the make and model of the new car you want to receive and then placing the piece of paper in the center of a room for people to circle around and pray over is not faith – it is magic! For a few years now I have been really confused and frustrated because I see people being taught rituals and not truth. Tithe, pray facing west, fast, make a collage of all the material junk you want, add some scripture, and presto chango God will honor your WORKS.

This type of teaching gives people false hope. For one, if we don’t receive the miracle we are praying for we blame ourselves thinking we did the ritual wrong. We then try and correct our wrong searching for a new ritual instead of resting in Him. People also get hurt because their neighbor was blessed doing the ritual, why not them? Yes, there are testimonies of the “miracle check in the mailbox” that basically result from the law of averages. But the majority of these type “miracle” testimonies are exaggerated, evangelistically speaking that is, to prove to us the rituals work.

I also find it interesting the people that teach these “faith” rituals that borderline on magic are the first to speak out against Harry Potter, or have a medicine cabinet filled with drugs quickly prescribing meds to people for any ailment, or are overly scared of legal action to the point of paranoia. Behind the scenes most demonstrate little faith as if their teachings are all a charade.

When I was homeless I didn’t tithe nor did I pray yet I was delivered from living in a park and homeless shelters to a good paying job and new car. From April 07 to early 08 I had crisis after crisis in my life that made homelessness seem like Disneyland. I not only tithed my offerings were another 10% making my total giving a little more than 20%. I fasted, I prayed, I believed with EXTREME faith, I wrote my needs on paper for others to pray over, I even had the collage on the wall with scriptures just like I was taught, I spoke the right words and believed for the very best. More importantly I became passive, I started to work harder and harder, I did my best to keep my mouth shut yet my circumstances kept getting worse. I was doing everything right yet wrong kept on happening. I became more confused. Why was the magic faith not working? I tried it both ways and life keeps coming at me! Could it be rain falls on the just and the unjust?

My eyes opened this spring while I was dining with a friend at a Chinese buffet in Columbus Ohio. Another opportunity had just fallen through and for the most part I was beat down hard. No money, no food, and it looked like things were going to get worse, which they did! In that moment of clarity I knew God loved me and that as long as I persevered He would take care of me. I might not get the car I wanted, but He had something better, which he did as I type this from Los Angeles, my home, the place where I belong! I never prayed to move back here nor did I sow a seed. The more I surrendered giving up my WANTS and desires the more He gave me just what I needed. That simple and no magic! Just rest in Him!

Please know I am all about positive thinking. Positive thinking, especially changing my self-talk, is what made all the difference in my recovery. Positive thinking is great and needs to be encouraged yet we can go too far and remove reality. We are also not healed by works. Miracles don’t happen because we prayed a certain way or claimed our seed on the offering envelope. All this crap does is mess people up, alienate unbelievers and sell warehouses full of product.

Let’s be honest here. All this faith ritual magic is selfish. People don’t sow a seed for that drug addict or prostitute; they give money in the hopes of receiving a new house, car or other material possession – selfish! I believe that the church will continue to be without any real power and continue to lose people as long as the church focuses on receiving and not genuinely helping others.

Real faith is not magic. Real faith is knowing that God truly loves you no matter how bad your circumstances seem.

If church was accepting and loving would we need outreach?

Published by August 10th, 2008 in Change, Church, My Big Mouth, Outreach

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“As long as Christians fail to repent of self-righteousness, we will continue to speak of evangelism in terms such as outreach, which implies we will not embrace lost people but will keep them at least an arm’s length away.” “… the transformed lives of people in the church are both the greatest argument for, and the greatest explanation of, the gospel. Therefore, it welcomes non-Christians into the church, not so much through evangelistic programs as through informal relationships like Jesus developed with his first disciples … (this evangelism) considers it vital that lost people be brought close enough to witness the natural and practical outworking of the gospel in people’s lives.”

- Mark Driscoll

I found this quote on one of my new favorite blogs

http://www.vinceantonucci.com/

This really hit me today as I walked into the Angelus Temple/Dream Center’s bathroom this morning and saw a few homeless men take benefit from a sink and running water in a place that won’t kick them out. In fact, they were welcomed. One was washing up and another was shaving. Trust me, finding a place that will allow that is rare. What would your security do? Come on keep it real now!

The thought that hit my spirit, though, is why do we even do outreach? And let’s be real, the majority of outreaches I have seen and or heard about didn’t change anyone. Not really. Some I even organized and managed so I am also speaking to myself here. From my first hand experience over the last 5 years outreaches were more of a preprogrammed thing churches do. Even though many of the people have right hearts they are blind to the infectiveness of their actions. It is like we are programmed to go to where we think the poor and needy are and give handouts, have a mini sermon, get people to raise their hands – AND THEN LEAVE. Rarely did I ever see these people in church. God is not magic. People need more than a sinner’s prayer – they need to feel real and unconditional love found through commitment.

And please, if you are going to bus people in commit to it. If a few kids get unruly, maybe even throwing some pizza out the window and mouthing back to staff members, DON”T STOP busing them it. You won’t be teaching them a lesson only reinforcing the abandonment they get at home. Buy more pizza and some cleaner. If you have a bad apple remove it BUT KIDS NEED LOVE and they don’t get it at home. The best place for them is church.

I know I am squirrel chasing here but one of the many stories Pastor Tommy tells comes to mind. They bus thousands of kids into Phoenix First for service. One of the deacons came to Pastor Tommy saying “we have to stop busing these kids in. They are writing swear words on the bathroom walls”, Pastor Tommy responded “it’s not required reading”. What is more important the kids or the building? Some of you will say we have to respect God’s house. But God himself would much rather have you take care of His people than YOUR building – guaranteed! You will teach hurting kids far more by continuing to get them out of their horrible environments into a loving place a few hours every week than you will by the disciplinarian tactic of stopping the route completely.

Please don’t get mad at me for telling the truth here. And there are some churches that do great works and we need to support them. Yet most churches are simply as lost as the people they are trying to reach!

The whole point I am trying to make here is if we took all the energy and money used for an outreach and simply made our church experiences more loving and ACCEPTING, than church itself would be where it ALL happens.

To repeat something I heard this morning, you cannot build a great church until you build great people. Love on people. Not just at the trailer park, the mall, or the place in your town where the homeless gather, but at your church. Before you plan your next outreach take a good look in the mirror and see if you really are a loving church for that demographic. If so, than the seats will already be filled with people from the areas you minster in! They will be attracted to you and your outreach ministry is effective. If you are only welcoming to a certain kind of people, let’s say upper-middle class, than love on them because all people hurt and have needs. Not everyone is called to reach the poor, and not everyone is called to reach people with money. Just stop trying to be something you are not.

Rich or poor, the key to reaching people, all people, is to sincerely welcome them inside and outside of your building – and without exception.

Why do we separate outreach? What would happen if we ALWAYS gave the love we show in a park in our church experiences?

The Lord said “I didn’t say that”

Published by August 1st, 2008 in Blogs, Change, Church, Leadership, Ministry, My Big Mouth

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This week I happened to have one of the most amazing experiences of my Christian walk. So amazing it might be considered a miracle. It was to me!

My boss held a “debrief” meeting to openly and honestly address a few concerns employees had about an all staff meeting held a few weeks earlier. In ministry, that alone was amazing because open and honest communication is often suppressed. As the meeting started we all got on the subject of saying “The Lord said…” and my boss, who was leading this meeting, said something like “we won’t have any, ‘and God said’, because when you say, ‘and God said’, how can you argue? God said it and that is that. We want truth and not manipulation.”

WHAT! No lightening? No locust? No one was fired for saying something that was straightforward and real?

As a team we then went on to discuss how the older generation of Christian leaders use “and the Lord said” as a form of manipulation. These are not bad people, they just don’t know any better. It is how they were taught because their leaders did the same thing. Chances are, God didn’t say anything and they are simply speaking their own personal wants. By adding “God said” it has to be God since he/she is a pastor, right? So you do it, believe it, swallow it, and the only thing God said is, “I didn’t say that”.

Too me, that is using the Lords name in vain. Yupper our grandmothers all used that scripture to keep us from swearing, but let’s be real. God’s name is used far too often for stuff He had nothing to do with, and mostly by pastors and their wives!

We also talked about how voicing a difference of option is NOT a rebellious spirit. And if anyone tells you it is a rebellious spirit they are trying to manipulate you. WHAT! Are you kidding me? How can that be? Question the man of God? That is what we are taught so we keep quiet and the church remains sick.

Many of you who are regular readers of hn.com (I can recommend a good clinical physiologist) know I have been writing about how the “old school” style of authoritarian leadership in the church MUST change, and is changing because of the internet. In posts like It’s too late for Jerry but is it too late for the church? I write about the lack of self-awareness and in A marketplace flop – how do you deal with failure? I write about what happens when organizations are not honest. Pretty much you can find that theme evolving throughout this blog, but for the most part it was my gut.

This last week I had a conversation with one of the most brilliant leaders nowadays who is literally influencing positive change throughout the Body of Christ. We were on the topic of how toxic leaders in the church world suppress honesty because they would have to face the false reality they have created. A reality that keeps them in an “ivory tower”, and keeps their church from truly being effective. Worse yet, these church leaders have a horrible effect on the views of the unchurched.

As we talked further and I continued to get more and more thrilled, without any prior communication my gut feelings were being echoed. We touched on the subject of change and how the internet finally gave suppressed believers a vehicle to speak open and honestly. Church leaders could no longer manipulate us into silence, and that not only is a good thing – it is a God thing!

I have to honestly say I am once again in awe of what God has done for me. I believe in the church yet after working the last 5 years in fulltime ministries that suppress the truth and refuse to see realty I was starting to give up hope. God has placed me in an organization that allows open communication and is on the forefront of change for thousands of churches, and a local church where loving people is not a pretense and much more than a tagline.

Leaders, if you don’t allow your people to speak openly and honestly you are closing yourself off to reality. If you only allow your opinion chances are you are a toxic leader and you hinder your own personal growth, and your own minsitries growth. You cannot control people’s thoughts so you might as well know what they are thinking. Open communication is healthy and it will lead to healthy change. Yes, there may be conflict but by running from conflict you are causing more harm than good. Only by working through conflit can we find real love.

If you are an employee or volunteer in an organization that does not allow open communication, and you have respectfully tried to influence change in a positive way to no avail – leave! The organization is not growing in a healthy direction and in time you too will become unhealthy. It is ok the leave. It is not a sin no matter what you are taught. You will be better off in a ministry where God can use your gifts and talents than remaining with a supressive leadership that is more concerned about control than doing what is right and truly being effective.

How can we encourage healthy change and healthy communication in everything we do?

It’s too late for Jerry but is it too late for the church?

Published by June 25th, 2008 in Change, Just Me, Leadership, My Big Mouth

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There was a guy in my high school named Jerry. Jerry physically matured years ahead of his time. In 7th grade he was well over 6′ and 250 lbs. He was a giant and everyone was scared of him. Jerry was a jerk yet because we were all too scared to be honest with him his character defects were reinforced. As an adult Jerry turned out to be a complete ass and often hurts those around him! Jerry thinks he is the greatest and deep down he is a good guy with a big heart. But because he continues to believe the false reality he created around him he remains socially retarded

I feel the church is much like Jerry. Stuck on stupid and scared to hear the real truth. So scared of change that leadership works overtime to avoid reality! I am not commenting on any specific church but the church world as a whole. Lots of what I blog about are commonalities I have seen working in fulltime ministry the last 15 years.

Although my posts may be viewed (by some) as negative they are actually very positive. The church needs to wake up and become self-aware because we aren’t even making a dent. For the most part we puff ourselves up with “evangelistic” numbers and praise reports refusing to see reality. The feedback we receive is selective at best. Open and honest communication is a start and if leadership allows for such truthfulness, even at the risk of seeing their own faults, you are in a healthy organization. . If leadership does not allow genuine honesty they are not really leaders.

What I currently see is the church is being built around a personality and not the people. WWJD has turned into “what would pastor do”. Almost every single church staff meeting I have ever been a part of the biggest concern was pleasing the senior pastor. Being effective and helping people took a backseat to the desires of the King. An authoritarianism style of leadership is very common place in the church today ruling either by the use of fear or manipulating people with “blessings”! This style not only creates an ivory tower world to feed and protect their insecurities it does not allow open communication and honesty.

The internet is forcing change in the business world and orginizations are finding success by releasing control to the consumer. Like they have a choice! We are in a consumer driven world these days and the churches who are REALLY making a difference are the ones who engage the people, listen to the people, and allow the people to take some of the control. The churches that are finding real growth, for the most part, are placing people before “the man”. Many don’t even have a photo of the sr pastor on their webpage and promotional materials because they consciously make an effort to be much more than a personality.

I strongly believe the number one principle a leader can adopt, that will positively affect change resulting in genuine growth, is a culture of open and honest healthy communication. You may be able to keep their mouths shut but your people are going to think it anyway. You might as well know what they are thinking. Have a meeting with your people and start by asking “what would you tell me if you knew beyond a shadow of a doubt there would be absolutely no repercussions?”, and then sit and listen, openly, without saying anything, allowing for real and honest feedback. (thanks Andy)

Of course, you may hear things you don’t want to hear. The truth hurts. I know for me it is the stuff that makes me mad, that I don’t want to hear, that I REALLY DO NEED TO HEAR. It may take a day or week for me to realize the person was right, and I was wrong. But the growth is worth the pain.

Here is a truth. No matter how loving you think you are, if you are a leader, people are scared to be honest with you. Chances are, too, that you actually play a part in reinforcing that fear. We don’t like change and we all believe our way is best so we unconsciously create a world to protect our own views. Ask yourself this: The people around you who are the closest to you and help you run the organization, do they challenge you or do they always just agree with you? Do they sometimes make you mad because they stand up for a different point of view? Do you encourage such dialog or shut it down? If you have surrounded yourself with all “yes men” and don’t have a person close to you that sometimes causes trouble, and has a different point of view then yours, you don’t feel comfortable with real honesty and you hurt your own growth.

Jerry is never going to change. The character defects have been reinforced for years and to be honest, Jerry likes it just the way it is with everyone too scared to be real with him.

How about you?

( click here to read an earlier post I wrote after reading that 85% of all project failures can be attributed to “organizational silence”)

Feel sorry for us we’re poor ministers and deserve a discount.

Published by June 21st, 2008 in Uncategorized

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I am having a fire sale on craigslist and one email I received attempted to manipulate the price by stating he was a campus pastor. Basically he was implying that I should feel sorry for the vocation he selected and give him a break. After all ministers don’t have money, right?

Well I called him on it. And to be honest, I have tried to play this card myself a few times. If you are in ministry chances are so have you.

I believe years ago it was even listed on license plates and clergy were given special treatment. Times have changed and even though many of the old school leaders want to bring the respect and protocol back, it is not going to happen. Actually I somewhat agree it should come back yet talking down to people will never bring respect back. I have seen firsthand a pastor alienate people by chastising them for not having military like protocol when addressing him. Some real truth for you. People don’t respect ministers and chastising them won’t bring that respect back. It just separates you more. We are in a new era and the religious and rigid views of yesteryear are long gone. Right or wrong they are gone forever!

This is where we are today. A few years back I was in a coffee house in Hollywood with a pastor friend of mine. A guy asked him what he did for a living. My friend gladly said he is a pastor thinking this is going to open a door. The guy then responded “so you like little boys?”

It is not the peoples fault. It is ours. We created this. The office of clergy, or reverend, or pastor, or bishop, or whatever title you want to give yourself, is no longer respected. And can you blame people?

I am not referring to the major highly publicized immoral failures. I am talking about how as Christians we are known to be cheap. Just ask any wait staff and they’ll tell you we’re horrible tippers. Plus, we try and manipulate people in the hopes of getting a reduced rate on a sale. There is more, you fill in the blank. We are jerks, liars, cheats, manipulators, and freaks!

10 years ago I was riding in the passenger seat of a brand new SUV crawling down Sunset Blvd. The driver was the son of one of the most famous pastors of our time. It was a nice day and we had the windows down just moving slowly in “parking lot” LA traffic. All of a sudden a LAPD motorcycle officer was parked on the side of the road only a few feet from my door. We were fast approaching and neither of us had our seat belts on. The cop was looking right at us so it would have been too obvious to quickly buckle up, so I simply opted to smile and say “hello officer”. “Hello”, he returned and followed with “pullover”, which we did. Now at the time I really was a poor minister. My income was $25 a week. The driver, son of a very famous high profile celebrity pastor, tried to talk his way out of the ticket by telling the officer how we feed the homeless and do the work of the Lord. That we don’t have much money because ministers that follow Jesus are poor. With registration in hand the officer asked if this was a new SUV. The driver said yes. The officer handed him the ticket and walked away. Of course, I honestly did not have the money for a $200 ticket and I had to go to court to request community service. If you have never enjoyed the LA court system or community services it is a treat.

(more…)

Bless me or bless you?

Published by June 20th, 2008 in Change, Character, Community, Homeless, Just Me, Leadership, Learning, Life's Lessons, Managment, My Big Mouth, Outreach

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For the last 5 years I have worked in churches that were 75% focused on “bless me bless me” instead of blessing others. It was not until I needed help because I did not have money or food that I consciously saw the fallout from that style of ministry. When people focus on becoming a millionaire their hearts change. When leadership’s primary teaching is about receiving instead of giving, even though helping others is mentioned, giving unselfishly never becomes a priority or a lifestyle. A generous heart cannot grow when a person is constantly praying to receive.

A short time ago I had to apply for food stamps. Very humbling to say the least! At one point I was down to 3 cans of tuna. I found there are some very unselfish and genuine people in the world and I am in awe of the sacrifice they made to help me out. But none of those people attend a “bless me” church.

I say all that not to criticize the “bless me” churches, but to slap myself in the face! Thank goodness my original Christian foundation came from an outreach focused church because I continue to always put others before me, yet I am not proud of what I did or who I became these last several years. I compromised what I know to be right in so many ways.

Last week a couple handed me a large envelope of cash. The week before someone filled my fridge and another person paid my mortgage. When I told my best friend he said “God blessed you” yet I disagree! God does not bless with a new car or a fat check. God blesses with challenges that help you grow. We are confused. We all run around seeking “blessings” from God that are for the most part material stuff we’ll end up selling on craigslist. The new car only blesses for a short time as you show off to your neighbors. We are being trained to be selfish “bless me bless me” so we perceive, for the most part, that the only blessings from God are material or financial.

In my adult life the biggest blessings I have ever received where 1) homelessness 2) divorce 3) unexpected unemployment. Why would I say that? Because in each situation I grew to be a better person – I was truly blessed!

slowly coming back – topic: strategy

Published by June 14th, 2008 in Change, Character, Fundraising, Just Me, Leadership, Learning, Managment, Marketing, Media, Ministry

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Here is part of the great post Phil Cooke wrote about strategy:

But I’m shocked at the number of people that just keep doing the same thing year after year as if the direction of the ministry, audience numbers, response, income – whatever, will magically change. But getting from point A to point B doesn’t happen by accident. It happens through a well thought out plan.

And by the way – when it comes to churches – changing graphics, cool music, lighting effects, or dumping the choir robes isn’t a strategy. That’s just re-arranging deck chairs on the Titanic. You need a fundamental re-think of what story your church or ministry is trying to tell, what that means to your audience, how to connect with that audience, and why it’s absolutely urgent they respond right now.

I could not resist posting a comment. I am really getting the itch to blog again so even though I am not taking hn.com life just yet, I thought I would get a fix. Here is the comment. Please know this is not negative. It really is positive because if more people would actually have the courage to be honest then the church would become self-aware and actually be effective.

Personality driven church leaderships unconscious need for control always seems to override what is the right and quite possibly the most effective choice. They will say they want growth, yet in reality they just want to be the boss. More often than not these authoritarian style leaders hinder their own church growth.

It is not uncommon for the pastor’s wife to gather together a team of people who have no real experience in fundraising to sit around for an hour or more to “guess” out a strategy. No data is gathered and there is no research – just verbal guessing as to what may be effective. Everyone gets pumped up because they now feel important and heck, this stuff must work since they saw it used on TBN. The only real requirement to be included in the team is that the person will NOT be completely honest since the last thing leadership wants is the real truth. Even the selection of the team is a guessing game so several of the people chosen have no business being in a strategy meeting. A time and productivity waster all around!

Although a plan is made it really just sends the organization into busy mode wasting resources and time. If success happens it only is a result of the law of averages and luck. A proper strategy crafted by professionals would not only save time and money it would achieve the desired results quicker. Unless the desired result is to feed control issues than the ego would be bruised if a professional is consulted and Lord knows the King can’t have that.

It always amuses me that church leadership will contract an accounting firm because they see the worth in hiring a professional for those tasks, yet when it comes to marketing most believe they are “gifted” so they chose to shoot themselves in the foot. One pastor I know contracted a web designer and just told him to make the site. The designer lives in another state and has never been to this church. He is given no information at all yet instructed to make a “cutting edge” website. When I brought this up over dinner conversation the pastor said he didn’t have time and it was the web guy’s job anyway. I tried to explain the importance of a web presence and the ignorance in not giving the designer any direction or data, yet it fell on deaf ears. Another ministry I know sends out direct mail each month for two separate campaigns yet gives no information to the writer. The writer just guesses on content twice a month. Yup, true story. There is no strategy, no measuring effectiveness, and they continue to send out two mailings each month simply because “that is what ministries do”. Even though the ineffectiveness and the amount of money wasted has been brought up in the past they continue on as is. Same with TV, thousands of dollars spent each week for a show that has no direction. It is just there and the correct decision is either to put resources into the show or get off the air. Of course, the occasional ego boost the pastor receives in public keeps the show on the air. The sad part is this is not just one ministry but many.

Pride and ignorance don’t see themselves in the mirror. For the most part these are good men and women who are just blind. Can you just imagine how effective we could be if we had the courage to be completely honest with ourselves and became self-aware?