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To Bore or Not to Bore

That is the question. I was talking with a former church member the other day who's in the church "shopping" mode when this person told me the following story. "After visiting [this one church] I asked [my child] what they thought of this church. [This child] said, "Well, once I get used to being bored, I'll be okay." Isn't that an amazing statement? Already, by a young age, this child had come to the conclusion that if they were going to go to church, they had better get used to the idea of church being boring. May it never be!

During the sixteen years I pastored Seneca Creek, I was passionate about church never being boring. But, here's the rub. Even if we think we've figured out a way to make church exciting, vibrant and creative, over a period of time—what was once exciting, vibrant and creative—becomes old, mundane and boring. In other words, one of the things that keeps church from being boring is to make sure that we aren't falling into predictable ruts.

Now, I know that's easier said than done. In the pressure cooker environment of church life, finding the time to be creative, innovative and fresh is difficult to do. It's so much easier to just do what you've been doing. But, no matter what you are doing, no matter how creative you may think you may be, if you keep on doing it the same way, it will become predictable. And predictable, even edgy predictable, will lead to boredom.

So, how have you changed up your services lately? Your children's programs? Your youth programs? Your small groups? Your staff meetings? Your planning processes? Your mailings? Your all-church events? Your evangelistic outreaches? Basically, anything you do. Oh, and by the way, this same principle applies to your marriage and parenting as well. If you keep doing what you're doing the way you're doing it, it will become boring. And life and church are far too important to become boring. So what are you going to do to make sure that no one ever says of your church, "Once I get used to being bored, I'll be okay"?

Never Underestimate the Power of Expectation

As I was eating breakfast this morning, I happened to be listening to Robert Schuller and thought I'd pass on to you his closing illustration.  To the best of my recollection, it went something like this.

"I recently met a professor in physics who told me that he taught at a university where he was told he needed to flunk 50% of his students each year.  And each year, that's exactly what happened—50% of his students failed.  Then he started attending a church where the pastor kept preaching on being positive and believing the best about others.  Finally, over time, he bought it all—hook, line and sinker.  The next fall, he began his class with the following statement.

'Class, in previous years, 50% of the students have failed this course.  But this year, I have a feeling, that this year is going to be different.  I've checked your records and you are a special group of students.  So this year, I'm confident that none of you are going to fail.  And to that end, I'm going to help you succeed.'

At the end of that semester," Schuller said, "not one student failed.  One got a C+, another one got a B-, but the rest of his students got B's and A's—and the professor concluded with this statement, 'And I didn't change my grading criteria one iota'"

Incredible!  You know that the intellectual capacity of students didn't change (it was just a normal distribution of students).  You know that content didn't really change.  And you know that the grading didn't change.  There was only one thing that changed.  And that one thing was the attitude of the professor toward his students.  Just by raising his expectations from failure to success, 50% of the students who would have failed in previous years didn't.  That is simply incredible.

But it happens all of the time.  The most famous experiment about this in education happened in the '60's in San Francisco and you can read about it in "Pygmalion in the Classroom."  It that study, a normal distribution of students increased their IQ's by 15 to 30 points in one year simply because the teachers believed they were the best teachers and that they were given the best students (neither of which was true).  Expectations drive so much of what happens around us.

So, as you look around you, what do you expect from those who are around you?  Who do you expect the best from?  Mediocrity from?  And the worst from?  And how much do you think your expectations play a role in how they perform? It could be your staff, your board members, your small group leaders, your ministry leaders, your spouse, your kids, your parents, your in-laws, your neighbors, your team members, or even yourself.  For example, when I talk with pastors, they'll often say, "Well, no one can hit a home run every week.  Sometimes you're going to hit a single and sometimes you're going to strike out.  But you just keep getting up to the plate and every now and then you get to hit a home run."  No!  What a terrible expectation.  I say, you go to the plate expecting to hit a home run every week.  And if you expect that you'll hit a home run every week, you'll hit a whole lot more home runs (and an occasional triple or double, but no singles or strike outs). 

So please, never underestimate the power of your expectations—on the people around you—or on yourself!  In fact, why don't you raise them right now.  You just might be surprised by the difference!

How to Fix the Most Common Preaching/Communication Problem

Have you ever started a message and quickly come to the conclusion, they're not with me? It's a terrible feeling, isn't it?  I like to call that the, "Hey God, this one's for you!" moment.  None of us likes being there.  It's pure pain.  So, how do we get around that?

Well, if you read my previous post, The Number One Mistake that Preachers/Communicators Make, then you know that the number one mistake that preachers/communicators/teachers make is that they don't hook their audiences.  In other words, they start in with their content versus thinking about how to hook their audience into listening to their content.  Or to put it another way, they start from the wrong place.  They start by thinking that the people in their audience are as interested in listening to their content as they are—which is, as you know, a bad assumption.  Remember, we all listen to one radio station, WIIFM (what's in it for me?)

Margaret is worried about how her two year old is doing in the toddlers' room.  Frank is thinking about how he's going to find the time to refinish his deck this afternoon.  Sally is wondering if God has anything to say about how she can win her husband back.  Joe is wondering if anyone at church knows he's a fake.  Angela is struggling with a food addiction and is thinking about how fat she looks in this outfit.  And John is looking over at Marci thinking how good she looks.

Into all of that mess, the preacher stand up and says, "Let's now turn to Ezekiel 37, beginning in verse one."  So, let me ask you, how many people do you think the preacher hooked into listening with that introduction?  You got it.  None.  Okay, maybe his wife (but the hook there is marital harmony . . . maybe?).

So, how do you go about hooking an audience?  The same way you hook a fish—with "bait" that interests those whom you're trying to hook.  In other words, you start out with an introduction that connects with a felt need in their life (not yours).  One of the other big mistakes that most preachers/communicators make is that they assume that the people in their audience are interested in the same things that they are (another bad assumption). 

So, how do you find out their felt needs?  By spending time with them and studying them.  Over time this becomes almost intuitive.  But I always recommend to preachers/communicators that they start out by writing out their audience analysis for at least the next six months.  Here's how I recommend that you do this.

Take out a piece of paper.  At the top, write out, X1 (on the left side), then draw and arrow across the page to X2 (on the right side).  X1 is where your audience starts.  X2 is where you want your audience to end up.  Under X1, write down all that you know about your audience's Needs, Hurts, and Wants—as well as what they know and feel about this subject, plus their interest level.  Graphically it looks like this,

X1                                               X2
Start                                            End

Needs                                          Application
Hurts
Wants
Know
Feel
Interest Level

Write down everything you know about your audience.  Then write down where you want them to end (i.e. what your application points will be—what you want them to do as a result of your message).  Then, since you know where your audience is and where you want them to end up, all you need to do is select an introduction that connects with your audience's needs, hurts and wants.  Basically, I always recommend that you start out by assuming that no one wants to listen to you (a habit  I learned by speaking in college dormitories while serving with Campus Crusade for Christ).   If you start from this assumption, then it'll force you to spend more time encouraging and inspiring your audience to want to listen to what you have to say.  And if people want to listen to what you have to say, then the chances increase dramatically that they will want to apply what you have to say.  Which means that you will probably do a better job at changing people's lives, which is why you prepared your message in the first place.  In other words, everyone wins when you take the time to hook your audience/congregation.

So, this week, before you start working on your message, why don't you start out by doing an X1 to X2 worksheet. List out everything you know about your audience and where you want them to end up by the time you're done.  Then hook them and lead them on a journey until they have to  assent to what you say, so that their lives might change.  You'll be amazed at the difference.  Go ahead.  Give it a try.  You just might get hooked on it!

The Number One Mistake Most Preachers and Communicators Make

The past few days I've been in a seminar with Willie Jolley, one of the top motivational speakers in the country and a recent inductee into the Speaker's Hall of Fame, who shared the business side of motivational speaking with a few of us.  It was a great experience and provided me with the kind of information I need as I begin this new part of God's journey for me.  However, after I asked Willie the following question, "What would you say is the number one mistake that new speakers make as they begin their professional speaking careers?", it dawned on me that if someone asked me that question about preachers, I would know exactly how to answer that question.  Why?  Because I watch and listen to preachers, speakers and communicators all of the time.  And the vast majority of preachers/speakers, even those with large churches, often make this same mistake—all of the time!

So what is the number one mistake that most preachers and communicators make?  They don't hook their congregation/audience.  Now, don't rush past that comment.  I just said something incredibly profound that could change the impact of your preaching/communicating forever (and all of the changed lives that go with it)!  In other words, most preachers/communicators tend to assume that people want to listen to them.  So they just dig in to their (catch the pronoun) material.  Bad decision.  The focus is all wrong.  The assumption is, I have a message to give and you need to listen to it.

However, as ministers, we have a responsibility to communicate to people.  So, the starting point (apart from God and his Word/Truth) is the person with whom we're communicating.  In other words, we need to figure out, how does this truth connect with this person and how can I convince them that they need to listen to this so that their life can be changed and get into greater conformity with the way that God wants them to do, be, think or feel. Assuming that people want to listen is usually a bad assumption.  Why?  Because everyone, including you and me, listens to one radio station, WIIFM (What's in it for me?)  Everyone.  Not convinced yet?  Then listen to these two different introductions to Ezek. 37.

Typical preacher intro.

"Good morning. I'd like all of you to open your bibles and turn to the book of Exekiel, chapter 37, this morning  and let's begin reading in verse one......."

Person centered intro

"How many of you have been feeling kind of dry spiritually lately?  Maybe you've been having a hard time connecting with God or you're dealing with some things in your life and you're emotionally spent.  Or maybe you feeling like you've just been going through the motions.  You're coming to church, attending you small group, having your devotions, but you still feel powerless inside? In other words, you're at a place where God feels distant.  Well, if you've been feeling like that lately, God has some good news for you today.  You do not need to remain there.  And if you'll turn with me to the book of Ezekiel, chapter 37, in your Bibles, I think you'll find the answer to what you've been struggling with."

Now, which preacher would you prefer to listen to?  It's not even close.  Yet, day after day and week after week, I listen (as do millions of Americans) to messages where the preacher/speaker/communicator misses this simple principle.  Sometimes I just want to create a "Did you hook them?" sign and send it to every preacher in America.  And it'd not just about one hook, it's about hooking every single audience every single week in every single message.  Now, how do you go about hooking an audience?  Well that will be tomorrow's post (Did you just get hooked?).  But, in the meantime, why don't ask yourself these two simple questions, "In my last message, what was my hook?"  And secondly "How do I know if I hooked them?" If you'll start asking those questions of every message,  you'll be astounded at how much better people listen to you and then are changed by your message!

Why wait?

My father (the real Don Johnson) shared a simple (but incredibly important) lesson with me the other day.  We were having lunch when he mentioned something he had learned from one of his business partners years ago.  He said, "One of the things I learned from Ben was to act on what you're thinking about immediately.  We would often be in a conversation and I would mention, 'Hey, we should get a hold of _______ (blank) about _________(blank)' and Ben would hand me the phone and say, 'Call him.'" 

Like I often say, "Simple is not simplistic. In fact, the most powerful things in life are simple."  This was one simple lesson, but oh what power.  Just think about it.  How many things have you thought about doing this week, but didn't act upon?  How many phone calls did you not make?  How many decisions did you put off?  How many letters did you not get around to writing that you thought about writing?  How many great ideas did you think about that you haven't executed yet?  How many projects did you think about but didn't do anything about? 

Procrastination kills all of us.  Every day we're confronted with a slew of "to do" items that would bury most people.  And because we're often overwhelmed, we often waste time debating what we ought to do so that we never get around to actually doing what we know we ought to do.  So, what do you need to do immediately before you read another blog?  What have you been putting off doing today? 

Maybe, that simple lesson from Ben Kendig isn't so simplistic after all, is it?  I know for me, that simple lesson has changed my week and productivity!  Hopefully it'll do the same for you!  (By the way, why are you still reading this!!!)

Stop Doing List Part II

On Wednesday, I talked about "Creating a Stop Doing List" out of an audio recording by Jim Collins (if you haven't read that post, just scroll down below this post to read it).  Having read that, the natural question most people ask  is, "How do I do that?"  In other words, the idea that we need to stop doing a lot of what we're currently doing so that we can focus on those few things that matter most to us and our life, makes intuitive sense.  But how to define what activities I need to reduce or alleviate from my life—well that's often a whole different story.  So let me share with you a common practice i use to do that.

At least once a year (and frequently multiple times per year), I take out a sheet of paper and make a traffic light on the left hand side of the paper (you know, a long rectangular box with three circles inside it) about nine to ten inches long.  Inside each circle I write the color that corresponds to that circle on a traffic light (i.e., red, yellow and green).  Red represents those activities that take energy from me.  Yellow represents those activities that I'm neutral towards (neither take or restore energy, they just are).  And then green represents those activities that restore or replenish me.

So, after I write in the words, "Red, Yellow and Green", I then begin to write down all of the activities I'm currently engaged in and then fit them into the appropriate section.  For example, as an INTJ, being around lots of people is a red light activity for me.  Whereas times of solitude (like when I'm writing or reading) are green light activities (again, for me). Solving problems is green light, managing a process or program is red light.  Creating something new is green light, reading resumes is red light.  You get the idea.

Now, here's the benefit of doing this each year, because chances are, your "Stop Doing" list is probably found in your red light category.  At that point, you may say, "This year, I'm going to stop doing x, y, and z and to do that, I'm going to need to delegate x to Joe and y to Ally and then on z I'm going to need to pray and ask God to bring someone into my life  who can take over z."  In this way, year by year, you'll reduce the amount of red light living you have to encounter (because we all still have to encounter some red light activities in our lives) and increase the amount of green light living you get to do—and that will be a good thing for you and all of those around you!

However, that said, I do have a few more thoughts about this.  If you're ever feeling stressed or burned out, immediately do a traffic light analysis.  Chances are 60-80% of your time is focused on red light activities (not a great way to live). Once you make your list, reduce the red light activities.   Secondly, your traffic light analysis will probably flow out of your personality.  So, the more you know about your personality type, the easier it will be for you to determine what to keep doing and what to stop doing.  And finally, and this is the hardest thing of all to do, in order to focus on what you do best, you may have to stop doing some green light activities as well.  In other words, as I mentioned the other day, you cannot become great by doing more and more of what you are good or excellent at.  You attain your full God-given potential by focusing on what you do best—what you are exceptional or a genius at.  So, have you made your "Stop Doing" list yet?  If not, why don't you do a traffic light analysis today and use that to develop your "Stop Doing" list . . . NOW!

Creating a "Stop Doing" List

Do you ever get frustrated with feeling like there's too much to do and not enough time to do it?  Well, if you have,  Jim Collins just might have a possible prescription for you.  As i mentioned last week, Amazon had a number of their favorite authors record something as a "bonus" for their 10 year anniversary.  In the case of Collins, he chose to expand on an article he had written back on December 30, 2003.  Note: If you're an audio learner, click here for the Amazon audio or if you're a visual learner (like me), click here for the original article that the audio version was based on (and scroll down to December 30, 2003).

The basic storyline is that early on in his twenties, Jim took a course in creativity with Rochelle Myers at Standford.  Afterward he stayed in touch with her.  As a young, energetic and driven individual, Jim regularly planned out his life.  He had his fifteen year BHAGs, then his five year goals, and then his top three one year goals that he used to guide his daily life.  Yet in the midst of all that organized planning, Rochelle said to him, "Jim, I notice that you are a rather undisciplined person."  Obviously, that shocked Jim.  However, she continued,  "Your genetic energy level enables your lack of discipline.  Instead of leading a disciplined life, you lead a busy life."

She then challenged him to what Jim now calls the 20-10 assignment. "It goes like this: Suppose you woke up tomorrow and received two phone calls. The first phone call tells you that you have inherited $20 million, no strings attached. The second tells you that you have an incurable and terminal disease, and you have no more than 10 years to live. What would you do differently, and, in particular, what would you stop doing?"

That assignment was the turning point in Jim's life.  In fact, it's what led him to make a right corner turn in his life and leave HP and take a job as a teacher/professor/researcher (since he is, as he says, "constitutionally unemployable"—I love that phrase)—and we are all the better for that choice.  Since that time, the most important question Jim asks of himself each year is, "What do I need to stop doing?" 

I love that question.  It has a very Pauline ring to it, doesn't it?  For Paul regularly argues that for change to occur, you first need to "take off" the old and "put on" the new.  Or, to put it in more mathematical terminology, "You need to subtract, before you can add."  Anyway you put it, the question that Collins asks is a question all of us, as leaders, need to regularly ask, "What do I need to stop doing, that I'm currently doing, so that I can focus more of my time and energy on the things that matter most and will create the greatest impact over the course of my life and time?"

So how are you doing?  If you were to do an inventory of your time, what percentage of your day or time, would you say, is spent on doing those things that matter most?  That have the greatest impact?  That you're passionate about? That fit your genetic encoding?  If, according to Collins, you're spending less than 50% of your time in those areas, then your "Stop Doing" list, may be the most important list you could make this year—or today!  In fact, don't go to bed tonight without making one up.

Are You Doing What You Love?

Believe it or not, this Saturday marks the 10 year anniversary of Amazon.com.  In fact, they're having a big celebration that you can read about [here] which includes a free live streaming concert of Norah Jones and Bob Dylan as well as their all-time customer-favorite authors and filmmakers. Starting at 5 p.m. PT on Saturday, July 16--the 10th anniversary of the day that Amazon.com first opened its virtual doors for business--the concert will be streamed live on the Amazon.com homepage.

In addition, there are links in this section to their favorite authors—some of whom have recorded short video or audio statements—including one by Marcus Buckingham.  In the short video segment that he records, Marcus states, as he often does, a simple statement about working from our strengths.  Now, we all know we're supposed to work from our strengths.  In fact, most of us have probably preached on numerous occasions, "Do what you love and love what you do."   But rarely do we actually sit down and analyze if we're actually following that principle ourselves.

Now catch this.  In this short video segment, Marcus reveals that he did a survey on how many people actually feel like they spend the majority of their day doing work that they love.  He knew the number wouldn't be 70 or 80%, but he wasn't prepared for the actual answer, which was 17%.  Did you catch that?  Only 17% of us feel like we spend the majority of our time doing what we love.  So much for "Do what you love and love what you do!"

So how about you?  Are you spending the majority of your time doing what you do best?  Dan Sullivan, in How the Best Get Better, talks about four levels of competency.  The first level is what we're not competent at, the second level is what we're competent at.  The third level is what we're excellent at.  And the fourth level is what we're a genius at.  The problem with most leaders, according to Sullivan, is that they spend too much of their time doing what they're competent at and/or excellent at.  But to go the next level, they need to focus their time and energy on what they're a genius at (what only they can do).  Excellence is one level too short for greatness.

So, what are you a genius at?  God has wired you for greatness.  So, what are you great at?  Once you define that for yourself, focus on it—and delegate everything else you possibly can (even if it takes you years to divest yourself of all the things you're now doing that you shouldn't be).  By definition, you cannot become great by doing more of what you're good or excellent at.  You can only reach you highest God-given potential by focusing on what you are great at!

P.S.  I just visited Terry Storch's blog and he posted the other day about creating your dream job, which includes a template for designing your own dream job.  This may help provide you with a starting place.

P.P.S.  Another resource I've found helpful in my transition is a book by the Tieggers, entitled, Do What You Are, which takes a look at your Myers-Briggs Personality Type as a template for finding the right career for yourself.  It's worth a read!

Leadership Capacity: The Biggest Hindrance to the Advancement of the Kingdom

Yesterday I mentioned that I was pursuing my Ph.D. in Organizational Leadership because I believe that the greatest hindrance to the advancement of the kingdom of God (apart from spiritual factors like prayer, the ministry of the Holy Spirit, spiritual warfare, etc.) is the lack of leadership capacity in those who currently lead our churches.  That's a rather bold claim so let me explain what I mean.

In Exodus 22:27-31, Moses quotes God saying.

“I will send my terror ahead of you and throw into confusion every nation you encounter. I will make all your enemies turn their backs and run. I will send the hornet ahead of you to drive the Hivites, Canaanites and Hittites out of your way. But I will not drive them out in a single year, because the land would become desolate and the wild animals too numerous for you. Little by little I will drive them out before you, until you have increased enough to take possession of the land. “I will establish your borders from the Red Sea to the Sea of the Philistines, and from the desert to the River. I will hand over to you the people who live in the land and you will drive them out before you."

In other words, God promised the Hebrew people that He was going to give them an incredible gift, a promised land, but He could not do that all at once.  Why?  Because they didn't have the capacity at that point in time to be able to handle all that God wanted to give them.  Instead, he said, "Little by little I will drive them out before you, until you have increased enough to take possession of the land."  They could have had all night prayer meetings, organized mass media campaigns, fasted for 40 days, had a weekend worship fest, etc. and still God would not have given them all of the promised land.  It had nothing to do with spiritual issues.  They simply lacked the capacity to handle that much land.  It is this passage that has led me to what I call "Capacity Theory", which simply stated goes like this:

"God blesses us in direct relationship to our capacity to handle whatever it is that we seek to be blessed with."

This theory handles just about every area of life: from relationships to finances and from career options to athletics.  God cannot give us more than we can handle or it will be wasted and cause even greater problems.

Likewise, in the church today, God cannot bless us with more people than we can handle.  If a pastor can only handle 120 people, God will not entrust him with 300 people.  If a pastor cannot handle 300 people, then God will not entrust him with 500 people.  And if a pastor cannot handle 3000 people, God will not entrust him with 5000.  God always blesses us (and our organizations) just a little beyond our capacity to handle whatever he blesses us with so that we'll trust Him.  But He does not entrust us (normally) with an amount far beyond our capacity because to do so would be foolish (which is something God does not do).

I'll follow up on this concept in the days to some, but for now, may I encourage you to just change the question you've been asking yourself,  Instead of asking, "How can we grow?", maybe a better question would be, "How can we increase our capacity to handle the blessing God already desire to give us?"  God already wanted to give the Hebrew people the promised land, but He knew he couldn't because they didn't possess the capacity to handle it.  Likewise, God already wants to bless your church with more people (remember, He wants none to perish), but He cannot do so until you possess the capacity to handle the people he wants to bless you with.  Hence, my claim that the greatest hindrance to the advancement of the kingdom is the lack of leadership capacity.  The better we as church leaders become at this thing called the leadership, the more God can bless us with the people He already wants to entrust to our care.  How about that for a life-changing belief?

Bird by Bird, Step by Step

One of the great joys of blogging is that the blogosphere is filled with delicious morsels that pop up in unexpected places.  The other day, I was flowing a series of blog links when someone mentioned a book by Anne Lamott, Bird by Bird, which isn't about birds, but writing.  In fact, the subtitle of the book is, "Some Instructions on Writing and Life." A week later, I was in Borders when I came across this little book and, because I had read something positive about it in a blog, picked it up and started to read it.  And have found it to be a delightfully wonderful, thoughtful and inspiring book.

Now, as to the title, it comes from an experience her brother had with their father.

"Thirty years ago my older brother, who was ten years old at the time, was trying to get a report on birds written that he had three months to write. [It] was due the next day.  We were out at our family cabin in Bolinas, and he was at the kitchen table close to tears, surrounded by binder paper and pencils and unopened books on birds, immobilized by the hugeness of the task ahead of him.  Then my father sat down beside him, put his arm around my brother's shoulder and said, 'Bird by bird, buddy.  Just take it bird by bird."

What a great image and phrase for those of us in ministry.  The hugeness of the task ahead of us can be immobilizing.  Trying to build a life-giving church is a daunting task.  Rarely does a plan ever work out the way we intend it to.  People are people.  Budgets are budgets.  Ministry is ministry.  Expectations are expectations.  Satan is Satan.  Evil is evil.  Conflict is conflict.  And the great commission still lays in front of us every day.

So, how do we overcome the feeling of being immobilized?  Well, one way is to think, "Bird by bird."  Books are not written as books—they're written as words that form paragraphs that form pages that form chapters that form books.  The key to writing a book, says Anne Lamott, is thinking, "Bird by bird."  Don't worry about the whole.  Just do the small task in front of you.  Likewise, successful ministries aren't built overnight.  They're built "bird by bird."  So, whenever you're feeling overwhelmed with having too much to do, maybe you might like to forget thinking about the whole.  And instead think, "Bird by bird I can do this."  Because you can.  Hang in there!  God is faithful!!