I will be sharing a brief review of every book I read this year. Hope you enjoy and hope it encourages you to keep reading.
STARTING AGAIN WHEN YOU FEEL LIKE GIVING UP – by John F. Westfall
In Starting Again When You Feel Like Giving Up, John F. Westfall addresses the issue of feeling life has gone in such a terrible direction that it is sometimes hard to get back up. Life can be disappointing and disheartening when things go wrong and our goals are not achieved. I appreciate how, as he encourages the ones trying to get up, he addresses risk. Here are a healthy risks he thinks are worth taking. He expounds on the following:
Risk getting turned down.
Risk failing.
Risk being misunderstood.
Risk saying, “I love you”.
Risk being yourself.
Risk not being good enough.
Risk being good enough.
Risk getting hurt.
This might be just the book if you are struggling and trying to get back up again.
I usually write about leadership or spiritual issues. I also do book reviews on books I have read. Today is different – I will give you part of the introduction to a book I recently published. Here it is.
CRAFTING A WORSHIP EXPERIENCE
It is possible to create worship services that your church will hate to miss. Every week pastors and church leaders around the world prepare for the Main Event at their church, hoping it will impact their congregation in some way. Whatever it is called locally, and whatever day it takes place, every church has a Main Event where the whole congregation comes together to worship Jesus and to encourage each other. This is often the key means through which a church disciples their people. Most have other programs as well, but this is the one event that most people attend and engage with. We need to make it the best event it can be. I believe this requires creativity to help the congregation feel more involved and connected to what happens during the service. Churches need to find ways of making their Main Event less of a performance and more of an experience.
Each church has their own expression of worship. These vary greatly from one church to another. Each church has a certain expectation of what will take place and how it will be done. Some are quite somber; some are extremely exuberant. Some are very strict about the time; others are very flexible. Some have a clearly laid out agenda that rarely changes, while others change formats frequently. Some churches have services that are fine-tuned performances, where everything is practiced or even performed by professionals, and the agenda is planned out to the precise minute. In other churches, the agenda is loosely put together. They may start late and run late, but no one minds. In others, congregations have expectations of when the service has to conclude. In one church I served there was an older couple who just got up and walked out at 12:00, whether the service was done or not.
Though much of a service varies from church to church, most churches share some common characteristics when it comes to their Main Event. Typically, the experience of the congregation is more like that of an audience with very little participation. The congregation is invited to sing along with the worship songs, or maybe participate in responsive readings or prayers when prompted, but in many cases the congregation does little more than sit and watch the performance at the front.
When I was a young pastor in the 90’s, the big push was to have “seeker sensitive” worship services, and it was very effective for some. Seeker services often were designed and performed with a high level of excellence. Some churches hired professional musicians. Others made sure they had only the best speakers. The seeker service was something that people attended to enjoy, a little like going to the opera or even a sporting event, where the audience is there to watch, and maybe cheer occasionally. They may be invited to sing along to some songs but not many, as the emphasis was more on a great performance, than on participatory worship. This was appropriate for the time as there were still many people who had a bit of a church background and were just looking for something “better,” or more “real.” They were truly “seeking.” While many people came to know Jesus through this style of worship service, times have changed where people are looking for an experience and not just a performance.
Experiential Worship
I believe the time has come for us to move to a more experiential worship event. Churches need to find ways to invite people to participate in the worship service. This may mean including more volunteers in the actual creation and leadership of the event instead of just staff, or it may mean finding ways to invite the congregation to participate more during the event.
Those who are entrusted with the task of creating meaningful worship experiences need to realize that the next generation wants to be more involved in the service. Gary Collins, shares some research about the values of the younger emerging generation, and I believe what he says has great impact for churches and pastors as they craft the weekly Main Event in a way that will reach the next generation. Here are a few of his key concepts to consider:
Values and experiences are more important than vision casting and reaching goals;
Images and stories are more valued than words and facts;
Active participation and ownership are preferred over passive submission to authority and professional expertise; and
It is time to evaluate why we create our worship services the way we do. It is time we determine to find ways of inviting people to enter into the whole worship experience from start to finish. Young people are less impressed with excellence than previous generations were. They would rather see authenticity and be invited to participate in the experience. I want to help you create participatory and multisensory worship experiences.
If you are looking for ways to invite your congregation into an experience every worship service, then you are in the right place. This book will encourage you to create your service in such a way that those in attendance feel they are part of what is going on instead of watching a performance. Each chapter will look at one specific aspect of a worship service. We will look at how to invite more participation where those in attendance are invited to an experience they can engage with.
When I arrived as a new pastor at one church, I discovered that the church had used the same general service agenda for the last five years with little or no change. I, personally, have a hard time with that. While there may be something comforting about knowing exactly what to expect and when, I love to be creative, and as their pastor, wanted to give them some variety. This desire to be creative impacts my leadership style so much so, that at a different church, a senior commented, “Andy, I never know what to expect when I show up on Sunday.” He meant it as a compliment. He liked the variety. It wasn’t that every Sunday was extremely different, but no two Sundays were the same. I changed the order of service most Sundays. Sometimes the sermon would be earlier in the service, or we would change the number of worship songs. My goal was to allow the theme of the sermon to guide how best to create each service. The idea was to craft each Sunday’s service around a specific text and theme, and to communicate that theme in creative and interactive ways.
I remember taking our two daughters to a creative and interactive experience when they were young; it was a football game. The team ownership had realized that even a football game had to have a larger experience. Our girls were thrilled to watch the mascot. If you were fortunate, you could catch one of the plush footballs they threw up into the stands when the team scored. Cheerleaders were dancing and jumping, some being thrown in the air. Young men and women were running up and down the stairs offering all kinds of drinks, food, and candy. This was an experience beyond just the football game. If you were not a true fan and were just there with family members who were, you could still have an enjoyable experience…
BREATHE: The New Science of a Lost Art – by James Nestor
If you have read my reviews you know that most of the books I read are on Christian Growth, or Leadership, or Change. This book is in a different category, but I sure enjoyed it.
Breathe: The New Science of a Lost Art is very interesting book about something we all do, automatically. Unfortunately, according to James Nestor, and his research, many of us are doing it wrong. Nestor describes a number of different breathing techniques that he personally experienced in order to understand them clearly. Many (there are many) of the breathing techniques have origins in Asia and India, from thousands of years ago. The techniques are believed to give more energy and even heal certain illnesses. He concludes the book with a helpful summary of how a number of techniques can be practiced and how they benefit a person. Very interesting book.
Uniquely You: Transform Your Organization by Becoming the Leader Only You Can Be is an encouraging book for any leader. Ron Kitchen builds off his own experience and the many lessons he has learned along the way. Ron shares many stories as he highlights the value of building a great team. He gives a number of great ideas on how to build that team. I like how he puts family first, and makes that an important part of his business, so that everyone on the team has that same priority. His ideas have a great track record as his teams don’t have alot of turnover because they love working together.
This books has short chapters which will be appreciated by those who don’t like reading but still want to learn.
A new year often brings New Years resolutions. Many people make them, and while few keep them, the idea of making commitments to improve your life is a good one. Resolutions are often about our personal health like losing weight or becoming more fit. Again, not a bad idea. Some may make commitments about their career. Maybe they want to pursue another level at their job or more education hoping that will result in a financial boost in income down the road.
But what about personal growth? What about growing in your joy? We all know that people of joy are much more fun to work with than people with no joy. And we personally feel better if we have joy inside as well.
Are you a person of joy? Do you share joy or do people sense a dark cloud over your head every time you walk by? What is it in your life that affects your Joy?
Our joy can be impacted by a number of things. If you always spend time with negative people, it will be hard to stay positive and maintain joy. It is not always possible to avoid spending time with negative people, especially if your co-workers or family are negative. What you can do, is choose to seek out and spend time with joyful people. If you have to look for them, then do that. Notice the people in life that make you feel just a bit happier and find ways to connect with them. You could even initiate a coffee date to deliberately spend some time with them.
Our joy may be impacted by the news. If you always consume the news, you will have to work at being full of joy because the news rarely shares positive stories. Make a commitment to cut down on how much news you consume. You might need to reduce your time on social media. Rather than cut these habits out completely, identify new habits that can take the place of the time you typically spend consuming new or other media
Some of us have a hard life. Things have not gone the way we hoped and dreamed. Our realities include single parenting, the loss of a child, or unemployment. The circumstances of our life can affect our joy. We can become sad, or discouraged, or even angry about what life has thrown at us. We look around and see happy people with good families and healthy children and perfect jobs and we get even more discouraged. The truth is, there are some things that we encounter in our life that are not good, terrible in fact. And yes, they drain all our joy. What can we do about that? I’ve been there, where I questioned God about what He was allowing to happen to me. I get it.
What do we do when we cannot change our life circumstances right now? How do we find joy?
One of the things that has helped me a lot is my faith in God. Yes, I said earlier that I have had times where I really questioned God, wondering if He really cared for me or not. But I have always come back to God because He and I have history together – a history of him being faithful in the past, and answering prayers. When I come back to God, I can trust Him to take care of me. I know that I am safe in His hands. I remember that He loves me, even when it seems others don’t. I remember that He has a future for me.
I can go to the Psalms in the Bible and receive encouragement there, that begins to open up the possibility of Joy again.
The Lord is my strength and shield. I trust him with all my heart. He helps me, and my heart is filled with joy. I burst out in songs of thanksgiving.
Our joy can be affected by our circumstances. Sometimes we can change them, and then we should. Sometimes we can’t. I would encourage you to turn to God. Turn to the Bible. Read the psalms. And ask God to give you new Joy.
As you make commitments for personal growth this year, I encourage you to choose to develop more joy.
Many of you would have great suggestions for books on leadership from your own reading and study. And the list would be quite varied as there are all kinds of books on leadership from many different aspects. I love to check out the latest leadership books, but I want to remind you of some ancient leadership lessons from an old book.
If you were to read the Bible with an ear for leadership concepts you would find many aspects to put into practice and learn from. While it is not a leadership book, the stories of different leaders in history can speak powerfully into our present leadership situations.
Nehemiah has been an example as he had a clear vision for how to repair the wall around Jerusalem, how he was able to recruit and delegate, and persevere through opposition. Ezra is an example of a leader as he rebuilt the temple in Jerusalem. These are some good examples for us.
Leaders, I would encourage you to read the Bible and look to the Bible to speak into and shape your leadership. Some of it is personal. We have examples of the faith of Abraham over a long period of time, continuing to trust God to be faithful to his promises. Had God given you a vision? Trust God to do his work through you to accomplish that vision. Continue to push ahead faithfully.
Joseph is an example of someone who persisted faithfully no matter the circumstances around him. All leaders face difficult situations from time to time, but we can continue to faithfully serve God even in those difficult times.
I like the desperation of Moses, begging God to go with him and the people. Moses said to God, “if you don’t personally go with us, don’t make us leave this place.” (Exodus 33:15) We need to have that kind of desperation for God to go with us too. As children of God, we know that we can accomplish little of value unless He goes with us. Christian leaders need to have that desperation of Moses that God go ahead and with you in all your endeavors.
We can learn from some of the negative examples as well. We can learn the devastation of listening to the crowd, as Aaron did, when he allowed the people to make a golden calf because Moses was gone to long. We can learn from the bad example of Eli who did not correct his sons when they disobeyed God. We can learn the importance of leading and not letting the crowd mislead us. We can learn the importance of following through and even discipling those under us when they do wrong.
We can learn from the example of the twelve spies the Israelites sent into the land God had promised them. They came back with stories, but there were two very different stories. Ten of them saw danger everywhere. They even exaggerated their stories – talking of giants who made us look like grasshoppers. But there were two others, Joshua and Caleb, who spoke of the wonderful fruit of the land and that it was flowing with “milk and honey”. It is a great place, and we can trust God to go ahead of us and give us the land. We can learn how the different views and the different stories we tell influence the people we lead in powerful ways. The Israelites listened to the majority and accepted the negative picture. They chose fear instead of trust because they listened to frightened leaders. God made them wander the wilderness until all that generation was dead and gone. Only then, were Joshua and Caleb able to enter the land with the next generation. What story are you telling? Are you pointing people to the problems or to the God who helps us through the problems?
And of course, we can look at how Jesus led his group of twelve. There are many leadership skills we can learn in how he led that small group. We can see how he loved and cared for those under his leadership, we can see examples he set when he washed their feet, we can learn from how he exhorted Peter when he misunderstood what Jesus’ plan was. We can learn from his commitment to the plan, never wavering.
Yes, learn from the great leadership books and seminars, but do not forget the ancient leadership wisdom from God’s word that still speaks into our leadership roles today.
Maybe this is the year where you take proactive steps to reach personal goals (or other goals). You want to do better and do more. I have personally benefited from using a Full Focus Planner from Michael Hyatt and his team. It guides the user through how to set goals for the year that you can break down to steps for each month and each week. Their site has helpful tools to guide your goal setting and strategic planning.
Let me suggest a few goals to pursue in your personal life and then some for your church as well.
Personal
We can set goals in our life in the domains of intellectual, emotional, relational, spiritual, vocational, and on and on. Whatever area of your life you want to grow in deserves a meaningful goal along with a strategy of how to reach that goal.
Could this be the year that you achieve goals you have been thinking about for a while?
One of my goals each year is to read the whole Bible. If you want to get to know God better, you might set a goal of reading the Bible in a year. There are several different reading plans available that help you know exactly how much to read each day in order to read all of the Bible in the 365 days of next year. Find a plan that works or check here.
Are you in need of some growth in the relational aspect of your life? Many people are lonely with few friends. Why not find a way to grow some new friendships. Join a club or a small group at your church. Set a goal of connecting with a few new people to see if some of them become good friends.
Are you looking to grow yourself as a leader? You could make a gool of reading a certain number of books on leadership, or look for a coach to help you process your next steps. A coach may help you sort out areas you want to work on and how to set a plan to do so.
Church
As a pastor, I am always looking for ways to improve what our church is doing and how I as the leader can help us move toward certain goals.
Maybe this is the year you ask someone to help your or your church pursue your God-given dreams. As a pastor or church leader, you have a heart for your church. You wish you could guide the church forward in a significant and organized way. A church assessment might be one way to do this, where a coach assesses your church and gives you a final report with clear ideas of possible next steps.
Maybe this is the year that you and your creative worship planning team become more intentional about planning transformational services. You want your Sunday services to have a greater impact but aren’t quite sure where to start. I would love to walk your worship planning through a process which will guide you in creating transformational and meaningful services your people will love.
I encourage you to find ways to continue to grow as a person and as a follower of Jesus Christ. If you would like to pursue personal growth with a coach, reach out to me. Develop a plan today that will help you to grow this year.
I will be sharing a brief review of every book I read this year. Hope you enjoy and hope it encourages you to keep reading.
WHAT TO DO NEXT – By Jeff Henderson
I highly recommend What to do NEXT: Taking Your Best Step When Life is Uncertain to anyone who is contemplating a possible move to a different position at work or a change in career or even just a change out of something when you are not sure what is next. Jeff Henderson reflects on his own recent journey of change of career, along with a number of helpful stories, to provide a helpful guide to anyone wishing they were somewhere else or doing something else. Many of us have faced transition in the last couple of years. This book may help make sense of transition you had to make and are now trying to cope with as well. A very helpful book.
I will be sharing a brief review of every book I read this year. Hope you enjoy and hope it encourages you to keep reading.
BEAUTIFUL OUTLAW – By John Eldredge
Beautiful Outlaw: Experiencing the Playful, Disruptive, Extravagant Personality of Jesus by John Eldredge is a book that will shock some people while encouraging others. He writes about Jesus, but not in the distant manner that we often think of him. Eldredge presents Jesus as a human in a way that few, if any, have before. It is a great reminder that Jesus was a human who walked this earth in a certain place in time within a specific community and with other human friends. Eldredge points out where Jesus responds with emotion like any other human person. He, in his words, is trying to “clear the religious fog” around who our Lord and Saviour Jesus was and is. Do you want to know Jesus better? This book will help you in that search. Your ideas may be challenged, but I do believe the person of Jesus will be revealed as a person you can actually communicate with and live your life with.
A Christian leader faces the same challenges that any other leader does. And a Christian leader can help himself to any of the tools other leaders use to help them lead well. But the Christian leader has one powerful tool that others do not. Prayer.
Like any tool, it may take some practice and some skill to access this tool’s full potential. Often when we think of prayer, we think of asking God to do something for us. We come to him with a request. But that is only one aspect of prayer.
Another way to use prayer is to learn to listen to God. We are so used to telling God our problems and asking him to do something about them, and that is often where a Christian leader stops. Yet if we learn to listen, God will do much more for us through prayer than just respond to our grocery list of requests.
Here are some of the ways that I have benefited from this great tool we have.
God encourages through prayer.
Every leader faces opposition from time to time in their leadership, and Christian leaders are not exempt. As a pastor, I have faced opposition many times, both from inside and outside the church I have been asked to lead. People have called me names, accused me of being controlling, demanded I be removed from my position, and more. People have not liked what I stood for and deliberately chosen to walk in a different direction. I have faced opposition from within myself. There are times I have been disappointed in what my leadership accomplished. I have been disappointed in goals not met. I have been discouraged and depressed.
These are not uncommon problems for leaders to face. There are times we need encouragement. We might find some of it in books or in encouraging words from other leaders or supporters of ours. But I have found that some of the most powerful encouragement has come directly from God.
God has encouraged me as I listened to him. One time he told me: “you are my beloved son in whom I am well pleased.” This was powerful for me as I had just come through one of the most difficult times in my ministry. Another time, God affirmed that I was on the right track. I was a little unsure of the direction to lead the church and in a conversation with Him, I heard (or felt) Him say, “You are on the right track. Just keep going.”
God encourages the Christian leader through listening prayer where we actually hear God or sense God speaking words of encouragement to us.
God directs through prayer.
Every leader needs to know where they are going. They need to know where they are trying to take their organization. They need to know the priorities of the day. Sometimes we get caught up in the urgent needs of the moment and begin to veer off track from our intended goals. I love the fact that I can talk with God about my day and ask Him for direction for the day. I am serving as a Transition Pastor right now and have a limited time to work with the church through the various exercises. There are times when I have had to readjust my schedule because it just was not working. As I talked with God about it, I was able to patiently let him give me the priorities of the week.
God instructs through prayer.
One of the roles of the Holy Spirit is to instruct and remind the believer of God’s truth. When we pray, we are able to hear God speaking to us through the Holy Spirit. There are times we will be reminded of certain scriptures that speak into a situation that we are facing. There will be times when we will be given an idea or a concept to put into practice that clearly did not come from our own wisdom but from God.
If we pray and read scripture together, God uses those scriptures we are reading to give us insight into how and what we should be learning and doing in our leadership.
There are many tools available to leaders today. One of the best and most powerful tools the Christian leader can access is prayer and hearing God speak directly into their leadership. Pray, not just with a list of requests for God, but with a listening attitude and God will direct your paths.
Elevate with Andy 