Dear Friends,
It is one of the great joys and mysteries of life. An occurrence so uncommon to call it “rare” seems an exaggeration. What is it that I speak of? I speak of the moment when there are no more loads of laundry to be done. The moment when the hollow chambers of the washer and dryer call for more but there is none to be had. When it does occur, it is like glimpsing a shooting star fading away as quickly as it came for soon a child will dare to dry their hands on a towel. Twenty years ago when Whitney Houston’s words range across the night sky at our high school graduation, “Give me one moment in time . . .When all of my dreams are a heartbeat away” who could have guessed this would be the dream we would long for? But this is life and work as it really is: ordinary, mundane and never done.
In the years that have passed I have discovered, unless I take specific steps to restore my soul, life will suck me dry like a million leeches at a bloodletting symposium. Through trial and error I have found three basic practices which restore me and help to keep me at the top of my game. They are reading, podcasts, and exercise. Today’s post will focus on the first two.
Reading and podcasts keep my exposed to new ideas and challenged. Ministry is an experience of continually giving out information without something coming in things get stale fast. I use three formats for reading. I read books in print, I read them on my tablet and I listen to audio books. Additionally, I make use of Evernote to keep track of quotes and ideas which may come to mind.
I listen to podcasts while I am driving or am in the office.
When I read, I try to be intentional about what I read evaluating topics and books on an annual basis according to our church year (May – April). This year the focus of my reading is on coaching, Christian community development, and the missional church. But that does not mean I strictly limit myself to these areas. I will also read at least one book on preaching each year (an I idea which comes from one of my professors, though I can’t remember which one).
At the end of this post I list my favorite podcasts and recent books.
Why share this? Really, because I want to open a conversation. I have learned these things in my life through trial and error. Mostly error. I would love to hear what you do. Please post a comment on the website and let’s start some discussion.
Blessings,
Pastor Stephen
As promised above, my favorite podcasts are:
Dave Ramsey: Entreleadership
Andy Stanley: Leadership Podcast and NorthPoint Community Church
Steve DeNeff: College Wesleyan Church, Marion, IN
Timothy Keller: Redeemer Presbyterian Church
Thom Rainer: Rainer on Leadership
Cartalk . . . it can’t all be about work.
Since May of this year, these are the books I have read or am currently reading:
Boyne, John. The boy in the striped pajamas: a fable. Oxford New York: David Fickling Books, 2006.
Cloud, Henry. Boundaries for leaders: results, relationships, and being ridiculously in charge. New York, NY: HarperBusiness, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers, 2013.
Goff, Bob. Love does: discover a secretly incredible life in an ordinary world. Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 2012.
Keller, Timothy J. Center church : doing balanced, Gospel-centered ministry in your city. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 2012.
Keller, Timothy J., and Kathy Keller. The meaning of marriage: facing the complexities of commitment with the wisdom of God. New York: Riverhead Books, 2013.
McKenna, David L. Christ-centered leadership: the incarnational difference. Eugene, Oregon: Cascade Books, 2013.
Parrott, Les, and Leslie L. Parrott. Saving your marriage before it starts: seven questions to ask before–and after– you marry. Grand Rapids, Mich: Zondervan, 2006
Perkins, John. Restoring at-risk communities: doing it together and doing it right . Grand Rapids, Mich: Baker Books, 1995.
Schmidt, Wayne. Ministry velocity: the power for leadership momentum. Indianapolis, Ind: Wesleyan Pub, 2010.
Stanley, Andy. Deep & wide: creating churches unchurched people love to attend. Grand Rapids, Mich: Zondervan, 2012.
Stearns, Richard. The hole in our Gospel. Nashville, Tenn: Thomas Nelson, 2009.
These are the books that are on my “to read list” for the next year:
Cherry, Constance M. The worship architect : a blueprint for designing culturally relevant and biblically faithful services. Grand Rapids, Mich: Baker Academic, 2010.
Corbett, Steve, and Brian Fikkert. When helping hurts : how to alleviate poverty without hurting the poor– and yourself. Chicago, IL: Moody Publishers, 2012.
Gerber, Michael E. The E-myth revisited : why most small businesses don’t work and what to do about it. New York: CollinsBusiness, 1995.
Nouwen, Henri J. The wounded healer : ministry in contemporary society. New York, NY: Image Books, 1990.
Perkins, John M. Let justice roll down. S.l: Baker Book House, 2012.
Sinek, Simon. Leaders eat last : why some teams pull together and others don’t. New York, New York: Portfolio/Penguin, 2014.
Stearns, Richard. Unfinished : filling the hole in our Gospel. Nashville, Tennessee: W Publishing Group, an imprint of Thomas Nelson, 2013.
Sutter, Arloa. The invisible : what the church can do to find and serve the least of these. Indianapolis, Ind: Wesleyan Pub. House, 2010.
White, James E. The rise of the Nones : understanding and reaching the religiously unaffiliated. Grand Rapids: Baker Books, 2014.
Wilson, Mark O. Purple fish : a heart for sharing Jesus. Indianapolis: Wesleyan Publishing House, 2014.
PLEASE NOTE: As always with such lists, their inclusion here does not necessarily imply my agreement with or endorsement of the ideas expressed by the authors in these books.
We have all heard the saying “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.” There is also another saying just as valid, “if it ain’t broke, break it.” Sometimes we need to break the machine, stop doing what we have always done. The Bible uses an agricultural analogy. It’s called pruning. Do you want health in your life and church, start pruning. Here is the bad news: people will be mad. People will call you lazy. Some will leave the church. Others will stay so they can tell you stories about how “committed” your predecessor was. It is okay, quit anyway.