Undergoing Major Change

At last year's Leadership Summit I was introduced to Carly Fiorina.  She was a dynamic, engaging speaker and I was captivated, listening to a strong woman talk about leadership and empowerment.  I picked up her book, Tough Choices, and have referred to it off and on throughout the past several months.  

Truth be told, I'm just reading it VERY slowly - it's sort of a monthly devotional book for me, with constant encouragement and information about leadership.  

Okay.  Honest truth?  It's in the bathroom.

Midway through the book Fiorina talks about the creation of Lucent Technologies, which arose out of AT&T getting rid of a collection of assets called Newco. She was tapped to be Executive VP of Corporate Operations.  Here's what she says:

"For some, the words aspiration and inspiration are mumbo jumbo; or hype; or soft, nonoperational stuff. These are people who forget that every income statement and balance sheet in the world is produced by the everyday hard work of everyday people. And people achieve more when they're motivated by a purpose worthy of their efforts. They align their individual actions in to a more powerful collective effort when they know they strive for a common and commonly understood goal. Nowhere are aspiration and inspiration more important than in a large, complex organization undergoing major change. In large companies myriad actions taken and countless small decisions made must add up to the bottom line. And in a period of change, each employee must break old habits and learn new skills, and every employee's actions and decisions must align in new ways to produce something different."

In the midst of everything that we are doing as PCC staff members, in spite of what we're feeling and experiencing on a personal level, regardless of the current status of our personal relationship with God, we are in the middle of some major changes at PCC. We are the folks who are not only doing the "everyday work of everyday people", but we are also inspiring and leading volunteers who are doing the same thing as they serve at PCC.

We each have unique goals for our ministry areas that are hopefully clearly and commonly understood by those folks who serve with us. But I think it's important to still remember that we are, technically speaking, a "large, complex organization undergoing major change."

Our mission is to reach and lead. That is the purpose worthy of our efforts. Lives are changing because of what God's spirit is doing through PCC.

I just want to challenge each of us - myself included - to continue to live in the awareness of the challenges of change, and to take to heart the necessity of breaking old habits, learning new skills and aligning our actions and decisions in new ways. God is using us - and he is also changing us, through this time of change. It's a remarkable thing that ultimately results in eternal impact for our community. We are led by a senior pastor and an executive pastor - but we are also given the great responsibility and even the luxury of leading ourselves.

I'm focusing on praying for us as a body today, and thankful that God's drawn us all together for the sake of His name.

Cross-posted at Words Matter

Small Groups At PCC

Today at staff meeting, Sammy Frame presented a new idea about small groups at PCC.

It's creative.

It's focused.

It's risky.

It's exciting.

It's going to change this community.

I am so psyched!

I love my job!

Church Business Meeting - No Punches Thrown!

We had a great gathering tonight, at our annual 'Membership Meeting'.  It's actually the only business meeting our church has all year.  It's perfunctory; we have an agenda meeting the week before, during which concerns and questions are discussed.  We met tonight for dinner, worship and a vote - which went basically like this:

Chauncey:  "Yada yada yada yada...yada yada....all in favor?"

All:  "Aye!"

Chauncey:  "Motion passed!  Item two, blah blah blah blah blah...all in favor?"

All:  "Aye!"

Chauncey:  "Motion passed!"

Etc.

Not to belittle Chauncey, our moderator; he is awesome.  But our leadership does such a stellar job of dealing with conflict so that there is no cause for old-fashioned church business meeting conflict.  It's awesome!

After the 'business' part, we get down to the serious business of worship.  It's great for us, because we can unleash, relax and just play - often a bit more than the typical Sunday.  We had a great line up tonight, and with just basic prep, we had a great time playing.

Afterwards, Kevin said he thinks we'll get band shirts printed with a definitive slogan:  "It'll be fine!"  Apparently I say that a lot.

Several things weren't fine tonight. 

• We forgot the keyboards.  Then, we when went back to get them, we forgot the stands.  I had to do soundcheck crouched on the floor like a frog in front of the keys.  It was ridiculous.  And humbling.  Just in case I get too big for my britches...
• We forgot to announce that the band needed to go through the buffet line first.  So they ended up last.  By the time they sat down, it was time to start playing.  It wasn't pretty.
• I got to share some info about a new communications strategy, but I pretty much bored even myself.  So that wasn't so great.  But it was good practice for the future.  
  
• The awesome video piece that would make everybody cry as we reflected on the changed lives we've been privileged to witness this year?  No audio.
• The pastor who worked for five hours to make that awesome video?  Frustrated.

But you can't keep a good team down, and you can't quench the spirit of God when it's moving. Dennis shared some incredible and inspirational words.  Brian challenged and inspired us with his truthful but in-your-face statements, at one point getting down on his knees to make a particular point.  Our musicians did an incredible job of being flexible and bringing excellent attitudes to an important night.  We all worked together to tear down and reposition all the furniture in the room for Bethel Baptist Church's service tomorrow morning (thanks, guys!)

Looking out over the room at a few hundred people committed to the core of our fellowship, I was moved deeply.  These are people that I know and love, who are making all sorts of sacrifices for the work God is doing through the church.  It was a beautiful sight.

It'll be fine.  It already is.

Summit Recap

We had a great time at the Leadership Summit. Every year, our church invests some serious money and time in this event; we take a large group to St. Paul's Baptist Church to catch the satellite feed of the conference. Generally, they do a great job hosting us. We consider the two-day conference an invaluable way to cast vision, build unity and hear some incredible teaching from some amazing individuals. This year was no exception.

After the final session, we always gather together for a meal and some time to decompress. This year we spent some time at our tables discussing how we were most impacted by the Summit. I heard a wide variety of answers; some folks were feeling affirmed, some sensing that God was really pushing them to move, some wondering what might be opening up for them in the future. Others were convicted that they needed to 'shake it off and step it up'.

One by one, people stood to talk about their Summit experience. My friends, my colleagues, my brothers and sisters - my heart was warmed, surprised and touched by their words.

Then my daughter stood.

Sarah said that this conference - that she attended at the last minute - had been life-changing. She was transformed. It was time, she said, to walk away from the turmoil of the past and move into the future. Time to accept that God has not given her a spirit of timidity. Time to move into leadership in her church. She said she couldn't believe that after five years, we were about to move into our first building - that it was time.

Her words were powerful, full of all of the hope and vigor of youth. Her passion is extraordinary. I found myself marveling at this young woman - her words, her ability to convey her desire to honor God with her life, her vision for the community, her passion for more.

And it was as if she was a young woman, standing apart from the reputation and influence of her mother. Standing alone, but with a huge collection of hands around her to hold her up. I had a tremendous sense of our community showing love and support for my daughter. And I was proud, beyond words.

And grateful.

Brian shared some powerful words about the future. Then he read some excerpts from a few emails from folks who had been impacted by what God is doing through PCCC. The words evoked deep emotions; coupled with Kevin's voice singing in between Brian's words:

"What a faithful God you've been to me
You've provided far beyond everything I need
What else can I do but give thanks to you
What a faithful God you've been to me..."

I found myself overwhelmed with worship and emotion. Grateful that God called us together to show us, again, why we do what we do. Grateful that we seem to have 'it', as Craig Groeschel described today.

Still amazed that I am part of this work. And, at times, terrified. God is leading us to be risky again, to stir the waters, to aim higher, to stretch out for more. It is all directed by him - all for him - all focused on him. And I have no idea what's ahead of us.

But I can't wait. I'm in. For keeps.

Shake It Off And Step Up

I woke up late today and ran out of the house without my notebook, so I'll take all my notes (without doodling) here on the blog.

I've been waiting for this message from Craig Groeschel from Lifechurch.tv. Highlights from his talk:

• When Groeschel heard Bill Hybels say, "The local church is the hope of the world", he heard it and believed it.
• Of 13 Lifechurch campuses, only Groeschel's home church has declined in growth.
• God makes 'it' happen. It is for His glory. We can't recreate it. It's rare for one person to bring it, but one person can kill it. It can be caught rather than taught. It's not a system.
  
• Wherever you see it, you see transformed lives.
• Wherever you see it, you will have critics.
• "IT" happens.
• If you have it, doesn't mean you're going to keep it. If you don't have it, doesn't mean you can't get it.
• The early church had it; even when church was boring and a guy fell out of a window and died, they just brought him back to life. That's 'it'.

What qualities are necessary to have 'IT'?

• Laser-like focus - not 287 different ministries. The key is to have better ministries, better. What can you be the very best at? - this is the defining
  
• In order to reach people that no one is reaching, we have to do things that no one is doing. In order to do things that no one is doing, we can't do what everyone else is doing. Groeschel calls this 'planned abandonment'. Narrow the focus and attack it with passion.
• Lifechurch has narrowed its focus to worship experiences, small groups, kids ministries, student ministries and missions in order to free up margin, staff and money - all to reach people that no one else is reaching.
• "What are you doing that you need to stop doing?"
• You have everything that you need to do everything that God wants you to do. If Peter had had the money, he would have given the guy what he asked for - not what he needed.
• God often guides where he doesn't provide. Struggling with what we DON'T have - what is God trying to show us through our greatest limitations?
• Be willing to fail. Failure is a necessity - failure is often the first step into seeing God.
  
• God may have given you a vision to do something, but there could be three steps of failure before you get it right. Shake it off - shake off the failure - and step up.
• "What has God called you to do that you're afraid to attempt? When are you going to do it?" If you can do it, it doesn't take faith.
  
• Ministry can kill 'it'. For Groeschel, it became more about building the church than building the kingdom. When we have 'it' in us, we get 'it' out there - then we start focusing on out there. Groeschel preached a message that was focused on 'what will they think'? God showed him that he had become a full-time pastor and a part-time follower of Christ.
  
• Becoming more about your ministry than His kingdom will lead to losing it.
• Groeschel quit reading ministry books - read only the word. Began to fast. Went to hold a baby in another country who would not live through the week. For some of us, it's time to let God break our hearts. And that's it.

Greg Ferguson sang 'First Love' to close the message. This was an incredibly powerful talk.

Leadership Summit 2008

Listening to the final speaker of the day at the Leadership Summit (we are at a satellite location in Richmond, with about 45 folks from our church) - Efrem Smith is full of wisdom and a passionate communicator. Smart move, putting him on at the end of a lengthy stream of people with a lot of words to say. Very redemptive.

It's been a long day, but the wisdom and experience we've witnessed has been extraordinary. It's almost too much to bear. I'm ready to get up and go do something.

Here's a bit of what I am gleaning from Smith:

"God's in the business of recruiting unqualified people."
"Tribalism is a deep, evil force that leaders must take on. We cannot escape disparities around the world that are based on race, class and place. And we sit inside the church and pretend that they aren't happening right inside our doors."
"This is no time, leaders, for empire building. We need humble, sacrificial force to go out to the places where hurting people are. We get that by abiding where hurting people are. Abiding means dwelling - staying - being there."
"We create dwelling places in the park. In the public schools. At a community center. Stop dreaming about church buildings and have a vision about transformation."
"One of the best things a leader can do is say, 'My bad'."
"The high pressure of what God wants to do in the world is bumping up against the low pressure of what we want to do to that's comfortable."
"There's no institution in the United States that can make the case for building a place for people who are comfortable with one another - except the church."
"What if we saw ourselves beyond black and white, red and yellow? What if we came to the conclusion that race labels aren't really who we are?"
"There are valid reasons to create ethnic-specific churches; but we cannot deny multi-racial, diverse communities exist."
"Crazy, deranged kids come in all shapes, colors and sizes."
"A leader must be a beloved leader, an abiding leader, a confessing leader and a perfecting leader."
"Build organic gatherings by building relationships with other leaders from diverse groups."
"Create program experiences to reach particular sub-cultures. Start economic development organizations. Create groups to talk about issues in the community. The more understanding, the more community, the more relationships I build."

Good stuff.