“Of the modes of persuasion furnished by the spoken word there are three kinds. The first kind depends on the personal character of the speaker; the second on putting the audience into a certain frame of mind; the third on the proof, provided by the words of the speech itself.” – Aristotle This ancient Greek guy was on to something. The three modes of persuasion came to be known as ethos, pathos, and logos. Ethos = the credibility of the speaker. Pathos = creating empathy with the audience. Logos = facts, evidence, and logic. Whether preaching or giving a business presentation, the credibility (or believability) of the speaker is important. The audience must believe you are trustworthy. If they believe you know what you're talking about, they're more likely to listen. If not, you're in trouble. This is even more important when you're speaking to the same audience on a regular basis.…
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At its core, effective leadership is really stewardship. As the leader of a church, I am not the owner; I am a steward. God has entrusted to me both human and financial resources and expects me to utilize them effectively. As a leader, I will be judged not only by how I used my own resources but also the resources of those around me. Did I bring out the best in them? Did I allow them to grow and expand? Did I encourage their development? Did I become a bottleneck, requiring all decisions to flow through me? Did I inhibit a good idea simply because it wasn't mine? How would thinking of leadership as stewardship change the way you lead?
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In my sermon this past weekend, I shared several demotivational slogans from Despair.com. They are parodies of the motivational posters you can hang in your office. One of my favorites was this one: "Underachievement: Because soaring with the eagles requires so much more effort." As funny as that it is, it's also true. Because achievement, effectiveness, and success require work, there are some who opt to underachieve. It's easier to be average. Coaches who turnaround losing teams understand that it requires more -- not less -- work. Breakthrough leaders in any field have a low tolerance for quitting. Artists or engineers who pursue excellence do so knowing that it comes with a cost. As hard as it might be, when you reach cruising altitude, the view makes the hard work worth the effort.
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One of my older brothers had a 1972 MGB that had sheet metal welded in the floor board because the bottom had rusted out. Then again, this was the same car that started using a screwdriver. The gas gauge didn't work either. I loved that car! From the sidewalk, it looked like a nice car. But if it hadn't been for a local welder, the big hole in the floor would have made it impractical -- if not dangerous -- to drive. That's how corrosion works. It ruins what otherwise looks nice and it's often the most dangerous when it is hidden. Have you ever noticed how corrosive pride can be? Left unchecked, pride begins to corrode away a person's character. In order to maintain an image, pride might lead a person to fudge a little about the facts. Then fudge a little more. Before long, the corrosive nature of pride…
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On May 3 and 4 I was affirmed as the next Senior Pastor at Mountainview. Below is the note I sent to our church. ********** Tonya and I are humbled by your confidence in us. We relocated from San Diego to South Denver because we were excited about the vision of Mountainview reaching people who did not have a relationship with Jesus. We believed there was tremendous potential both inside and outside of Mountainview. We are still excited and are still convinced that South Denver needs healthy, growing churches. More so, God has blessed our church with the human resources (that means you!) to make a significant impact on South Denver and the world. Mountainview is a resilient church that has always looked forward. Beginning with our days in the grade school, we have had a willingness to reach people no one else was reaching. That often meant we had…
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