Here's a thought-provoking article by Tim Stevens on the percentage of people who may never visit church but consider themselves on a spiritual journey. It challenges us (and me) to rethink how we reach out to an increasing percentage of people who are interested in Jesus but not the church. The Shrinking 40%
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When Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, "Who do people say the Son of Man is?" They replied, "Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; and still others, Jeremiah or one of the prophets." "But what about you?" he asked. "Who do you say I am?" Simon Peter answered, "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God." Jesus replied, "Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by man, but by my Father in heaven. And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it. (Matthew 16:13-18) For many years, I viewed this passage as an affirmation that no matter how bleak things got, no matter how dark the world became, there would always be a church somewhere. It might…
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It's tempting, but don't do it. Never confuse activity for accomplishment. Just because we're busy doesn't mean we're being effective. Although we might be buzzing around from event to event, commitment to commitment, busyness itself is not a guarantee that our quality of life (or quality of work) will be better. In fact, it could be counterproductive. An injured muscle needs time to heal. Without enough time to rest, our best ideas may give way to just OK ideas; even worse, they might give way to really bad ideas. Make it your goal to be effective, not just busy.
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Thanks to Guy Kawasaki, I just discovered this site called "Letters of Note." It's a collection of "correspondence deserving of a wider audience." The following quote is from Thomas Edison who is writing a letter of congratulations to a former colleague. What caught my eye was this passage: "The worst is to come, for it takes about seven years to convert the average man to the acceptance of a solved problem." Was Edison being sarcastic, pessimistic, optimistic, or realistic?
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I'm reading a white paper on creativity by Hugh MacLeod. Some you may know him as the guy who draws cartoons on the back of business cards (gapingvoid.com). In the paper, he shares his tips and advice on how to be creative. One of those was this: "Merit can be bought. Passion can't." While MacLeod was talking on the creative level, I'd like to venture out into leadership issues. If you're the leader of an organization and need an accountant who can keep the dollars and cents straight, that's about finding merit -- or competence. If you're looking for an accountant who is competent AND believes in what you're doing so much that he or she will work long hours and evangelize any vendor that comes within twenty feet ... that's about passion. Passion is an intangible. Passion is an internal fire in the belly that can't be contained. It's…
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