Church

Bittersweet but blessed. Our youngest daughter, Hope, is starting her freshman year at Hope College and will write the next chapter of her life by making more of her own choices and decisions - something parents are to prepare their children to do (knowing that doesn't make it any easier on moms!). We know that she will not return home as the same young lady that graduated high school. She will be different. She will have made different friends and studied under different teachers. She will be changed. In life, change is inevitable - how we are changed is our own choice. Each birthday reminds me that I am one year older. That's inevitable. How I choose to eat, think, and exercise will determine the quality of my life. That's my choice. The gospel is all about God's power to transform our lives through the finished work of Jesus on…

All too often, discussions about leadership tend to revolve around strategies, systems, or tactics. You'll find great advice on how to ... run a meeting develop a schedule or timeline create to-do lists organize your thoughts brainstorm eat right exercise more These are not bad things, with the possible exception of exercising more! Even that wouldn't hurt most people (including me). But most of those start from the outside and are external in nature. Effective, sustainable leadership is more than an external system; it comes from the inner spirit - the heart, soul, and mind. Many would-be leaders assume its the tactics that make well-known leaders effective. Good and great leaders certainly use best practices and support their efforts with well thought out actions. What these would-be leaders don't see is what's on the inside. The inner workings of leadership are not as flashy or tweetable as a strategy or…