As Christian leaders, we know God called us, loves us, and empowers us for the work of the ministry. But even though these truths are the wind beneath our wings, we sometimes take them for granted and lead on autopilot. How do we stay engaged with God and lead vibrantly? When my husband was first learning to fly, he came…

TED Talks are short, powerful speeches given by 2,000+ leaders since 1984. TED Talks celebrated their one billionth video view in 2012, and since then they’ve averaged 17 new page views a second. In a ministry leader’s world, your speech for the annual gala or banquet rises to the level of a TED talk. So how do you prepare…

Email has obvious advantages and inherent disadvantages. Because it’s concise and impersonal, we can misconstrue the meaning behind the words. And if a handful of people are part of an email deliberation, decision-making can become unwieldy. Knowing when to rein in an email discussion is an important leadership skill. Recently,…

There are two primary voices vying for a leader’s attention. Knowing how to distinguish and deal with them is a critical leadership skill. As I sat down to pray about this week’s blog, I knew I was in trouble. I positioned myself near our puppy’s pen so she could see me. Maybe that will keep her from barking, I thought.…

You hole up with God. He reveals His vision for your ministry’s future. You share it with others. They embrace it. Does it get any better than that? I’m here to say that it does. My adventure-seeking husband has been to places near and far—on business trips and snowmobile ventures. When he gets home, he invariably says,…

There is profound beauty when a man and woman say “I do.” It becomes even more profound when they reach agreement after their first major conflict. There’s something spectacular about two deeply different individuals honoring, listening, and submitting to one another to come to a place of harmony. In the context of…