Leadership Lessons from the King of Pop – Michael Jackson

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Whether one likes or dislikes Michael Jackson’s music, you can’t dispute the fact that he was one of the most talented and gifted songwriters and musicians of this generation. The Moonwalk along with my personal favorites like Thriller, Smooth Criminal, and Black and White will be remembered for years by the generation who grew up in the 80’s and 90’s.

Even though Michael was extremely gifted and was viewed as a celebrity icon in the world of pop music, his personal lifestyle suffered. Towards the end of his career, controversy and scandal surrounded him, like most famous celebrities in that field. However, in regards to Michael, it seemed as if his fans and the world he lived in didn’t quite understand the principle of how your personal lifestyle affects your gift. What happens behind close doors has more of an impact on your life and career than your talent does.

Whether you like it or not, agree with it or not, the truth is when you are in the public eye, there is an extra burden of responsibility that you can’t avoid. It’s the lifestyle of personal leadership. Leading yourself before you lead others. Giving attention to your character before you develop and exercise your gift and talent.

When you are in a spotlight profession such as a police officer, government official, teacher, politician, religious leader, entertainment celebrity, etc… society will put the burden on you to hold yourself to a higher level of conduct and lifestyle whether you like it or not.  It just comes with the package. So choose your profession wisely and understand the responsibilities it comes with.

Personal character always trumps and out-ways gifting and talent every single time. History has always proven it.  It’s sad that the King of Pop, the world’s most talented songwriter and musician, had to die at 50. He could have learned the principle of personal leadership and finished his destiny at 80, 85 or 90.

If you want to leave your mark in this world; then focus on building a healthy life with moral principles. It will sustain you no matter how far your gift will take you.

Your Thoughts?

Ministry Has Faces

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Ministry. When you think of this word, what is one of the first things that come to your mind. Something or someone involved in a Church, correct? Or how about someone that serves as a pastor, church staff leader or a missionary to a foreign country. All of these are great examples of individuals who are in “full-time ministry.”

However, I want to share a different perspective on the word — ministry. When I was at the Exponential Conference in Orlando a couple of weeks ago, Craig Groeschel, pastor of LifeChurch.tv made a statement that stuck with me. He said, “Don’t be conformed to the patterns of the Western-American Church, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.”

According to Western- American church standards, ministry is defined as a profession, thus this is where we get “full-time and part-time ministry.”  According to the Gospel, ministry is defined by action of service.

We have limited the use and terminology of ministry to only serve the local Church context. Which is ok, but it’s not good enough. In this day of an age, we must recognize that ministry should be a much broader term that embraces every context in life and career. I was just in the Hollywood and Beverly Hills area of California last week, and you will be surprised at how many people I met that are passionate about Jesus and who are willing to use their influence to help people discover what it means to be a Christ-follower. Now, if that’s not ministry, I don’t no what is. This is just a different face of ministry. These actors and social entrepreneurs I met in Hollywood love Jesus and are influencing people and leading them to Jesus. So, do they work at a church or a non-for-profit organization? No. Are they ordained ministers through a Church or denomination? No. Should they be considered full-time ministers. Yes. Why? Because they are doing ministry. They are doing it with a different look and face than you who might do while working at a church or para church organization. This is how ministry will be defined by next generation leaders.

Ministry is not defined by your profession or place of employment. It is defined by what you do!

You might be a businessman, doctor, restaurant owner, editor, pilot, government official, actor, model, journalist, banker, salesmen, musician, singer, songwriter, author, or you might even be a pastor or church leader. The point is ministry has faces. It can be expressed through service and influence in many different areas of context and career in today’s culture. When we limit the word ministry just to the church context, we begin to suppress people and limit their full potential in the ministry God has called them to do.

I’m reminded of a business leader I knew in Atlanta. His name is David Salyers. He is the Vice President of Marketing for Chick-fil-A. David is a great leader in Chick-fil-A. I’ll never forget what he told me one day, when I sat in his office there in Atlanta at the Chick-fil-A corporate office. He said, “working here at Chick-fil-A is not my job, it’s my ministry. Serving the people is my ministry and that is why I have been able to influence the people within this corporate context. I don’t need to be on a church staff to be in full-time ministry, all I need to do is renew my thinking, serve people, and let my life and influence be it’s own platform.”

Ministry in definition is being re-defined for the next generation of leaders. Ministry Has Faces. Which one are you?

Your Thoughts?

(Guest Blogger: Daniel King) 7 Things I’ve Learned about Pastors on Twitter

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I am not a pastor, but I am interested in why pastors do what they do. For the last two months I have followed hundreds of pastors on the new social networking tool Twitter.com. Here are seven things I’ve learned about pastors:

1. Pastors are looking for new ways to reach people.

For those of you who have not caught the buzz, Twitter enables you to use your cell phone or computer to send out “tweets” or short updates about what you are doing to all your friends. Basically, it is text-messaging lots of people at the same time. I was amazed at how many pastors are using this technology to build relationships with their flock. It shows that pastors can be cutting-edge and innovative.

2. Pastors can reinvent themselves to reach a new generation.

Are bulletins boring, offerings blah, and church announcements putting people to sleep? Why not film your announcements, post them on YouTube, and send everyone a tweet to go check it out. Then provide a link to give tithes and offerings online through PayPal. Today’s generation lives online. Relevant churches desiring to be effective will join the online conversation.

3. Pastors are using new terminology to express age-old truth.

A new vocabulary has arisen to communicate to a modern generation. “Christian” is out, “Christ-follower” is in. No one is a “head pastor” instead they are called “lead pastors.”  In addition to being pastors, many have added life coach, spiritual entrepreneur, or success motivator to their resume. Relationship is now more important than denominational labels.

4. Pastors like to preach.

From messages about grace and forgiveness, to exegetical studies of First Thessalonians, pastors spend a lot of time studying God’s word and preparing to communicate truth to their congregations.

5. Pastors are normal people.

Pastors pick up their kids from soccer, watch Lost and American Idol on television, go to the grocery store, play Nintendo Wii, and love their wives. Pastors are not supermen or superwomen, but they do rely on a supernatural God.

6. Pastors have one of the toughest jobs in the world.

Who is called when someone gets sick? Or dies? Or has a problem in their marriage? Usually, the pastor is there to offer comfort and advice. Continually putting out fires can be mentally and physically draining, but pastors keep going because they genuinely care about people. Some of the tweets I read brought tears to my eyes as pastors dwelt with human tragedy by offering hope.

7. Pastors have one of the most rewarding jobs in the world.

I have read statistics that show many pastors think about quitting the ministry, especially on Monday morning, but I saw little evidence of this on Twitter. Most of the pastors I follow are excited, energized, and motivated. They are reading, learning, and continually looking for new ways to communicate the Gospel through modern methods of evangelism. Eternity is their focus, the world is their parish, and changing lives is their reward.

Daniel King is a missionary evangelist who has ministered in more than fifty nations. He invites you to follow him on his Twitter profile: danielking100. Or check out his website: www.kingministries.com

Your Thoughts?

America’s Coolest Entrepreneurs Under the Age of 30

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Inc. Magazine just released the 30 Top Entrepreneurs under the age of 30. Go check out their profiles and see what they are up to.

1. Aaron Ball – Borrengo Solar Systems

2. Sumi Krishnan – K4 Solutions

3. John Ready – Ready Seafood and Catch a Piece of Main

4. Brendan Ready – Ready Seafood and Catch a Piece of Main

5. Aaron Patzer – Mint.com

6. Chaim Indig – Phreesia

7. Evan Roberts – Phreesia

8. Aaron Levie – Box.net

9. Dylan Smith – Box.net

10. Claire Chambers – Journelle

11. Vu Thai – Efficient Lighting

12. Leanna Archer – Leanna’s

13. Bobby Kim – The Hundreds

14. Ben Shenassafar – The Hundreds

15. Rob Van Etten – Brighton Cromwell

16. Julia Alkire – Family Creations

17. Stephanie Goldman – Family Creations

18. Matt Mullenweg – Automattic and WordPress

19. Nick Friedman – College Hunks Hauling Junk

20. Omar Soliman – College Hunks Hauling Junk

21. Marc Lotenberg – 944 Media

22. John Bicket – Meraki

23. Sanjit Biswas – Meraki

24. Alyssa Rapp – Bottlenotes

25. Noah Lehmann-Haupt – Gotham Dream Cars

26. Keith Nothacker – KHN Solutions

27. Tina Wells – Buzz Marketing Group

28. Rachel Hollis – Chic Events

29. Rahim Fazal – Involver

30. Noah Horton – Involver

How Technology Is Shaping Your Faith – Rob Bell Interviews Shane Hipps

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Watch Rob Bell interview Shane Hipps about his new book, Flickering Pixels at the 2009 National Pastors Convention in San Diego, CA.FlickeringPixels

In this interview they will discuss how media, communication and the advancements of technology is shaping how we view and engage our faith. Watch the interview and find out how.

Use the Google Search Bar on the Upper Right Hand Side to look up more information about Rob Bell, Shane Hipps and his new book – Flickering Pixels and the National Pastors Convention.

Will the Evangelical World Collapse?

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Michael Spencer iMonk

Today, I saw on the Yahoo News an interesting article by Michael Spencer, a post-modern evangelical who is also known for his blog, InternetMonk.com.

He wrote an interesting piece on how many mainstream denominations are suffering and are becoming more irrelevant to our western culture.

He pointed out some things that are very much right on the money.  Here are some samples of his article. There is  a lot more, but these are the points I found the most interesting.

Why Is This Going to Happen?

1. We Evangelicals have failed to pass on to our young people an orthodox form of faith that can take root and survive the secular onslaught. Ironically, the billions of dollars  we’ve spent on youth ministries, Christian music, publishing, and media has produced a culture of young Christians who know next to nothing about their faith except how they feel about it.

2. Evangelicals have identified their movement with the culture war and with political conservatism. This will prove to be a very costly mistake. Evangelicals will increasingly be seen as a threat to cultural progress.

3. There are three kinds of evangelical churches today: consumer-driven megachurches, dying churches, and new churches whose future is fragile.

4.The Money will dry up.

What Will Be left?

1. Aggressively, evangelistic fundamentalists churches will begin to disappear.

2. Charismatic-Pentecostal Christianity will become the majority report in evangelicalism. Can this community withstand heresy, relativism, and confusion? To do so, it must make a priority of Biblical authority, responsible leadership, and a reemergence of orthodoxy.

3. Evangelicalism needs a “rescue mission” from the world Christian community. It is time for missionaries to come to America from Asia and Africa. Will they come? Will they be able to bring to our culture a more vital form of Christianity?

So What Does All this Mean?

The article is expired on Yahoo News but you need to read the rest of the article on CSM, or you can go directly here and here and here.

After reading this article, I am convinced that if there were going to be some Evangelical collapse, it is due to the fact that the Christian community have created a sub-culture within media companies, businesses and churches that is seen as superior to the rest of our culture. I also believe that “The Church” has done a poor job in equipping the next generation in their walk with God as well as in their calling and destinies. When you go to youth groups, youth pastors entertain, instead of equip. When we go to church, we want our parishioners to feel comfortable in church instead of being challenged to grow spiritually.

One thing we need to remember is that Christian movements come and go. They last for season and then God sends a new wave of ministry that can impact the culture around us. Some trends of how we do church has run it’s course. I believe God is up to do a new thing in America today. But, He’s looking for leaders who are stuck on Him, not past church models.

Churches need to starting bringing their staff together and start giving their church a 360 degree evaluation and begin asking themselves the tough questions, like, “With our current ministry approach, style, and systems in place, will our church be able to last the next 10 years from now?”

But, I know one thing is for sure, “The Church” will last until Jesus comes for His Bride. The Church will be a bold and strong entity in the earth when the rapture comes. Because the truth of God’s Word will endure to all generations. However, your current methods of how you do ministry may NOT!

Your Thoughts?

The Blogging Church by Brian Bailey and Terry Storch

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I want to recommend a book to all of you ministry bloggers out there, called The Blogging Church. Though released in January 2007, this book gives great insight and practical application on how to start a blog, tell your story, interact and engage  an audience you could have never reached. The blogging world has exploded and its time for the church to engage this technically-savvy and innovative generation.

Watch below a video clip by Brian Bailey and Terry Storch as they share with you about their book on The Blogging Church.

Branding Faith by Phil Cooke – You Must Read This!

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One of my favorite books I read last year was Branding Faith by Phil Cooke. I believe every non-profit organization needs to read this book! In March 2009 he will be releasing his next book, called The Last TV Evangelist: And Why The Next Generation Couldn’t Care Less about Religious Media. I can’t wait to read this one as well.

Watch the video as Phil gives you a complete book review on Branding Faith. Go visit his blog at Phil Cooke to learn more about how you can impact culture.

What Will The Future Be Like for Next Gen Leaders?

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After you watch this video, it will be interesting to see how our generation will leverage the advancements of technology and creativity  to expand the borders of the gospel:

Check this out…A glimpse of the future!

How to Talk to Girls! Consulting Advice from a 9 Yr. Old

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I love the fact that kids are writing books. The next generation of leaders will be launching their careers at an early age. It’s a reality that a lot of people will need to get used to.  Enjoy the clip!