A friend emailed me yesterday to ask if our company had any openings. His son was out of work and was struggling to support his wife and newborn baby. I hurt for him and his son. As fathers our hearts are so closely connected with our kids. It was a sobering reminder of our shifting [...]
Posts Tagged ‘connection’
Five Keys to Reinvention
Posted in Empowering Leadership, tagged building momentum, Connecting, connection, Empowering Leadership, Leadership, vision on November 17, 2011 | Leave a Comment »
Cynical Sensitive
Posted in Empowering Leadership, Evolving Culture, Relevant Ministry, tagged building momentum, community, Connecting, connection, Consumerism, Empowering Leadership, Evolving Culture, Leadership, Relevant Ministry on August 22, 2011 | 2 Comments »
Thirty years ago, Bill Hybel pioneered the “Seeker Sensitive” movement and became the poster child for evangelicals. Casual, connecting, creativity, kicking music, themed Sunday school, anonymity and low expectations were in. Recently, Hybel’s “Reveal Study” highlighted surprising trends. A large part of his church failed to become disciples once they were introduced to Christ. Even [...]
Yes, I’m Addicted
Posted in Bahler Family Doing Life, Evolving Culture, tagged Authentic, Bahler Family Doing Life, community, Connecting, connection, Consumerism, Hope, Valuable life goal on June 21, 2011 | 1 Comment »
I’m an addict. I must confess. Maybe you are as well? I took the Father’s Day challenge and unhooked from the web all day Sunday. I even let my smart phone battery go dead. And it was, well…lonely. For 24 hours I lost connection with all my on-line chatter. No news, Facebook, email, text messages, [...]
Taking Risks
Posted in Bahler Family Doing Life, Culture, Relevant Ministry, tagged Bahler Family Doing Life, Connecting, connection, Consumerism, Evolving Culture, Faith, Hope, Leadership, love, missional, Purpose, Relevant Ministry, Valuable life goal on May 11, 2011 | 6 Comments »
Ten months ago, we met our 12-year-old daughter in China. We were scared and overwhelmed but driven by the vision that we were being called to stretch beyond our own comfort. Francis Chan’s words were ringing in our ears: God hasn’t called us to comfort. We’re called to take big risks so that if He [...]
Why Traditions Scare Our Kids
Posted in Empowering Leadership, Evolving Culture, Relevant Ministry, tagged Connecting, connection, Empowering Leadership, Evolving Culture, Leadership, legitimacy, missional, Relevant Ministry, trust on November 29, 2010 | 3 Comments »
With pain in their voices, two friends recently shared how their teenage kids weren’t embracing their faith traditions. They had a healthy relationship with them but the kids were no longer buying into what the parents believed. Could this be due to the new challenges that kids must navigate? They’re growing up in a multicultural, [...]
Rehearsing is for Cowards
Posted in Empowering Leadership, Evolving Culture, Relevant Ministry, tagged building momentum, connection, love, Purpose, trust, Valuable life goal on September 16, 2010 | 2 Comments »
…That’s what Seth Godin says. He challenges us to be explorers. In his words, A well-rehearsed performance will go without a hitch. But an explorer seeks the hitches, because hitches are the fissures and chasms that help us leap forward. Many of us were taught to pursue a well-rehearsed life. To do that requires focus, [...]
Barnes & Noble, USA Today, and The Church
Posted in Empowering Leadership, Evolving Culture, Relevant Ministry, tagged alignment, building momentum, communication, community, Connecting, connection, Consumerism, Empowering Leadership, Evolving Culture, Leadership, Purpose, Relevant Ministry, vision on September 7, 2010 | 6 Comments »
I used to love hanging out at Barnes & Noble, sipping tea and browsing books. But I haven’t been there in months. Here’s a great read from the “Church and Culture” blog that explains why Barnes & Noble has been floundering and offers excellent advice for the church: “How did Barnes and Noble fall so far [...]
Danger Love
Posted in Bahler Family Doing Life, Empowering Leadership, Relevant Ministry, tagged Bahler Family Doing Life, Connecting, connection, Empowering Leadership, Evolving Culture, Faith, Hope, legitimacy, love, missional, Missional Ministry, trust on July 23, 2010 | Leave a Comment »
Li Mei is a 16-year-old orphan here in Guangzhou that nobody ever came for. She’s now too old to be adopted and is no longer eligible for government support. An Indiana couple we’ve gotten to know met her on one of their previous adoption trips and have introduced her to an American missionary here. The [...]
Wish List
Posted in Uncategorized, tagged community, Connecting, connection, Empowering Leadership, Evolving Culture, Leadership, Relevant Ministry on June 3, 2010 | 6 Comments »
As we are all so aware, many young adults are leaving the “church.” The Evangelical Fellowship of Canada researched Canadian youths and developed this list of things young adults (18-30) wish they could find in church: Community Authenticity Mentorship Passionate Leaders Interactive Environment Involvement Relevant Engagement Intellectual Challenge Technology and Internet Presence Should we become [...]
Safe Can be Dangerous
Posted in Empowering Leadership, Evolving Culture, Relevant Ministry, tagged alignment, building momentum, community, community needs, Connecting, connection, Empowering Leadership, Evolving Culture, Hope, Leadership, love, mega church, ministry, Purpose, Relevant Ministry, third place, vision on February 17, 2010 | Leave a Comment »
I grew up in a small Indiana town of 1,200 people. It was so safe that we didn’t own a key to the house, didn’t take the keys from the car, and knew most families two to three generations back. But what often evolves within safe circles is low trust for ideas outside it. That’s [...]
A Holding Tank with Pizza
Posted in Empowering Leadership, Relevant Ministry, tagged communication, Connecting, connection, Empowering Leadership, Evolving Culture, Faith, Hope, Leadership, legitimacy, Relevant Ministry, trust, Valuable life goal on January 29, 2010 | 5 Comments »
“Teens are looking for more than a holding tank with pizza,” said Ed Stetzer. “They look for a church that teaches them how to live life.” Even though they may hesitate to acknowledge it, teens do want insight and guidance when it comes to dealing with challenges. In a recent Bible study at Purdue University, [...]
What about the other 180 million?
Posted in Empowering Leadership, Evolving Culture, Relevant Ministry, tagged Authentic, building momentum, Connecting, connection, Consumerism, Empowering Leadership, Evolving Culture, Hope, Leadership, Relevant Ministry, Three Relevant Ministry Responses, trust on January 26, 2010 | Leave a Comment »
Al Hirsch, author of The Shaping Of Things To Come and The Forgotten Ways, estimates that only 40% of the US population can be reached with the prevailing church models of today (mega church, multi site, small groups, etc). Of course 40% does represent 120 million Americans who are open to a church model built [...]
Are You With It?
Posted in Empowering Leadership, tagged clarity, communication, Connecting, connection, Empowering Leadership, Leadership, love, Relevant Ministry on January 22, 2010 | Leave a Comment »
Kevin Miller at Christianity Today shared how teachers who are “with it” teach 1 1/2 years of content in a given year, versus the 1/2 year’s worth of content from poor-quality teachers. That’s a 300% increase in effectiveness year after year! We’re all teachers with our own unique classrooms. Imagine the impact of a 300% [...]
A Noticable Buzz
Posted in Empowering Leadership, tagged alignment, Authentic, clarity, communication, community, Connecting, connection, Empowering Leadership, Faith, Hope, Leadership, mega church, ministry, missional, Missional Resurgence, Purpose, Relevant Ministry on January 15, 2010 | Leave a Comment »
There is a noticeable buzz in both offices this week! Activity is picking up and we are rolling in 2010. Thanks for everyone’s hard work – you’re a great team! That was the last line in today’s weekly update to the Aspen team. Its remarkable really, even though unemployment is over 10% giving to some [...]
Culture Trumps Vision
Posted in Empowering Leadership, tagged alignment, building momentum, clarity, communication, community, Connecting, connection, Empowering Leadership, Leadership, trust on January 12, 2010 | 2 Comments »
Jim Collins, author of “Good To Great,” shares this analogy: You are a bus driver. The bus, your organization, is at a standstill, and it’s your job to get it going. You have to decide where you’re going, how you’re going to get there, and who’s going with you. Most people assume that great bus [...]
