Is the economic downturn getting you and your staff down?
How do you as a leader motivate your team in a climate that is deflating a lot of people?
Why are some churches thriving and not just surviving?
As I travel the country doing executive search, I get a pretty good look under the hood of some of today’s healthiest, largest churches. Perhaps the biggest difference maker I see among the churches that are not just surviving this recession, but thriving through it is the leader’s ability to motivate. True motivation – not just a pep rally, calls on the deep parts of the soul. I have noticed a four really cool themes that might help you, and will be lifting each of them up in my next posts.
The most powerful motivator I know is clear, compelling, concise vision. If you don’t have one, get one. Now.
Economic downturns cause people to look down. Vision causes people to look up. To lift their minds to a higher, more holy plane. As a leader, lifting your team’s eyes out of the world and to the holy is both your unique responsibility and your most powerful motivator. People will walk through fire for Groschel. I’ve seen them after his all staff meetings. Nothing will slow them down. And for every thriving church I see, I can show you a white hot vision.
You might say, “William, everyone knows this one.” Plato once said, “The greater part of instruction is being reminded of the the things you already know.”
Does your team need a reminder of their vision? Many churches I see are facing their first year ever of lower receipts, down attendance, or budget cuts. And all too often, those indicators can quietly become our motivators, rather than vision. The really gritty leaders are able to ask the hard question, “Are we driven by numeric indicators, or a God given vision?”
Economic downturns cause people to look down. Vision causes people to look up.
Lots of staff meetings I attend involve a time to tell stories of victory, but we all too often those victory stories are numbers driven. Winners lift their team out of those details to a higher plane, and they do it regularly. What stories could you tell to elevate your team’s thinking to a longer, higher, more vision oriented mindset? When is the last time you cast vision to your staff?
I’ll post more motivators in the coming days, but for today, what will you do to cause your people to look up?
Last week, I wrote about the exciting search we are doing for an Executive Pastor for Mountain Lake Church.
This week, I’m pleased to announce that Tony and I will also be looking for a Children’s Pastor for Mountain Lake.
The senior team, led by Shawn Lovejoy, made a strategic decision this year to try and take the church to a whole new level. With the opening of their very cool new auditorium last fall, Mountain Lake has already seen a good surge in attendance. In fact, yesterday was the highest non-holiday attendance in the history of the church! Now, the church and senior staff are praying and planning for how they might ride this wave and reach even more people who don’t know about Jesus.
The Children’s Ministry at Mountain Lake has an outstanding history. On average, over 500 children attend each week (on a base of 2500 total attendance). That is an outstanding percentage, and program is poised for rapid growth. If you are interested, or know of someone who should be, feel free to contact me at william@faithsearchparnters.com, or Tony at tony@faithsearchpartners.com. As always, correspondence is kept confidential.
On another note, we have been able to secure 10 free tickets to the Velocity Conference at Mountain Lake, and have decided to give those away to the first 10 Children’s Pastors who contact either of us. Just send me your email address and a contact phone number. Tony and I will announce the winners in a couple of days.
If you don’t land the free tickets, or aren’t a Children’s Pastor, but want to go to the conference, I can secure a super low rate for you. Just email me for details.
One of the best kept secrets in the Kingdom is Mountain Lake Church in Cumming, GA. Shawn Lovejoy has done a fantastic work in the 10 years since he planted the church. Over 70% of the people at Mountain Lake were baptized after coming to faith at Mountain Lake. Their vision is laser sharp and has a serious focus on reaching those who are far from God. Every year, they baptize 10-15% of the people who are attending.
And their new facility, designed by my friend Mel McGowan of Visioneering Studios, is unique, amazing, and a super cool teaching atmosphere. With the opening of that venue, the church has seen a real bump in attendance, which has swelled to around 2500.
This year, Mountain Lake has made a strategic decision to ratchet up the ministry in all areas, and people are beginning to notice. When we recently announced their Student & Teaching Pastor search, we had over 400 responses. The finalists list we are putting together for Shawn is really great pool of talent.
I am pleased to announce that Tony Morgan and I will be helping Mountain Lake find their next Executive Pastor.
Feel free to reach me at william@faithsearchpartners.com with questions or to submit your resume. All correspondence is kept in strict confidence. And if you want to bump into either Tony or me and see the Mountain Lake, then attend the ChurchPlanters.com conference, Velocity, in two weeks. Tony and I are teaching there, and we can get you a sweet deal on a ticket.
Do you remember the best trip you have ever taken? What were the highlights? Of all the vacations in your life, what are the lasting memories? I am willing to wager that I can predict the best part of your best trip.
Every now and then, I got to travel alone with my Granddaddy, who had logged lots of miles. At the end of one particularly great trip he looked at me and wisdom:
“Let me tell you a little secret about traveling. I have been on a whole lot of trips in my life. I have been across the country. I have been in other countries. And on most of those trips I have had such a good time I wished they would never end. But no matter how good or bad the trip, and no matter how long I have traveled, every one of those trips has one thing in common. The feeling of pulling in the driveway back home.
You see William, the best part of any trip is getting back home.”
If we really think that home is elsewhere and that this life is a “wandering to find home,” why should we not look forward to the arrival?
- C. S. Lewis
Isn’t that true of your best trip? Now here’s the good news:
The best days of our lives are ahead, not behind. The past is only a shadow of the great things to come. Because our God has promised us that home isn’t a distant memory, but a promise of the future.
Do you find yourself looking for something that has slipped away in your past? Quit looking back. Have faith. Look forward. Home is coming.
The best part of the trip is ahead dear friend. Home is coming.
