Ron Edmondson

5 Steps to Help You Worry Less

Ron Edmondson — Fri, 10 Feb 2012 12:00:44 +0000

Worry is like a plague of our body. It attacks our mind, then our heart, and over time, it can consume our overall health. Jesus said, “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life.” How good are you at obeying that verse?

One part of maturing as believers is to begin to eliminate worry from our life. I’m not claiming we ever get there, but as we grow we should, over the years, worry less.

Here are 5 steps to having less worry:

Pray more – It’s a trade-off. You can never do both at the same time. Which would you rather do?

Do wise things – You’ll have less to worry about.

Read more – Of course, I’d recommend the Bible first, but read things that speak of truth. Fill your mind with good things. It will crowd out the bad things.

Choose your thoughts carefully – Why worry about what you can’t control? Think on things you can control, rather than things you can’t. (For a sermon on doing this, click HERE.)

Trust more – Step up your faith. God is on His throne, He has a plan, and He will do what is best. Every time!

Be honest: Are you a worrier?

The Way to Guarantee NO ONE Reads Your Blog Post

Ron Edmondson — Thu, 09 Feb 2012 14:00:22 +0000

People email me everyday about how to improve their blog, how to write more, or whether they should even start a blog. There are countless “experts” always telling us how to write better blogs and what to do to increase readership. I read some of them and some of them are helpful; maybe even all of them if I had time to implement all of their strategies. Frankly, most days I do good just to get some thoughts out. (Typos and all.)

Here’s my best advice:

Start Writing!

I guarantee you no one will read your blog if you never write it. No one! Not even you would bother to do that. Not even your mother.

Have something to say? Say it!

Write it! The more you write, the better you’ll get and the more you’ll think of to say. You can’t control everyone who does or doesn’t read your blog once it is written, but you can before you write it. Write it and at least you’ll have a couple readers. That’s a start.

You and your mother love the way you write anyway.

Seriously, just do it!

Structure Can Impede Progress

Ron Edmondson — Thu, 09 Feb 2012 12:00:39 +0000

Recently I received a question about a post entitled “7 Enemies of Organizational Health“. One of those “enemies” I listed as “structure”. The person’s question was, “Are you referring to micromanagement?” He went on to say that we need structure to prevent organizational chaos.

I answered.

Well, yes and no. Micromanagement is an impediment to organizational health, but really I simply meant structure. Let me attempt to explain.

I do agree we need some structure, but not for structure sake, but for progress sake. And there is a difference.

I see it as similar to the concept of grace, freedom and the law. We don’t need laws if we are bound by grace. Grace is actually a higher standard than the law. But, we have to have an established order in our world for progress. It is a wicked world and we could never get anything done without some sense of structure.

In an organizational sense, think about it, if we all did the right thing we wouldn’t need structure. But structure allows for progress. When structure becomes a problem…when it gets in the way…and the kind of structure I was referring to in my post…is when a well-meaning structure impedes progress.

Consider this example:

Imagine a rule that says everyone has to be in the church office from 8 to 5. So, because I want to respect authority, I obey the structure and am dutifully at my desk from 8 AM to 5 PM. The fact is, however, that I work best at 6 in the morning out of the office. Sticking to the structure in this case would limit my ability to be at my best. At the same time, because I’m following the structure, I may not go to the emergency hospital visit at midnight. After all, office hours are over by then.

The bottom line is that structure should enhance not impede progress.

Structure should never get in the way of accomplishing what God plants in your heart to accomplish.

Do you follow my reasoning? What would you add to the discussion?

Five Minute Challenge: Persecuted Church

Ron Edmondson — Wed, 08 Feb 2012 14:00:14 +0000

This week I’m at Moody Founder’s Week. It’s a Bible conference put on by Moody Bible Institute that I’ve come to for several years, especially since my son Nate is a student here. One of the underlying themes this year has the persecution of Christians around the world. I’ve read recently that Christians are under more persecution today than any time in church history.

Then, my friend Tami Heim tweeted that she was praying for the Christians of Uzbekistan. I’ll be honest, I don’t know that I ever prayed for anyone in Uzbekistan. Then I followed the link she provided and realized it’s part of an initiative called the Five Minute Challenge. I signed up. You can too. In fact, I think you should.

HERE is a list of the 50 most-watched countries for church persecution.

Watch this video and then go HERE.

Do you ever pray for persecuted Christians?

3 Ways To Remove The Pain From Preparing A Weekly Sermon

Ron Edmondson — Wed, 08 Feb 2012 12:00:33 +0000

This is a guest post by my friend Casey Graham. Casey is one of the most innovative church leaders I know. He is passionate about Kingdom building and helping those who desire to Kingdom build. I haven’t seen any project of Casey’s yet I can’t support.

Here’s a word from Casey about a new project to help pastors:

After talking to hundreds of preachers, we’ve found most preachers love preaching, but the grind of preparation can often become a pain. Here are three things we’ve seen.

Here are 3 Ways To Remove The Pain From Preparing A Weekly Sermon:

1. Great preaching comes from a great preparation system. Perry Noble doesn’t prepare in a vacuum. He has a team at NewSpring Church that helps him prepare. Perry will talk about how this works at the PreachBetterSermons.com FREE online event on March 15th.

2. A Preparation day is better than feeling like you have to prepare all the time. Andy Stanley sets aside every Wednesday to prepare messages, and his team helps him keep this time guarded. While Andy is gifted, his commitment to preparation helps make his messages memorable. Andy will talk about the structure of his preparation day on the Preach Better Sermons online event.

3. Developing a sermon planning system takes the pain out of preparation. There are things you can do on a daily, weekly, monthly, quarterly and annual basis that will dramatically improve your preparation time and help you deliver better messages. Helping you put something like this into place will be a part of the free online event.

Make a commitment to be a better preacher. Sign up for the free online conference. Here are the details.

Date: March 15, 2012
Time: 1pm – 4pm EST
Speakers: Andy Stanley, Perry Noble, Louie Giglio, Dr. Charles Stanley, Vanable Moody, Jeff Foxworthy. The event is being hosted by Jeff Henderson.
Registration: Free sign up at preachbettersermons.com

Are you there? I am. Thanks Casey!

7 Enemies of Organizational Health

Ron Edmondson — Tue, 07 Feb 2012 12:20:03 +0000

I love organizational leadership. I especially love leading healthy organizations. I have been in both environments…healthy and non-healthy. I prefer healthy.

If truth be told, I’ve probably been the leader in both extremes. Along the way, I’ve observed a few things which can be the enemy of organizational health.

Here are 7 enemies of organizational health:

Shortcuts – There are no shortcuts to creating a healthy organization. Success is not earned through a simple, easy-to-follow formula. It takes hard work, diligence and longevity.

Satisfaction – Resting on past success is a disruption to future organizational growth, which ultimately impacts organizational health. When the organization gets too comfortable, boredom, complacency and indifference becomes more common.

Selfishness – Organizational health requires a healthy team environment. There’s no place for selfishness in that equation. When everyone is looking out for themselves instead of the interest of the entire organization, the health is quickly in jeopardy.

Sinfulness – This one is added for those who feel every post mus be spiritual. (Just kidding.) Seriously, healthy organizations are not perfect, but whether it’s gossip or adultery that ravages through the integrity of the organization, when moral corruption enters the mix, the health of the organization will soon suffer.

Sluggishness – Change is an important part of organizational health. In a world that’s changing rapidly, organizations must act quickly to adapt to change when needed. Some things never change, such as vision and values, but the activities to reach them must be fluid enough to adjust with swiftness and efficiency.

Stubbornness – Let me be clear. There are some things to be stubborn about, again, such as vision and values. When the organization or it’s leaders are stubborn about having things “their way”, however, or resistant to adopt new ways of accomplishing the same vision, the health of the organization will suffer. Most people struggle to follow stubborn leadership, especially when it’s protecting self-interest rather than organizational interests.

Structure – Okay, I’ll probably get in trouble for this one, even in the organization I lead, but it’s true. As much as we need structure, and even though I’m working to add structure to our organization, structure can get in the way of an organization being healthy. When people feel they are being controlled, progress is minimized and the growth and health of the organization stalls.

What would you add to my list?

Clint Eastwood Super Bowl Commercial Commentary

Ron Edmondson — Tue, 07 Feb 2012 05:08:11 +0000

I loved the Clint Eastwood ad during the Super Bowl. Then I saw this CNN News editorial. It’s interesting. If her statistics are true, I’ve learned a few things.

What do you think?

Great Leaders Hold People to High Standards

Ron Edmondson — Mon, 06 Feb 2012 12:00:02 +0000

I make no apologies.

I continue to challenge the people I lead. I expect a lot of them. I try to be fair. I’m a strong advocate for family time. I embrace the flexible workplace. But, I am always pushing people to be better. I challenge people to live up to their full potential and I’m dissatisfied with a mediocre performance.

(You can read the non-negotiables to serve on my team HERE.)

Please note, I’m not there yet, but I’m striving to be a great leader.

There is a huge difference in challenging people to live up to expectations and being a controlling leader.

Great leaders hold people to high standards.

Jesus held people to a high standard. He didn’t like half-hearted devotion. Why should we?

(BTW, I wrote about controlling leadership HERE and HERE.)

10 Tips for Recovery after a Major Loss or Disappointment

Ron Edmondson — Sun, 05 Feb 2012 12:00:02 +0000

Sometimes life throws curves at us that take the wind from our sail. If we aren’t careful we can allow the injury to haunt us for life; never regaining what we have lost.

Have you lost a job recently?
Have you had a business failure?
Did you suffer from divorce?
Has the person you trusted the most hurt you the deepest?

What steps should you take to get back on track after a significant loss?

Here are 10 suggestions to consider during a recovery process:

(Choose the ones that apply to your situation)

Reconnect with God – This is always a wise idea, but it becomes necessity at times like this. Some people grow closer to God during a trial (that’s the best approach). Some, however, allow a trial to distract them from their relationship with God. If that’s your story, be like the prodigal and return to a waiting Father.

Evaluate your life – Use this time to reevaluate the decisions you have made in life and, if appropriate, what got you in the situation you are in today. Are there changes that you need to make? If so, be willing to change. If you did nothing wrong in this case, release yourself from responsibility.

Create some new dreams – Don’t allow past mistakes to keep you from discovering your passions in life. Keep those creative forces going in your mind so you’ll be ready when the next big opportunity comes along.

Call in the advisors – Others can usually see things we cannot see. They approach our life from a different perspective. Give someone you trust, who has your best interest at heart, access to the painful part of your life.

Don’t take your pain and anger out on others – It doesn’t make things better (usually worse) and it hurts people who did nothing to deserve it. Don’t hold your past experiences against others who weren’t even there.

Take a break – Don’t expect to recover immediately. Your struggles probably didn’t start overnight and they will not end overnight. Give yourself time to heal. Rest.

When it’s time, be willing to risk again – Yes, you may get hurt again, but just as life is full of disappointments, it’s also full of joy and discovery. Remember that everyone is not the same and every situation is different. Your next great opportunity may be waiting for your next step of faith.

Don’t let failure or disappointment in life define you – Be defined by God’s love for you and His plan for your life. He has one you know!

Do something – Rest yes, but at some point, just do something to stay busy and occupy your mind. It’s true that the “idle mind is the devil’s workshop”. If you lost your job, find somewhere to volunteer until you find another job. If you lost a relationship, find non-sexual relationships through church or civic activities to keep from being alone.

Get back in the game – Choose your next steps carefully and don’t keep repeating the same mistakes, but at some point it will be time to enjoy life again. Life was not meant to be lived on the sidelines.

10 random tips for times of disappointment or loss.

Have any to add?

5 Questions to Discern God’s Will

Ron Edmondson — Sat, 04 Feb 2012 12:00:32 +0000

I am often asked how to know if the plans we make are God’s will for our life. This is a common concern. Most of us want to do God’s will, but God seems to give us a tremendous amount of freedom. If you’re like me, you’re fully capable of making a mistake. I’ve made many.

Here are 5 Questions I often ask myself to help discern God’s will:

Does what I’m doing (or planning to do) conflict with Scripture?
God’s will never will. God is always true to Himself and His Word is the best place to start. We may differ in interpretation of a passage, but if it’s clearly spelled out in Scripture, then we clearly know His will.

Does what I am doing conflict with the counsel of others?
God uses others to confirm His will. I am thankful for the people in my life, including my wife and sons, who have helped shaped the path of my life. Often they see things I can see or believe in me when I can’t believe in myself. God sends the body of Christ to encourage, challenge and strengthen the body. (Don’t be confused, however, with times God calls us to go against the grain of life and walk by faith when everyone is saying we are crazy. See Noah about that one.)

Does what I am doing conflict with the spirit within me?
God sent the Holy Spirit as a helper. He guides us with an inner peace or a holy unrest. If Christ is in you, He will not leave you to make a decision completely alone. Often God provides a peace or a lack thereof when He is trying to confirm His will.

Does what I am doing conflict with my life experience?
God uses our experiences in life to teach and mold us to His will. Often it isn’t as unusual of a path when we look back over our life experiences. Again, don’t be confused, because He usually stretches us out of our comfort zone also.

Does what I am doing conflict with my passion for life?
God tends to work with the things that fuel our fire. He loves when we are energized for the tasks He calls us to. When I look at Bible characters like Joseph, David, the disciples, Abraham or Paul it appears their calling matched their wiring. Paul was zealous for whatever he did. God used that passion for good. What’s your passion? God may work within it to confirm His will.

Try those 5 questions together and see how they line up to help discern God’s will as it relates with your plans.

Here’s some good news.

I fully believe God works all things for good even when we miss His will in individual decisions. You can make a bad decision, but God retains the right to finish your story His way. Proverbs 16:9 says, “In his heart a man plans his course, but the Lord determines his steps.”

Do you ever struggle as to whether your plans are God’s will? Tell me your current situation and I’ll pray with you.

You may want to read 7 Ways to Distinguish God’s Voice from the Circumstances of Life