The Synergy Box

How to Think Big Picture

noreply@blogger.com (Sandy) — Thu, 07 Jun 2012 01:12:00 +0000

Constantly my husband tells me, “People don’t think like you.” Sometimes this is not a compliment…like when I have once again totally missed the point of a joke (being the “humor-challenged person” that I am). But most of the time when he says not everyone thinks like I do, it is his way of reminding me that my ability to think holistically is a bit of a skill.

Big picture thinking is the ability to consider how your thoughts, actions and attitudes will impact your life or organization over the long haul. How will the decisions you make today impact others in one year, five years or ten years? If leaders fail to ask these all-important questions, their leadership will likely become shortsighted and somewhat ineffective. As leaders, we must learn to think of both the hear-and-now and the desired future.

So how do you learn to think about the big picture? While I have not mastered this ability, here are a few techniques I naturally use to keep the big picture in mind:

1. Think ahead
Simply taking a few minutes to consider a topic before I am called upon to form a leadership opinion about it allows me the time and space to consider the big picture. When I do this well, I come prepared to offer insight beyond my immediate circumstances. When I fail to think ahead, I am left to offer my gut reaction.

2. Think in terms of perspective
As I think through an issue, I try it out in my mind from multiple angles. If I need to hire an important position, I think through what I need from the position, what type of leader the team needs, what type of person will best fit the organizational culture and what type of person will complement the skills of other team members. Then I think through candidates from these angles (and many others). Perspective allows me to consider obvious and not-so-obvious implications of my decisions. And too, I have found that sometimes the best perspective is found in team discussion or in outside counsel!

3. Think in terms of outcomes
When I think about leadership issues (or life issues), I have learned to think in terms of the most desirable outcome. Sometimes leaders do not think in terms of the big picture, simply because they have not defined what a “win” would look like. When I know what I am trying to accomplish, holistic thought is more tangible and immediate. Clear desired outcomes prevent me from getting bogged down in philosophy and move me to action.

4. Think in terms of consequences
I would venture to say every leader has been in a situation where they have failed to consider the consequences of their decisions. When I have failed to consider the possible negative or positive consequences of an action, I have often found myself in trouble. While none of us can think of everything, we can be attentive to how our actions will impact others. In the best of worlds, my big picture thinking promotes healthy thoughts, actions and attitudes.

What big picture thinking skill do you need to practice today?

Three Things I've Learned About Focus

noreply@blogger.com (Sandy) — Tue, 05 Jun 2012 00:39:00 +0000

Focus is a challenging skill. Have you ever realized what you focus on grows? Focus on food, and your appetite will grow. Focus on making healthy choices and suddenly you realize that lunch entrée was your total daily allotment of 1,500 calories! What you focus on grows. And when you choose to set your sights on something, the outcome is often secured before you have even begun.

Unless…you loose focus.

I suppose you could say that’s what happened to me two years ago. It was April 19, 2010 and a few minutes before 6:00 P.M. Being the master chef that I am, I was about to throw a frozen pizza in the oven for dinner when my ten-year-old son flung open the garage door and crumpled into the couch. Sobbing and heaving, he finally managed to get out a few words. A rock had been thrown into the side of his head. That’s when he started throwing up.

Then it was 911. An ambulance to the nearest hospital. Emergency CT scans. And a depressed skull fracture. A doctor quickly telling me Scott needed to be transferred to a higher level of care and that a helicopter was on its way. The helicopter EMT pausing and turning to me, blades whirring a few paces down the walkway, asking me to give Scott a kiss goodbye. Wait, did he mean goodbye for now or a more permanent goodbye?

Two years ago, someone hit a HUGE pause button on the life I expected. And my focus was interrupted in multiple ways. A large rock thrown by another 10-year-old boy. An accidental injury. Combine that with my daughter’s chronic illness, and you will understand why for these last two years caregiving has been my center of attention.

Interrupted or not, I have been reminded of the power of focus. Here is what I have learned so far:
1. Focus requires intentionality.
We live in a world filled with randomness and uncertainty. It will never be easy to keep your focus. Gaining and maintaining focus requires daily, weekly, monthly, quarterly and yearly pause points, where you look up and make sure you are still headed in the right direction.
2. Focus creates momentum.
When you and I determine to pursue a goal and then focus our activities around that goal, we create movement. Movement eventually leads to momentum. Dave Ramsey’s Momentum Theorem states, “Focused intensity over time multiplied by God creates momentum.” Now, that is a powerful truth!
3. Focus relieves pain.
Ever find yourself concerned about too many things? When you feel pain, it is a signal! The agonizing ache you sense when you are overcommitted or overwhelmed is not meant to be ignored. Focus allows you to let go of the unimportant in favor of the most important things. When you trim your life or ministry down to those things that really deserve your attention, you feel less pain…which means you find more joy.

For the record, Scott is doing well, despite the lasting effects of the injury. He has quite a few medical complications, but he does well in school and is enjoying being a middle-schooler. And me...I am learning a focus on the truly important things is not really a loss of focus at all.

What deserves your personal or leadership focus today?

Internal Signals

noreply@blogger.com (Sandy) — Wed, 14 Apr 2010 00:12:00 +0000

"As much as we long for external signs that point the way to the future, we must settle for inner signals that alert us to the proximity of new beginnings." - William Bridges

Despite Bridges' elegant description of the hint of a realized future, his words can't begin to describe the tension-filled climate of one seeking positive change who is unable to either see it or have it neatly offered up. The complexity of our human existence often lends itself to messy ends, waiting periods and new starts. Rarely is a new beginning crisply and cleverly packaged. More often it's a mish mosh. Some things ending, others beginning and a few things stuck in neutral.

What I find so profound about Bridges' thought is the fact that in the muddle of our misshapen lives, we can count on the new rising up in us. We can learn to lean into those subtle internal signals that point us correctly in the direction of a better future. I believe in the best of circumstances these are God-inspired moments, His signals of prompted change.

So my question to you is this: what God-inspired internal signals are rising up in you? And what should you do about them? Or better yet, what will you do?

No goodbyes?

noreply@blogger.com (Sandy) — Mon, 12 Apr 2010 20:21:00 +0000

In my forward-thinking, future-focused world, new beginnings covet all my attention. Endings...not so much.

I know how to say goodbye. Sometimes I even over do it. But in my people-loving, the world-is-one-big-family mindset, I don't like to say goodbye. I'd rather holler, "see you later," as I whiz out of sight. And to me, later might mean next week or it could mean in heaven. When my circumstances change, I'm typically the first one to be ready to climb the next mountain. (Unless of course I wind up pouting about the unexpected or unfair nature of life.) I like new stuff.

But...endings are important.

When you move across the country, when your circumstances are drastically altered, when your ministry is ready for change, even when your wife wants you to learn to hang up your towel and you finally agree...you MUST acknowledge endings well. Each ending deserves attention. You must identify the losses and grieve them. You must discern how to provide closure, and you need to figure out how to celebrate contributions. You must pay attention to what it takes to effectively change.

Endings should not become THE focal point, but they must be a stopping point each time change is imminent. Glaze over them and you will miss the richness of celebration. Neglect them and you'll have people clinging to the way things used to be.

To what or whom do you need to say your goodbyes?

The Neutral Zone

noreply@blogger.com (Sandy) — Wed, 07 Apr 2010 20:03:00 +0000

When you're stuck in between loss and gain, between old and new, between past and future, William Bridges the author of Transitions says you're in the "neutral zone." While being stuck in a season of waiting, seeming emptiness or renewal can evoke feelings of sadness, anger or discouragement, Bridges suggests, "Dying, the neutral zone, and rebirth are not ideas that we bring to life; they are phenomena that we find in life. The only trick is to see them - by looking beyond the reflected light of the familiar surface of things and seeing what is really there, working in the depths. The neutral zone - the time between the old life and the new - is a particularly rich time for such insight." In short, the neutral zone can be one of the most creative periods in your life or ministry.

This past year has been a full-on neutral zone for me, a time of working in the depths of my soul, my circumstances and my dreams to discover the richness of God and His blessings. This is what I've learned so far:

1. Blessings are better than happiness. Happiness is a fleeting emotion that the Bible doesn't spend much time discussing. Blessings are God's goodness applied to our lives. Seeking lasting blessings from God is a more worthy pursuit than momentary happiness.

2. Some visions mature slowly, some surprise you quickly. If vision is the tension between what is and what could be, you need to be able to see what could be. Sometimes a leader immediately and clearly sees what could be in their life or ministry. Other times, it takes time, effort, exploration and prayer to form vision. While the process is different, the outcome is the same. One just requires more patience.

3. Becoming really is better than doing. Mary and Martha have always been of great interest to me. I'm more of a do-er, less of a be-er by nature. Sometimes I would get so mad when I would hear the story of how Mary sat at Jesus feet while Martha did all the work. Here's what changed my heart on this: the realization (read duh-moment) that all doing emanates from being. If I am becoming a godly woman, my actions will follow suit. If all I care about is action, my ministry will dry up as soon as the actions are complete.

4. Most of us try too hard. Whew. That's a hard realization, and taken out of context, a dangerous one. My responsibility bone is very strong, so I believe in hard work, determination and follow-through. However, during my neutral zone experience I've come to realize that some of the things in life or ministry we get so amped up about ought to be given less attention. Where can we refocus that attention: on becoming, on visioneering, on connecting with others and on obedience to God. Basically, I'm learning some of us need to "lighten up."

5. Ministry stems from self-leadership and identity. We'd like to believe our church is a reflection of Christ and His holiness. While God does supernaturally move in and through many churches, each individual church is likely more of a reflection of its leaders. Theological argument with that previous statement aside, you cannot ignore the direct correlation between a leaders' character and identity and the culture of his or her ministry. Lest we get too self-important, ministry and the church belong to God. He is the One who determine the success or failure of any particular ministry or church. Yet, God chooses to use people. And have you ever noticed how those who are men and women of godly character, who understand the church and ministry culture and who are expert leaders tend to build effective impactful ministries? My takeaway: self-leadership goes a long way.

So what's your neutral zone experience? Where are you sensing an ending and a new beginning. Don't be tempted to jump over the neutral zone experience, or you'll miss a terrific opportunity to mine the depths of your heart and soul in connection with God.

The soul never thinks without a picture

noreply@blogger.com (Sandy) — Tue, 06 Apr 2010 23:02:00 +0000

"The soul never thinks without a picture." - Aristotle

Just thinking about vision gets my heart pumping, my adrenaline flowing and my mind whirling. I can palpably feel a sense of urgency whenever I consider creating, clarifying or communicating a vision. In his book Visioneering, Andy Stanley suggests, "Visions are born in the soul of a man or woman who is consumed with the tension between what is and what could be." That pretty much describes me: consumed by seeing what could be and how to help leaders and churches get there.

So what stops other church leaders from being as excited as I am about vision? Perhaps some leaders lack an understanding of the power of vision. Maybe some simply don't know how to get a vision from their heads into action. I love working with both these kinds of leaders, because as I said I'm passionate about vision. But the church leader who needs the most help when it comes to vision is the one who is afraid of leading change or who leads a church afraid of change.

Churches have a unique ability to know something is not working, know something needs to change then shield their souls from the need to change by touting tradition and an unwillingness to cause offense. This drives me crazy. Churches need to learn how to change when a change would make them more effective and more transformational. Churches ought to lead the way in understanding change. But for as many churches who fear change, there seem to be an equal number of churches and church leaders who too quickly jump on any change bandwagon that passes by. Where some churches decline for lack of change, others seem to alienate people as they reactively change ministry to suit the current trends.

That's why it all comes back to vision and why I'm so passionate about this leadership tool. When leaders understand not only what could be, but also what should be done in their unique church in their next season, a God-inspired vision is born. Then change is simple and obvious (though not always easy) because it flows from a picture of a unique God-designed future.

Apply this to your church. Apply it at home. We did and we're moving half way across the United States. For us that's an obvious God-inspired change. What picture does your soul need to see this season? Do you have the courage to change?

Moving Forward (or South)

noreply@blogger.com (Sandy) — Sun, 28 Mar 2010 23:59:00 +0000

In two months time, we are moving to Orlando. You know: the home of Mickey Mouse. In the Sunshine state. Where tourists are the big industry. I am psyched! And am so looking forward to:
• Sunshine
• Beachfront
• Swimming
• Disney
• Warm weather
• And serving at Discovery Church

At the same time, moving means loss. I will miss:
• My Midwest friends!
• My extended family!
• My home here!

But I'm thinking big. Ready for the next challenge God has in store for our family.

Change is good right?

Yes, I say! As long as the change is rooted in a discerning spirit, purposeful and timely.

Our family has moved quite often lately. If you've been following our movements at all lately, you may have seen us in several different states in the last few years. But we're not shy about making a commitment to a community. We have simply always been willing to listen to the voice of God and literally move across the country at God's bidding. Our upcoming move is no exception. We feel called to make the Orlando community our new home.

So big changes are in store for us this summer. We covet your prayers for our family and the ministry God is calling us to!

10 Ways to Create Artistic Community

noreply@blogger.com (Sandy) — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 16:26:00 +0000

Artistic community in the church is simply a "must do." Artists need each other. When you think about it, you have to admit that no artist, or person for that matter, enjoys being "used." Even task oriented people prefer to be appreciated for who they are in addition to what they can do. Over the years, my appreciation for the power of artistic community has grown exponentially, because artists and technical volunteers in the church create more transformational moments when they do so in the context of community. We all need to be known.

Some arts leaders naturally create a community of artists. Others need to work at it. The rest of this blog is for the later group. These ideas are for those who haven't yet moved their leadership to the "must do" community camp:

Buy the team pizza and sodas.
Create a green room backstage where the team can connect.
Put people into rotating teams who serve together regularly. Then switch the teams every six months or so.
Create a team blog.
Hold several team events each year (an early Christmas party or an artistic talent night).
Gather them monthly for an all-team meeting. Include programming and production volunteers. Use this time to cast vision and create community.
Pray together regularly before each rehearsal and each service.
Schedule a yearly or quarterly volunteer retreat.
Create a wall of appreciation (a bulletin board where they can leave each other notes of appreciation and care).
Place team members into shepherding groups. Assign a volunteer leader to each group to keep tabs on individuals' needs, prayer requests and major life events.

Raise the value of team and you'll raise the impact of your weekend services. It's worth every ounce of leadership effort.

Develop Your Artists' Gifts

noreply@blogger.com (Sandy) — Fri, 16 Oct 2009 18:55:00 +0000

Whatever you do as an arts leader, don't let people stagnate in their gifts. Art wasn't meant to be stagnant. Sure, great art endures, but great artists seldom paint the same piece twice. Great song writers strive for new melodies and lyrics. Great church leaders strive for fresh weekend services. The same applies to the artistic talent of church artists and technical volunteers. They need to keep improving, to learn to do something new.

Next time you're faced with the decision to build into the talents of those in your ranks or assume they come fully prepared, think twice before you proceed. People in the church need us to give them the tools to make a difference for Christ with their art. Most of them will show up with a basic toolbox, but we need to figure out which tools they need that aren't in their box. Then we need to craft a plan to offer them support and personal growth.

The dividends are obvious. People get filled up. Art becomes more transformational. Community grows as people learn together. Not your job? Really? Does your church come fully stocked with professional artists who are spiritually and artistically always at their peak? Didn't think so. Take the time to build into the people within your care. Not only will you retain your volunteers longer, but your services will simply be better. It's worth it to develop your artists' gifts.

Grow Your Artists Spiritually

noreply@blogger.com (Sandy) — Thu, 15 Oct 2009 20:15:00 +0000

What are you doing to help the artists in your worship arts ministry grow? What are you doing to actively disciple your artists? While it's easier to hope artists land themselves in a solid small group, read their Bibles regularly and develop a deep prayer life, the reality of being a worship leader or arts leader is that if you are the leader then you are responsible for the spiritual growth of your volunteers. God has entrusted men and women into your spiritual care, and you cannot hope someone else in the church is doing your job.

It's your job to reach out to those who serve on your teams and help them discover how God wants them to grow. Here are a few ideas to get you started:

Pray regularly before rehearsals and weekend services.

Spend 10-15 minutes in the Bible together before each rehearsal.

Meet monthly with your teams to promote community, unity and spiritual growth.

Invite individuals to meet with you or their team shepherd whenever you see a spiritual need.

Write a blog or newsletter that includes spiritual direction.

Read a book as a team that promotes godly values and incorporates Christian character growth.

Invite team members to worship together during weekend services.

Serve as a team outside the auditorium from time to time.

Help each individual team member discover their next step or spiritual growth area for the year.

Grow yourself as a leader and share your personal areas of growth with the team.

Helping artists grow spiritually doesn't mean you need to complete an hour of Bible study each time you meet. But it does require you to build a culture of growth within your ministry. What's one thing you can do today to help your artists grow? Start now!

Taking Care of Your Spiritual Health

noreply@blogger.com (Sandy) — Wed, 14 Oct 2009 21:07:00 +0000

How healthy are you...spiritually? Yikes. Depending on the criteria you use to judge a person's spiritual health, it's likely that most of us will come up lacking in one way or another. Employing the basic spiritual disciplines as criteria, you could assess your spiritual growth based on how often you go to church, read your Bible or pray. Using community based criteria, you could judge your growth based on whether or not you attend a small group, serve regularly in your church or volunteer in your community. And to some extent, these measures would be accurate.

But how does God look at it? What does He use to measure my spiritual health? I think it's less about my practices and more about my heart. I think God looks upon our hearts and minds, searching for those who wholeheartedly worship and adore Him. I think He cares that I'm growing into the best Sandy Johnson He made me to become - one who displays the heart and character of Christ more and more each day.

Uh, oh. I sense a tension point here. Though spiritual practices are never the measure of a heart solely devoted to Christ, the more I become like Him, the more I will want to participate in the life He has to offer. The more I desire to grow, the more I will realize that growth requires me to put myself into positions to be taught and stretched by God. Some of these are spiritual practices.

It's easy to forgo reading the Bible or praying. It's simple to stay home on Sunday mornings or skip serving. Personal stagnation requires little to no effort on our part. Taking care of yourself spiritually requires more. It means placing yourself in positions to become more like Christ. And it means every time you encounter more of His truth, you yield more of yourself to that truth.

If you're the leader of an arts ministry, consider how you can work toward spiritual health yourself. Then lead your teams there. Artists who minister on the platform and behind the scenes must be yielded to Christ. There is no other option, if we are to draw people to God.

Introducing Online Consulting Resources

noreply@blogger.com (Sandy) — Wed, 07 Oct 2009 13:08:00 +0000

The Synergy Box has just released a series of online consulting resources for the creative arts ministry in your church. Online consulting, how does that work? Each resource is designed to introduce you to a critical topic on arts leadership, identity, culture or creativity and includes an overview of the topic and a discussion guide to help you lead your team through an assessment of your ministry in this area. After you've finished your discussion, you can email your notes to The Synergy Box, and within seven to ten days, you'll receive personalized suggestions for your church arts ministry.

The Synergy Box also offers telephone consulting and on-site consulting services. Check out our website at http://www.thesynergybox.com/.

Visit our booth at the Catalyst Conference in Atlanta this week!

Artistic Style in the Church

noreply@blogger.com (Sandy) — Mon, 21 Sep 2009 14:49:00 +0000

Should churches be traditional, blended, contemporary or edgy in artistic style? What do you think? When you walk into a church should it feel tried and true or should it surprise and even shock you? Yikes! Even trying to answer this question is kinda like walking up to a ticking bomb and trying to diffuse it with only ten seconds left on the clock (not that I've ever actually been in that situation to know what it really feels like). I'm guessing most of us would be inclined to run should we ever encounter a ticking bomb...and we likely feel the same way about a discussion on artistic style in the church.

While artistic style in the church can become a very complicated and even volatile issue in the church, I'd like to simplify it a bit with the following observations:

1. Art is subjective.

While one person will enjoy traditional worship, another will enjoy rock and roll. One is not better than another. Each one, however, will reach different people.

2. The artistic culture you create will attract some people but not others.

People may attend your church for the teaching or the community, but many picked your church because the style of the church suits their preferences. They probably picked your church because the art and the culture makes it feel like home to them. Others didn't like your music or culture and went elsewhere.

3. You need to choose your artistic style intentionally.

Because art is subjective and because people will tend to come based on the feel of your church, you must choose your artistic style carefully. Trying to be all things to all people dilutes your effectiveness. People have tons of choices when it comes to church (with the exception of smaller rural communities). Choose the style God had called you to and execute it with confidence. Your reach will be more effective when you focus on a target. It's still true that if you aim at nothing, you'll hit it every time.

My real point: Get clear on your church's artistic style. You'll do more for God's kingdom by addressing the issue head on than by only talking about it when the music of the day doesn't suit someone's personal preferences.

Relevance in the Church

noreply@blogger.com (Sandy) — Fri, 18 Sep 2009 22:10:00 +0000

Our churches must be relevant. Think about it. Do we really want the opposite to be true? Do we want our churches to be known as irrelevant? Certainly not! But when we say we want to create relevant worship services, what exactly do we mean? Are we just trying to be cool or hip? If we define the word relevant as the Encarta Dictionary does, “having some sensible or logical connection with something else such as a matter being discussed or investigated,” our churches simply must be relevant. Either we step up in this area, or people will label us irrelevant and tune us out completely.
To create relevant worship services, we must consider three types of relevance and how to create next steps:

1. Become spiritually relevant.
People come to church to meet with and understand God. Most likely, they didn’t walk into church to sit in a coffee shop, walk through a bookstore or attend a concert. When we plan and execute our worship services, we must be intentional about helping people experience and respond to God. His truths, found in scripture, are timeless and relevant. Let’s make a commitment in our churches to preach truth well and to help people open their Bibles and dig into scripture that moves their heart toward God.

2. Become relevant to daily life.
When someone sits through our services, do they feel we meet them where they’re at? No matter why people come to our churches, they are seeking an experience related to their daily life. If you live in a metropolitan area, seek to understand the concerns of those who live downtown. If you have a ton of parents, talk frequently about the joys and struggles of raising kids. If you’re a church with a high percentage of college students, talk about how they can make a difference with their one and only life. Most of our churches are filled with a mix of people, but if we’re intentional about speaking into the lives of our congregation, we will become relevant to their lives.

3. Become culturally relevant.
For many people, culturally relevance in the church is a sticking point. But the world will either see our churches as a source of truth or they will relegate us to the list of those out of touch with society. Becoming culturally relevant means we seek to include references to or aspects of our local, regional, national and global culture. If our area is being flooded, we need to speak to it. If our region is having an important holiday, we can use elements of it in the service. If our nation is currently attracted to a certain type of music, let’s consider using it. And if our world is worried about global warming, let’s figure out how we can take these concerns seriously. Cultural relevance does have a place in the church.

4. Provide next steps.

Whether it’s spiritual, life or cultural relevance, perhaps the best way for our churches to be relevant is to help people engage in worship and apply what we’re teaching about God in our services to their daily lives… Challenge those who attend your services to life-change. Give people a worthwhile assignment. Help them think differently about their Monday-thru-Saturday-life. Move their hearts to recognize their Creator. When we do this relevance goes beyond a point of connection and becomes a catalyst to point people to God.

What's Your Ministry DNA?

noreply@blogger.com (Sandy) — Thu, 17 Sep 2009 15:43:00 +0000

Churches have a certain feel to them. Walk into one church and it's friendly and laid back. Visit another and it's more formal and liturgical. Every church feels different. That's what I'd call church DNA. It's the visible and invisible culture of a church or ministry.

Ever think about how your church "feels" to the people to attend? To visitors? My guess is that the first time you entered your building or attended a church service, you thought a ton about it. You wondered if it felt right to you. You carefully critiqued the atmosphere, the people and the services. You wanted to know if you could feel at home at the church. You explored its DNA.

We either resonate with the DNA of a church or ministry or we don't. So, what if you're the leader and you don't like some of the things you discover about your DNA? Well, it can be changed, but be prepared for an intentional and lengthy change process, because DNA shifts require time, patience and visionary leadership.

For the most part, DNA is discovered, not decided. Ultimately changes over a long period of time can alter the DNA of your church or ministry, but for the most part, your church DNA is set. If you've always been known as the most friendly church in town, it's unlikely that you'll suddenly become unfriendly. If you've always valued solid Bible teaching, you're not going to give that up. But once you discover and understand your DNA, you can work with it...not against it.

Why not throw your energy behind your reputation as a "compassionate, friendly, authentic, forward-thinking church?" Or whatever positives your church is known for. It makes sense to build on those attributes of your church God is already using to move people toward Christ.

Artistic Ministry Values

noreply@blogger.com (Sandy) — Wed, 16 Sep 2009 20:28:00 +0000

How many times have creative people differed on the development of a creative service element? That's like asking how many ants are on my driveway at this moment? Too many to count! Artistic people drive creativity through their unique and distinctive thought processes. No two creative people see the same piece of art the same exact way! That's the beauty and the practical difficulty of working within a team of artists.

While we cannot and should not force all creative people to think the same way, we can help them communicate and work together better by creating a set of shared values. If we want creative people to behave in a certain way, we've got to make our expectations known. If your church values excellence, let your artists know. If you value authenticity, make that known. If you're into including everyone who wants to help, make sure everyone is on board with that vision. Do what it takes (typically a brainstorming meeting with your team) to list out your team's core values. Then figure out what it will require to ensure everyone who participates in your ministry knows and understands these values.

When your leaders and volunteers value the same things, powerful ministry can occur. But when you're all behaving out of a different value system, watch out. Trouble is right around the corner.

Vision

noreply@blogger.com (Sandy) — Mon, 14 Sep 2009 22:47:00 +0000

One of my very favorite topics is vision. I love visioneering: the act of envisioning a picture of your preferred future and catalyzing yourself, your team or your church toward it. My pulse increases when I talk vision with other leaders. My spirit lifts. My passion increases. I'm fanatical about vision.

So what is it that gets me all worked up about creating a picture of a preferred future? It's results. Leading a team of people toward a specific goals and watching them take joy in the journey is compelling. You get results when people pool their skills, gifts and energy toward a common future. Contrast that with managing people stuck in the nitty-gritty of a day to day tedium that moves people no where. No results. At least none that probably really matter.

My challenge for you today is to consider whether you have a picture of a preferred future for your ministry or your church. Or one for yourself personally. Where do you want to be in one year, five years, ten years. While the Holy Spirit must lead and guide and direct our steps, it's our job to plan. We plan, He guides. We step, He leads. Vision is not what we might do, not what we're thinking about doing...it's what we MUST do.

Craft a compelling vision today you will achieve results.

Arts Identity & Mission Statements

noreply@blogger.com (Sandy) — Thu, 10 Sep 2009 14:49:00 +0000

Do you have a target for your arts ministry? Sometimes we think of mission statements as that crusty old saying that people in the church can't remember and don't implement. If this is the case, then no wonder we would steer clear of creating one for our arts ministry. But if you understand your mission statement as a target that aligns decision making, perhaps you'll get on board with taking the time to develop a mission that serves your ministry.

A mission statement answers for you and everyone involved with your ministry these basic questions:

What?
How?
Why?

It tells you where to focus and acts as a decision making matrix for your ministry.

Check out this arts ministry mission statement from one of the teams I worked with:

Our arts ministry mission is to become God-inspired servants facilitating heart transformation.

What do you read in this statement? Hopefully you see we were about developing ourselves creatively (God-inspired), spiritually (becoming servants) and transformationally (facilitating heart transformation). Our focus was on creating a healthy team of people who were being transformed so they could bring transformation to others. This statement guided our decisions, helping us set targets for creativity, spiritual growth and task-related teamwork and transformation. And as we embodied the mission, we grew together in unity and toward increasing levels of impact.

Do you have an arts ministry mission statement? Are you using it to guide and direct your ministry decision?

Arts Team Needs

noreply@blogger.com (Sandy) — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 22:09:00 +0000

Art in the church is utilitarian. Hardly ever is a church or weekend service a gallery of art created for art's sake. In the church, we create art that moves hearts and souls toward Christ. We don't perform a drama or sing a solo simply to gratify ourselves and our own desires. We're aiming our art at a target (some of us more intentionally than others) and hoping we'll get to change some lives.

This distinct use of the arts in the church practically guarantees that the individual needs of artists will not be the same as the needs of a church artistic team. A church arts team needs:

strong overall performance
a sense of unity
a heart of mutual servanthood
transformational artistic content

As noted in the last post, artists need to be fulfilled, express themselves individually and be respected for their artistic identity. Not the same needs as the team, right!

Church arts leaders must be aware both the needs of individual artists and the needs of an entire arts team. Since they vary so widely and are sometimes polar opposites of each other, this is one area of the church where we might use extreme caution. No artist likes to feel insignificant. Nor does any team enjoy serving together in disunity with a lack of purposeful impact. If you're a church arts leader, choose wisely how you lead into meeting the needs of both artists and teams! Try building a culture of open handed artists who sacrifice, submit, communicate and respond to healthy leadership. When you fill this tension gap with the qualities of Christ and the purposes of the church artists grow willing to meet the needs of the team and ultimately find their own met in the process.

Individual Artist's Needs

noreply@blogger.com (Sandy) — Wed, 02 Sep 2009 14:28:00 +0000

Ever thought about the needs of your fellow artists? What if you're a leader in the church. Have you paid attention lately to whether or not the individual needs of those serving in your ministry are being met? If not, let's start now.

What do artists in the church need? Perhaps some need more than we're able to give and some don't need much at all. Here's a short list of what I've discovered I need to pay attention to when leading artists in the church:

artists need to have their gifting fulfilled, their artistic purpose for existing
artists need to maintain individuality, not loose their artistic identity
artists need acceptance & respect
artists need opportunities for individual artistic expression, serving in their sweet spots

Funny thing: what the church needs from artists doesn't always match what artists need.

So what to do? How do we maintain a sense of purposefulness in our churches while moving toward our church artists? My vote is to start with honesty. Do two things:

Be honest with your artists about which needs can be fulfilled in the church and which cannot. Do everything you can to help artists know their contributions are significant and relevant.
Yet teach them that the church does not exist to gratify the artistic desires of our congregation. The church is God's plan for redeeming a lost and broken world. Help artists get this straight in their minds, so they can volunteer with an attitude of servanthood.

10 Ways to Advocate for Church Artists

noreply@blogger.com (Sandy) — Tue, 01 Sep 2009 14:15:00 +0000

Artists in the church need a little bit of loving! Here are 10 ways you can advocate for their needs as you lead:

Vision - Paint a picture of the preferred future for your artists, so they can unite toward a goal that's bigger than themselves.

Servanthood - Help your artists see the value of servanthood, so the team can be about proclaiming God's message instead of self-promotion.

Information - Ask your pastor for sermon information at least three weeks in advance, so artists have time to create.

Preparation - Send music and scripts home several weeks in advance of a service, so your teams have time to prepare.

Rehearsals - Schedule rehearsals, so artists can rehearse not only their parts but how their parts fit into the whole.

Equipment - Ask for appropriate equipment, so your teams are not constantly frustrated with gear that doesn't work.

Budget - Give your teams enough money to allow creativity to flow, so that ideas are not immediately discounted because no money has been allotted for creative ministry.

Encouragement - Tell your artists when they're doing a great job, so they know their contribution is significant.

Constructive Feedback - Lovingly let your artists know when they're coming up short, so they want to keep raising the bar.

Hospitality - Find a place to set up a green room and supply it with basic food & beverages, so your artists will feel at home and cared for.

5 Ways to Influence Your Church

noreply@blogger.com (Sandy) — Fri, 28 Aug 2009 14:37:00 +0000

Ever wish you could change your church? I have. While change for the sake of change itself is never the goal, sometimes our churches get stuck in patterns of activity or ministry that are no longer effective. When this occurs, sitting in the pews (or even in a seat of leadership) and observing fruitless leadership or ministry can drive a person crazy.

So how can you gain influence in your church? How can you gain the ability to speak into ministry? Check out these five suggestions:

Be respectful - Criticizing and pulling in the opposite direction of your current leadership is a certain way to diminish your voice. Most pastors and leaders are doing the best they can. Offer respect for their efforts.
Get involved - Want to make your voice heard? Get into the trenches first by serving selflessly and earning the right to be heard. Your voice will mean more when you're a participant instead of an observer.
Offer support - Pastors and leaders in the church are super busy, so when you come alongside them and meet their immediate needs, you'll likely have space and opportunity to offer influence as well.
Offer solutions - If you see a problem, become a problem solver. Offer viable solutions to an existing problem and you will be seen as a partner in ministry, instead of a critic.
Stay positive - While you might easily picture a better future, you cannot expect your church to change overnight. Stay helpful and positive. It's one of the best ways you can continue to encourage and motivate your leaders.

Why does it matter? You may be the one to change a church for the better...and in the process offer eternal life and connection with God to hundreds if not thousands of people. Influence is an investment. Choose where to invest yours wisely.

Vision and Art

noreply@blogger.com (Sandy) — Thu, 27 Aug 2009 13:37:00 +0000

A few months ago, I was caught driving in a thunderstorm on my way from state to state. I knew I would need to drive into it, because the radar predicted storms all night, and I had my children with me. We couldn't stay where we were and yet we knew we'd have to face a huge storm to get where we needed to be. To make matters worse, tornadoes had touched down along the road we needed to travel along. After waiting for the right moment, double-checking the radar and saying a prayer, we set out.

At one point as we drove the rain was so intense the road seemed to disappear under the dark river of water and the windshield wipers refused to keep up with the torrent of rain. My stomach knotted up as I drove, seemingly knowing it was unsafe to keep going and unsafe to stop. It's amazing how much a situation like that fosters prayer! After several hours of wheel-gripping stress-producing driving, we made it home safely and without incident.

I am struck by the fact that sometimes leading in the church can feel an awful lot like my moments of terror on the road. We know we can't stay where we are, we know we need to move forward but we fear the journey will be filled with unpredictable and somewhat dangerous events. In times like this, we desperately need vision!

"Vision," says Andy Stanley, author of Visioneering, "is a clear mental picture of what could be, fueled by the conviction that it should be." I love this definition. We need both a picture of a preferred future and a conviction that moves us to action. Our churches need this type of vision.

So what role do the arts play in vision? Put basically, a clear mental picture of the future is just that: a picture. And painting pictures is what art does so well. Art acts as a tool for bringing both the mind, emotions and spirit together as you paint a portrait of a preferred future. Art connects a mental image with the story we're all living, while adding color, life and energy to the ideas. Art has the power to influence and convey your vision.

While all visions have those scary, dark moments when it seems like we cannot see the road ahead, art gives us the ability to focus our hearts and minds on the convictions we carry that move us ahead even during the difficult times. Art also helps us see the beauty of God's plans for our lives and churches, turning storm clouds into beacons that guide us home.

Let's use our art to help our churches see the wonder of bringing souls into God's Kingdom, the beauty of fully surrendering ourselves to our Maker and the plans God has for our own hope and future. Art speaks. It feels. It breathes into us. Let's harness the power of art to help us move to the places we know we need to be and toward the people we want to become.

The Influence of Worship

noreply@blogger.com (Sandy) — Wed, 26 Aug 2009 14:56:00 +0000

Ever since I can remember, I have been inspired by attending worship services. As a Kindergartner I listened in awe to our traditional church choir sing, all dressed up in fancy choir robes. As the melody drifted over me, I wanted to sing with them! Then there were Christmas pageants, and I got to dress up as an angel (thank goodness I didn't get the part of a sheep). Then children's choirs, solos in church and a youth traveling choir.

In high school, I got a chance to contribute even more. I directed my first drama in the church at age 17. It was a full Christmas pageant. Not terribly difficult, since it was a few pre-written scenes packaged between traditional choral music, but it was amazing! I got to help people worship.

Ever since I got my first taste of what it meant to lift up God's name in holy praise, I was in! I wanted to be part of the story. I wanted to create something that would suggest the fullness and beauty of God. Singing, dancing, acting or working behind the scenes...it didn't matter. I loved it all. Still do. (Well not the dancing so much anymore. We'll leave that to people who have maintained their flexibility.)

What I didn't realize at the time is that I have a heart of worship. And specifically, I have a heart to use creativity and the arts to help others experience and respond to God. That's what worship is all about. Worship is our response to our experience of God. It's our way to tell our Savior that we love Him, that He is good, that He is trustworthy and powerful. Worship is my way to reach out to God in the same way He's reached to me.

The life-giving power available to us as we breathe in the influence of our own worship and the worship of others changes us. It makes us more aware of our sinful and broken nature and the sacrifice God made to cover all our failings and separate them from us forever. It makes us more able to find freedom at Christ's throne. It helps us connect in relationship to our Maker. Worship cannot help but influence us.

Whether you express worship in music, service or simple prayers, I challenge you to embrace your own heart of worship and connect with the living God. It'll change you from the inside out. And if you're a leader of worship in the church, don't diminish the importance of your role. You help people respond to their experience of God! That's a high calling worthy of a well-spent life.

Inspiration

noreply@blogger.com (Sandy) — Tue, 25 Aug 2009 15:50:00 +0000

Did you know that one of the meanings of the word inspire is "to breathe into or upon; infuse with life by breathing?" That means when we're inspired by something we're actually changing at a deep level. We're taking life from that which gives us inspiration. Inspiration is breath that gives us life.

It feels empowering to be inspired: to have something sparked deep within that offers creativity, ideas, energy and growth. If you're not sure, consider what it feels like to be uninspired. Dead, unenthused and lifeless are words that come to my mind; being uninspired is energy draining. Inspired is just the opposite; it offers you new life.

So today, my challenge to you is to figure out what inspires you. The arts have significant influence in our lives. We are moved by drama done well, by a song that stirs our soul or by a video that captures our human experience. Combining both intellect and emotion, art activates both sides of our brains and helps us discover things about ourselves, our Maker and our human experience. How can you allow yourself to be captivated by inspiration today?