Willow ANZ

Making Things New

noreply@blogger.com (WillowANZ) — Mon, 03 Dec 2012 02:32:00 +0000

As we head towards the Christmas season we once again reflect on the significance of God the Father sending his son, our saviour Jesus, into his created world to redeem those whom he created. This morning I was reading that classic chapter in Romans 8 where Paul expresses that we are made free and alive in Christ through the sacrifice of Jesus. He came to make us new. We pray at Willow that through this Christmas season you will experience what it means to be a new creation, saved by the love, grace and mercy of our God.

I also want to share about some new things happenings at Willow. After some great years sharing space at Gateway Baptist Church, they are looking to expand their ministry and we are moving on to a new location. We are in the final stages of making these arrangements and will share with you details of our new location and new contact phone numbers in the near future. You may also experience some new people when you do contact us. After 6 years of service two of the longest serving members of the Willow team will not be with us from 2013. A few months ago Chris, our Resource and Membership Manager finished up with Willow and at the end of this year Megan, our Marketing and Communications Manager will be transitioning into a new career as a secondary school teacher. I want to acknowledge the contribution of Chris and Megan and wish them God’s blessings in their respective futures. I want to welcome Brad Suosaari, a former colleague of mine from SU Qld, as a new member to the team, and ask you to pray as we seek the services of a new Administrative Assistant.

God’s blessing to you over the Christmas season, and we pray that you will have a relaxing summer to recharge yourself for service to God in 2013.

Andrew McCafferty

CEO Willow Creek Australia

An Ancient And Healthy Tension

noreply@blogger.com (WillowANZ) — Tue, 20 Nov 2012 23:10:00 +0000

reposted from http://www.wcablog.com

Tastes great, less filling
One of the longest running and most successful advertising campaigns of all time was produced by the Miller Brewing Company celebrating their famous Miller Lite beer. The tag line was “tastes great, less filling.” They would feature all sorts of celebrities engaged in arguments over which claim was greater. Did Miller Lite taste great or was it less filling? (Those of us of an older vintage will remember a similar advertising campaign about Certs. Was it a breath mint or a candy mint?) Now the obvious point behind this advertising campaign is that both claims can be wonderfully true (unless you’re a beer snob). A beverage can both taste great and yet not fill you up. There is no need to have an argument over it.

Living with the tension
But we like arguing over such things. We are often not so comfortable with the tension of competing values. Many people enjoy living in a more tidy world where everything is either black or white, right or wrong, this way or that way, democrat or republican, right or left, tastes great or less filling. Yet, when we reflect carefully on our lives, we realize that it is hard to ever capture a situation, or a truth, or an experience, or almost anything with such hard-edged and air-tight categories. Life is more nuanced than that. There are many facets to the diamonds of these lives we live. One of the more important life skills we can develop is a deep appreciation of the tensions in this world. We can learn to carry competing values with a curious and discerning mind.

Missional versus Formational
Which brings us to a current tension in the religious world today: the competing values of being missional while at the same time attending to the spiritual formation of our lives with God. The missional people are those who argue that the driving focus of the church must be directed towards the needs of this world and the people of this world. We are to give our lives away for the sake of the world. On the other hand, the formational people are those who emphasize that in order to give our lives away, we must first have a life that is worth giving away. In order to effectively bear witness to the goodness and grace and transforming power of God, these truths must first be a living, authentic reality in us.

And so the argument goes. Missional people will call the formational people self-absorbed navel-gazers who are content to let the world go to hell in a hand-basket while they light candles and chant the psalms. Formational people will call the missional people shallow activity-junkies who jump on every popular cause that comes along as a way to ignore their own disordered and fragmented lives.

An ancient tension: The contemplative and the active life
Fascinatingly enough, there is nothing new with this tension. It is the ancient tension between the contemplative life and the active life. This tension has always been a creative dynamic of the Church. From the desert fathers and mothers of the fourth and fifth centuries to the missionary movement of the nineteenth century, contemplatives and activists have called the Church either to a deeper, more transformative life with God or to a more courageous, vigorous engagement in mission and evangelism. The truth is obvious. We need both. And from time to time the Holy Spirit will call the people of God to a needed corrective of either contemplation or activity, being or doing.

We will find this tension in our own lives as well. We will discover seasons where we are called to pull away from all the activity and doing and learn how to sink our lives deeper into God. At other seasons we will be called to get up off our knees and roll up our sleeves and engage fully in service to this world. To go do something. To make a difference.

The crucial role of the church
The most beautiful and ideal place where this ancient tension can be creatively and wonderfully lived out is the local church. In every church there will be those who are primarily called to formation and others to mission. In other words, some of us will primarily be contemplatives while others will be activists. And here is the crucial truth: we need each other. It is possible to live well with this tension. It will take maturity and historical grounding to do this well, but it is entirely possible to learn how to do this. We can argue vigorously for the importance of our particular calling, while at the same time celebrating and realizing our desperate need for those whose calling is different than ours. It appears that this is how God has designed and built his Church, so it would be wise for us to joyfully receive this gift of each other. There is no need to argue here. The church can both taste great and be less filling.

Suggestions for further reflection or next steps:

For the Activist:

Go hang out with someone who leans towards contemplation and ask them to speak in detail about their life with God. Listen closely and learn.
Go on a day-long private retreat and just be alone with God and see what happens.
Read a book that emphasizes contemplation and spiritual formation: “Way of the Heart” by Henri Nouwen; “Renovation of the Heart” by Dallas Willard

For the Contemplative:

Go hang out with someone who leans towards activism and ask them to speak in detail about their life of service to others. Listen closely and learn.
Go serve at a soup kitchen or get involved in some activity where you are working hard to accomplish something.
Read a book that emphasizes activism and mission: “Friendship at the Margins” by Chris Huertz and Christine Pohl; “Compassion” by Henri Nouwen, Donald McNeill, and Douglas Morrison; “The Hole in our Gospel” by Richard Sterns

Old Testament vs. New Testament

noreply@blogger.com (WillowANZ) — Thu, 18 Oct 2012 07:48:00 +0000

It’s a common belief these days that the God of the Old Testament and the God of the New Testament are different. The former is seen as violent and aggressive while the latter is loving and kind. This view is not only restricted to non-believing people. My experience from talking to other Christians, and even the witness of my own heart says that at times, we Christians also want to see some level of difference between Yahweh and the Lord Jesus.

Why is this the case?

I think deep down we’re actually scared of the God we meet in the Old Testament. This holy God, who will not tolerate sin in human beings and brings upon us, even those he calls his most treasured possession, the most severe punishments for their unholiness. (Deut 7:6) And if this is the true character of God, even a short stocktake of our lives makes us fearful of what will happen when God comes to examine us. So to alleviate our fears, we say that this Old Testament God is not really God. Rather we look to the loving and kind Lord Jesus who forgives and accepts as the true revelation of God.

But Jesus won’t let us draw this distinction. Far from separating himself from the Old Testament, Jesus in fact aligns himself with it, fulfilling all its prophecies. (Mt 5:17; Lk 24:44) Jesus will even go as far as to adopt for himself himself the title “I am”, using the very words that Yahweh used in his revelation to Moses. (Jn 8:58)

Where does this leave us? Should we fear the Lord Jesus too? Wonderfully the answer is ‘no’. We need not fear the Lord Jesus or even Yahweh. Yes God has a hatred of sin. Yes he is holy and therefore punishes sin without favouritism. But it is because God hates sin so much, and is so committed to bringing justice to the world for our sin that God willingly took upon himself the punishment for our sin. Driven by love for humanity, God became human so that he might pay the price for humanity’s sin, so that we might have life in place of death.

In the end we don’t actually win by saying the God of the Old and New Testaments are different. Rather it is in embracing their consistency through the lens of the death and resurrection of Jesus, that we are freed from our fear of meeting God because as the Psalmist testifies “as far as the east is from the west, so far does he remove our transgressions from us.” (Psa 103:12)

Mike Begbie

Theology Student

2012 Global Leadership Summit - Chicago Review

noreply@blogger.com (WillowANZ) — Tue, 04 Sep 2012 00:00:00 +0000

From a former US Secretary of State to the two foremost world class business consultants, to leading edge pastors, the speakers at this year’s Global Leadership Summit are outstanding.

In his usual inspiring and down to earth way Bill Hybels challenges us make the most of the privilege that we have as leaders, and reminds us that there is no greater force on earth than the local church when it is working well. Condoleezza Rice reflects on her story of humble beginnings to become a leading academic and then US secretary of State. Jim Collins in new groundbreaking research shares the factors that have contributed to the long term success of great companies. Patrick Lencioni draws on his experience to share of the vital place of organisational health. Pastor Craig Groeschel exhorts us to create a culture of honour between generations, and Pastor John Ortberg reminds us of a leader’s influence as he unpacks the remarkable influence of Jesus as a leader. The impact that a leader can have is demonstrated in the stories of Pranitha Timothy bringing hope to vulnerable women in India, and Geoffrey Canada an educational campaigner championing the cause of children in America’s poorest communities.

In powerful video cast presentations this year’s Summit presenters will inspire, encourage and equip you to grow in your leadership vision and capacity. Join us at one of the 13 locations around the country and be ready to have your minds expanded and hearts engaged.

For more reflections on the Summit, check out these posts of Chicago Day One and Chicago Day Two by Stu Cameron, Facilitator and Host Paster of the Gold Coast Summit Site.

Andrew McCafferty

CEO, Willow Creek Australia

Camps Are The New Mountains

noreply@blogger.com (WillowANZ) — Thu, 23 Aug 2012 23:57:00 +0000

There is a noticeable trend throughout the life of Jesus when it comes to mountains. Whenever he goes up one, something very significant happens. Something that changed his life and ours. Here are a just a few:

Matthew 4 - Testing by Satan.

Satan takes Jesus up a mountain to tempt Him. Jesus withstands the temptation and confirms his allegiance to God.

Matthew 5 - Sermon on the Mount.

Jesus saw the crowds and went up a mountain to teach. Arguably the most influential Sermon in history.

Matthew 17 - Transfiguration.

Peter, James and John go up a mountain with Jesus where he is transfigured to have a face shining like the Sun. Experiencing God's affirmation on his life.

Matthew 27 - Crucifixion.

Jesus goes up Calvary to be crucified for all mankind. He pays the cosmic debt that only he could pay and becomes the Saviour of the world.

While there are still mountains today, most of us don't experience them like Jesus did. That's because, in our culture, Camps are the New Mountains. Camps have become the places where God seems to do significant and life changing work in our lives. While Jesus calls us to follow Him daily as he transforms us, camps create an intentional and conducive environment for the Spirit of God to really move within people.

I believe God loves it when leaders take a group of people go away with the united purpose of experiencing God's love and grace in a way that will not only transform them individually but also as a community. I continually hear stories of leaders who set aside a week or a weekend for God to move, and He turns up in mighty ways. I have experienced this and I am sure that you have too. Whether it's been 20 years or 2 months since you last went on a camp, a lot of us can recall defining moments in our faith that occurred on Camps.

In 2000, when I was in Grade 9, I went on a youth camp, the whole week the preacher was boring and I actually fell asleep sometimes. On the last night however, God gave me a shove and I realised just how broken I was and how much I needed God’s grace to change my life. In 2008, I was on another youth camp only this time as the preacher, and again I experienced God's grace like never before as he showed me that he was changing lives through me.

I am convinced that camps (as old as the concept is) are very powerful and practical tools for leaders to use as they develop people into passionate Jesus followers who actually want to change the world.

Luke Williams

Youth & Young Adults Pastor

Wollongong Church of Christ

Biblical Leadership Characteristics

noreply@blogger.com (WillowANZ) — Fri, 10 Aug 2012 02:37:00 +0000

Some of the best leadership principles are discerned through strategic Bible study. Recently in reading two scripture verses from Hebrews I became aware that the writer really understood leadership. Here are the verses and what I gleaned from them.

Hebrews 13: 7 and 17, “Remember your leaders, who spoke the word of God to you. Consider the outcome of their way of life and imitate their faith… Obey your leaders and submit to their authority. They keep watch over you as people who must give an account. Obey them so that their work will be a joy, not a burden, for that would be of no advantage to you.”

The following leadership principles stood out for me:

Leaders need the prayers of their people – remember them. Leadership can be very lonely at times, extremely demanding and quite risky. Many leaders have intercessors who pray for them regularly.
They speak God’s word because they are steeped in it. My practice is to read about four chapters of the bible each day and to write in a journal what I perceive God is saying to me. Consequently when I speak and preach I can bring fresh bread to hungry people.
They have fruitful outcomes. They get results, bearing the fruit that indicates excellent time management and shows that they are disciples of Jesus. (John 15: 8)
They are teachers and mentors worth emulating and their faith is an example to follow.
They carry authority in their very being through living a life of integrity, excellent character and high competency. Hence they deserve willing “obedience.” Serving such a leader is satisfying because they have the passion and skill to grow your leadership and your capacity.
They carry great responsibility; they keep watch and consider the big picture. They study trends and they monitor progress. They consider the whole of the organisation and how each part relates to the whole. They also, together with others in the organisation, decide what is to be done and what is to be left undone.
They are accountable. Perhaps more than others in the organisation they have to report on progress and account for their leadership and the health and productivity of the organisation.
Wise and fruitful leaders gain success through the people they mentor, release and empower in leadership. They surround themselves with people who complement their own strengths, and in other areas are smarter than they are. Hence they have inner security in Christ, excellent self-acceptance and deep humility.
They experience much joy in their leadership, because they are at the helm of a very effective organisation and, particularly through empowering others, they also have excellent life balance which creates a healthy culture throughout the organisation.

Good leaders read widely on leadership. Great Christian leaders also wisely read the Bible, for in it is a wealth of wisdom that enhances leadership excellence.

Rev Dr Dean Brookes

Leading In The Small Organisation

noreply@blogger.com (WillowANZ) — Fri, 03 Aug 2012 03:58:00 +0000

Eighteen months ago I left a leadership position in a large parachurch organisation, following a call from God to come to lead the Willow Creek Association in Australia. From a leaders perspective it may seem like an odd move and almost a “step back” in leadership. But what I have discovered about leadership and the size of the organisation has been quite surprising. Let me share some of my experiences and insights.

Larger enterprises don’t necessarily demand better leadership. In fact in some ways smaller enterprises demand more of a leader than larger ones. Let me elaborate. Larger enterprises generally have more “elasticity”. They can spring back from errors of judgment with less impact. In a team of 60, a few poor performers are felt less than in a team of 6. A minor poor financial decision in a budget of millions is very different to one in a budget of less than a million. The point is this, the value of preciseness in leadership in a small enterprise can be a matter of life or death. In a larger enterprise, while preciseness is important, the consequence of some “slack” may not mean shutting the doors tomorrow.

Each decision a leader makes is an important one, and it may seem as though the larger organisations require better decision makers. But in the context of risk, there may be far greater risks for the decision maker in the small organisation than the large one. The wrong staff or volunteer appointment, the wrong financial call may lead to a quick demise of the organisation or church. The perception may be that the pressure on decision makers in larger organisations is greater, but this is not necessarily so. In a small tight knit group the decision that Greg a lovely guy who has poured his life into music ministry, is not actually particularly gifted in this area and needs to be moved aside, ripples through the small church in a way that would not be the case in a larger one. And the leader who makes this decision knows that s/he is risking many relationships amongst other things.

Larger organisations have the capacity to engage specialists, whereas smaller organisations tend to demand a broader range of skills from fewer people. The youth pastor may also be the part time receptionist and graphic designer for church publications. And when s/he resigns you can’t just cover the gap by pulling a staff member from a less critical area, because everyone is engaged in a critical area.

So I want to hail the leader of the small enterprise who faces challenges and pressures in ways that leaders of larger organisations don’t. Sometimes we feel at Willow Creek that there is a perception that we exist for leaders from larger churches and organisations. Not true! God has called each of us to lead where we are, the phrase you will find firmly attached to our Global Leadership Summit.

Andrew McCafferty

CEO, Willow Creek Australia

An 'Un-Fun' Experience

noreply@blogger.com (WillowANZ) — Mon, 09 Jul 2012 00:34:00 +0000

I’ve recently been in ‘church shopping’ mode. It was a strange experience for me as in all my previous 27 years walking this earth, I’d never ever done it before. But after finishing up at my church as the Youth Pastor in order to study fulltime, we decided it was the best idea.

Leading up to the experience I thought it would be fun. I thought I’d enjoy the process. Going to different churches, checking them out, critiquing, thinking about what I liked and didn’t like. But pretty soon I found the process frustrating, saddening, not all it was cracked up to be.

This has taught me two things.

Humans need humans.

Christians need Christians.

We are built for relationships. We cannot survive in this world on our own. After about two months of being without a church to call home I began to feel lonely. Sure, I had friends from my old church, and family around still. But I didn’t have a home.

The bible tells us in Hebrews that we should, 'consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another...' I'd always known that it was important to go to church, but it wasn't until I was without a home, that I realised just how important it is. In fact I know now that I'd rather be in a church that frustrated me than be in no church at all.

So because relationships matter, churches must be friendly. We ended up choosing the friendliest church. Not the one with best music, or best preaching, or slickest services. No, we chose the church where multiple people said hello, who invited us out for lunch afterwards; and backed up its friendliness on our second and third visit. Many of the churches we visited struggled. Sometimes we sat in the foyer alone for 15 minutes drinking a cup of tea by ourselves. On another occasion the only people who talked to us were the ones who were supposed to (minister/person with a name tag that said welcomer on it).

Christians need Christians. We need the different parts of the body to bless and encourage us, and we need to use our gifts to bless and encourage the body (1 Corinthians 12). So I need church and church needs me. You need church and church needs you. I believe that if we worked hard on making our churches places of love and openness, which were quick to welcome and show hospitality to strangers (aka newcomers), then we would see many more people darken the doors of church and begin a journey following in the footsteps of Jesus.

Chris Bowditch

Theology Student

www.youthministryandme.com

Bill Hybels’ hardest years

noreply@blogger.com (WillowANZ) — Mon, 25 Jun 2012 00:59:00 +0000

As one of the founders of Willow Creek Community Church, Bill Hybels knows the sacrifice that comes with starting a church. At the 2012 Exponential Conference on April 25 in Orlando, Florida, he spoke with church planters about their early successes and struggles planting Willow. And he invited his wife, Lynne, and two grown children, Shauna and Todd to join him for the interview.

“The first five years after Willow started were one of the hardest experiences of my life,” Bill shared with church planters. “I did a lot of scrambling. In the first five years it was like 25, 100-yard dashes a day.”

Willow Creek began meeting in a theatre in Palatine in 1975 with approximately 100 people in attendance—most of them from a youth group who had met in the suburbs of Chicago. After six years of steady growth, the church took a leap of faith and committed to build a building at its current location in South Barrington.

“When I look out at a crowd like this and see how many of you are in the first five to ten years of a church plant, I just want to sprinkle pastor dust all over you and wish you well,” he said. “I think [church planting] is inherently messy. I think it’s inherently confusing. I think it’s inherently complex. We can help, and council, and bless each other, but one of the toughest things I’ve ever been through is the first five or ten years of planting Willow,” he said.

It was hard on his family, too. “We didn’t have anybody giving us any direction or council,” Bill’s wife, Lynne said. “We weren’t a part of any organization. There were no church planters’ organizations that we knew of back then.”

But as a family they were still able to make some good decisions. “We made a decision that if we had to choose between disappointing people in our congregation or our kids, we would disappoint the congregation because if they don’t like us they can go to another church, but our kids are stuck with us,” said Lynne.

“It was important for us to keep focused on our family while building into the church we were planting,” said Bill. “When our two kids arrived, nothing ever touched me as deeply. The thought of leaving these kids in the jet stream of a fast-moving church was unconscionable to me,” he said. “[My family] is my ultimate, lifelong small group. They are my permanent community. What do you have when you drive away from your church after 35 to 40 years if you don’t have an ultimate community?”

With a belief that after a church planter has established the fundamental commitments and isn’t going to quit, Bill believes it is becomes a matter of managing the commitments. “The idea of bailing on this, and I don’t mean this unkindly, I think it’s the coward’s way out. I think it requires more courage to be a covenant keeper—your covenant with your calling to God, your covenant to your marriage, and your covenant to your children,” he said. “I had to pray to God, that unless you take my life or release me from my call at Willow, I’m going to serve this church with my heart, soul, mind, and strength every day. I’m not breaking that covenant.”

reposted from http://www.wcablog.com

William Ury: A Yes Man Says No

noreply@blogger.com (WillowANZ) — Sun, 24 Jun 2012 23:27:00 +0000

The co-author of Getting to Yes: Negotiating Agreement Without Giving In (1981), William Ury knows a few things about mediation. For 30 years, he has served as a negotiation adviser and mediator in conflicts around corporate mergers, wildcat strikes in a Kentucky coal mine, ethnic wars in the Middle East, the Balkans, and the former Soviet Union, and even family disputes. With former President Jimmy Carter, he co-founded the International Negotiation Network, an organization dedicated to ending civil wars around the world. Along the way, he has taught negotiation skills to thousands of corporate executives, diplomats, labor leaders, and military officers helping organizations reach mutually beneficial agreements.

Getting to YES focused on finding acceptable solutions through “principled negotiation.”

But after nearly 25 years of getting to yes, this yes man said no. As the father of a baby with serious medical problems, he realized that in order to make positive choices about her health, he would have to oppose new medical procedures that he felt were inappropriate.

In The Power of Positive No: How to Say No & Still Get to Yes, Ury offers the following tips:

Uncover your deeper YES (a core interest, need, or value), express it to the other person, and stay true to your yes.
Deliver a respectful NO. Keep your tone neutral and matter-of-fact and empower your NO with a Plan B.
Negotiate to a healthy YES. A healthy YES yields a positive outcome. Follow your NO with a positive proposal and facilitate a wise agreement.

“In order to say yes to what’s truly important, you first need to say no to other things,” says Ury. “No is the new Yes,” he says. “And the “positive no” may be the most valuable life skill you’ll ever learn.”

reposted from http://www.wcablog.com

5 Ways to Embed Evangelism in Your Culture

noreply@blogger.com (WillowANZ) — Wed, 20 Jun 2012 00:12:00 +0000

Few people would claim that evangelism comes naturally. In fact, for most, it means taking risks and stepping outside their comfort zones. But Christ doesn’t ask those with the gift of evangelism to be the only ones to share their faith. He asks all of us. When it comes to embedding a culture of evangelism in a church, it boils down to this:

1. Live a lifestyle of personal evangelism
Pastors can engage in very specific steps to embed a culture of evangelism in their church, starting by living it themselves. When the pastor and the leadership of the church are fired up about living a lifestyle of evangelism, they are sending a clear message to the congregation that it is a priority.

2. Teach regularly about evangelism
Walking the walk is key, but so is talking the talk. Pastors need to teach about evangelism on a regular basis.

3. Provide training to equip the congregation in how to engage in personal evangelism
It’s important to offer training classes that can help people learn how to share their faith. At Willow we recently began offering Alpha and Just Walk Across the Room trainings to equip the congregation in personal evangelism. And we didn’t just offer it to adults; we also offered an age-appropriate training for kids. If kids can learn the importance of personal evangelism at an early age, it can set them on that path for the rest of their lives.

4. Vision cast the importance of evangelism every few months
Every time there is an opportunity to vision cast about the mission of the church, evangelism should be at the top of the list. When we offer support groups to those who are hurting, we want people to get healing and meet the great Healer—Jesus Christ. When we open the doors to provide immediate relief (food, clothing, etc.) in times of crisis, we want to introduce people to Christ because He is the One who meets all our needs. At the heart of outreach, there is a burning desire to see people come to faith. Don’t pass up an opportunity to vision cast to every ministry about the impact they’re having on reaching people for Christ.

5. Celebrate!
And it’s always important to celebrate. The Bible says that every time someone crosses the line of faith, there is rejoicing in heaven (Luke 15:10). For us at Willow, every June the entire congregation gathers at the lake on our campus for a lakeside Baptism. People bring picnics and sit on blankets on the shore and as people are baptized, there is a lot of shouting, cheering, and celebrating!

Bill Hybels (@BillHybels)
Senior Pastor, Willow Creek Community Church
Chairman of the Board, Willow Creek Association

reposted from http://www.wcablog.com

Going Deeper to Go Further

noreply@blogger.com (WillowANZ) — Fri, 15 Jun 2012 01:49:00 +0000

There is an emerging trend taking place as a new generation of Christian leaders come to the fore. We have tended to promote people into leadership on the basis of their performance, what they have done and achieved. As important as this is, and it certainly is important, we are seeing an equal or greater importance being placed on the character of leaders.

I recently engaged in the LIFT course, "Leading for Results", taught by Dr Henry Cloud. The title of this course may lead you to think it was about what we do to get results. The focus of this course however was not on what we do, but who we are as leaders, our character. The effective leader, according to Dr Cloud is the one who can go deeper in order to go further. We need to be growth orientated, growth meaning Getting Real - Owning Wholeness. Dr Cloud teaches us to live integrated lives as leaders, bringing the sum of our parts into a healthy wholeness. To become whole we need to go deep, own our current reality, invite others to speak truth in our lives and connect intentionally, often and intimately with God.

As the leader of the WCA in Australia, I recently invited Mindy Caliguire, Director of Transformstion Ministry at WCA to join myself and Dr Keith Farmer a retired seminary principal, psychologist and pastor to lead a series of seminars with church leaders. Our theme was "Stop Well to Go Well." When leaders hear the call to rest and nurture their inner lives, to build their character, so they can grow and thrive, they innately know this to be true. Can I encourage you from my vantage point as a leader within the worldwide WCA movement who engages with many leaders who are deeply tired from over activity, to consider the need to re-orientate yourself towards growth, Get Real - Own Wholeness.

Andrew McCafferty

CEO Willow Creek Australia

Geoffrey Canada’s Thoughts on Leadership

noreply@blogger.com (WillowANZ) — Wed, 13 Jun 2012 02:51:00 +0000

If you saw Waiting for Superman, a documentary on the state of public education in America, you might recognize Geoffrey Canada. The president of Harlem Children’s Zone (HCZ), Canada transformed the organization in the late 90s into a center that actively follows the academic careers of youths in a 24-block area of Harlem. The model was so successful, that today the area covers 97 blocks. The New York Times calls it “one of the biggest social experiments of our time.” President Obama announced plans to replicate the Harlem Children’s Zone (HCZ) model in 20 other cities in the US.

Harlem Children’s Zone isn’t simply helping children beat the odds, it’s helping to change the odds.

• Leadership by consensus sounds good, but it’s difficult because persuading everyone to do one thing is almost impossible.

• When you move away from a “leadership by consensus” model, people might not like you. They’ll think you’re in charge and want to do things your way. Being a good manager and having people like you aren’t always the same thing.

• Trying to persuade people to do things your way can be a waste of time. You might be better off to thank them for their difference of opinion, suggest they do something else with their life, and proceed with the people who are ready to move forward.

• A leader’s approach should be to respect people’s opinions and listen to the issues, but once a decision is made, people have to make it their job to carry it out.

• Sometimes leaders have to make decisions that are risky, but risk-taking can be important in moving your organization forward.

• A leader must drive the team to innovate. Help them figure out how to do things better and smarter. It’s a constant process.

• Innovation doesn’t last forever. In fact, it will last for about 18 months. If you don’t come back and reenergize it after 18 months, it will go downhill.

• People get excited about brand new ideas, but you must pay attention to the things that are fundamental to your business or organization.

• Assure people on your team that there’s no negative side to bringing up a problem and asking for support.

• To manage well, a leader must understand the underlying dynamics of a group. Be transparent with your team and that will help neutralize some of the anxiety in a group, then you can be about solving problems.

• Be willing to learn from those who are doing things better than you are.

• No one wants to have “difficult” conversations and few are trained to do it. But a leader must be willing to tell people the truth.

• Work with people who have struggled to do difficult things. Someone who has never experienced a setback may have a tough time working for your organization. Hire people who are the best and who are on a mission to make your business or organization better than it is.

• Steer away from hiring people who see the job as an extension of their ego or who want to use it to their personal advantage.

• Hire people with a decent sense of humor. Most of us work hard doing hard work and are under a lot of stress. If the workplace has a healthy sense of humor, you can take yourselves seriously and make fun of yourselves at the same time.
(Adapted from “The Corner Office” by Adam Bryant, Times Books)

View Geoffrey Canada in a segment of Meet the Press that addressed Education Nation.

reposted from http://www.wcablog.com

So... what DO you expect?

noreply@blogger.com (WillowANZ) — Mon, 04 Jun 2012 07:27:00 +0000

In the family welcome and check in area for our kid’s ministry we have a Giant Gumball machine. Children often come with their coins in hand, looking with great anticipation as they place their money in the slot, turn the handle and crouch down waiting for the Gumball to come down the chute and out the bottom. They know that every time their money goes in the gumball comes out; it’s consistent and reliable. On a rare occasion, for no particular reason, they get two, and that’s just a bonus!

These same children have expectations as they walk through the doors of our ministry. They expect to see people they know, friends and leaders; familiar faces.

They love to be known, recognised as they are greeted by name or have their birthday or some other significant event remembered. Children expect to have fun!

As leaders we expect to teach the Bible in a creative way, in a way that is relevant, memorable and applicable to our kids in their everyday lives. Our volunteers expect to be able to use their skill, passion and gifts in a meaningful way.

However, frustration and disappointment set in when expectations are continually unmet.

In ministry this is a constant tension: managing the expectations of children, parents, team, church and, of course, ourselves. Expectations need to be realistic, achievable and sustainable. We manage expectations by creating language around them; painting a picture of “what could be”. Disclosing the purpose behind these expectations helps our teams see that these are not rules; they are values.

As a ministry leader we want to promise only what we can deliver. We have a picture in our minds of what things could look like and what it will take to get there, yet naming current reality helps everyone pace themselves on the journey.

I have an expectation that each child will come to the same service every week and be in the same small group with the same leader. Currently this is not true for every child so we manage the expectations of our parents by describing some of our groups as “intentional small groups”, our preferred picture, and some as simply “small groups”; not yet where we want them to be but nevertheless meeting a need.

Being aware of expectations helps us as a leader to think more critically, and evaluate more rigorously, what we do and why we do it. Are we consistent in what we provide for our kids and families both programmatically and relationally? Do we try to have leaders in the room with whom they can really connect or do we simply roster people because that is easiest?

Our expectations will have a significant impact on the results we see. When we anticipate life change then we plan for it, vision cast it, teach for it and look for it; not resting until we see our expectations becoming a reality.

Imagine if all those within your ministry had expectations that were aligned under the one strategy?
Imagine if everyone spoke the same language and had the same end in mind. How would your reality change?

Your ministry does not stand alone. It’s not up to you to do it all by yourself. Getting others on the same page takes time, intention and strategy. Be willing to work together on a common picture with other ministry leaders. Paint the picture of what you want to see then communicate it with passion and enthusiasm.

Margaret Spicer

Children and Families Pastor

Crossway Baptist Church, Melbourne

Meet Patrick Lencioni

noreply@blogger.com (WillowANZ) — Thu, 24 May 2012 06:53:00 +0000

Advantage: Lencioni
To lead your organization, church, or team to long-term sustainable success, you need an advantage. And Patrick Lencioni knows what it is. In his newest book, The Advantage: Why Organizational Health Trumps Everything Else in Business, he makes the case that organizational health will surpass all other disciplines in business as the greatest opportunity for improvement and competitive advantage. Lencioni is bursting with high energy leadership wisdom and we’re thrilled to have him back at the Summit to train and encourage you right where you’re leading today.

Messy, Imperfect, and…Healthy
An organization is healthy when it is whole, consistent, and complete; when its management operations and culture are unified. Healthy organizations are free of politics and confusion, and provide an environment where star performers never want to leave.

In The Advantage, Lencioni takes a holistic, comprehensive approach to improving organizational health. And how does he define a healthy organization? Healthy companies are messy and imperfect. They argue, make mistakes, and try things that don’t work. But they know who they are, what they believe in, and what they’re trying to accomplish Employees want to work there, they have loyal consumers, and extremely humble leaders who know why they are there and what the organization is all about.

Fable: Business and management meet the fictional narrative

Lencioni has become the king of dealing with management issues within the context of a fable. “I thought readers would be able to relate to the characters and issues they were facing in their businesses if I wrote the books as fables,” he says. And writing fiction came easily for him. As an amateur screenwriter, he knew how to bring ideas to life by using characters and dialogue.

In The Advantage, however, Lencioni takes a U-turn from styles of his other management books. “The nature of the subject matter is too broad to fit within the context of one story,” he says. Previous books focused on more limited issues—teamwork, meetings, employee engagement.

The Vulnerable Leader
What is the first thing people can do to improve the organizational health of the company where they work? According to Lencioni, it starts with the individual and their team. “Leaders need to understand what it is to be vulnerable. Vulnerability inspires trust on the leadership team and that trust is the foundation for teamwork—one of the cornerstones of organizational health.” The concept of vulnerability has a trickle-down effect. If a leader refuses to be vulnerable, refuses to admit mistakes, shortcomings, or weaknesses, others will follow suit. “When that happens,” says Lencioni,” organizational health is impossible.”

Lencioni, a business consultant with a diverse base of clients including a mix of Fortune 500 companies, churches, the military, professional sports organizations, non-profits, and universities, speaks to thousands of leaders each year, including the Willow Creek Association’s Global Leadership Summit. His most recent books are Getting Naked: A Business Fable About Shedding the Tree Fears That Sabotage Client Loyalty (2010), The Three Big Questions for a Frantic Family (2008), and The Advantage (2012).

reposted from http://www.wcablog.com

Training

noreply@blogger.com (WillowANZ) — Wed, 16 May 2012 07:51:00 +0000

With the growth in the workload on many pastors in the last few years, there has been an ever-increasing number of lay people ministering in church – and all-member ministry has become more of a reality. All to the good – until something goes terribly wrong, because the untrained are being entrusted with tasks they simply cannot do.

Why are we so suspicious of training in the church? There are three main reasons.

The first is that training is seen as unspiritual. The disciples never went to Bible College, we quip, and they started a church that had three thousand members in its first week or so. True, but they had three years of day by day instruction from Jesus. Paul trained those he worked with – we wouldn't have some of the letters if he hadn't seen the passing on of his wisdom and experience as crucial.

The second reason can be because, it seems to take so long. Most of us are far too busy doing the job to have time to train others to do it. And when we do delegate, they make a mess of it, so it’s obviously better to do it ourselves. Right? Wrong! In the long-term, it is much better to get ten people to do the work than to do the work of ten people.

The final reason can be the leader's insecurity. ‘What if people discover others are more gifted than me?’ ‘Will the congregation respect me less if others start doing certain aspects of my job better than I do?’ Let’s pray that both these things happen!

So how do we get on with training? The following four steps can form a framework for action:

1. Envision

The church family must be made aware of the needs and their responsibilities in relation to meeting them: workers are needed to maintain current ministries and to develop new ones. God’s plan has always been to use leaders to train His people to do the ministry – not for His people to watch the leaders do the ministry!

Perhaps a sermon series could be preached, or a series of Bible studies planned. In as many different ways as possible the congregation needs to be alerted to their biblical responsibilities. One small, practical way to envision the church in this area is to publish a ‘jobs list’. That is, a complete list of everything that is done in church life to keep its ministries going.

Add to this list tasks the church should be doing and tasks you would like it to be doing, and you have a clear indication that there is something for everyone to do! Some of the jobs can be done simply enough, but most will require an element of training, some quite extensively.

2. Recruit

Asking for volunteers can be dangerous! It often results in the wrong people volunteering. It is sometimes useful, however, to ask for volunteers on a ‘just looking’ basis – giving people an opportunity to ask questions about a particular ministry without being committed to it before they are ready.

Leaders should not be afraid, though, of making a direct approach to people they think God might be wanting to use in particular ministries. A direct, non-manipulative, request to consider being committed to a particular task is especially valuable for busy (often gifted) people. They may well never volunteer for anything but might be stirred into accepting a role by a fresh challenge. Besides, sometimes we are the last people to recognise our own gifts and need someone else to point them out to us.

One key principle to remember when we are trying to recruit people for training is never to minimise the work and commitment involved for the recruit.

3. Train

Leading in worship, teaching a children’s group, running a youth group, serving communion – it all looks so easy, until you try it. Our enthusiastic recruit must be trained. One of the most effective methods of training was created by Jesus; ‘show, tell and do’. This avoids the sterile, unreality of simply ‘reading up’ about the subject area, and overcomes the bias and idiosyncrasies of a totally subjective ‘thrown in at the deep end’ approach.

4. Review

Training needs to be ongoing. We ought always to be developing our skills and growing in grace. No one in the church family should be exempt from this need for performance evaluation followed by continuing training. This will keep us fresh, relevant and increasingly effective in God’s work. As we submit ourselves to this process, our fellow leaders will do so more readily, and so will other workers at every level of the church family.

When we review, God has the opportunity to renew.

STEPHEN GAUKROGER WILL BE COMING TO AUSTRALIA LATE JULY/EARLY AUGUST TO HOST A SERIES OF SEMINARS ON TEAM LEADERSHIP AND DEVELOPMENT, AND PREACHING AND COMMUNICATION, IN PERTH, MELBOURNE, SYDNEY AND BRISBANE. CHECK OUT WWW.WILLOWCREEK.ORG.AU FOR MORE DETAILS.

Article first published in The Baptist Times (UK) October 2010

Stephen Gaukroger is a senior church leader in the United Kingdom, having pastored two of the largest Baptist churches and served as President of the Baptist Union. Stephen is the Founder and Director of Clarion Trust International, a Christian charity working in the UK and overseas, involved in leadership training and development, advocacy, networking and the communication of the Christian faith.

Introducing John Ortberg

noreply@blogger.com (WillowANZ) — Wed, 09 May 2012 01:40:00 +0000

reposted from http://www.wcablog.com

Laura Ortberg Turner is a writer, speaker, and employee of Fuller Seminary. She lives in Palo Alto with her husband and writes at loturner.com

“When we honestly ask ourselves which person in our lives mean the most to us, we often find that it is those who, instead of giving advice, solutions, or cures, have chosen rather to share our pain and touch our wounds with a warm and tender hand.”—Henri Nouwen, The Road to Daybreak

When I was growing up, my favorite days were Donut Run days. Every once in a while, my dad would rouse us out of bed early in the morning with little direction–just to come downstairs quickly, to get in the car; yes, we could stay in our pajamas, yes, we could go back to bed, but only if we wanted to miss something great. We would groan in feigned exhaustion, but we knew we were in for something special. And it wasn’t just the chocolate long johns or the pink-frosted numbers, but the goodness of being with someone in our pajama-clad, bed-headed smallness. Someone who had other, important things to do but chose to be with us.

When someone has shown you tenderness of heart and great care, you will do anything for that person. You will remember their sacrifice. You will be shaped by their generosity of spirit. There is a certain tenderness of soul that a good leader must have, a way of understanding the people and dynamics around them that builds trust.

The best leaders I have ever come across aren’t the flashiest or the most well-known. They are kind and generous in spirit. They are thoughtful, humble, and committed to sharing the truth in love. They care for the hearts of the people around them.

I am especially lucky that, for me, my father has been chief among those who have cared for my heart.

As I grew up, Donut Runs morphed into lunches and long drives, conversations about career and the future, and a new kind of friendship. Our relationship has gone this way not because my dad has continued to lead me (which, now that I am an adult, is exactly what he shouldn’t be doing), but because he has shown me how to lead myself.

Love yourself, encourage yourself, and hold yourself to high standards, he has told us.

Sometimes we still go get donuts together on Saturday mornings at our local Krispy Kreme. And there are moments when, sitting across the table from each other, I can hardly believe my gratitude at the example of this imperfect, kindhearted, vulnerable person. It has been said that people will walk through fire for a vulnerable leader, and it is true. But we will also walk through life with them. Love yourself, encourage yourself, hold yourself to high standards. Learn from those who love fiercely and sacrificially. And then, go and do likewise.

Part Of Something Bigger

noreply@blogger.com (WillowANZ) — Mon, 30 Apr 2012 01:02:00 +0000

I love the church, and one of the reasons why is because I believe we are the most powerful instrument in ending extreme poverty. It might sound trite, but really, who else but Christians are currently more involved in acting to achieve this?

I am not dismissing the valuable work done by others, this is not an exclusive mission. But God has given us a special call to shine the light of Jesus, to help the poor and those is need, and I am convinced this does not come without selfless action.

The question I am asking myself, and others who call themselves a Christ follower, is how much are you willing to do? Will you, in the words of Mama Maggie Gobran, "give until it hurts?"

58: is an action-based, global alliance of Christians, churches and organisations working together to end extreme poverty in our lifetime. We at Willow Creek are choosing to be a part of it because we see the possiblity of this ambition succeeding!

We encourage you to check out this trailer below, search for your nearest film screening and get along to find out what you can do to play a part in this story. Then ACT!

'COS IT'S POSSIBLE!

The Main Game

noreply@blogger.com (WillowANZ) — Thu, 26 Apr 2012 00:01:00 +0000

Recently during a Seminar I was leading which emphasised the pivotal role of God's love as the most powerful agent for changing our lives for good, a lady shared that her personal security level, and therefore personal well being, had risen significantly through 40 years of God's unconditional love from her husband.

The good news from God to us is significantly about the possibility of us being changed from the inside by God's Spirit of love both directly from His Spirit and indirectly through His Spirit in others.

Formation of God's character in us by His Spirit is an 'essence' of our faith rather than just an 'aspect'. From early in the gospels e.g. Matt 3: 11-12, till the conclusion of the New Testament writings, this is a central theme. Jesus emphasised it in Matt 5:8 “You're blessed when you get your inside world – your heart and mind - put right. Then you can see God in the outside world.” (The Message)

Paul almost invariably has a significant section in his letters which nails down that the Spirit's work in us produces fruit e.g. Galatians 5:22, 23 and Colossians 3: 12-14. Personal qualities and relationship capacities such as compassion, kindness, humility, quiet strength, discipline, are vital to effective living and are probably universally desired and valued above any other personal qualities and relationship capacities.

This biblical theme has a similar pivotal place in my Christian walk and belief to the way Paul regarded teaching about the resurrection “If Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins” (1 Cor 15:17 The Message). If God can't and/or doesn't change us from the inside by His spirit to be maturing into His fullness (Ephesians 4:13) then we best give Christianity away.

It is my fervent belief through a lifetime of close and sometimes almost desperate observation that these 'formation' teachings are true.

Often it is frustrating that the changes do take place at about the same pace as fruit grows and ripens… quite slowly. But it is still real and absolutely vital, especially to the effectiveness of our witness and evangelism. When Jesus sent his disciples out he told them “you are the equipment” (Luke 9:1-5 The Message). We are the message.

Who we are through God's Spirit in us is crucial to us getting an opportunity to speak the gospel. The New Testament tells us that we can 'hinder the growth of God's character in us by quenching or grieving the Spirit' (1 Thes 5:19 and Eph 4:30). We have a stewardship opportunity and responsibility to relate 'intimately and organically’ to God (John 15:5-6) so that the character of God grows in us.

“Formation” is the main game. It is not an optional extra.

Keith Farmer

Keith Farmer Mentoring

A Voice For The Voiceless

noreply@blogger.com (WillowANZ) — Wed, 18 Apr 2012 06:23:00 +0000

reposted from http://www.wcablog.com

Pranitha Timothy is changing history. The International Justice Mission’s (IJM) director of “After Care” in Chennai, India has the courage to lead teams into life-threatening situations and the perseverance to free victims of modern-day slavery—no matter what the cost. Visit the IJM site to to stay up-to-date on their work in India.

“There are 27 million slaves in our world today,” she says. Even though a brain tumor left her with what she calls a “strange” voice, she is proud to be a voice for the voiceless—including the millions who toil under burden of harsh manual labor. Working in bondage to Brahmin slave masters, millions struggle from dawn to dark in places like rock quarries and brick mills, even though bonded labor was made illegal in India more than 30 years ago.
IJM is on a mission to free slaves and restore them to a life of dignity and wholeness.

In April, 2011, government officials, IJM staff, and police entered a brick kiln to liberate laborers held by force. They estimated it would amount to 200 people. They were wrong. More than 500 workers assembled to hear freedom was at hand. Facing the throngs of slaves, Pranitha Timothy shouted, “Who wants to come out?” Hundreds of hands shot up.

The owner of the brick kiln was arrested and four trucks were arranged to transport the laborers to a nearby school where their releases could be processed. Four trucks weren’t enough, so a truck belonging to the former slave master was confiscated.

More than 500 men, women, and children are now living in freedom thanks to the largest anti-slavery operation in IJM’s history.

Read the full story in this article in the Times of India.

April Webcast: Charles Jenkins

noreply@blogger.com (WillowANZ) — Fri, 13 Apr 2012 04:30:00 +0000

reposted from http://www.wcablog.com

In this webcast, Charles Jenkins, senior pastor role at the historic Fellowship Missionary Baptist Church, talks with Jim Mellado about thriving in change. You can read more on the topic in Pastor Jenkins’ book Thriving in Change.

Here are a few of our notes to get you thinking!

“There is applied change and basic change – basic change is just change for change’s sake. Applied change is change with a needed necessary end result.”

“I knew I needed to start at the concept…what’s the destination? I couldn’t get people there if the destination wasn’t clear.”

“Honor people with one-on-one conversations. It’s critical to help resistant people process the changes. The goal with early adopters is to create advocates, but with the resisters your goal is to help them find neutrality.”

“When it comes to change, often leaders make change to problems only they see. You’ve got to make everybody see the problem so they know why the change is necessary.”

“For a senior leader, it’s like Shakespeare. Play your part and then exit the stage. For a successor, be comfortable in your own skin – David can’t wear Saul’s armor.”

Transition and Change

noreply@blogger.com (WillowANZ) — Mon, 02 Apr 2012 01:04:00 +0000

Six months ago I was planning the next steps and thinking about the next year for the ministries I was involved in. I really loved my job and the people I worked with. Exciting things were happening; church communities across the state were (and still are) thinking about how to reach out to children, youth and their families. New families were becoming part of our church community, people being introduced to Jesus and faith was growing.

Six months later I have a new job, I’m in a new house and a new city and if you had asked me back then about what the next year would look like, where I am now would not have crossed my mind!

It seems very obvious to say that life is full of transitions and change. Starting school, loosing your first tooth, moving school, high school, university, starting an apprenticeship, people leave, new people come, marriage, children, new jobs, death, no job, children growing up, children moving out, retirement, I could go on. Change even for the person who loves change can be unsettling and even crippling.

My move and the starting of a new job, which by the way I am really enjoying, has contributed to me thinking more about how we help our young people deal with change. I’m not in any way saying there is a quick and easy answer, because more often than not helping will be long term, but why would we persevere, what encouragement to hold on is there, why can we still have hope when our faith feels like the thinnest piece of string? Why might we be able to cope with never knowing the answer to why?

Our God reveals himself to be the constant in an ever changing world, the faithful one who remains faithful even when his people are not. That he does indeed see, know and understand when we don’t. Jesus the King of Kings, will indeed return, death will be no more; mourning and crying and pain will be no more (Revelation 21:4 NRSV). What amazing truths to hold on to!

Although the changes I have experienced on one level seem quite trivial, for me the last six months have been a process of taking hold of and putting more into practice the truths about God that I already know. I have been reminded again of what Proverbs 3:5-6 means when it calls us to trust God with everything.

It is my prayer that each of us will grow in our knowledge and love of God and from that there will be an ever increasing confidence that, no matter the circumstances, will never be shaken.

Kate Boughton

Youth and Children’s Minister

St Jude’s Anglican Church, Carlton

Passing On The Baton

noreply@blogger.com (WillowANZ) — Wed, 28 Mar 2012 02:14:00 +0000

A relay race can be lost by a missed passing of the baton. No matter how well the individuals run, the race hinges on the effective transfer of what the runners carry. Mess that up and the race is lost!

Effective leaders know that their effectiveness to a large extent depends on the transfer of information and power to others. At significant times it actually means the transfer of key leadership. In my early sixties I knew the time was right to step aside from the senior pastor role and allow a younger leader we had raised up to assume the lead role in the church. In transitions like this there are number of considerations:

· A senior pastor needs to consider their leadership: how far can they take a church, how are they developing, how do the needs of the church match their strengths and gifts and their season in life, and where is God leading them vocationally?

· Plan carefully and prepare the church well for such transition, especially the staff and Church Council. Even if the new lead pastor has possibly been in the congregation for many years they bring their unique personality and different emphases. The smoothest transition will still bring inevitable change.

· Ensure that the successor is essentially a person who can take the lead role and is not best suited to a second chair or other designated position.

· Plan the transition to occur at an appropriate season in the church. Avoid major festivals and events so that the leadership change itself receives adequate attention and people are truly aware of the change of personnel.

· If the exiting leader has negotiated to remain in that church, ensure that appropriate boundaries are established and stick with them. In my case I stayed on the pastoral staff part time in an executive and mentoring role and spent the balance of my time in ministry beyond that congregation. A couple of years later I officially retired and gave ten months elsewhere in a strategic interim ministry. I now continue as a member of the church I led for twelve years and am called upon to preach quarterly and write studies but wisely I am not involved in governance.

· Denominational ethics may stipulate expectations of the retiring leader. These should be consulted. They are written to protect various parties and to avoid detrimental conflict that can harm the ministry. This has particular importance if the new leader has been recruited from outside the congregation, but also applies to internally developed leadership.

Biblically, Moses passed the baton to Joshua, Jesus to the disciples, the Apostles to the seven in Acts 6, Paul to Timothy and so on. It is a principle and process we need to do well for the sake of the church and future leaders.

Rev Dr Dean Brookes

3Dnet Interim Co-Director

Today Dean devotes his time to leadership development and coaching pastors.

15 Things You Didn’t Know about Condoleezza Rice

noreply@blogger.com (WillowANZ) — Wed, 21 Mar 2012 01:29:00 +0000

reposted from http://www.wcablog.com

You probably know Condoleezza Rice as the first female African-American US Secretary of State succeeding Colin Powell in the position. Before joining the Bush administration, she was a professor of political science at Stanford and later Provost of the university. She joins the faculty of The 2012 Global Leadership Summit.

You may know Rice’s professional accomplishments, but did you know:

1. Her name comes from the Italian word con dolcezza, an Italian musical term meaning “play with sweetness.”

2. Rice grew up in Birmingham, Alabama, “the most thoroughly segregated city in the United States” (Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.). At the age of eight, one of the girls in her school was killed when white supremacists bombed the Sixteenth Street Baptist Church. (September 15, 1963)

3. She was the only child of a school teacher and Presbyterian minister who couldn’t eat at the lunch counter at Woolworth’s because of segregation laws, but they believed their daughter could be President.

4. She skipped first and seventh grades and graduated at the age of 15.

5. Her grandfather was a sharecropper who went to college and paid his tuition with cotton.

6. She changed her major to political science after hearing a lecture about Joseph Stalin taught by Madeleine Albright’s father. (Albright was Secretary of State 1997-2001).

7. When Rice became Provost at Stanford, the school’s budget was $20 million over budget. Within two years, the deficit was wiped out and the university’s coffers were nearly $15 million in the black.

8. Her father coached football and hoped his unborn child would become an all-American linebacker. When he had a daughter, he taught her all about football. She compares football to warfare because both involve the use of strategy and the goal of taking territory.

9. The best way to win her heart is to spend Sunday afternoons watching football.

10. After serving on the Board at Chevron, the corporation honored her by naming a 129,000-ton tanker SS Condoleezza Rice. (It was renamed Altair Voyager.)

11. One of her prize possessions is a first edition of Tolstoy’s War and Peace—written in Russian. (She has read it twice.)

12. A concert pianist, Rice has played for Queen Elizabeth and has performed with cellist Yo-Yo Ma and Aretha Franklin.

13. Her favorite composer is Brahms and her favorite band is Led Zeppelin.

14. Her dream job? President of the NFL

15. Rice attends Menlo Park Presbyterian Church where John Ortberg is senior pastor.

2012 Global Leadership Summit Speakers Announced!

noreply@blogger.com (WillowANZ) — Fri, 16 Mar 2012 00:14:00 +0000

Bill Hybels

Founder and Senior Pastor, Willow Creek Community Church

- Founded The Global Leadership Summit, now in 450+ cities and 85 countries

- Passionate about the local church, he is committed to developing and mentoring leaders worldwide- Best-selling author of more than 20 books including his most recent, The Power of a Whisper

"If it's the last thing I do, I will give every ounce of the rest of my life to helping leaders and churches get better."

Condoleezza Rice

Former U.S. Secretary of State

- Professor of Political Science at the Stanford Graduate School of Business

- Former Stanford University Provost — responsible for a $1.5 billion annual budget and the academic program for 1,400 faculty members and 14,000 students

- Author and co-author of numerous books, including: No Higher Honor: A Memoir of My Years in Washington

"I use the word power broadly. Even more important than military and economic power is the power of ideas, the power of compassion, and the power of hope."

Jim Collins

Nationally Acclaimed Business Thinker and Author

- Relentlessly curious student of enduring great companies, he is the author of the leadership classics Built to Last and Good to Great

- Former faculty at the Stanford Graduate School of Business

- His newest release, Great by Choice, answers the penetrating question, Why do some companies thrive in uncertainty, even chaos, and others do not?

"Throw leaders into an extreme environment, and it will separate the stark differences between greatness and mediocrity."

Geoffrey Canada

President & CEO, Harlem Children’s Zone

- Pioneering leader in urban education and fervent advocate for U.S. education reform

- Featured in the acclaimed documentary, Waiting for Superman

- Targeting a 100-block municipal area with educational and social services, the Harlem Children’s Zone has become a model for effective community engagement

"You have to be prepared to think outside the box...Stand back and think about what we could do creatively. We’ve got to do that to push the field forward."

Sheryl WuDunn

Pulitzer Prize Winner; Business Executive

- Author of the award-winning book, Half The Sky: Turning Oppression into Opportunity for Women Worldwide

- Senior Managing Director of Mid-Market Securities and President of Triple Edge, two social investment and consulting firms specializing in companies run by women

- Pulitzer Prize winner for Asia: Thunder from the East and China Wakes, co-authored with her husband Nicholas Kristof

“One of the best ways to fight poverty and to fight terrorism is to educate girls and bring women into the formal labor force."

Craig Groeschel

Founder and Senior Pastor, LifeChurch.tv

- A pioneer in multi-campus church, LifeChurch.tv holds 76 weekly worship experiences, ministering to over 40,000 people

- Known for leveraging technology to reach a new generation, including the development of LifeChurch's popular YouVersion Bible App

- Author of influential books, including the soon-to-be released Soul Detox

"If we want to be better than normal we must move from good intentions to what I call God intentions."

John Ortberg

Senior Pastor, Menlo Park Presbyterian Church

- Senior leader of a thriving multi-site church in Northern California

- A prominent voice in the worldwide spiritual formation movement

- Best-selling author of numerous books including the upcoming, Who Is This Man? The Unpredictable Impact of the Inescapable Jesus

"God is a God of endless opportunities to do good; the God of the open door."

Mario Vega

Senior Pastor, Misión Cristiana Elim, El Salvador

- Leader of one of the world's largest churches with 73,000 attendees, campuses throughout El Salvador, more than 7,000 cell groups and a staff of 92 pastors

- Misión Cristiana Elim achieved exponential growth in the midst of civil war through the successful implementation of cell group strategies

- Known for his humility, his passion for justice and for the rights of children

"When you have the humility to listen to the Bible it does more than enlighten us, it transforms us."

Marc Kielburger

Co-Founder, Free The Children; Co-Founder & Co-CEO, Me to We

- At the age of 18, co-founded Free The Children with his brother Craig Kielburger

- The world’s largest network of children helping children through education, Free The Children has built more than 650 schools and school rooms in developing regions

- Co-founder and Co-CEO of Me to We, a social enterprise providing better choices for a better world including international volunteer trips, leadership training programs, a socially conscious clothing line and resources that address issues of positive social change

"How are you going to keep your workforce engaged, retained, active and motivated? It all comes down to what kind of meaning and purpose can you provide."

Pranitha Timothy

Director of Aftercare, International Justice Mission, Chennai, India

- Led over 50 slave rescue operations, serving as the chief legal witness in court

- Developed IJM's pioneering aftercare strategy for restoration and reintegration, successfully serving thousands of freed slaves

- The child of dedicated missionary doctors in rural India, she's a brain tumor survivor who describes her resulting feeble voice as a "voice for the voiceless”"

“In my work with International Justice Mission, I free slaves and work to restore them to a life of dignity and wholeness."

William L. Ury

Co-Founder and Senior Fellow, Harvard University’s Program on Negotiation

- A negotiator and mediator, with 30 years practical experience in conflicts ranging from corporate mergers to ethnic wars in the Middle East.

- A social anthropologist and teacher, he is the author of award-winning business books, including Getting to Yes, an eight million copy best seller

- Co-founder of the International Negotiation Network with President Jimmy Carter, a non- governmental body seeking to end civil wars

“Look for opportunities to act inconsistently with their perceptions. Perhaps the best way to change someone's perception is to send them a message different from what they expect."

Patrick Lencioni

Founder and President, The Table Group; Best Selling Author

- A leading organizational consulting firm, The Table Group advises clients with ideas, products and services to improve teamwork, clarity, employee engagement and overall organizational health

- Named by Fortune Magazine as one of “Ten Gurus You Should Know” and by The Wall Street Journal as one of America’s “Most Sought-After Business Speakers”

- His upcoming book, The Advantage, explores the significance of organizational health and why it trumps everything else in business

"The vast majority of organizations today have more than enough intelligence, experience and knowledge to be successful. What they lack is organizational health."