A host of complications from cancer he had contracted (and we had thought beaten) years earlier took Ray from us before we were ready, although not before he had lived a full life.  Ray had served as a park district director and corporate executive.  He was a sailor and had been an Olympic swimming alternate.  Most importantly, he was a loving father and husband.  Having lived in Illinois for much if not all of his life, he and Janet, his wife of twenty five years, relocated to Michigan City, Indiana a few years ago to be close to the water they so loved and their sailboat, the Chrysalis.

Ray is survived by Janet; his brother Ron; his daughters Pam and Debbie; and a host of friends, among whom I am blessed to be counted.

I had not seen or talked with Ray since visiting he and Janet the fall before moving to DC nearly five years ago, but as I told Janet, he is the first person I have cried over since my grandmother almost eight years ago.  Ray, you will be missed.

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This spring/summer I started The Slow Fade, No Shame in my Game, The Scandal of the Evangelical Conscience, and Next Generation Leader (for the second time), but with buying a house, moving in, and a busy month at work. Over the past week or so, I finally finished them. Well, not Next Generation Leader, but I’m not counting that one since I’m re-reading it.

I’ll do write-ups on No Shame in my Game and The Slow Fade. I’ve already written about NGL, and I’m not sure I can write about Scandal. The lesson here is not to borrow a book (so you can’t take notes in it) and also take a long break in the middle of it. By the end you won’t remember what you’ve read nearly well enough.

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According to the authors, there are three keys to being an effective “One Minute Manager.”

1. One Minute Goals – Have employees define the most important aspects of their job through simple, clearly articulated goals.  These should be short and to the point, no more than 250 words, and should be reviewed regularly.  Don’t try to codify every part of a job in this way, just the most important 20% or so.  That’s where 80% of the work will get done anyway.  This way, employees will know what is expected of them and how to achieve success.

2. One Minute Praises – When employees succeed, give them praise immediately.  Tell them what they did right and how it makes you feel.  This will encourage good performance.

3. One Minute Reprimands – When employees fall short, correct them immediately.  Tell them exactly what they did wrong and why it upsets you.  Then make it clear that you don’t think they are failures, that it is only this task that was not performed up to par, and that you appreciate them and their work.  This will discourage bad performance but still ensure an employee knows that he or she is valued.  It also avoids leaving an employee feeling dumped on by an end of the year review in which everything he or she has done wrong for the past 12 months is recounted.

While, as the authors admit, effective management is not quite so simple, these do serve as helpful guidelines.  Ensure your people understand the definition of success.  Pay attention so that you catch them doing things right, and offer gentle but firm correction when they do it wrong.

I don’t have a ton of managerial experience, but it seems to me that the difficult part here is effectively and gently correcting mistakes.  It’s certainly something I’m still figuring out how to do, especially in the context of working with a volunteer team.

All-in-all, I give The One Minute Manager a 7 out of 10 and encourage you to check it out.

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One of my goals is to become a better leader, specifically a better leader of volunteers, as nearly everyone on my team is a volunteer or unpaid staff. I asked leadership development guru Mac Lake what resources he would recommend, and he mentioned two books: The Volunteer Revolution by Bill Hybels and Leadership and the One Minute Manager by Kenneth Blanchard. I haven’t had a chance to read these yet, but since Mac recommended them, they’re a pretty safe bet.

I’d add two books of my own to the list. The first is Next Generation Leader by Andy Stanley. I reviewed it last year when I first read it and recently picked it back up to re-read it. It’s one of the best books I’ve ever read. The second is The One Minute Manager by Drs. Kenneth Blanchard and Spencer Johnson. I read it by accident, thinking it was the book that Mac had recommended, but nonetheless, I can say that it has some helpful advice and will be reviewing it shortly.

What resources would you recommend to a young leader?

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What if?

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-Jesus of Nazareth

I get along with my neighbors pretty well.  There’s a large family with a lot of teenagers that live next door to me, very nice people.  The kids offer to help out pretty regularly whether we’re moving furniture or having a cookout.  The guys at the end of the block had us over to their new roof deck our first night in the new house. Mr. Swan let me borrow his water hose a week or two ago.  A few folks from across the alley came to our housewarming last weekend and brought wine.

I don’t have a gate on the back of my fence, and I don’t want one.  But there’s that person who has their dog poop in my backyard, and trust me, it’s not accidental.  I realized this morning that what I thought was a popped front bike tire due to the heat was actually someone letting the air out of both tires.

I didn’t do anything to you.  We dropped off cookies to everyone on the block and invited you to a cookout.  We’re quiet and respectful.

“If you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? Even ’sinners’ love those who love them. And if you do good to those who are good to you, what credit is that to you? Even ’sinners’ do that. And if you lend to those from whom you expect repayment, what credit is that to you? Even ’sinners’ lend to ’sinners,’ expecting to be repaid in full. But love your enemies, do good to them, and lend to them without expecting to get anything back. Then your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High, because he is kind to the ungrateful and wicked. Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful.”

-Jesus of Nazareth

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-Malachi 2:7 (ESV)

The lips of a priest should guard knowledge.  He is the messenger of the Lord.

We don’t have priests now like they did then.   Then, only priests could approach God.  Now, no person mediates between us and God except for Jesus, the great high priest, and He is God.  So all who follow Jesus are priests because we have access to him and he is God.

That said, God has placed some in positions of influence and authority to speak into the lives of others.  God has chosen to make some his messengers to speak His truth to others (Ephesians 4:11).

So to those of us who consider ourselves called by God to shepherd others I ask, do our lips guard knowledge?  When we open our mouths are the ears of those around us filled with words of discernment and understanding?  Does wisdom escape from between our lips?

Only if we are actively seeking the will of God through prayer and Scripture, “For the shepherds are stupid and do not inquire of the Lord; therefore they have not prospered, and all their flock is scattered.” -Jeremiah 10:26 (ESV)

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It seems we’re always looking ahead to the next thing.  As soon as we finish the work day we can go out with friends.  We can’t wait to get married, buy a house, and get a new job.

I spend a lot of my time looking forward instead of savoring the moment.  It is good to be future-oriented, to dream, to plan, to think ahead, but we can’t let that get in the way of reveling in the now, of enjoying to the fullest this particular moment, of delighting and finding fulfillment in where God has us for this season in life.

I am married, have a job that I love, and just bought a house.  These are all good and wonderful things, but I can tell you that the grass is always greener on the other side.  My wife is amazing, yet marriage complicates life.  My job, while great, has been busy recently.  And my house is spacious and beautiful but sucks up far more time and money than my apartment ever did.

Wherever you are; whatever you’re doing; whomever you do or don’t know, stop and enjoy this moment.  Time is a precious gift that can never be recovered.  It is our choice to waste it wishing we were somewhere else or to delight in now.

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It’s my busy season at work.  Small group registrations are due, which means helping leaders register their groups, reviewing leadership applications, meeting new leaders to discuss the leadership covenant, and producing the Atlas, our catalog of small groups.

I’d be lying if I said I work as hard or as long as some others on staff at NCC or in our congregation, not to mention that I love what I do.  But it is a busy time nonetheless, a time of long days and working weekends.

Today was not a good day to take off, not a good day to ignore my e-mail.  Doing so means that there are likely some groups submitted late that won’t be listed in the Atlas.  It means that there will probably be a pile of e-mail waiting for me in the morning.  It means that I may be working late again tomorrow.

Yet all of that made today a very good day to take off.  Today was a day to read Scripture, to read books, to write, to have dinner with my wife, and to play with my friends.  Today was a day to refresh and recharge so that when I face the pile of work that will undoubtedly be waiting for me in the morning, I’ll have the spiritual, physical, and emotional energy to perform well.

God created us to observe sabbath, to take one day each week when we cease doing what is necessary to do what is most beneficial.  Sabbath is not an archaic ritual but a gift.  It keeps our priorities straight, our egos in check, our bodies healthy, and our souls fed.

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The chief end of man, of all creation, is to glorify God, to make Him known.

My chief end is often to glorify myself, to make myself known.

God, crucify my pride, my self-importance, my greed, that I might serve you.  May my joy be found in your glory, not my own.  May people see not me but you.

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