guest post #3–a baseball leadership model

A few weeks ago I opened up the blog to guest posts because I knew there were people out there with insights I wasn’t smart enough to think of myself.

Then people began emailing me with ideas and I thought, “Publishing this will confirm that I was not smart enough to think of this myself.”


But in the spirit of humbly taking one for the team I bring you this latest guest post, which also talks about teamwork. Matt Johnson, the author, knows whereof he speaks; he’s the senior minister at Levittown (PA) Christian Church near Philadelphia.

What do you think—are there weaknesses in our church leadership structures? What’s mandatory and what’s optional? Why have we defaulted to the current system?

Share your thoughts. Because I’ll say one thing for guest posts—someone else has to respond to the comments.

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“I don’t like organized religion.” Every few months I run into someone honest and bold enough to say this to my face. “Great,” I respond with a wry smile, “we’re not that organized.”

How about your church? How organized is it? Perhaps a better question: how is it organized? Chances are you either have a CEO or Commander-In-Chief at the top of the flow chart. The Christian churches/churches of Christ are largely the product of frontier America, rugged individualism, and enlightenment thinking, so it’s no surprise that the organizational structures of our long-established churches suspiciously resemble the American government.

“No, no,” you say, “we have elders and deacons, just like the Bible says. Right?” Right. Reality check—we vote a senior minister (president) into office. We elect elders (senators), deacons (representatives), and have board meetings that resemble a joint session of Congress (and are often just as productive).

In many churches we have even initiated term limits for our representatives. Elections and term limits—not sure where to find those in Acts. Matthias was chosen by lot, not ballot.


A more recent development is the emergence of a CEO. Many churches have pragmatically chosen an organizational structure based on a business model. These churches head hunt for the right senior pastor (chief executive officer), hire support staff (vice presidents), and often have outside supervision (board of directors). This business model mentality in the church is why Thom Rainer could make bank by repackaging Jim Collins’ modern business classic Good to Great by researching congregations and calling it Breakout Churches.

Now before anyone gets defensive and holds a committee meeting to condemn this post, let me say I think the New Testament focuses more on principles of leadership than prescribed organizational structure. I am by no means a purist in this area (which will become evident momentarily), and I believe the scriptures are designed to allow flexibility in these matters.

To use a 200-year-old phrase, our organizational structures are man-made innovations. I’m okay with that, as long as we admit it. But I think we have to ask some questions.


First, are our models working? We must admit our current models place a lot of responsibility and authority on one person. In some ways it is an ancient throwback to the days of the mono-episcopate, which was instituted to expedite decisions in times of persecution and instances of heresy. Today some people still see the advantage of one man charting the direction of a church. Others see the dangers. (Insert praise or horror story of a megachurch pastor here.)

Second question: is there a a better way? Maybe. Let me suggest one I’d like to try—the sports model. (I think of it in baseball terms, but you could go with another sport.)


The baseball model would require something distinct from other models—a manager. This person would be responsible not for preaching or teaching, but for calling the shots on the field so that people who are strong in different skills could each perform at their best.

Since I already oversimplified other organizational models, allow me to oversimplify this one. Each church would have one manager (I don’t have a Christianized name for this), pitchers (preaching staff), position players (specialized ministers/deacons) and owners (elders). Additionally, various coaches (mentors) could be brought in from the outside to sharpen the team.


And there is the word—team. This model is truly rooted in a team approach. It does not rely on one person to pitch, hit, manage and take ownership of the team while others take advisory and supplementary roles. It recognizes the diversity of gifts in the church and allows people to serve where they are talented.

This approach could find a nice balance between the value of a manager’s experience and maturity and the benefits of younger staff with fresh talent and energy. It could place the elders in the role of broad-minded vision casters instead of micromanagers. It could allow more members to take their turn on the field and spend less time on the bench (or in the stands).

I’m sure this model has drawbacks. Admittedly, it is radically different from any other model I’ve heard of. It is an innovation (as is any other organizational model), but perhaps one worth exploring.

 

So what about it? Any “pastor emeritus” types want to move to the suburbs of Philly and get back in the game? Until then, please excuse me—I have to attend a meeting with my board…….

some christmas lists

The “O Holy Night” list was my first-ever “New to You Friday,” and I think it may become a perennial first-post-after-Thanksgiving classic.

It’s a message the world needs to hear.


But those of you who have already agreed not to sing the song in public deserve the reward of something new. So here is my list of the DVDs I will NOT be adding to my Netflix queue in December:

Black Christmas: “In this remake of the 1974 slasher classic, a bloodthirsty psychopath breaks free from a mental institution and returns to the house where he killed his family on Christmas Eve many years earlier — which happens to now be a sorority house.”

Ernest Saves Christmas: Enough said.

Jingle All the Way: “Arnold Schwarzenegger stars in this hilarious holiday romp as a harried dad charged with procuring the toy of the year. Anyone who’s ever gone through hell and high water for a Tickle Me Elmo doll will find much to love here.” I haven’t and I won’t.

Santa Claus Conquers the Martians: “The Martians kidnap Santa because there is nobody on Mars to give their children presents.”

A Christmas Family Tragedy: “Filmmakers Matt Hodges and Eric Calhoun use re-creations, interviews and historic photos to chronicle the events of Christmas Day 1929, when farmer Charlie Lawson killed his wife, six children and himself in one of the South’s most legendary crimes.”

Santa with Muscles: Stars Hulk Hogan as Santa. That’s not a typo.

Fred Claus: “The joy and happiness of the holiday season is ruined for the saintly Santa Claus when his cranky older brother, Fred  — a repo man with a sizable rap sheet — comes to stay with him at the North Pole.”

To Grandmother’s House We Go: “Those adorable Olsen twins try to run off to Grandma’s for Christmas, but are stymied along the way when they inadvertently get involved with some bumbling kidnappers.”


The Star Wars Holiday Special: “Introducing Chewbacca’s family…..His father, Itchy….His son, Lumpy….”

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People who should be allowed to sing “O Holy Night” in public:
–Placido Domingo
–Renee Fleming
–Sandi Patty
–The Vienna Boys Choir

People who should not:
–Jessica Simpson
–The Muppets
–Bob Seger
–Boy bands
–Aaron Neville
–Anyone who’s competed on American Idol
–You
–Me
–Everyone else in the universe

brotherhood, can you spare a job?

We’ve all heard the statistics.

Thousands of churches close each year, 1500 pastors leave the ministry each month, and 50% of pastors would leave if they could. (Good stuff at the link, including a typo about “abstinent elders.” Pretty sure they meant obstinate. What are the stats on bloggers who can’t spell?)

Many groups have formed to solve these problems, including two new ones within our own fellowship of churches. The Just One Challenge, spearheaded by the presidents of our 33 colleges and universities, encourages church leaders to preach on Matthew 9:38 and asks church members to pray for “just one” more kingdom worker. Restoration Revolution is a ten-year initiative focusing on prayer, church planting, developing resources and equipping more Christian leaders.

People are responding: the Revolution launched with a service at last weekend’s National Missionary Convention, and the Christian Standard enews has been full of stories about churches participating in Just One.


But after we reported some of these success stories, I received an email.

The church I attend embraced this challenge and set aside some time to pray for the young people in our congregation. There are several potential servant leaders that could accept a call into vocational ministry and for them we are hopeful.

Now a personal and painful observation. I graduated from one of our Bible colleges with honors and I have been visiting the Christian Standard’s “Needs of Churches” section every week and sending resumes for well over three years now. I have a collection of letters indicating that I am underqualified to serve. In networking with other Bible college and Christian college graduates, I know I am not alone.

As I’m sure you’re aware, a four-year degree program is expensive. Though I treasure what I learned and experienced in that process, today I struggle to repay the loans. I work three part-time jobs seven days a week, most weeks, just to make ends meet.

Please don’t misunderstand this as a “woe is me” dialogue. It is not. Though I am saddened and somewhat discouraged that I cannot secure a full-time ministry, what I want to share with you is this:  we want our young men to pursue vocational ministry, but it is not always easy to find a place to serve. I want to encourage our young men and women to pursue education in Christian ministry, but cannot assure them it will be easy to find a job.

I love the church, I love the Kingdom of God, I love the King. But I have a deep desire to serve in full-time vocational ministry that remains just out of reach.

I’ve never met this guy, so I can’t vouch for him. It’s certainly possible he’s lazy or unskilled or hard to get along with. But this email makes me think that’s not the case. Instead, I think there are very few churches willing to hire a young man without any experience. No church wants to be someone’s first church—understandable, but then how are these guys (and gals) supposed to turn the statistical tide?

Just One and Restoration Revolution are great efforts to “raise up a harvest” of new Kingdom workers. But there’s a second challenge we must take just as seriously. If our current leaders don’t mentor, coach, and hire them, how will these thousands of new recruits live out the commitments we’re asking them to make?

new to you friday—jen-in-the-box

In his book Damp Squid: The English Language Laid Bare, Jeremy Butterfield lists ten of the most irritating phrases in English, including “it’s not rocket science,” “with all due respect,” “fairly certain,” “I personally,” and “shouldn’t of.” (It’s shouldn’t have, folks, as in “I shouldn’t have slept through so many English classes.”)

I’d add another to his list: “out of the box.” The phrase isn’t just a cliche; I think it’s also become counterproductive.


All creative endeavors require boundaries—rules, even. In addition to correct grammar (shouldn’t have), effective writing requires various elements: paragraphs have topic sentences, sentences have nouns and verbs, and an English sonnet is always fourteen lines of ten syllables each. Music, whether it’s Beethoven or Beyonce, involves time signatures, rhythms, musical keys with specific sharps and flats, and much more. (So much more that I had to get a tutor to pass music theory in college.) Painting, photography, filmmaking—every creative enterprise is grounded in certain parameters.


Research backs me up; if you’ve read Made to Stick, you may recall the Israeli research team that asked three groups of novices to brainstorm ad campaigns. One group received no training, one participated in a two-hour free-association class, and one was trained for two hours on templates the research team had already identified as central to 90% of award-winning ads. Then each of the groups submitted their ideas to an independent creative director who had no knowledge of each group’s training.

Who created the best ads—the team without any boundaries, the team with two hours of encouragement to think outside those boundaries, or the team with instruction in six boundaries? You guessed it—the CD rated the third group’s ads 50% more creative. A few carefully-chosen boxes produced the most out-of-the-box results.


This means if you are leading a worship arts team planning Christmas services, the least helpful thing you can do is convene a brainstorming meeting and ask your team to think “out of the box” with “no bad ideas” and a “blue-sky” approach to a “blank page.”

For one thing, even as you urge this you already have an idea, however vague, of what you want Christmas at your church to look and feel like. You might even be one of the lucky few whose senior minister decides what he’s going to preach on before December 21. So if the two of you are thinking about a retro “Peanuts” Christmas feel with a straightforward gospel message, why waste 45 minutes of everyone’s time sharing ideas about how other cultures depict the incarnation? 30 minutes of discussion about favorite Christmas movies is fun, but only helpful if it’s on theme. And if you know the service will have an acoustic vibe, why burn brain cells figuring out where to rent a harp?

In other words, establish the box to channel creativity productively, not to stifle it. Of course, if you don’t know what key idea you’re going for, you’ve got bigger issues—figure that out alone or with a smaller group, then bring it to your team for brainstorming. With all due respect, I personally am fairly certain that’s the way to go, because it’s not……well, you know.

guest post #2–washed and waiting

You all are a rebellious bunch.

The first response to my call for guest posts was an email saying, “I don’t want to write about this—will you?”

Okay.


Then I got a guest post submission that had already appeared on the writer’s own blog, despite my insistence that posts be original material.

The trouble with creative people is they usually don’t like to follow rules. However, because this particular creative is a friend who makes me think, and because this blog post talks about a book that’s made both of us think, I’m bending the rules. Also I’m pretty sure he paid for the extra guacamole last time we had lunch.

Check out Kyle’s blog here.

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Thank you, Wesley Hill.

I’ve just finished reading his book Washed and Waiting: Reflections on Christian Faithfulness and Homosexuality. I was able to hear him speak at the STORY Conference recently and was profoundly impacted by his exposition of Romans 8.


“For the creation was subjected to frustration, not by its own choice, but by the will of the one who subjected it, in hope that the creation itself will be liberated from its bondage to decay and brought into the freedom and glory of the children of God.”


I have a dear soul-friend who possesses wonderfully thoughtful intelligence, a soft wit, deep passions, and a same-sex attraction, so I quickly made time to read this book.




Washed and Waiting begins with Hill’s own journey through adolescence, his failed attempts to re-orient himself to women, and the agony of being different. (Side note: I’m wonderfully proud of the communities that surrounded him during this journey. The story is a testament to their authentic faith lived out: churches and small groups fully participating in their God-given roles as an extended family.)

Many reviewers will comment on Hill’s choice to be sexually abstinent because he believes the Bible to be inerrant in its condemnation of homosexual practice. But the book is not simply about being gay—it is a collection of field notes from a soldier in a war against self. And this war—the burden and longing of Romans 8—is one we can all relate to regardless of our sexual orientation.


We all struggle with desires that may never be fulfilled in this life. For me it is the passion for beautiful ideas, for seeking and creating and curating them. However, these are not the skills most commonly requested in the ministry marketplace. And so I learn and produce and work and serve, but with little to feed my own spirit. Eight years later I am still searching for the right beautiful idea, and I need to own the reality of longing for more than I may experience in this life.

That is the power of Hill’s book. We all wrestle with unfulfilled dreams, or desires which—if they were fulfilled—would damage us. Washed and Waiting can teach us important lessons about choosing a holy life in a world we did not choose.

new to you friday–girl scout badges for today’s women

Guys, I’d love a companion post from your perspective. Anyone want to write about the boy scout awards today’s men are earning?

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The Upper Hand: Awarded for juggling three bags of groceries, a large purse, a cell phone and mail while successfully unlocking the front door without dropping anything. Bonus points if the grocery bag contains eggs or you are also holding a baby.

The Slim Chance: Awarded to any woman who can wear a size eight after age 40.

The This Too Shall Pass: For handing the communion tray to the person sitting next to you without bitterness that you’re not allowed to stand at the end of the row and receive it.

The Sick and Tired: For keeping one’s mouth shut when, after you’ve spent years of your life pregnant and endured the subsequent excruciating deliveries, your husband a) whimpers like a toddler from a splinter; b) takes to his bed for three days during his annual cold and demands 24 hour bedside service; c) refuses to consider a vasectomy because of his fear of medical procedures.

The Don’t Cramp My Style: For attending two business meetings, accomplishing four things off the to-do list, swinging by the grocery store, and attending a ballet recital/T-ball game/soccer practice while wearing heels instead of curling up under the covers with cramps like you want to.

The Clothes Call: One badge awarded for each shopping trip with a daughter age 8-18 in which you successfully prevent purchases of halter tops, low-rise pants, short-shorts, and anything designed to show one’s navel. Award is not invalidated by daughter’s tears or public outbursts proclaiming her hatred of you.

The Grace Note: For smiling and nodding when, after the meeting you helped lead, one of the male participants asks you to Xerox his notes.

The Big Event: Automatically awarded upon completion of your 20^th ladies banquet, tea or retreat involving hats, finger sandwiches, scrapbooking, and/or “spa” manicures.

The Shear Magic: For blowdrying your hair into a style remotely resembling anything you left the salon with after your last cut.

The Wonder Woman: For somehow summoning the superhuman strength not to say, “No, PMS isn’t the problem. You’re just especially annoying today.”

guest post #1 (sort of)

Yesterday I issued a call for guest posts, and I’ve received several interesting responses. In addition to some queries about writing a post, I got a great question in the comments (“Where do 30-something Christians go? Or is the church just not geared toward my age group and I need to wait ’til I’m 50?”) and an I-don’t-want-to-write-it-but-you-should email.


“I wouldn’t want to write this myself,” it began, “but I find it interesting how many churches heavily emphasize faith in the Bible. (‘We believe the Bible is inspired, inerrant in its original language, completely accurate in every instance and absolutely relevant in every circumstance….’)

I’m not convinced the Bible is, or even claims to be, everything our churches assert that it is……For example, when the preacher explains the nuanced definition of some Greek word, which Jesus likely spoke in Aramaic some 30+ years before, it makes me scratch my head. I sometimes feel like faith in the Bible is on par with faith in God in a lot of churches, and that’s odd to me.”


The person who emailed declined to write a post on the subject, but did give me permission to quote him in a post of my own (potato, potahto). I’m choosing to do so because I resonate with his thoughts. In fact, just before reading his email I was listening to a friend and seminary graduate talk about Luke 17. “It’s geographically impossible for Jesus to have traveled the way Luke presents it,” she said. “Either Luke was a really bad navigator, or this is a signal (which would have been very clear to the original readers) that the passage is not to be taken literally.”

I don’t know if that’s true. (Sometimes I think about going to seminary myself. Then the sickness passes and I remember I like my life without homework.) But the very fact that I don’t know if it’s true, any more than I know those nuanced meanings of ancient Greek, makes me wonder why—if the Bible is our inerrant guidebook to life—it also has to be so hard to understand. And did God intend for us to make belief in the Bible equal to a belief in the Savior it describes?


So, wanna respond to Kevin’s question in yesterday’s comments? Wanna respond to this one? Wanna write your own post about it? This is getting fun.

be my guest

This past weekend I found myself talking with a smart person who was making a good point in an interesting conversation. One of the things I really like about my life is this happens fairly regularly.

And when it does, I often think, “That would make a great blog post, and it’s something our little online community should talk about. But I don’t understand/know enough/have the background to write it as well as this person.”


And then I think, “I should open up the blog to occasional guest posts. But what if I did and no one actually wanted to contribute anything?”

But I also avoided having birthday parties as a child because I was afraid no one would come, when of course they would have and I could have doubled my haul of presents.

And I just finished going on about how important it is to FEAR NOT! So let’s give this a try.


Guest Post Guidelines
(that sounds nicer than rules, don’t you think?)

—Good topics include anything related to Christianity, the church, theology and its application to our lives, our faith and culture or a fresh take on a current event. Other topics are welcome if the post is well-written. Surprise me.

—Not-so-good topics include advertisements for your ministry/CD/book/website, partisan political rants, and anything related to potty-training your child.

—The post must be original (i.e. you wrote it, and you haven’t published it anywhere else).

—You agree not to publish it anywhere else (your own blog or website), although you can link to it from there.

—I will edit for grammar, clarity, spelling, etc.

—I may not publish every post I receive. I’m sure I’ll want to share yours because it’s awesome. But I have to write that just in case.

—I’ll let you know if/when I decide to publish your post.

Okay guys, let’s try this. Send your brilliance to jen@seejenwrite.com.

new to you friday–anablog

Last night I attended a networking Meetup organized by Catalyst. It was a really fun opportunity to meet some of Nashville’s young leaders and also eat decent Mexican food (a rare occurrence down here).

As the evening wore on, I noticed I was one of the few at the table not checking email, Twittering about the event, or snorkeling around the Web.


I’m actually planning to trade up to either an iPhone or a Droid when my contract renews in January; between managing blogs and social media for a number of clients and dealing with my crazy travel schedule, it’s become more important for me to have this convenience than when I wrote the original post. So I’ll be putting on some lip gloss and heading out to talk to Kevin The Verizon Guy again soon.


I dearly love the Internets. I’m looking forward to having a smart phone (and a protective case for when I inevitably drop it). It will be fun to lose at Words With Friends and Facebook Scrabble. But I plan to set boundaries on how frequently the phone leaves my purse (and how infrequently it gets to sit next to the guacamole). I’m still more interested in being present to the people around me than being present on Twitter.

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It’s entertaining, actually, to see the looks.


“You don’t have cable?”

“You use a binder with paper to stay organized?”

“You don’t have an iPhone yet?”


The fact is, in many areas of life I am unapologetically low-tech.

This isn’t so I can claim self-righteous superiority, like those people who tell you they spent the evening re-reading Ulysses when you ask if they watched “The Bachelor.” (Although this is a bad example, because WHY would you be watching “The Bachelor?” And if you are, why are you admitting it to others?)

No, my reluctance to purchase some technology is not rooted in pride. I have a Mac, I don’t leave home without my iPod, and if I loved the Internet any more I’d have to marry it to avoid a scandal. But I’m not a big fan of gadgets, even the ones that supposedly improve my life.

My phone died this weekend, so I stopped by the Verizon store to get a new one—a cheap one, because I don’t spend a lot of money on cell phones. For one thing, I drop mine about once a week and it doesn’t hurt much to drop something I got for $29.99 with a two year contract. It would hurt to drop an iPhone.


But I haven’t refused the upgrades just because I’m a klutz; the main reason is my aforementioned love affair with all things online borders on addiction.

If I had a Blackberry or iPhone I’d constantly be reading email or updating Twitter. I’d waste even more time than I already do following obscure links or watching video. And I don’t want to be online every minute. I don’t want the constant temptation to check out of the here and now so I can check my email instead, or be one of those people who can’t sit through a movie (or conversation) without texting.

So I simply told Kevin the Verizon salesperson, who actually looked a little like the “Can you hear me now” guy, that I wanted a basic LG phone—preferably that schnazzy red one to his right.

He looked like I’d just suggested he eat his Bluetooth earpiece.

“You don’t want to download music? Or send email? Or edit video? Or find out the time in Belize?”

“No, just……make calls. Send texts, maybe. I guess that’s standard now.”

“Hmmm.” He raised one eyebrow and pointed me to the three non-smart phones the store had to offer.


In the end, I left the store without buying anything—the red one was sold out (apparently I am not the only person in search of something basic) and Kevin gave me a new battery so my ancient phone works just fine. Because flirting is also low-tech.

my life in texts

I loved seeing you tonight. I’ll be calmer next time.

Can we connect today, nowish?

I have actually met some normal people there.

What are you wearing?

On my way.

I’ve apparently made a wrong turn. Sigh.

Almost there.

Just five minutes late….hey, not as bad as last week.

Where is it?

Like it would kill them to have a sign.

I don’t think you’re too Christian unless you’re into snake handling.

I have some stuff (good) to tell you.

Hey, watch Undercover Boss on CBS tonight. The boss is my boss.

Sleepy and grumpy at LAX.

You flirted with the guy who cooks the fries?

I’m asking him to call your Google voice—please pick up.

Driving home with my left foot on the dashboard and thought of you.

By the way Keb Mo has confirmed.

My cab driver just tried to sell me Amway and introduce me to Jesus.

Jen, can I wear jeans and leather flip flops on a first date?

What if I have a horrible infected ingrown toenail?

Last night I assigned ring tones. Yours is The Real Slim Shady.

I’m sorry…..at least you made good time.

Christian publisher?

Just thinking about you. I love you and I miss you.

All’s well that…..yeah, you know the rest.