Author Archives: markjlenz

Recipe For Getting Better At Anything

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It’s been said we only see 60% of ourselves. Turn your head to the side as far as it goes. You still can’t see your back. We all have blind spots. Weaknesses we’re not aware of. Other people see them but are sometimes hesitant to tell us about them. Telling the truth in love is difficult and risky, so important things often go unsaid.

As a result, we can remain unaware of our shortcomings. Businesses continue to produce sub-standard results. Relationships remain strained. Society accepts the status quo. Churches stay busy but don’t produce meaningful results. Things could be better, but because we lack awareness, they continue being sub-par.

We all need help. We may not like to admit it but it’s true. Whether it’s in interpersonal relationships, technical skills, physical well-being or business principles, asking for and receiving help is vital to maintain health. Thank goodness for experts. Counselors, teachers, advisors, personal trainers, and consultants all specialize in assessing specific situations and helping make things better.

Every successful outcome needs the right components. When my wife makes chocolate chip cookies, she adds the right ingredients, uses her baking skills, and produces delicious results. These cookies are amazing. The same is true in making anything that’s good. Here are seven steps to improving anything and the key ingredient to each step.

Assessing Your Current Reality
They say you don’t know what you don’t know. So, seeing a clear and accurate picture of your current reality is the first step in getting better. The key ingredient here is the value of continuous improvement. Genuinely seeking to get better is the foundation on which the improvement process is built.

Realizing There’s An Issue
Once you’ve assessed the reality of your situation, there will always be at least one area that needs to get better. There may be more but it’s good to focus only on the major issue. The key ingredient here is emotional intelligence, which is the ability to see and appropriately respond to the reality that is going on around you. In other words, you need to possess the maturity to be aware of your issues. Continue reading →

Three Key Elements of Effective Story Telling

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A while ago, I wrote a blog about Three Preaching Essential to Reach Today’s Culture. In it I wrote about the Word, Story and Humor. Today I want to dive deeper into one key element of communication: story.

Stories have always been powerful communication tools. Some people possess a vocal tonality that naturally lends itself to storytelling. Think about James Earl Jones, Garrison Keillor or Morgan Freeman. You feel compelled to listen to their stories because their voice sound so good.

Successful movie producers have mastered the art of storytelling on film. Prominent authors have skillfully used stories to capture the imagination of their readers.

Of course, Jesus of Nazareth was the most influential storyteller in history. He told stories of fathers, farmers, and fishermen. He told parables of hidden treasures on earth and lasting treasures in Heaven. He captivated his audiences with tales of shrewd money managers, persistent widows, proud Pharisees, and hated tax collectors. He made heroes out of outcasts and stars out of sinners.

Great communicators throughout history have skillfully used stories to draw in their audience. Pastors of today use stories to reinforce the point they are making. Motivational speakers use stories to compel their audience to act. They make it look easy. But it’s not.

Preparing and delivering an effective story takes work and practice. But storytelling remains one of the most effective methods of engaging communication. With that said, here are three key elements of effective storytelling.

Tension
Build some tension into your stories. Use excitement, fear, anxiety, joy or any other emotion that people can relate to. Tension helps draw people into the story and entices them to listen. Simply put, people will pay attention if there’s tension.

Jesus masterfully built tension in the story of a wayward son. He once told of a young man who left home with his inheritance and ruined his life making unwise choices. Many people, then and now, can relate to the tension in this situation. Jesus went on to tell of how the son came to his senses and planned to return home. His audience surely wondered, if that were my son, how would I respond?

That’s exactly why the use of tension is an effective tool to help draw your audience in. Skillful communicators will raise the tension in the story and then use the main point of their message to bring the tension to a satisfactory conclusion. Continue reading →

Ten Steps To Continuous Improvement

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Have you ever walked into a local business and seen something that lacks professionalism? Then did you ask yourself, I wonder why they don’t improve that? Ever shown up at work, noticed an established process and thought, why do we do it this way?

If so, you may have a maximizer strength like me. I’m always seeing things that could be better. Some call it the spiritual gift of criticism so I always try to put a positive spin on it.

My church has a staff value of “Make It Better.” They are continually in the process of dreaming, creating, implementing, observing, and making improvements.

If you’re always evaluating present realities, envisioning improvements and coming up with ideas on how to make it better, consider incorporating these ten steps of the continuous improvement cycle.

Idea
Everything ever invented, designed or created began with an idea. Ideas usually originate from a problem. Someone notices a problem and they say, wouldn’t it be great if… An idea is the first step in the continuous improvement cycle.

Plan
Someone said an idea without a plan is just a daydream. Ideas need plans before they can progress and become something more. Plans are extremely important. They can take time. But a well thought out plan is crucial for continuous improvement.

Prepare
Once the plan has been completed, you may be tempted to move right into implementation. But before that, you need to prepare. Preparation is a key step in the process. Prepare yourself. Prepare your audience. Prepare those this plan will affect. Preparation will help the execution go smoothly. Continue reading →

Five Things To Do In A Season Of Stuck

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Many ministry leaders find themselves feeling stuck. This post is not about getting unstuck. Our friends at the Unstuck Group can help with that. It’s not about overcoming your issues and getting going again.

This is a post about what to do when you don’t know what to do. You’ve tried everything and nothing seems to be working. And you feel you’re not going anywhere. It’s about what to do while you’re in the season of stuck.

I’ve been there. In ministry. In life. In relationships. Being stuck is not uncommon. But it doesn’t mean you can’t do anything positive. Here are five helpful things you can do during a season of stuck.

Rest
Many pastors and church leaders are Type-A personalities, always needing to do something. We must realize that rest is not doing nothing. It’s an intentional action that’s crucial for refueling.

In his book Leading on Empty, Pastor Wayne Cordeiro warns that when a body is depleted of serotonin “your system has to recharge, but it takes a trickle charge, one that restores you with a sustained low-amperage…The only way to finish strong will be to first replenish your system. If you don’t prepare for a crash.” Continue reading →

Four Things That Dilute Your Mission

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As pastors and Christian leaders, we strive to lead ministries that are pleasing to God and accomplish the mission for which they are intended. We work hard at it. But sometimes, in our effort to make it “just right”, we can overdo it. We can include non-crucial details, add cumbersome verbiage and reemphasize already-made points. While we think we are making it better, we’re actually muddying the water. We’re diluting our mission.

Pastor and author Andy Stanley speaks of narrowing the ministry focus. He says, “There is a natural tendency to drift toward complexity…Resist complexity and pursue simplicity.”     

That’s why it’s important to streamline and simplify. If we’re always adding elements to existing programs, and not eliminating ineffective ones, our attenders will experience ministry overload that will paralyze their thought making process. Too many announcements, too many service elements, too much of anything can become white noise to our audience.

White noise is defined as the sound of every frequency that can be heard by the human ear. And since you hear all of them at once, you really can’t hear any.

This applies to the things we communicate and the programs we offer. Let’s look at four things we often think are helping accomplish our mission, but are not. Continue reading →

Three Preaching Essentials to Reach Today’s Culture

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Preaching is important. The Apostle Paul encourages his young friend Timothy to preach the word, in season and out of season (2 Timothy 4:2). As pastors and Christian leaders, this means we must always be prepared to preach and effectively communicate the transforming power of new life in Christ.

Most pastors aspire to be good preachers and we’ve all heard our share of sermons. Some great, many good, and some not so good. Effective preaching can be tricky. You must discern what God is saying, put it down on paper (or your laptop), and turn it into a sermon. Then you need to deliver that sermon to a crowd of people with different backgrounds, diverse needs and varying levels of spiritual maturity. And, of course, your goal isn’t that people will just hear your message, but that it goes beyond their ears and penetrates their hearts so that their lives, priorities and actions are changed. Every week!

That’s no small task and we deeply rely of God’s help and the Holy Spirit’s anointing to get that accomplished. While our culture and methods change, the word of God does not. And as preachers, we need to take this to heart as we are entrusted with communicating the gospel to the people of our day. Here are three preaching essentials to effectively reach people of today’s culture.

Word
In the first chapter of John’s gospel, Jesus is referred to as the Word (logos, in Greek). Jesus is the central person of the gospels. So, pointing people to Jesus should be one foundational component of our preaching. Whether you preach verse by verse or talk about different Biblical themes or contemporary topics, the basis of the words must be rooted in the truth of scripture and the reality of the person of Jesus. Doing anything less would be a sad disservice to your people.

But we’ve probably all heard sermons that spoke truth but somehow missed the mark at connecting with people. And while the Old Testament prophet Isaiah said that his words will certainly accomplish their purposes (Isaiah 55:11), we can help our listeners connect with our words by using a few, simple techniques.   Continue reading →

The Problem with Wineskins

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Have you ever wondered why some Christians seem to get stuck in outdated methodologies? Why they get trapped in traditions that have outlived their purpose?

Traditions are not bad in themselves. But when a tradition becomes more important than the thing it points to, it leads to traditionalism, or the overemphasis of the tradition. This problem dates back to Jesus’ time. If fact, he spoke about it in Luke 5:37-38. “No one pours new wine into old wineskins. Otherwise, the new wine will burst the skins; the wine will run out and the wineskins will be ruined. No, new wine must be poured into new wineskins.”

In Jesus’ day, wine was an important part of celebrations. It represented joy and often symbolized the happiness associated with the coming of God’s kingdom. Small amounts of wine were typically carried in pouches made of goat skin called wineskins.

Wine is an interesting thing. Simply put, when grape juice ferments, a chemical reaction produces a gas that expands, turning the juice into wine. Jesus reminded his listeners that if new wine was put into dry, rigid pouches, the gas would expand and burst the old, stiff wineskins.

Jesus was actually making a point. Not about wine, but about traditions. He distinguishes between something essential and primary (the wine) and something secondary but also necessary and useful (the wineskins). He’s saying that the new wine of the new covenant can’t be kept in the rigid forms of the traditions of Judaism. It needs to be in flexible forms that allows the Spirit to expand and move. The old wineskins have been stretched to their limit and cannot hold the new wine of his message that God is doing a new thing. He emphasizes that wine is always more important than the wineskin.

The problem of wineskins is very common in churches today. Wineskins are those old traditions, stiff structures and rigid patterns that have become more important than the gospel itself. Here are some ways you can know if your church has a problem with wineskins. Continue reading →

Relating Well to Four Types of Church Attendees

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Over the centuries, the church has been compared to many things. Some have likened it to a hospital or a boot camp. The Apostle Paul wrote that it was like a building, a body, a bride and a family.

The analogy of a ship can also be helpful when describing the church. Scott Ridout, president of Converge Worldwide, says the people on a ship can be compared to the people in your church. This analogy assumes the Pastor is the captain and there are four different kinds of people on board. Let’s look closer at each one.

The Crew
On a ship, the captain can depend on the crew to get the job done. They work alongside the captain and take ownership of every aspect of the ship and its passengers. They agree with all policies, procedures and practices on the ship to create a wonderful experience for everyone aboard.

The crew in your church are the people who are working with you to accomplish the mission of the church. They are your key volunteers and buy into the values, direction and destination of the church. They work hard to bring everyone who attends to maturity in Christ.

The Passengers
The passengers on a ship differ from the crew in one major area. They also love the destination and want to get there, but they don’t pitch in to help. Passengers are just along for the ride. They enjoy the experience of the cruise, but don’t offer assistance or support.

Most churches are full of passengers. They fill the pews every Sunday. They enjoy the worship, listen to the messages and love the fellowship. They partake in the midweek programs, but they don’t get involved in serving. They are the ultimate “church consumer”, taking advantage of the ministry of the church but not offering any help. Passengers buy into where the church is going, but don’t get involved to help anyone get there. Continue reading →

Stats & Stories: Using Both for Maximum Impact

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It’s been said that facts are your friends. This is true in business, relationships, education and faith. Even though facing facts can sometimes be hurtful, truth needs to be exposed and embraced to make headway in all areas of life.

To make any wise decision, it’s important to have the right information. But you need more than information to get results. You also need motivation. Information and motivation are two key elements in getting things done.

But not all data is important. And not all data is interesting. Yet combining important and interesting data can compel people towards action. I call these two types of data, Hard Data and Soft Data. Let’s take a closer look at both.

Hard Data
Hard data are statistics. And statistics engage the mind. If you like charts, graphs, numbers and Excel spreadsheets, you love hard data. Stats give us needed information by which we can judge situations, develop ideas and solve problems. They are a foundational building block to any problem that has ever been solved. Some people can just look at statistics, figure out the problem and pose a solution. While it’s seldom that simple, that’s the general idea. Continue reading →

How Staff Values Can Impact Church Culture

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If you’ve been in ministry for a while, you may have noticed how easy it is for a church to stray from its original purpose. Mission drift happens subtly and over time, but if it’s not addressed it can lead your church down a well-worn path towards irrelevance. This can lead to churches getting really good at things that don’t really matter.

One way to fight against this trend is to establish church values. Creating clear values will help clarify direction, determine resource allocation and determine priorities. They are a foundational component of any church culture.

The same is true for creating values for your ministry staff. As with a congregation, a church staff can forget the reason they do what they do. So, establishing staff values reminds everyone in the room what your staff is really all about. They are great, written reminders of the “rules” by which your staff agrees to operate. Here are six staff values to consider implementing with your church staff.

Love people
Loving people is really the bottom line of ministry. Jesus said love God, love others. That’s it. Ministry should always focus on loving people with the love of Christ. When your staff makes decisions that affect your church, always ask, Is this about loving people? The answer will determine your next steps. Continue reading →