LEADING FROM ALIGNMENT EPISODE 267: PAY ATTENTION TO YOUR OWN YARD
Human nature leans toward noticing problems with other people while being blind to our own. Jesus identifies this tendency when He asks: “Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother’s eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye?” This tendency...
WHY ARE SOMEONE ELSE’S WEEDS BOTHERING ME SO MUCH?
It’s frighteningly easy to ignore the things in our own lives that need adjusting, and instead focus on what needs adjusting in other people. The words of Jesus in Matthew 7:3-5 address this: “Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother’s eye and pay no...
LEADING FROM ALIGNMENT PODCAST EPISODE 266: THE POWER OF FORTY
In 1900, the Ford Motor Company commissioned a series of tests to determine how long a workweek should be to optimize productivity. Ford discovered the “sweet spot” was 40 hours per week. If you are a pastor, a 40-hour work week is likely a pipe dream. But the...
LEADING FROM ALIGNMENT PODCAST EPISODE 265: THE NUMBER ONE CONTRIBUTOR TO BURNOUT
In episode 263 we discussed the seconding leading contributor to pastoral burnout . . . isolation. In today’s episode, we consider the top contributor: The ongoing and immense stress of the role. Stress comes with the pastoral assignment, so what is a leader to do?...
LEADING FROM ALIGNMENT PODCAST EPISODE 264: EMOTIONAL INTELLIGENCE & YOU
What is it like to be on the other side of you? Your answer can be a leading indicator of your emotional intelligence level. Emotional intelligence is the ability to understand your emotions, the emotions of those near you, and the impact your emotions have on the...
LEADING FROM ALIGNMENT PODCAST EPISODE 263: THE TRAP OF ISOLATION
The second leading cause of pastor burnout is isolation. All of us need people in our life who energize us, refresh us, make us laugh, who we can have mask-off community with. Leadership is too hard to do alone. In today’s episode John and Jim explore two major...
A PASTOR’S MOST COMMON LEADERSHIP LID
Years ago, a young lead pastor made his first staff hire. He brought a youth pastor on from out of state. Right from the start there where all kinds of red flags: The youth pastor made no effort to learn the culture of the church—which was historically a very...
LEADING FROM ALIGNMENT PODCAST EPISODE 262: A PASTOR’S MOST COMMON LEADERSHIP LID
We believe the top limiting leadership behavior is the inability or unwillingness to have tough conversations with those you lead. In today’s episode we unpack six practical steps that will help you find the sweet spot between the tendency to bully and the tendency to...
LEADING FROM ALIGNMENT PODCAST EPISODE: HOW TO LET YOUR TEAM HELP YOU
How many lead pastors get in the way of people stepping up to serve just because the pastor tries to do it all? In today’s episode, John and Jim explore three master keys to getting out of your team’s way and releasing them to help share the ministry load. Three...
LEADING FROM ALIGNMENT PODCAST EPISODE 260: IMPLEMENTING A SUCCESSION PLAN
One of the most vulnerable times in an organization’s life is when it is transitioning from its current senior leader and passing the baton to the next one. In today’s episode John and Jim explore a high-level plan for a senior leadership transition. They answer two...
HOW TO LET YOUR TEAM HELP YOU
When my husband was a lead pastor, at any given moment he could be found straightening chairs in the worship center, stacking cups in the cafe, or fixing scuff marks on the walls. He cared so deeply about our church that he was significantly invested in every aspect...
LEADING FROM ALIGNMENT PODCAST EPISODE 259: ARE YOU OVERSTAYING
Churches can experience two extremes when it comes to lead pastors: pastors who leave prematurely, or pastors who hang on too long. In today’s episode we unpack four powerful questions and four practical steps to help leaders discern if a necessary ending is nearing....
LEADING FROM ALIGNMENT PODCAST EPISODE 258 – JESUS’ INVITATION TO WEARY LEADERS
In last week’s episode 257 John and Jim explored a leader’s most important assignment . . . building a strong inner life. In today’s episode they piggyback on that idea today by unpacking a practical way to get arrive at a stronger inside life . . . responding to...
WHEN TOO MUCH ACTIVITY IS A SIGN OF SOMETHING DEEPER
In his book, The Emotionally Healthy Leader, Peter Scazzero focuses on the importance of cultivating a strong inner life. As a pastor, author, and the founder of Emotionally Healthy Discipleship, he contends doing so will transform the church, organization, and teams...
LEADING FROM ALIGNMENT PODCAST EPISODE 257 – A LEADER’S MOST IMPORTANT ASSIGNMENT
In today’s episode John and Jim do a quick flyover of three quotes from Peter Scazzero’s book, The Emotionally Healthy Leader. Together they unpack the #1 assignment of every pastor—an assignment that if taken seriously, is the biggest contributor to a pastor’s...
LEADING FROM ALIGNMENT PODCAST EPISODE 256 – LEADING IN AN ELECTION YEAR
It’s national election season again. While we’re not sure the 2024 election will reach the fever pitch of the 2020 election, we think it’s safe to assume there’s going to be some tension. In today’s episode John and Jim unpack four perspectives that will help you...
RHYTHMS & YOUR MENTAL HEALTH
The quality of our rhythms is an accurate predictor of the quality of long-term fruit we produce. In today’s post, Jaime Hlavin unpacks four powerful rhythms that serve to keep a leader living and leading from a full tank. A growing ministry requires growing...
LEADING FROM ALIGNMENT PODCAST EPISODE 255 – INTERVIEW WITH LEWIS BRANDON
Today we welcome to the mic Lewis Brandon, pastor of Jordantown Wesleyan Church in Vinton, Virginia. A vibrant, growing church led by a vibrant, growing pastor. His powerful journey of healing from brokenness, anxiety, and depression is one of the most moving...
LEADING FROM ALIGNMENT PODCAST EPISODE 254 – STAFFING YOUR CHURCH FROM WITHIN – PART 3
Finding character-filled, talented people to add to your team is becoming increasingly challenging. The pool of available candidates seems thin right now, and we sense it could stay that way for the near future. Today’s episode concludes our three-part series on...
STAFFING FROM WITH IN
Many pastors we’ve spoken to recently are expressing significant difficulty in finding called and qualified staff to join their teams. We’ve been tackling this subject on the Leading from Alignment podcast, and you’ve joined us here on the blog right in the middle of...
LEADING FROM ALIGNMENT PODCAST EPISODE 253 – STAFFING YOUR CHURCH FROM WITHIN – PART 2
Finding character-filled, talented people to add to your team is becoming increasingly challenging. The pool of available candidates seems thin right now, and we sense it could stay that way for the near future. Considering those realities, we offer Part 2 of our...
LEADING FROM ALIGNMENT PODCAST EPISODE 252 – STAFFING YOUR CHURCH FROM WITHIN – PART 1
Over the past few weeks, more than a dozen pastors have reported to us they are trying to add staff. They have the budget for it but are finding the talent pool shallow. Some have been trying for eighteen months or more to fill a position with no movement. It is our...
LEADING FROM ALIGNMENT PODCAST EPISODE 251 – YOU & YOUR MARRIAGE – INTERVIEW WITH GREG AND RACHELLE COLEGROVE – PART 2
The health of your marriage is foundational to the health of the organization you lead. The most impactful thing a pastor does for a church’s health is to have a healthy marriage. In Part 2 of their conversation with Greg and Rachelle Colegrove, founders of The Fun...
LEADING FROM ALIGNMENT PODCAST EPISODE 250 – YOU & YOUR MARRIAGE– INTERVIEW WITH GREG AND RACHELLE COLEGROVE – PART 1
Other than burnout, the second highest reason pastors seek coaching or counseling is the state of their marriage (both preventive maintenance and crisis situations). The state of our marriage influences everything in our life . . . including our leadership. In today’s...
LEADING FROM ALIGNMENT PODCAST EPISODE 249 – THE BEAUTY & THE BEAST OF TASK – ORIENTATION
In today’s episode John & Jim tackle the tension between the beauty of “getting stuff done” and the beast of unreached goals and accompanying feelings of failure, the striving for accomplishment at the expense of relationships, and being content with busy work vs....
LEADING FROM ALIGNMENT PODCAST EPISODE 248 – BECOMING A LEADER OF LEADERS
In today’s episode John and Jim rap about one of the biggest leadership mistakes Moses made, and how his father-in-law Jethro helped him take a better path. Their conversation centers on the idea of becoming a leader of leaders instead of remaining a one-man or...
LEADING FROM ALIGNMENT PODCAST EPISODE 247: YOU & YOUR MARRIAGE
Statistics drawn from over 12,000 coaching and/or counseling sessions with pastors during the years 2022-2023 revealed the following top four needs being addressed in descending order were: Burnout/exhaustion Marriage counseling (both critical and preventative...
3 TENSIONS WE NEED TO MANAGE IN ORDER TO BEAT WORRY
No amount of money will ease all your anxieties if you leave trusting God out of the equation. Jesus said worry chokes the life out of what He’s planted in us. And elsewhere He stated: “Do not worry, saying ‘what shall we eat/drink/wear?’ For the pagans run after all...
LEADING FROM ALIGNMENT PODCAST EPISODE 246: 4 MASTER KEYS TO BEATING DISCOURAGEMENT
Discouragement is the universal experience of leadership. Extended seasons of discouragement can cause leaders to doubt their calling, capability, and value. Some leaders even prematurely exit ministry due to a growing sense of hopelessness. In today’s episode John...
LEADING FROM ALIGNMENT PODCAST EPISODE 245: EIGHT CHURCH TRENDS IN 2024 – PART 2
Pastoring in 2024 is not like it was pre-pandemic. Last week in Episode 244 we explored four trends we are noticing right now: The gravitational pull toward the tactical at the expense of the strategic; the way church health is measured; the loneliness of the people...