Jul 9, 2020 | character, Family, Growth, Leadership, Leading Yourself, Relationships, Uncategorized
This past weekend Laura and I celebrated Independence Day with a small group of friends. Over a sumptuous feast of smoked ribs, pulled pork, beans, and slaw, we started talking about—of all things—our lawns. Is that a sign of aging? Anyhow, it got me to thinking about...
Jul 2, 2020 | Burnout, Calling, Career, Depression, discouragement, Emotional Health, Exhaustion, Fatigue, Leadership, Loneliness, Ministry Leader, Missionary, Pastor, Quitting, Stress, Uncategorized
After 3+ months of crisis after crisis, leaders feel frazzled and exhausted. Some leaders are so tired that they want to stop leading and start selling ice cream. More than a few strong leaders who lead thriving organizations are seriously considering leaving...
Jun 18, 2020 | Grandparents, Uncategorized
One week ago today, our third granddaughter made her entrance into the world. She’s a beauty. The first pictures of her popping up on my phone made my heart leap and my eyes leak. I feel magnetically drawn to this tiny little person. I think of the Christmas classic,...
Jun 11, 2020 | Calling, Career, Emotional Intelligence, Leadership, Likeability, Ministry Leader, Pastor, Relationships, Team members, Uncategorized, Work
What’s it like to be on the other side of you? I remember our lead pastor posing this question to us during one of his talks several years ago. It’s an intimidating question to ask ourselves. Even more intimidating to ask someone else, “What’s it like to be on the...
Jun 4, 2020 | Calling, Family, friendship, Ministry Leader, Pastor, Relationships, Uncategorized, Work
Today, an important post from our teammate, Jaime Hlavin, on the subject of simplifying. ~ John This week was weird. The governor of Michigan has begun to reopen our state. And it felt almost “normal.” And by “normal,” I mean exhaustingly busy to the point that I...
May 28, 2020 | Abuse, Anger, Anxiety, Assertiveness, Burnout, Depression, Emotional Health, Leadership, Ministry Leader, Missionary, Pastor, Relationships, Suicide, Uncategorized
In last week’s post we talked about the sudden passing of pastor Darrin Patrick, and used it as a launching point for a discussion regarding the problem of suicide in the United States. According to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, in...
