Luke 15:11-32 Traditionally the title given to these teachings has been “The Parable of the Prodigal Son.” Focusing only on the younger son could lead a disciple to miss the main character and great theology. This sermon explores the participation theater Jesus draws his audience into based on the cultural setting . In the end we have a call to action for the Pharisees in the audience and...
Sermon Audio February 6, 1011 Scripture Reading: Luke 15:11-32 Introduction: The Old Grandfather and His Grandson by Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm Once upon a time there was a very, very old man. His eyes had grown dim, his ears deaf, and his knees shook. When he sat at the table, he could scarcely hold a spoon. He spilled soup on the tablecloth, and, beside that, some of his soup would run back out...
A real team, in my view, is something very specific. It differs from the more common ‘single-leader unit’ in three important ways. First, all members of a real team have an equal level of emotional commitment to the team’s purpose and goals. Second, the leadership role shifts easily among the members based on the skills and experience they have and the challenges of the moment, rather than on...
The single most important thing to remember about any enterprise is that there are no results inside its walls. The result of a business is a satisfied customer. Peter Drucker
Allowing too much complacency
Failing to create a sufficiently powerful guiding coalition
Underestimating the power of vision
Under communicating the vision by a factor of 10 (or 100 or even 1,000)
Failure to remove obstacles to the vision
Not systematically planning for and creating short-term wins
Declaring victory too soon
Failure to anchor change in the organizations culture
In a previous post I quoted John Maxell who observed that older and “insecure leaders view change as a threat rather than an opportunity. ” But what if you have to change. Many small churches are facing declining membership because their traditions have not changed in decades. The prevailing belief is worship traditions are Biblical and any deviation must certainly be a sin. Even...
Nobel Prize-winning author John Steinbeck asserted, ‘It is the nature of man as he grows older to protect against change, particularly change for the better.’ By its very nature, empowerment brings constant change in that it encourages people to grow and innovate. Change is the price of progress. Insecure leaders view change as a threat rather than an opportunity. – John Maxwell
NOTE: Originally posted on thepracticalCHRISTian.net The New Year is a time of renewal reminiscent of the fresh starts each school year brought when we were children. Starting fresh is intoxicating to those of us encumbered with a litany of bad habits and regrets we would like to leave behind. Overwhelmingly those who resolve to leave baggage behind each new year fail. Most can make it a...
December 26, 2010 “The House Built on a Rock: The Church” December 19, 2010 “O Lord Won’t You Buy Me a Mercedes Benz?” December 12, 2010 “Daily Bread?” Notes December 5, 2010 “The Lord’s Prayer” Notes November 28, 2010 “Purer Motives” Notes November 21, 2010 “Be Perfect as Your Heavenly Father is Perfect” Notes...
Unless you are prepared to see things differently and go against the current, you are unlikely to accomplish anything truly important. And to go against the current, you have to be something of an outsider, living on the edge, a member of a small but vibrant counterculture. You must free yourself from habitual ways of looking at things, cultivate an independent and questioning perspective, and...