Maybe It’s Time to Get a Divorce.

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The other day, I was watching the Chronicles of Narnia:Prince Caspian movie with my family. It was an okay flick…a little less cheesy than the first in my opinion. There was one line that really stuck out to me. It was when Lucy finds Aslan and asks him why he did not come and help defend the people of Narnia. His reply was, simply, “Things never happen the same way twice.”

There’s  a lot of truth in that statement. It is so easy for us, as church leaders, to find success in a certain method and then cling to it desperately…even when it stops being effective. We think to ourselves, “Look at how well it worked before.” while ignoring the fact that it’s not working now.

We know what our mission is. That has never changed. But, we cannot afford to be married to a method. Methods change with culture. The moment we allow ourselves to become too endeared to a method is the moment we lose momentum.

What many of us need to do is divorce some of our old methods. We need to look them in the eye and let them know it’s just not working and we simply don’t love them anymore. It’s time to move on.

Are you willing to divorce your method if it means accomplishing your mission?



Written by on February 8, 2012 and categorized under Impact, Innovation

When You CAN’T Do It.

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One of the most iconic movie quotes from my generation is “You can DO it!” Or, who hasn’t read or had read to them the story of the Little Engine Who Could with it’s reverberation of, “I think I can. I think I can. I think I can.” And, of course, one of the most popularly quoted scriptures is Philippians 4:13…”I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.”

But, what about when we find ourselves faced with a challenge we can’t overcome? a calling we cannot accomplish? So often we hang on the first few words of the above verse and miss that the true power is found in the last five…”through Christ who strengthens me.”

I think about when Pharaoh brought Joseph before him to interpret  a couple of disturbing dreams. Do you remember Joseph’s response? He didn’t brag about the fact that he had been right in his interpretations at least twice before. Instead, he answers Pharaoh with, “I can’t do it myself, but God can…”

Very often, to accomplish something great for God…we have to rely ON God. We have to come to a point where we understand that we cannot accomplish what God has called us to. All we can do, is walk in obedience and watch God do it through us.



Written by on February 6, 2012 and categorized under Impact

What’s Holding You Back?

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I remember from my youth ministry days an inflatable that I would sometimes rent for major events. It was called a bungee run. The concept was simple enough. Two people, standing side-by-side, strap themselves to a bungee cord attached to the back of a long aisle. On go, they both run as hard and fast as they can to see who can get the farthest before the bungee snaps them back on their derriere.

It’s a fun enough game; but, the problem is we often live our lives the very same way. We try to move forward but find ourselves latched on to our past. It creates an endless cycle of hard run…fall back…hard run…fall back…leaving us discouraged at our lack of progress and disappointed that we can’t just move on.

Listen, you cannot move forward until you’re willing to leave where you currently are. You have to cut your bungee cord to the past…good and bad. That doesn’t mean you forget where you came from. It simply means you choose not to spend the rest of your life there.

God wants to keep moving you forward…from glory to glory. But, you have to be willing to move with Him…to pack your bags, let go of your past, and walk forward. Don’t let a bungee cord keep you from where God wants to take you.



Written by on January 10, 2012 and categorized under Impact, Individuality

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