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Journey Archives
Dear Friends, Are you an eternal optimist or the opposite? Do you see the glass as half full or half empty? I myself feel that I am, by nature, an eternal optimist. I tend to see the positive instead of the negative. However, that said, I am also rarely content in letting things stay as they are. It is often hard for me to distinguish between sinful discontent and holy discontent, but I feel that the work that Leadership Network does falls fully within the realm of holy discontent. Constantly striving to improve communications and further the work of the Kingdom can only be viewed as a positive form of discontent! Recently I had an opportunity to visit with over 75 church leaders in two cities from various churches. I write this to you with excitement about the positive interaction those in attendance experienced as a result of these meetings. This meeting is only one of many structured visits we have named Innovation Update Roundtables (IUR's) that Leadership Network is conducting in an effort to listen to leaders around the country about what God is doing in their midst. I always learn new things from these pastors, and I want to take this opportunity to share some of their thoughts with you now. I learned from a pastor of an African Church comprised primarily of Kenyan immigrants that Christmas Day is their biggest worship day of the year. They estimate that they will have around 40% more on Christmas Day worship than their peak attendance during the rest of the year. I also learned that because of the relational ties in their church, well over half the attendees would say they are not yet followers of Christ, even though they attend regularly. In fact, this pastor suspects that that number could actually reach as high as 80%. Of course I know some pastors that have long suspected similar ratios in their own congregations, but rarely have I heard of attendees clearly identifying themselves in this manner. I also heard from an Asian Pastor that feels his church is entering a time of great revival due to the great sacrifices that are being made by its church members, and seen by others in their midst. Their church was seeking to raise a large amount of cash quickly in order to purchase their first property. During this fundraising initiative, a young single mom brought her life's savings to the church and gave it to the pastor, saying, "This is what God would have of me." Inspired by her sacrificial gift, a revival of generosity broke out among the congregation. Later I met a pastor from Brazil and heard his testimony regarding the use of lay pastors to rapidly multiply ministry in their city and region. I also met with Mexican, Salvadoran, and Korean pastors, as well as Anglo and African American pastors, and I learned many other things. As we continue to hold more IUR's in the next several months, I look forward to sharing more information gleaned from these gatherings with you. One of Leadership Network's core beliefs is that leaders learn best from other leaders. Even in the short meeting we had last week, those leaders learned new solutions to their current challenges and opportunities by listening to their peers around the room. That same principle applies throughout all our Leadership Communities, Halftime Summits and other programs. It is what drives us to do the work that we do. After all, our mission is "connecting innovators to multiply." But despite the many positive feelings I came away with from the meeting, I have that "holy discontent" within me that calls for improvement. Even though we had some diversity in the rooms those days, we are still not satisfied. Leadership Network's desire is to see and help pastors learn from all kinds of other pastors, regardless of location, race, experience, or any other issue that might otherwise be a roadblock. Although we were greatly encouraged by the attendance of pastors of other racial and language groups at the recent meeting, we desire to see more diversity in the future so that we can all learn as much as possible from each other. We share a Revelation 7 vision where a great multitude which no one can number, of all nations, tribes, peoples, and tongues, stands before the throne and the lamb and cries out in united praise. I think the way to see an even greater multitude gathered before the lamb on that great day is to start sharing together and working together now in an effort to exemplify the Kingdom on earth. We at Leadership Network always count our blessings this time of year, and among those many blessings are all of you. It is such a great privilege to serve Christian leaders such as yourselves, and we value your work in your part of the Kingdom cause. Our wish is that God may bless and strengthen you during this Christmas season, just as you have blessed and strengthened us. Happy Holidays and warmest regards,
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