Organizational cultures that support the mission

We often just don't think about it. Every organization has a stated mission or purpose but many do not have an internal organizational culture that is designed to support that mission. It is, perhaps, why we don't deliver on our purpose as well as we could be.

For instance, the mission statement of ReachGlobal - the mission I give leadership to - is to glorify God by multiplying healthy churches among all people. The key words there are multiplication and health. Both of those commitments require an internal culture of multiplication as well as a culture of health. It is not possible to see healthy churches multiplied without healthy personnel and it is not possible to actually multiply unless it is an intentional part of the culture since addition rather than multiplication is the default setting of most people.

Church leaders talk a lot about unity and love but if those kinds of values are not lived out by boards and staff it will likely not be lived out in the congregation either. Not only that but when the internal culture of an organization does not match its stated purposes it creates legitimate questions in the minds of many as to whether its leadership is truly serious about their stated purposes. 

I often speak with organizational staff about the lack of empowerment in their ministry. The senior leader talks the empowerment talk but the organizational culture does not empower - usually because the senior leader does not. It is an obvious case of cultures that don't match commitments and it is deeply frustrating to those affected.

Organizational culture matters a great deal. Often our cultures are accidental cultures as there has not been intentionality in their creation. The best cultures are clearly articulated, highly intentional and seriously lived out by leadership and staff.

Something to remember is that both  insiders and outsiders can read the culture of your organization. They can tell if it is intentional or accidental. They can also read whether it healthy or unhealthy and finally whether it supports your stated purposes. Often their commitment to the organization is directly influenced by what they  observe.

Honoring those who are full of years and faith

The fingers don't work as they once did and the hands are slower now. The mind does not pull up names as easily and sometimes fails one altogether. The walk is not as sure and simple things not as easy. Eyes that loved to read do so now only sporadically as fatigue sets in faster.

The one thing that does not fail is the lifetime of faith stored in an aging heart. Lessons learned the hard way. Character forged in fire. The gratefulness of mistakes and sin redeemed and used for His purposes. A sureness in a fellowship with Jesus that is deeper than ever.

Soon they will join the fellowship of Hebrews 11, men and women who died in faith and who are our examples to follow. No different than Old Testament heroes as they followed well and finished faithful.

I honor those whom God honors. In many ways their day has passed but in God's eyes they stand tall, like Burr Oaks, full of withered, gnarled, character that has stood the test of time, each bend in the frame a story of endurance and faith in the face of adversity.

They are the seniors in our churches. We have much to learn from their example, their faith, their stories and their wisdom. They paved the way for us and we will soon be them. We owe them our respect, our honor, our time, our love and our appreciation. They are repositories of great faith that if tapped could overflow into the lives of those who come behind. Congregations that make room for them are blessed. Those who don't are less because of it.

Our day celebrates youth and beauty and many younger pastors target young people in their worship style, preaching and ministry priorities. Certainly we need to always be reaching the next generation but we cannot do so at the alienation of the prior generations. In fact, we owe then much and they are often the ones who have served faithfully and given generously. Their faith stories are often remarkable and deep. They have paid the price of a long discipleship in the same direction. God honors that and so should we.

What got you to here won't necessarily get you to there

Think about that phrase: What got you here won't get you there. Those of us who lead organizations, ministries and churches often forget that truth. We assume that if we simply continue to do what we have done in the past we will get to the next level of effectiveness. Here is the truth. What got you to where you are got you to where you are. But without thinking differently, one is not likely to get to the next level.

An example of this is that of boards and what they spend their time on. In the early days of a ministry, boards often get involved in management decisions because there are few staff. As the ministry grows, however, unless they start to focus on governance and the future, they will become barriers to growth. What got them here will not get them there. Transition is needed in order to go to the next level.

Leaders themselves must continually reinvent themselves for the next run. Time priorities, focus on building strong team, constantly evaluating methods and strategies, awareness of the ministry environment in which they work and ensuring that the right people are in the right place in the ministry all become crucial elements. What got them here will not get them there. Figuring out what will get them to the the next place is one of the most important jobs of a leader.

It is the difference between General Motors who thought one could just do what they always did and continue to be successful and Toyota who knew that could not happen. One ended in bankruptcy and the other weathered the economy. Those principles apply to churches and ministries as well.

Understanding what got us to where we are is important. Understanding what will get us to the next level of effectiveness is even more important. Just thinking that it will happen by itself is naive. It is worth taking the time to think, pray and dialogue about your team and what will allow your team to go to the next level. It will require change - it always does. It may require rearrangement on the team - it often does. It will require a new way of thinking in certain areas.

The art of Grey Thinking

Contrarian thinking often simply means that we think grey on issues until we must make a decision. Grey thinking is the practice of soliciting as much input on a situation as possible, allowing those options to marinate in our minds and not making a final decision until it is necessary to do so. In the process, we often realize that there is an out of the box combination solution that is far better than any one of the proposed solutions by themselves.

Some people think it is a skill to make quick decisions and they pride themselves in their ability to do so. The truth is that slow decisions that have had significant input from a variety of sources is usually far better than a rapid one. In fact, wise leaders always bring the best thinking to the table including disparate viewpoints in the process of seeking the very best solution.

Outside my office is another room that used to be occupied by my executive assistant. Today is has a table, four chairs and white boards on two walls. I use that office far more than my actual office with a desk because this is the “think room” where together with colleagues I tackle complex issues in one of our many white board sessions. It is frequent in a conversation with colleagues that someone will say – “We need a white board session on that!”

Out of those sessions have come all kinds of unique ideas and solutions that were far better than any one of us could have crafted. There is no such thing as an all wise “sage” who invariably makes the right move. The sages of our day are those leaders who are secure enough in their own leadership to invite many others to the table in order to find solutions that no one person could have found.

Having sought a variety of wise counsel, wise leaders will than mull on those ideas, always asking the question, “Is there a solution that is different from a conventional solution that would allow us to move forward in a leveraged position.” And, they will often wait until the decision must be made to give themselves as much time as possible to consider alternatives. This is not decision avoidance: Rather, it is getting the right input and giving the right time to come up with a solution that is unconventional and better than what might have been decided earlier.

I will often tell my colleagues that I am thinking grey on an issue. They know that as long as I am thinking grey, they can dialogue with me on it. Of course, I rarely make a decision alone anyway – they are part of the equation. Grey thinking gives all of us the opportunity to continue to look for a unique solution. Remember, conventional wisdom is always conventional but it is rarely wisdom.

Things I wonder about

Why do so many churches that have the name grace in their name have a lot of legalism?

Why are there so many narcissistic Christian leaders when the mark of Jesus was humility?

Why do churches who split off from other churches think they can become the best church the world has seen since the New Testament? Did they read how messy the New Testament church was?

Why do we think we have a corner on truth when every generation that looks back sees what was missing in prior generations?

Why do I have a hard time trusting God for the future when He has been so good in the past?

Why am I so easily satisfied with less than all I have in Jesus?

Why does it take me so long to learn basic lessons of the Christian life?

Why do I get anxious when I know God is sovereign?

Why is money such a big deal when God told us to trust Him for what we need?

Why does God's grace cover all my sin day after day?

Why does God choose to use broken pots like us in His divine work?

Why can I find it so hard to forgive when God has forgiven me of everything?

Why do I try so hard to fix others when the Holy Spirit is the only one who can truly change hearts?

Why don't I care more that my neighbors will be in eternity without God unless they find Jesus?

Why do I have a hard time seeing all people as made in His image no matter how messed up that image is?

Why do I overvalue this life and undervalue eternity?

How come life does not get easier with age?

What do you wonder about?

Social media and ministry staff

Like all technology, social media is a double edged sword. It has its advantages and it can get individuals and ministries in trouble - depending on who uses it and how. In addition, what many ministry staff do not always think about is that what they post reflects in some way on the ministry they represent.

That is why, for instance, I do not take political stands on my blog. Whether I like it or not, as a senior vice president of the EFCA, my words can be seen to represent a denominational view and thus I am careful about the issues that I address on Facebook, Twitter, my blog and other avenues of social media. The same issues exists for ministry staff everywhere - even if they are not aware of it. 

This applies to both our words and our pictures. One ministry started to receive feedback on one of their female staff members who in the name of "fashion" raised eyebrows with her skimpy outfits online. She was a newer believer and had not thought of the implications. Transparency can be good but too much can be problematic.

Ministry staff represent something and as public figures to that extent must take into account who they represent. They are not private citizens in the social media space. The same goes for conversations online which when they cross the line from appropriate to inappropriate reflect poorly on the organization they represent.

Thus my question: Does your organization or ministry have a set of expectations regarding how your key staff engages in social media and have you communicated those expectations? It is far better to have a conversation now rather than face embarrassment later. Some of your staff have most likely not even thought about it. 

Language, culture and discipleship

Language is powerful and reflects societies mores and commitments. You can be a friend on Facebook without really knowing someone. If they have more than five thousand friends you can be a fan on their fan page. And many of us both follow and have followers on Twitter. While there are up sides and down sides to social media (and I participate in them regularly) they are the reality in an extraordinarily connected world.

It is not surprising that some of these same "ways we relate" to one another in the social media can carry over to our relationship with God. There are many who would consider themselves fans of Jesus. He was after all, an impressive guy. Others would consider themselves friends of his and others, in the language of twitter are followers. Of course Twitter followers regularly choose what content they read or don't read. It really denotes a general interest rather than anything else. None of these terms in their popular context denote a disciple of Jesus. 

A central challenge of the church today is to help people understand what it means to be a disciple of Jesus. One who takes up their cross daily to follow Him. One who devours His word as the authoritative word for us and not something we can pick and choose from. One who deserves our full and undivided devotion in all circumstances whether good or bad. These are not fans, followers or friends in the popular sense but fully devoted followers - all in disciples.

The word disciple may seem old fashioned but it may also communicate something that our alternative language does not due to their use in popular culture. At the lease we need to differentiate  between what we mean in the social media and what it truly means to make Jesus King and Lord of our lives.