Monday, November 3, 2008

what I learned today

I think in terms of groups. I have trouble focusing on one of anything. Recently when considering how to honor Veterans in this weekends services the answer was clear, identify all the Veterans in our congregation! Create a new group. Cool! Now anytime I need a Veteran for our services I have many of them registered.

In an attempt to re-build our drama team I am creating a new Drama Small group with the help of our amazing drama leader Maureen Browning. As I began to recruit for the team, I was astonished to find that most of the actors I talked to, some of which had been at Crossroads for years, were not part of any group. Not a small group, not a ministry team, nothing...this proves that our backdoor is still open at Crossroads. Our Management Team has been creating the 2009 calendar to help close this door, I am very excited to see how different the ministry looks at the end of the year. So, my Magnification mantra for the year is to do all I can to 'slam the door and lock it!'

I am currently reading Seth Godin's book, Tribes. In it he says, "Too many organizations care about number, not fans. They care about hits or turnstile clicks or media mentions. What they're missing is the depth of commitment and interconnection that true fans deliver. Instead of always being in the hunt for one more set of eyeballs, true leaders have figured out that the real win is in turning a casual fan into a true one." Fans may seem like a negative way to think of a church congregation, but many act like fans don't they? They may like the music, or come just for the great teaching, but many are in no way truly connected or committed. That's a challenge. I refuse to accept this.

In some regards I guess you could say I'm not happy with the status quo, I know that God created each of us to connect and be part of one another's lives. I pray he shows me many chances as a leader to create these opportunities for our congregation.

Seth Godin goes on to say, " Whatever the status quo is, changing it gives you the opportunity to be remarkable." Crossroads can be known as a place people connect to come together to do God's work. Together we can change the status quo and become remarkable for our Lord! So I learned to day - we need to aim for remarkable!

No comments: