open.substack.com/pub/thematta...
03.11.2025 13:08
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Leadership Secret: Jesus withdrew to connect with the Father (Luke 5:16).
Leadership Lesson: Withdrawal doesn’t weaken engagement; it strengthens it.
Most pastors plan their vacation more carefully than their ministry year. Joseph's example in Genesis 41 shows: leaders need systems, not just dreams. 📋✨
open.substack.com/pub/thematta...
Most ministry plans fail because they’re dreams without systems.
open.substack.com/pub/thematta...
“Grace is God’s unmerited favor.”
I said this hundreds of times before realizing biblical scholars have been trying to tell us: we’ve been teaching half the story.
open.substack.com/pub/thematta...
“God will always hear any prayer that is born out of honesty and that expresses whatever amount of faith we actually have.” (David Benner)
From my latest on Substack. You can read the rest here: open.substack.com/pub/thematta...
From my most recent Substack. You can read the rest here: open.substack.com/pub/thematta...
“They call it ‘passionate leadership’ when I push back or ‘caring about excellence’ when I correct staff. But tonight, after snapping at Mark, I realized the truth: this isn’t passion—it’s a reactive pattern eroding trust with those I need most.“
Sound familiar?
bit.ly/4iKmQrk
The most spiritually mature leaders I know aren't the ones with the most knowledge.
They're the ones who have learned to move to the beat of God's heart.
open.substack.com/pub/thematta...
May this be how the world experiences their encounters with our churches:
"We’re going to love you just the way you are and do our best to help you find Jesus.”
~ Marcus Warner and Jim Wilder, Rare Leadership
Are your ministries aligned to grow what Jesus wants—or something else?
Clarity changes everything.
bit.ly/4fkruKk
What does spiritual maturity look like in your church?
Answering this could transform discipleship for people.
bit.ly/4fkruKk
Thought Bubble on servant leadership:
Service is not doing for others what they should do for themselves. Service is doing for others what they should not do for themselves.
Clarity is the key to leading well.
When’s the last time you took a step back to evaluate how your church is doing at making disciples? If it’s been a while, let me walk you through the process.
It’s not as daunting as it sounds—and it could change everything.
📌 Read the full post: bit.ly/41p2Xk8
Which ministries in your church help make disciples?
What if you could uncover which programs are helping people grow—and where you might need to pivot?
This week, I’m sharing a practical guide to evaluate your church’s efforts in discipleship so you can start 2025 with clarity.
bit.ly/41p2Xk8
Are your church’s ministries really making disciples—or just filling the calendar?
It’s time to pause and take inventory. I’ve written a guide to help you evaluate and align your ministries with your mission to make disciples who love like Jesus.
📖 Read it here: bit.ly/41p2Xk8
"When we fail to understand how people grow, we lose track of the central task Jesus gave the church. Having no plan for transformation produces Christians with poor character who try to do good ministry.”
~ Jim Wilder and Michel Hendricks, The Other Half of Church
bit.ly/3ZyMuIE
What’s your church's plan to help people grow?
It’s not enough to run programs and hope for the best. Real change happens when you intentionally align your ministry around:
✅ Deep relationships.
✅ Life-giving habits.
✅ A clear, kingdom-focused vision.
👉 Dive into the framework bit.ly/3ZyMuIE
🌀 How do people actually grow and change?
If your discipleship strategy feels busy but not transformative, this is for you.
Most pastors I meet can’t articulate how change happens—but it’s the key to making mature disciples.
👉 Read the post: bit.ly/3ZyMuIE
The focus of Christian discipleship is not how to love this person in that situation, but to become the kind of person who loves any person in every situation.
"Courage is where our values meet the world. It means doing the next right thing, even when it’s difficult or painful." (Patrick J. Carnes, A Gentle Path Through the Twelve Principles)
The Gospel opens up a more attractive alternative to the life offered by the world around us.
May our churches model and mold the life embedded by this good news. Or else our churches will simply adopt the politics, economics and religion of our world, lacquered with a veneer of Jesus.
Thanksgiving is over, but gratitude doesn’t have to fade.
The real question is: What happens next?
If you’re ready to keep the spirit of Thanksgiving alive in your daily life, check this out:
open.substack.com/pub/thematta...
Gratitude isn’t just for one day—it’s a rhythm for life.
Can’t wait to read it!
The Thanksgiving table isn’t just a place to eat—it’s a place where lives can change.
This year, let’s make Thanksgiving more than a meal. Explore how gratitude and justice come together at the table in my latest post: “Justice Begins at the Thanksgiving Feast.”
bit.ly/3YXaBPC
Thanksgiving is more than a meal—it’s an opportunity to practice gratitude and justice.
This week, your table can do more than feed people. It can foster connection, generosity, and healing in a divided world.
How? Let’s explore that together.
open.substack.com/pub/thematta...
In order to experience the goodness of God, our worship gatherings make room and form liturgies that help people experience the God who always delights in them.
LASTING CHANGE BEGINS with humility, thrives in community, and endures through God’s presence as we navigate the long walk to freedom.
The question is: How can you embrace humility and interdependence today to lead others toward God’s transformative vision?
It’s no coincidence that Jesus’s primary metaphors for ministry were not soldiers, hunters, or builders,
But shepherds, farmers, and fisherman.
The humility. The unpredictability. The chaos. The waiting. None of it means we failed.
This is just what faithfulness looks like.