Feeling like some of the people you are trying to lead aren't getting it? You're in good company! Virtually every leader in the Bible—including Jesus—had people who decided to reject what they were trying to do. But there's some really good news: they aren't really rejecting YOU!

Look at poor Moses. If ever there was a leader facing rejection, it was him. He had rescued the Israelites from slavery! And yet in Exodus 14:11, Then they turned against Moses and complained, "Why did you bring us out here to die in the wilderness? Where there enough graves for us in Egypt? Why did you make us leave? Didn't we tell you to leave us alone while we were still in Egypt? Our Egyptian slavery was far better than dying out here in the wilderness." You think you feel unappreciated?

Again and again the people saw clearly that God was working great things through Moses, and yet again and again they grumbled and complained about him. And in return, Moses complained to God for all the anguish his followers were causing him. But Moses learned something significant. In Numbers 14:11 "the Lord said to Moses, 'How long will these people reject me?' "

Do you see the significance? God said the people weren't rejecting Moses, they were rejecting God himself!

The reality is that all leaders in the church will have people that reject their direction. But if—and let me emphasize the importance of this if—if you are truly following God's direction, the reality is that the people aren't rejecting you! They're rejecting God. That means you can't take it as a personal affront. It isn't pointed at you at all.

There are a lot of tools the enemy uses to dishearten and discourage us. One of his favorites is to try to get us to feel personally shunned. But it's not about you, it's about God. Keep following him and praying for those who reject him. But don't take it personally.

        

In his book The Three Signs of a Miserable Job, Patrick Lencioni says the three signs of a miserable job are:

• Anonymity - when someone feels like their supervisor doesn't know (or care) who they are as a person
• Irrelevance - when someone doesn't understand how their job makes a difference in someone's life
• Immeasurement - when someone can't measure themselves how well they're doing at their job

His premise is that when people have a sense that their leader cares about them, that their role is making a real difference, and they are confident they are doing well, then they are happier, their leaders are happier, and the organization does well. Once again Lencioni has pointed out truths from the workplace that are equally true in the church and all ministry.

If you're like me, you've been in a situation in which once you agreed to help you never heard from the leader again. Or if you did hear from him or her, it was at such a superficial task-oriented level that you felt like they saw you as a tool rather than a person. How did that feel?

How do you define the task you're doing? This can be a half-full or half-empty sort of thing. For example, one person can think she is having to make several dozen cookies. Another person (in the exact same kitchen) can enjoy knowing she is saying thanks to a group of volunteers in a way that will bring smiles to their faces.

Are you doing well at your task? Do you know how your leader defines "good"? Or do you reassure yourself with a vague "Things must be okay or someone would have complained."?

Good leaders make sure each of these three areas are addressed well with those they are leading.

1) One of the things we say regularly in our publications is that ministry teams should eat, drink, play, and pray together—above and beyond their ministry tasks. This time is an invaluable investment in buliding relationships and letting everyone know that you care about more than what they can do for you. We have numerous resources at Church Volunteer Central designed to help with the process of team building.

2) Casting the vision for your ministry is critical to helping people understand how important it is—which has a huge impact on volunteer enthusiasm and reliability. If "anyone can do it" then it doesn't matter whether they show up or not. Anyone can hand out bulletins as people walk in. But if the person sees their role as being perhaps the only individual that a visitor will interact with directly, therefore setting the mood for an attitude of feeling welcomed and loved and a sense of peace to prepare for worship, then what they're doing really makes a difference. (Yes, Church Volunteer Central has a lot of resources related to developing and communicating the mission and vision for your ministry.)

3) Just because a person isn't being paid doesn't mean they don't need to know how they're doing. We strongly recommend that every volunteer have a written ministry description that details the mission, the qualifications, and the expectations. (You guessed it, we have literally hundreds of sample ministry descriptions that members can download and customize for their churches.) By doing so, people know up front what constitutes a good job. We also recommend periodic performance evaluations. This gives you a great opportunity to build people up for the things they are doing right, the chance for some appropriate coaching, or perhaps the right venue to help them see that their best ministry fit lies in some other area.

Lencioni's insights aren't about business, they are about people. People just like you and me. People like those we lead.

        

Today is the last day of our workcamp, and I was talking with our setup director this morning about how the week went. I told him that while I gravitate toward leadership it was refreshing this week to let him worry about decisions and paperwork and just spend the week going where I was told and doing the work that needed doing. He said he was glad to hear it because that was unusual; he has done numerous camps and generally observes that those in leadership find it hard to let go, follow his lead, and just be a worker bee without grumbling.

I'm sure you won't be surprised that I found a message there for those in church leadership. Think back over all the leaders you've followed through your life, whether by choice or by obligation (because of paycheck). Which of them did you have the most respect for? Which were you more likely to be willing to go the extra mile for?

Chances are good that the person you are thinking of is someone who wasn't sequestered in an office handing out assignments. He or she was willing to roll up the shirt sleeves and get involved personally in what needed done. True leaders don't have to tell people they're in charge or assert their authority. In fact, true leaders can be comfortable not being in charge.

In the weekly interviews I do for Smart Ministry I have seen an interesting pattern: Over and over again the best church leaders tell me they are not in control of their churches. They have empowered their people so thoroughly that the church's ministries have gone beyond the ability of any single person to control. In fact, that's often listed as the key reason churches often stall at attendance around 150! That's the maximum a church can get to led by a person who wants to be in control of everything.

It's hard to imagine a better leader than Jesus. And yet He said (and demonstrated) that he came not to be served, but to serve. May we all remember that that is what true leadership is.

        

One of the great things about a disciplined Bible reading program is that it gets you into parts of Scripture that you might not spend much (if any) time in otherwise. I've got to be honest...if I'm going into devotional time I don't usually think, "I think I'm going to spend some uplifting time in Amos tonight." But since all Scripture is God-breathed, the truth is that we're missing something if we don't explore all the nuggets hidden there. For example, I came across this last night in Amos 5:21-24 that really talks about what matters to God:



Does God care about church? Sure He does...to a point. But if our lives the rest of the week aren't spent caring for those in need (the most frequent meaning of the term justice in the Bible) and living in a God-honoring way, then He'd rather we not bother with church at all. Our churches should be an outpouring of the love we have demonstrated all week in our lives. And if they aren't, God says our church gatherings are hypocrisy he hates.

        

Our lives are a combination of things... things that we have to do, things that we want to do, and things that we are incredibly privileged to do.

Please bear with me for a moment as I brag about my employer. Group Publishing launched Group Workcamps several years ago as a way to enable others to be the hands of feet of Jesus making a difference in the lives of others in need around the world. I am privileged to be part of that this week as we prepare for 416 youth from churches around the U.S. that will be descending on Garrett County, Maryland next week. In fact, Group Publishing feels so strongly about this ministry that they are paying my salary to be here this week, and they paid the air fare for both my wife Tiffani and I to come out this week to do setup for the camp. Hopefully nobody from Group is reading this but...no job or employer is perfect. There, I said it.  But during times like this I'm incredibly proud to be part of Group Publishing.

We are spending this week hauling paint and supplies to the dozens of work sites that the young people will be working at next week. Our job is to make sure all the necessary supplies are at the site and the homeowner has done any preparation work that is needed and is ready for what's coming. We're getting a chance to spend time with those people that we're all going to be serving in one way or another. One of the things that happens after an experience like this (and my wife and I have done this before and will definitely do so every chance we get) is that you never drive down a street the same way. As you drive down an ordinary street lined with ordinary homes, an experience like this reminds you that behind every door there is a story. Multiple stories, actually, interwoven and frayed in various ways.  Even in the house right next door to you...

It's an incredible range of emotions as you hear of the challenging times so many people are going through. And yet it's amazing to hear how so many of them have kept an inspiring attitude of optimism. It isn't a qualification that the homeowner be a Christian. We're here to help regardless. And in fact, we've walked through more than one door this week that had a sign on it saying, "NO SOLICITING OR RELIGION." What's interesting, though, is their reactions as we talk to them about the week. They're thrilled for the much-needed help they're getting, of course. But when we tell them the young people will be holding devotions at lunch each day as they work on their house and the homeowners (while certainly not obligated) are invited to join in, you see the neatest expressions. They're impressed that young people are willing to drive in to this area just to help them—and even more impressed that young people will sit down for Jesus time in the midst of it. People who would have been upset if you came to their door to talk about religion are wide open to joining a group of young people to talk about Jesus when the people have already demonstrated a servant's heart.

We all have things we have to do and things we get to do. This week I'm privileged to be part of a work of God that is more inspiring than anything else on earth.

        

The July issue of my one of my favorite magazines (after Rev!, of course!) just arrived. Being a geek and an observer of the culture, Wired gives me some things I don't find other places—and frequently makes me think. (If you don't want to think, you don't want the magazine.)

The article "Street Smarts" in this issue talks about the brainiacs that have lost their jobs on Wall Street and how great that can be for the U.S. if that huge amount of collected intelligence is now applied to more productive areas. It's certainly causing many of them to question what they're doing and its real impact on the world. They quote one ex-Wall Streeter who now teaches at the University of Wisconsin-Madison: "If I invent some superb method for quantitative trading, it puts money in my clients' pockets and my own pockets. Is society any better off? You could argue that having healthy capital markets helps society, but it's not particularly satisfying. My work [now] in machine learning gets incorporated into medical applications. Does that make a difference? I can say that, in some humble way, it does."

These turbulent economic times are causing anxiety in millions of lives. Many people are realizing that the things they thought were giving them security really aren't so secure. So if we aren't going to invest our effort in something for a security that's not really there, what should we be investing our time and effort in? For more and more people every day, the answer is "something that makes the world a better place."

Reinventing yourself can be one of the hardest things to do. Over time our blinders get larger and larger, preventing us from seeing opportunities for our gifts and abilities to be used in new ways. So you're no longer employed as a ___________. You can look for a new job in the same area... but maybe... just maybe... this is an opportunity for you to move outside that box and move into something different... something more fulfilling.

Allow me to let you in on a secret that shouldn't be so secret: not all of ministry takes place inside the church. You can have a powerful impact for Christ by embodying his principles and attitudes wherever you are. Yes, even in your job!

        

I just received a note out of the blue from an old friend, Dennis Phelps (now occupying the J.D. Grey Chair of Preaching at New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary). He was thinking of our last conversation together and wanted to follow up and see how things were going. How neat is that? In one small note he communicated that he 1) remembered me, 2) was actively thinking about me and my welfare even though we hadn't been in touch for a while, and 3) cared enough to take some of his precious time to reach out and let me know. It really touched me and thrilled me. But it also left me wondering...who do I need to send a note to?

In Church Volunteer Central's online store we have lots of gifts to make it easy for our members to inexpensively show their appreciation to those they work with. But I think one of the best is the note cards because there's really nothing like a personal note in this digital age to connect more deeply with people.

Oddly enough, it's often the people we appreciate the most that we don't take the time to tell! It seems like we have to spend so much of our time on the high maintenance folks that we can fall into the trap of taking for granted those that we can consistently rely upon. One of my columnists for The Inside Track gave me a semi-subtle hint recently that he'd like more feedback. He deserved it, too, because he's one of those people who make my ministry better and easier. I really felt badly that he had to ask. He should have known how I felt about his work. Plus, when I gave him feedback in response to the hint it somehow seemed lessened; as though there was some possibility that it was only given to reassure the person who asked for it.

Who is there in your life and ministry that you need to connect with? Who needs to know that you are thinking of him or her and appreciating his or her contribution to your life and ministry?

Dennis' note was a real uplift to me. Now I need to get busy lifting someone else up.

        

I've said before that the only way to avoid criticism is to avoid doing anything. No...even then people will criticize you for that! But we can't let fear of criticism stop us from trying things. I couldn't put it any better than President Theodore Roosevelt did:

    It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbled or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena; whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, and comes short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; who does actually try to do the deed; who knows the great enthusiasm, the great devotion and spends himself in a worthy cause; who, at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly.

    Far better is it to dare mighty things, to win glorious triumphs even though checkered by failure, than to rank with those poor spirits who neither enjoy nor suffer much because they live in the gray twilight that knows neither victory nor defeat.

Will you dare mighty things for God, even though you know you will be criticized and you might fail?

        

According to Gerald Harris, the minutes of one church business meeting included this fun account:

The committee charged with reducing the electrical costs in the church building reported that they had been standing outside the bathrooms after services and reminding people to turn out the lights as they leave.

Mr. Tom Brown objected that this might create the wrong impression with visitors but was quickly shouted down by Deacon Holstein who opined that anyone who couldn’t follow a few simple posted rules weren’t the kind of people we wanted around this church anyway. After another thirty minutes of discussion, the matter was tabled until next month.

I have no trouble believing it at all. I sat through a similar meeting in which half an hour was spent arguing over who was supposed to be mowing the lawn at the parsonage. Really. A room with 40 people in it, all of whom gave up a weeknight to advance the cause of the church, was spent like that.

How are your meetings spent? How do you demonstrate your respect for your people and their time? How do you demonstrate your respect for Christ, the head of the church? Would an outside observer say that your get-togethers are characterized by love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control?

        

At Group's "All-Staff" meeting this week we had a brief devotion on the values of delayed gratification and self-control. (What a concept!) The speaker showed a video of 4-year old kids presented with a choice. A marshmallow was placed in front of them and the narrator said he was leaving the room for 20 minutes. If the marshmallow was still there when he returned, the child would be given another marshmallow and could eat them both! If the child ate the marshmallow before the narrator returned, he or she would not get another one.

Two-thirds of the children ate the marshmallow.

The narrator went on to point out that they followed up with those kids 15 years later and there was a striking difference. The kids that hadn't eaten the marshmallow had better grades, better test scores, better relationships, and generally better success in life. His point was that they had learned self-control and it helped them in all aspects of life.

We pride ourselves at Group on being very practical and applicable in all of our work, but in this case the speaker left out a very important point: How? How did 4-year old kids manage to demonstrate self-control? Was it as simple as willpower—or perhaps some kids just don't like sweets? So I did some research.

The original study was conducted in the 1960s by Walter Mischel, a professor of psychology at Stanford University. By hidden camera, he tracked what each child did during the time he was out of the room. The ones that succeeded were not the ones that stared at the marshmallow and gritted their teeth. All of those eventually gave in to the temptation.

The ones that succeeded did so by ignoring the marshmallow. Some covered their eyes, some looked around the room singing, and some actually got on the floor under the table where they couldn't see the marshmallow! They were able to resist the marshmallow because they distracted themselves away from the temptation.

We all have our marshmallows. We're not going to resist them by staying near them and trying to grit our teeth. The TV shows asks "Are You Smarter Than a Fifth-Grader." Perhaps it's just as appropriate to ask if we're any smarter than 4-year olds!