Category: church leaders

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Following a mentor is like following a truck. Leave enough distance to see where he’s going — and to swerve if he hits a pothole. If you’re the mentor, encourage those who watch you to learn from your mistakes as well as your strengths. You don’t want them to be like you. You want them to be wiser than you. […]

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The greatest challenge with wielding influence is getting out of the way. Whether I’m writing, teaching, or praying, my focus often drifts back to me — and I am not the point. Brett Lott references this theme in Letters & Life, his slim volume on being a writer: I saw, suddenly and fully, that a story was about the […]

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These two excerpts, drawn from Jane Austen’s Mansfield Park, reflect the honor and importance of local pastoring. There’s much to be said about shepherd and sheep knowing each other. A clergyman cannot be high in state or fashion. He must not head mobs, or set the tone in dress. [Rather, he] has the charge of all that […]

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Walton is the last bus stop on Michigan Avenue before Lake Shore Drive. When the 147 stops at Walton, every northbound Chicagoan is already packed on that bus. And all twenty people waiting at Walton intend to get on board. When the door opens, the frenzy begins. But if you read the “Arrivals” sign on the bus shelter, you’ll see […]

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One Sunday my wife and I witnessed an act of courage. Our pastor, a man who loves his flock, trespassed with his text (Galatians 6:7-9). That is, he brought it inescapably to our attention. “Here, this is about you.” We walked home thoughtful. While I may have caught his point otherwise, I could not escape it thanks to […]