We work out in a world-class gym. It’s so nice that professional sports teams practice there. There’s a curious thing, though. The men’s locker room hosts a population of little flies. They’re neither big nor fast — mostly they park on the wall and stay there. But enter the shower and you’ve got friends. The […]
Category: Influence & leadership
Jesus influence
Some years back there was an International discipleship conference in Europe. Many lectures and much discussion. Toward the end an elder statesman of the faith suggested that the root of discipleship was loving Jesus. The closer you are to Jesus, the more of His influence you wield. Consider whether you would like to make Jesus […]
A Student’s Perspective / Leadership
Giving leadership to students is tricky business. A student recently emailed us about a volunteer who did a great job letting her lead. Here’s what she had to say: I lead a student worship team. One girl has opinions about everything. The song should sound this way, the words should look like this, the guitarists […]
Sailing and the Spirit’s leading
A Dutch kid from Kalamazoo grows up well, finds Jesus Christ, moves to Chicago, and enjoys success in his work. Over time he embraces one of his father’s hobbies — sailing. He’s good with his boat and pulls together a team for racing. One member of his crew, a good friend, doesn’t share Bill’s faith […]
Overcoming the fear of getting involved
Two big reasons people avoid youth ministry are fear and ignorance. Fear of failure, rejection, appearing foolish or boring, being disrespected, not knowing how to handle a group, not knowing what to say, and all that. Fearful stuff. And the ignorance part? Not knowing what to do! I can’t picture what value I bring or […]