Leaders away time 2012

The leaders of Shrewsbury Baptist Church had a wonderful 24 hours together at Cloverley Hall website here in North Shropshire
We had a great time together in a wonderful place, in lovely countryside that served great food.

I won't write much here about the content or the encouraging and hopeful, outcome of our discussions, but suffice it to say that while these days are often a struggle to organise, (because it is tough trying to clear the diaries of some very busy people)they always prove to be very worthwhile,we get a lot done.

It is so good to have time to pray,share, laugh and even cry together ,it is good to share our hopes and dreams for the future of the church we serve.It was good to have a walk, on a starry night, back from the pub together. I suspect we get more out of these quality times together than we do from half a dozen evening meetings when people are tired I am looking forward to the next time already

A morning with our church leaders

We had a great session with our church leaders yesterday !
We gathered on a beautiful October morning to think and to pray about about our priorities in the next 1-3 years.

These are a great bunch of people, who have stuck with the church through good times and the bad, and we have travelled an exiting but not always easy journey together

In the process we have grown and built strong relationships with a high level of mutual trust.
Given all that it was no surprise that we were agreed as to what those priorities should be.

I won't post them on here yet because we need to share them with the church first(though reading this blog would allow anyone to make an educated guess as to what they are !)

The task now is to make sure that we focus our prayers and energy on those priorities and make sure we have the people and the structures in place to fulfil God's purposes for us

We enjoyed lunch in the garden together before heading for home!

As a postsript in the morning we asked ourselves these questions to both give us context and guide our prayers.I found them online (but have forgotten where Sorry!)
and adapted them slightly for our situation


1. When was the last time I heard from God? Am I doing what he called me to do?

2. What should our church be known for in this community?

3. Are we really focusing our time, money, leadership, prayer behind the things that will produce life change and community impact?

4. Is our church growing both spiritually and in numbers?


5. Is there a clear path to help people take steps in their faith with the ultimate goal of them becoming fully-devoted followers of Christ? (ie disciples)

6. What does a disciple of Christ looks like?

7. Are we empowering the people of God to do God’s work?


8. Are we developing leaders?

9. Do believers see their ministry happening only at the church or have they become missionaries to their families, their neighborhoods, their workplaces, their schools, etc

10 Do I have the right leaders around me to accomplish the vision?

Acts 6 moment

I have just got back from a church leaders meeting.and I feel full of hope!

We spent the early part of the meeting rejoicing in how far we have come as a new church in a short time,the hurdles that have been overcome, the prayers answered ,the blessings we have known,the joys we have shared together and the journey we have travelled.  It is good to reflect on God's goodness  and having reflected, we gave thanks to God.
We then chatted together about the large numbers of opportunities that are opening up before us both in the town centre,where our new building will be completed either late this year or early in 2012 and in the area around the Crowmoor building. We even talked about some things we would love to do in a few years time but are unable to do yet
We finished by thinking about some of the changes we may need to make to how we do things and how we organise structures in order to take advantage of those opportunities It felt like a bit of an Acts 6 moment.
 In Acts 6 the apostles reorganise the ministry of the church to allow them to keep the main thing the main thing (i.e the prayer and the ministry of the word)
We all recognise the need to develop more leaders and we are working hard to identify peoples giftings and callings
All this and I was still home by 10pm !

Busy days,exciting days  but also Happy days!

I quit - From ministry Toolbox website

Some thoughts on leadership. Thanks to Steve for pointing this out

Is it time for you to quit?
By Pete Scazzero with Geri Scazzero
The journey into a profound transformation in my pastoral leadership began when my wife, Geri, said, “I quit.” Refusing to continue pretending everything was “fine,” she quit the church –and I was the pastor!

The powerful journey we took together – to “quit” the things that really don’t belong to Jesus’ kingdom and embrace the things that do – changed our personal lives, our marriage and our church.

Quitting goes hand in hand with choosing God’s will and ways. Taking up these “quits” is imperative if we are to raise up healthy, biblical churches that effectively engage the world with the gospel.

Here are the eight things we had to quit in order to truly minister to our congregation –

Quit being afraid of what others think (Choose freedom) -- I am willing to cut through the disapproval of others and do what is good, true and right. I no longer ignore the values I hold dearly out of fear.

Quit lying (Choose truth) -- The degree to which I live in the truth -- with myself, God and others -- is the degree to which I am free. By God’s grace, I will seek to speak the truth respectfully, honestly and clearly.

Quit dying to the wrong things (Choose delighting in God’s gifts) -- I will no longer set aside or devalue activities or relationships that cause my soul to be fully alive (e.g. music, dance, art, the outdoors, travel). I will lead from the joy that flows from the love of Jesus.

Quit denying anger, sadness, and fear (Choose embracing your humanity) -- I will avoid extremes -- neither neglecting my emotions nor allowing them to run my life. I will allow myself to experience them in the presence of God, calmly think them through, and then lead appropriately as the Holy Spirit directs.

Quit blaming (Choose to take responsibility) -- As a human being made in God’s image, I recognize that no one is responsible for my life but me. Unlike Adam (Genesis 3) I refuse to blame others and fall into helplessness. By His grace, I choose to lead.

Quit overfunctioning (Choose letting go) -- I will no longer do for others what they can and should do for themselves. I will push through my fears in the face of resistance, asking God for courage and wisdom. Like Jesus, I will only complete the work the Father has given me to do (John 17:4).

Quit faulty thinking (Choose to live in reality) -- I will refuse to make things bigger than they are. And I will not believe the falsehood that things will never change. I will position myself so that the Holy Spirit, and others, can correct my wrong assumptions and align me with truth (John 8:32).

Quit living someone else’s life (Choose to be yourself) -- By God’s grace I will embrace the unique life He has given me. I will listen to my God-given rhythms and let go of other people’s agenda for my leadership.

(This article is based upon the book, I Quit, by Pete Scazzero with Geri Scazzero.)

are you a leader or a boss?

“The boss drives group members; the leader coaches them.
The boss depends upon authority; the leader on good will.
The boss inspires fear; the leader inspires enthusiasm.
The boss says ‘I’; the leader says ‘we.’
The boss assigns the task, the leader sets the pace.
The boss says, ‘Get there on time’; the leader gets there ahead of time.
The boss fixes the blame for the breakdown; the leader fixes the breakdown.
The boss knows how it is done; the leader shows how.
The boss makes work a drudgery; the leader makes it a game.
The boss says, ‘Go’; the leader says, ‘Let’s go.’“

– Author unknown

what leaders of very large churches think

Leadership Network recently conducted a survey of 232 pastors of churches with an average weekend worship attendance of at least 2,000. Here's what they said:

They think of themselves more as teachers and directional leaders than as pastors.
Preaching tops the list of things they do best.
They haven't always worked in churches.
Being an extrovert isn't mandatory.
Family stays at the top of mind when it comes to prayers.
They usually like the people they work with.
They believe their top gift is leadership.
They are actively involved in sports.
They find worship at their church helpful for personal spiritual growth.
They're not thinking about quitting.