Some Thoughts from Onward by Howard Schultz

Over at one of my favorite blogs, there is a post about the 12 books a youth pastor should read in 2012. One such book is Onward: How Starbucks Fought for Its Life without Losing Its Soul. I recently began reading the book and I must say it is quite remarkable. While I am not finished with it yet, I did come across two great quotes that have made me to do a lot of thinking about the way that I would like to do ministry.

There is a word that comes to my mind when I think about our company and our people. That word is "love." I love Starbucks because everything we've tried to do is steeped in humanity.
Respect and dignity
Passion and laughter
Compassion, community, and responsibility
Authenticity
(Onward, pp. 4-5)

---

When we love something, emotion often drives our actions.

This is the gift and the challenge entrepreneurs face every day. The companies we dream of and build from scratch are part of us and intensely personal. They are our families.
Our lives.

But the entrepreneurial journey is not for everyone. Yes, the highs are high and the rewards can be thrilling. But the lows can break your heart. Entrepreneurs must love what they do to such a degree that doing it is worth sacrifice and, at times, pain. But doing anything else, we think, would be unimaginable.
(Onward, pp. 8-9)

While I cannot tell you that this is a great book or a terrible book, I can tell you that I am enjoying what I've read so far, even if I did feel a bit disingenuous reading a book about Starbucks while drinking a delicious frozen coffee from Sheetz. My review should be up soon.

Book Review - Enemies of the Heart by Andy Stanley

In his book Enemies of the Heart, Andy Stanley discusses the four emotions that many individuals face that can be destructive to their hearts and to the relationships they have with others. These emotions include guilt, anger, greed, and jealousy. Stanley begins by addressing the symptoms that many individuals have that indicate that there is something terrible taking place. He lets us know that some of the indicators include statements like “I can’t believe I just said that;” “I don’t know where that came from;” and “That’s not like me.”

After addressing the four deadly emotions, Stanley then provides the reader with four spiritual exercises that can be implemented to combat and neutralize the emotions. He also provides a discussion of lust and why it is important to fight these emotions for the future of our children.

I found this book to be an easy read, but it was not one that I found to be particularly enlightening. I am a fan of the books that Andy Stanley writes that deal with leadership and youth ministry. This book came across as being very shallow and, at times, a little sugar-coated. While I did not research it, it would not surprise me to discover that this book was based off a sermon series that Stanley did at his church. Others may find this book beneficial, but I did not. It was not a bad book, but it was not something that I typically read.

I received this book for free from WaterBrook Multnomah Publishing Group for this review. The thoughts in this review are my own and I was not asked for a positive review.

Signing Up for Texting - An Incredibly Hard Decision

I have been a customer of AT&T for over 11 years. I still remember getting my first cell phone, having to put down the deposit, and carrying this giant brick of a phone around with me. After I got married, I added my wife to my plan. Fortunately, the school district that I teach for has made discounts available, so we were able to go with a bare-bones plan that typically cost us about $70 a month. The catch was that we could only talk. No texting. Any time we received a text message, we were billed for it. Of course, the idea of no texting was extremely strange to the rest of the world. People could not understand why we did not text.

I am about to begin my ministry as a youth pastor and one of the things that I am learning is that teenagers do not make phone calls...ever. They send text messages. With that piece of knowledge, I knew that it was time for me to enter the world of texting. I went to our local AT&T to see about upgrading our phones and adding a text messaging feature to our calling plan. After hearing what it would cost, I dejectedly walked out of the store with no new phones and no text messaging. That afternoon I made a phone call and was able to get the activation fee waived, but our monthly bill was still higher than I wanted it to be.

I spent most of the evening doing some research and came to the realization that it might be time to switch carriers. After looking at all of the available plans, my wife and I have decided to switch to T-Mobile. With this company, we are able to get mobile-to-mobile calling (so we can call each other), plus texting for about $80 a month. It also turns out that my employer has a discount available that gives us an additional 12% off the monthly bill and waives the activation fees (a savings of $70). We are getting new phones and texting and our monthly bill is staying almost what it was before the switch.

It is my understanding that this may not seem like that big of a deal to some folks, but it was a huge thing to me. First, it was a huge deal because it meant the possibility of a larger cell phone bill. My wife and I are doing our very best to decrease the amount of money we spend each month. Second, it was another indication that I am moving closer to my dream and calling of ministry. From talking with some individuals on Facebook, it was made quite clear that texting is vital to having a strong ministry to students. I am just thankful that the Lord provided a way for us to acquire this necessary tool without having to increase our monthly spending too much.

We serve a great God.

Free Kindle Books Worth Looking At

In light of my post about preaching from a tablet, here are some Kindle books that may be worth looking into. The price can't be beat: all of these books are being offered for FREE (at least for a limited time).

Heaven for Kids by Randy Alcorn

Erasing Hell: What God Said about Eternity, and the Things We've Made Up by Francis Chan

Crazy Love: Overwhelmed by a Relentless God by Francis Chan

Forgotten God: Reversing Our Tragic Neglect of the Holy Spirit by Francis Chan

And, for those of you who haven't gotten your Kindle yet, you may want to think about picking one up. It is a great ministry tool and good item to have in general (at least in my opinion).

Kindle Fire

(HT to Tim Challies for the book list.)

Preaching from a Tablet - Yes or No?

There has been some discussion as of late as to whether a preacher should use an iPad or other device when speaking to a group. Some say yes, some say no. Personally, I nearly always preach from either my Kindle or an iPad. Here are some reasons why.

1. Preaching from a device keeps me on track. I type up my notes and load them as a PDF onto the device. This prevents me from losing my notes or having the pages get mixed up. There is nothing worse than losing your place on the paper or having one of your sheets fall out.
   
2. The device is more efficient. With just a swipe of my finger, I can go to the next page or go back to a previous page. There is no shuffling of notes or pages to drop.
   
3. Putting my notes on a device is more economical. Let's face it, paper and ink cost money. The average sermon outline is around 4 pages and the average manuscript can run up to about 10 pages (well, if you are verbose like me). Those little ink cartridges are expensive and they always seem to run short on the day I am supposed to preach. Putting my notes or manuscripts on my device lets me use as much color and "ink" as I want without the fear of running out or having to shell out $20 just to print my maunscript.
   

I have had the privilege to preach from a Kindle, Kindle Fire, and an iPad. All have their benefits, but I think the best option is the iPad. The screen is bigger and it is much easier to flip to the next page just by swiping. The Kindle Fire is also a good option, but the screen is a bit smaller.

Tips for Pastors With Potential Preachers in their Churches

As a seminary student and man who felt the call on his life to serve in vocational ministry, I felt that it was important to be actively involved in my church. While my wife and I have been in several churches over the years, we have taken every opportunity to be as involved as possible with the ministry of the church. Here are a few tips that I would like to offer to pastors in order to help them cultivate the individuals in their church who may be seeking God's will.

1. Help these men determine their calling. It is vital that, as pastors, you help individuals determine if the ministry is truly for them. Some individuals may feel a call, but do not have the necessary gifting to be a pastor or preacher. Help them determine this right from the start. It is vital that they know if they are truly called in order to prevent heartache and devastation later down the road.
   
2. Give them opportunities to preach. The pastor of my last church was good about this one. Many pastors are very stingy with their pulpits, using the excuse that God has called them to be responsible for the flock and the teaching that takes place. While this is true, it is also necessary to give others an opportunity to preach as well. There was a time when someone did the same for you, remember? If the individual goes off the deep end, well, it was only one sermon.
   
3. Offer feedback on what they are doing. Young preachers (experience, not necessarily age) need to know what they are doing that is right and what needs to be changed for the next time. Let them know what was good and what was not. The members of your congregation are only going to tell them that they did well or they aren't going to say anything at all. It is your responsibility to help them grow and mature as communicators of God's Word.
   
4. Please don't make promises you aren't willing or able to keep. Speaking from experience, seeking God's will and looking for a ministry position can be a time-consuming and patience-trying practice. As young preachers, we want so badly to be in the ministry because we want to follow the call we believe to be on our lives. Young preachers believe that their ministry position is right around the corner. Every preaching opportunity or submitted resume is going to lead to the desire of their heart. With this in mind, please do not lead the young preachers of your church on. Do not let them believe that they will be a pastor in your church if there is no likelihood of it coming to pass. All this does is lead to hurt feelings and will cause your church to lose good leaders.
   

I realize that this may sound like a lecture, but my intent was offer some advice to help pastor already established in the ministry in ways to nurture those who are rising up right now. The business world is excellent at this type of thing; shouldn't the church be multiplying pastors as well?

Three Things Every New Dad Needs to Know

I'm not really very old. I turn 33 on April 11, 2012. I do, however, have three children with a fourth on the way. My wife and I have a big family and we love every minute of it. Here are a few things that I have learned from being a dad for the past 6 years.

1. Your boys always watching you. Your children see everything you do. They want to be just like you. This is a wonderful and terrifying thought all at the same time. Your children see you caring (or not caring) for your wife. They see how you interact with other people. They see how you love God. It is your responsibility to make sure they are seeing the right things.
   
2. You need to make your children tender and tough at the same time. I realize this sounds like a contradiction, but hear me out. You need to raise your children so that they can roll with the punches of life, but still know when they need a shoulder to cry on. Your children need to see you stand tall under pressure, but they also need to see you weep from time to time. It is perfectly legit to cry when your dog gets put down.
   
3. You need to teach your children that everyone is the same and different. I know, another contradiction. God made us all the same, but He also made us uniquely different. That is what makes our world such an incredible place. We are all created in His image, but there are awesome varieties in the human race. It is an absolute sin and tragedy to teach your children to discriminate against someone else. Don't think you will? See Item #1 from the list above.
   

Bonus Item: You need to pray for your children. They can know you are praying for them or you can keep it a secret. The reality is that being a father is the greatest and most challenging thing you will ever attempt. You cannot do it without the help of God. (By the way, I realize this has nothing to do with being a youth pastor or ministry, but I was reading a blog post and felt a little inspired.)