Sermon Leftovers

A long time ago, Seth Godin blogged about name tags. Here's why he argued that name tags should be a part of most meetings: I think doing name tags properly transforms a meeting. Here's why: a. people don't really know everyone, even if they think they do. b. if you don't know someone's name, you are hesitant to talk to them. c. if you don't talk to them, you never get to know them and you both lose. d. if you are wearing a name tag, it's an invitation to start a conversation. One summer, I led 90 people, some strangers to each other, through a three-day training. Every single person had to wear a hat with his or her name on it until every person in the group knew every other person's name and could prove it. It took two days. Worth it. so this raises two questions in my mind: 1) should we all wear name tags at church? 2) if we can't because we're too big, are we too big? just asking....

A team rarely accomplishes its goals without a great deal of effort. That effort begins with those who are responsible to "lead" or to coach. Without effective coaching a team may end up going many different directions. Below are three simple ways you can help your team get on the same page and create a culture of accomplishment. Keep team members informed Focus your communication on the essential details  Repeat your communication more than you think you should  Find fresh methods to communicate “old essentials”  Always provide open lines for feedback  Equip team members for success   Clarify your expectations for each team member  Provide an adequate allotment of time and resources for accomplishing each task  Continue to provide open lines for feedback  Unleash team members to act   Clarify the evaluation criteria for each team member  Define each team members' role for the other team members  Allow room for failure  Relentlessly seek feedback C

Top Ten Lists are Fun. Instant gratification is a problem in our world. People often choose (unwittingly) to endure long-term consequences simply so they can enjoy short term pleasure.  This is not healthy. To be clear, I'm not opposed to gratification . God desires us to enjoy his world, to be joyful, to find pleasure in the things He has created... However, we need to do so with balance. This list is not so much about things we should avoid, but things we should be careful about. Here are 10 awesome things that aren't really awesome for us: 10. French Fries 9. Contact Sports 8. Cheese 7. Money 6. Couches 5. TV 4. Cola 3. Automobiles 2. Dollar Stores 1. Bacon It's so easy for us to get out of balance because we're pursuing "good" things. Our career, and money, and entertainment, and toys, and houses, and stuff, and popularity can all cause us to get out of balance and neglect the things that are really important. We need to be willing to GIVE AW

Have you ever heard someone say something like: "I just need some time alone to re-charge. I've been giving out way too much and not taking in enough." Sabbath IS important... Now, I don't want to minimize the need we all have to budget our time. And it is important to rest. The sabbath is for man, not man for the sabbath. I often take time on Monday or Thursday to sit in Panera and just read or write because i'm taking a morning off to have some "David Time". BUT... (and this is a big but) (snicker) This idea of "re-charging" gets WAY OVERBLOWN. We are not cars, we don't require a fill-up on gas every 300 miles. We are not droids who need to be plugged in to the wall every night... I think we're way off base when we begin to live as if there is a formula that we can only "give" so much before we need to "take." It seems to me that the Bible talks VERY LITTLE about taking, and an awful lot about givin

Actually, the statement in the title is a very loose paraphrase of Jesus' words: "Where your treasure is, there will your heart be also." This morning I was thinking about some other ways I might say the same thing to help me focus a little bit on what this truth means for me today.  Some of the thoughts I had were: - If you want to know what you love, look at what you accumulate - The words "I love you" only go as far as the action "I sacrifice for you" - Jesus said the greatest love is that of giving one's life away. Then He did just that. - If you don't keep track of it, you don't love it. - Your calendar, your checkbook, and your GPS history are the best record of what you love. Of course, the greatest challenge is learning to love God more than all things.  Jesus said to love Him with all our HEART, SOUL, MIND, and STRENGTH .  So, my question for myself today is this: In each of these areas, what can I give up as a demonstr

Psalm 119 is not just the longest chapter in the Bible, it is also one of the greatest pieces of writing ever to be solely focused on the Word of God. If we claim that the Bible is the inspired Word of God (and I do), then we ought to be very concerned with how it impacts our life. From Psalm 119, here are 22 responses to God's Word we can exhibit in our life: Obey God's Word Know God's Word Seek Understanding of God's Word Choose God's Word Desire God's Word Rely on God's Word Find Comfort in God's Word Remember God's Word Return to God's Word Rest in God's Word Long for God's Word Trust God's Word Meditate on God's Word Live by God's Word Depend on God's Word Value God's Word Keep God's Word Be Zealous for God's Word Prioritize God's Word Draw Life from God's Word Rejoice in God's Word Be Thankful fo God's Word If you picked 3 of these to work on in your life

Do you have a life quest? Why not? Quests not only bring to mind thoughts of swords, armor, dragons, and battles; they also are part of an "epic" way of living. If you want to spice up your life, stop running errands and start going on quests. In a few minutes this morning, I'm headed out on a quest. If my quest is successful, I will have accomplished several important goals for this week. Quest-thinking can make mundane tasks more exciting, but it can also help us think through important things in new ways. We can approach our jobs with a quest perspective. We can approach family goals with a quest perspective. We can even approach discipleship with a quest perspective. Consider the following 7 steps of a successful quest and think about how you might be able to implement them into your life today.  Particularly think about how you might walk through these steps together with your friends! The 7 Steps of a Successful Quest: determine a life-virtue