Happy Birthday, America!
Another year blessed with God’s grace and favor.
Tomorrow I will preach on the topic “In God We Trust?” and we will explore options that many Americans pursue in addition to God Himself. When it’s all said and done, all other anchors will fail us; only God can sustain us. May we recognize once again, our need to keep on trusting in Him, our faithful and mighty God.
Happy Independence Day, everybody! Enjoy the video…
Well, the news of the week has continued to focus–and rightly so–on the devastation in Haiti. The 7.0 magnitude earthquake that hit the impoverished island nation almost two weeks ago, followed by the 6.1 earthquake on Wednesday this week has left, by most estimates, well over 100,000 dead, 250,000 wounded and a million homeless (USA Today estimates). If you have not seen what…watch this. Be warned in advance! The brutal reality of this video from CBS, which was posted last Sunday, is graphic.
For those who want to know how to help, there are many sources. Our own ministry organizations are encouraging contributors to give via any of the following ministries: the Florida Baptist Convention, in partnership with the 890 churches and population of Haiti over many years, the International Mission Board, or Baptist Global Response, the disaster relief/human needs arm of IMB. In addition, there is the Red Cross, World Vision, etc. Regardless of how you help, please give AND pray for the people of Haiti.
It’s been a week since my life-long college football favorite, the University of Alabama Crimson Tide, won the BCS national championship game. Given a “head start” through a couple of uncharacteristic early ‘Bama mistakes, Texas made a strong run at the Crimson Tide in the latter part of the second half, only to fall short of a team that clearly was better than a Colt-less Longhorn squad. The highlights of the game are seen in the video below.
Would the game have been different if McCoy had been healthy and able to play the entire game? Certainly. Would it have changed the outcome of the game? It’s impossible to know. For that reason, I don’t buy into the speculation that surrounds what might have been. Football, like life, is about what “is;” it requires you face the circumstances at hand head on, come what may.
With that in mind as I’ve reflected on the game over the past week, I’ve come away with some thoughts that–regardless of which team you were rooting for in the game–reflect the role of leadership in life.
Leadership matters, for everyone concerns. When Colt McCoy went down to an injury early in the game, the Texas team spent the remainder of the first half in stunned disbelief. And without their leader, who remained in the locker room, they clearly didn’t know what to do. Neither did they have another leader step up to assume that leadership mantle. The result was an insurmountable 24-6 deficit at halftime, largely the result (in my opinion) of an absence of leadership. Simply McCoy’s resulting presence on the sideline in the second half seemed to evoke confidence, courage and belief that they as a team could still make a difference.
Teams need to be prepared for the absence of the leader. In the book The Elephant in the Boardroom, the authors Carolyn Weese and Russell Crabtree, suggest that the one obvious truth that no pastor/leader and board wants to admit is that, unless Jesus returns, sooner or later that leader will be replaced by another. The thesis of his argument is that, given this reality, all churches (and teams) need to be prepared for that eventuality. The Texas Longhorns weren’t prepared for that reality to happen sooner than they expected, and as a result, it cost them dearly. It might have been a “difference-maker.”
AP Photo/Jae Hong
Character is the most important quality in a leader. If you saw the interview of Colt McCoy after the game, or have heard any previous interview he has done, than no doubt you’ve come away impressed by the quality and character of this young man. He is strong, principled, confident but humble, and has an incredibly “large” perspective on life. It is easy to see why his team, their fans and so many others feel so passionately about him–he leads from the inside out, from who he is, not simply what he does. It makes all the difference, not only in the quality of his work, but through his example, in the followers he leads.
All leaders have to face adversity. McCoy, and others including Ingram in this game–all leaders face difficulty. This hardship takes various forms; sometimes it’s physical pain, other times, emotional distress. Often it’s an visible and vocal opponent; at other times, there are shadowy and almost unnoticeable obstacles. But leaders endure, they persevere. They never give up, they never stop leading. Whether in the game or on the sidelines, they understand the importance of their role and by example they inspire others to overcome.
Distraction can be fatal. Now I don’t know the following to be true in the game, but it’s quite possible that for a while much of the Texas team worried more about the injury to Colt than they were concerned about the game. In life, distractions that take our eyes off “the prize” can be fatal. This is not to say that Colt the person isn’t more important that the game, even a championship game. He most obviously is. But when any team, or person, allows distraction to invade their vision, then focus is impossible and the results will suffer. Discipline, a necessary quality in leadership, is critical to success.
There’s nothing better than on-the-job training. If you watched the game then you know that true freshman Garrett Gilbert, McCoy’s quarterback-replacement, grew in confidence and ability as the game wore on. You could “see” it! It was impressive how much he learned in the course of the game and how he maximized that learning on the field. With McCoy, his mentor, urging him on from the sidelines, he improved and showed marvelous flashes of brilliance under the brightest lights in the college football world. While he wasn’t a winner on the field that night, he and his team are subsequent winners because of that priceless experience. Nothing can replace it! Leaders don’t lead in the classroom or the locker room; they lead on the field.
In the final analysis, Jesus Christ is the most important thing of all. Yes, there was a game last week. A big game. My team won. I’m happy about that. I’ve waited 17 years since the last time we won the national championship. But better by far than all that, it is a joy to watch leaders stand up, like Colt McCoy did that night–like many times before–and use their leadership and their lives to point people unashamedly to Jesus Christ. That’s class. That’s strength. That’s character. Most importantly, that the best of what leadership had to offer anyone else. Check out what Colt has to say about his life, his leadership and his Lord at this link.
So congrats to the Alabama Crimson Tide for a great game and a history-making season. But congrats also to Colt McCoy and the Texas Longhorns, who’ve reminded us about leadership and what really, ultimately matters in life.
This week at our Annual Meeting in Towson, our organization introduced a number of (what I call) video postcards to our messengers. These included a variety of ministries that cover a sampling of the services we provide to the 510 or so churches we support here in our multi-state region.
Our church multiplication ministry, known as Mid-Atlantic Church Multiplication, is highlighted in the following video which is also posted on YouTube, bcmd.org and my Facebook page.
Other videos, now also on YouTube, that were presented at the Annual Meeting include:
You are free to use and/or share them as you see fit. Enjoy and get connected!
Welcome to Friday everybody and with it the uniqueness of the day we commemorate. On September 11, 2001, two thousand eight hundred and nineteen people lost their lives in the tragedies of the Twin Towers, the Pentagon and the farmlands of Pennsylvania. As a result, our nation was changed forever. Many of those who died were rescue workers, whose courage and determination remain an example of selfless sacrifice to those of us who remain.
One of our church planters at the time, Dave Cowan, traveled to New York in the first couple of weeks after the tragedy of 9/11 and recorded a moving tribute on film. He has since posted it on YouTube. Some of us have used it with our church; others find it a private opportunity to grieve for these innocent victims. You can watch it below.
We must never forget: “God is our refuge and strength, an EVER-PRESENT help in trouble” (Psalm 46.1).
It’s the Friday of Labor Day weekend, a memorable time to me since I married my wife on this holiday weekend twenty-four years ago. (I reported about our wedding earlier this week.)
As a result, I start this week with my friend and fellow church planter, Joe Miller in Tacoma, Washington, who earlier this year posted a video experience that he and his now-wife Suzanne had on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno back in 1995. As it turns out, this experience was Joe and Suzanne’s actual “first date” and the first time his parents ever saw his wife-to-be! It’s a great story; click here to watch it and to read the rest of the “back story” that accompanies it.
George Bullard, a well-known church consultant, is currently developing a series of articles that list 25 characteristics of “churches most likely to exist ten years from now” on his website. This article, his 14th to date, suggests that your church’s survivability depends on where it is on “the church lifecycle” (yes, churches do have a lifecycle, too, just like all living things). You can get to the article here and it will lead you to the other characteristics he’s listed. You can also get to the lifecycle chart by clicking here.
Tony Morgan has posted a series of items recently dealing with the multisite phenomenon in North America over the past few years. His latest article is on “Mistakes Multisites Make” and can be read by clicking here. Tony, who’s strong speciality is in the area of leadership, will be coming to High Tide Church, one of our churches in southern Delaware, with his “Tony Morgan Live” day of teaching and learning experiences on Friday, October 2. You can register for the event here.
It’s college football time again and that means anticipation of another big year for my team of choice, the Alabama Crimson Tide. Annually, my friend, fellow church planter and ‘Bama enthusiast, Adam Feldman, posts his thoughts on the coming season at his website. Last year he did an excellent job of anticipating the tremendous year they’d have (actually he expected 10-2 instead of 12-0, but who’s counting?). So, I’ve linked here to his prognostication for the 2009 season as well for those of you who may want to check it out.
Finally, this week has been significant in the lives of Beatles fans everywhere. The Beatles: Rock Band video game, along with the digitally-remastered upgrade of 14 titles, hit the shelves this week. So, in honor of “Beatlemania 2.0,” here’s a Chick-Fil-A tribute (bet you didn’t see that coming, did you?) by comedian Tim Hawkins to the tune “Yesterday.” Have a great week everybody!
Another week has come and gone, so with Friday upon us we turn our attention once again to what’s been happening of note around us on the Web this week. Let’s start with a very short video that has made every sports and news show this past week. The question everyone’s asking: is it real or not? What do you think?
On the denominational front this week, a new website has emerged authored by a handful of individuals, including our own BCM/D pastor/author David Phillips (see my blogroll on the side). The authors at missioscapes.com are all Southern Baptist pastors and leaders. They have started the site
Authors promise not to take selves too seriously
“with a series of posts designed to interact with a current important topic in SBC life, the Great Commission Resurgence (GCR) Task Force. This seven-part series, entitled ‘If We Were The Great Commission Task Force…’, will provide a means for us to share some ideas that we’ve had about the task force, providing positive fodder for discussion. The purpose will not be to provide a critique of decisions made by the group (as evidenced by our writing in advance of decisions they will make), but what we would do if we were the group itself.”
You can check it out here. Search the Category “Denominationalism” for the GCR posts.
In church planting, if you’ve been following my blog for at least a few weeks you know that David Putman wrote a post about “mistakes” church planters make and I linked to it here. Following his post, I put up a couple of articles of my own dealing with this topic. Currently, others are writing on this too. Shaun King, planter of Courageous Church in Atlanta, a current practitioner, wrote on this from his perspective, too. His thoughts are different and will connect with some of you starting new churches. You can go to his article here.
In leadership this week, Leadership Network is hosting a unique training event called “The Nines” on September 9 (9/9/09, get it?), starting at 9:09am (that’s right). It is
“a free one-day event that will take place totally on-line. It is specifically designed for any church leaders who is interested in learning valuable things about church leadership….Leadership Network asked some of the church’s greatest communicators: ‘If you had nine minutes to talk one-on-one with thousands of church leaders, what is the one thing that you would tell them?””
I’m planning to join the online training day and I want to encourage every church planter and pastoral leader to do the same. The lessons learned from over 50 key leaders in the American church will be invaluable. You can register for the FREE event here.
I’ll catch up with you all again next week!
Hey everybody! It’s time for FFF again and since it is a vacation week for me, this will be shorter than usual…but still significant. Let’s start with THE video that’s making all the rounds over the past week: The JK wedding dance from Minnesota. If you haven’t seen the silliness and joie de vie here…the pure love for life…then you need to watch this!
In church planting news, the organization of which I am a part, the Baptist Convention of Maryland/Delaware, was recognized this week by the North American Mission Board, as recipient of the “enlistment award” for the past year. The crystal award reads
First in Enlistment
Baptist Convention of Maryland/Delaware
For excellence in enlisting planters and churches for a commitment to church planting among every people group in North America
“Speak, LORD, for your servant is listening.” 1 Samuel 3.9
Presented by the Church Planting Group
North American Mission Board SBC
July 29, 2009
I am proud to be part of a team so committed to church planters and church planting churches. I’ve never known an organization so passionate, so dedicated to the church planting enterprise as the BCM/D. Thanks, everyone, for letting me be a part of this journey.
In family news, my daughter, Sarah, became a “columnist” for the first time this week. The Surrey Now newspaper had her post her opinion on a hot issue in the metro Vancouver area right now: international students studying in Canada. You can read her perspective here. It’s sure to create some conversation.
In sports news, this is trade deadline day in Major League Baseball. I predicted some changes for the Red Sox earlier this year, and still expects some movement before the day is over. However, my earlier predictions seem now to be “off the mark.” You can read what I wrote earlier here. We will wait out the day and see if any major changes are coming and what impact they might have on the team.
Well, that’s it from here today. Here’s hoping your weekend is a great one!
Time for Friday’s Friends and Family edition once again! This week we start 
on a sad note, reporting that Gidget, the 15 year old chihuahua who became a star in the Taco Bell commercials at the turn of the century has died. People magazine this week posted this pictorial montage of famous television animals, which have impacted our lives and invaded our memory. Below, I’ve posted the first of many commercials the dog did for the Mexican food chain in 1997. Yo quiero Gidget! R.I.P.
Tim Tebow is once again in the news, this week on the cover of Sports 
Illustrated magazine. The article, You Gotta Love Tim Tebow (Man of Many Missions) deals with much more than football. In fact, the majority of the story is about his ministry to prison inmates and in the Philippines as a part of his father’s evangelistic association. It’s a great article about his passion for God and his desire to see others coming into a relationship with Him through the Lord Jesus Christ. While I’ve been an avid Alabama Crimson Tide fan from my earliest days, I can’t help but admire this guy and his commitment to the Savior. Kudos, Tim!
On the family front, daughter Rebekah has been accepted into the advanced Strings Orchestra with the Annapolis Youth Symphony Orchestra after one year in the Preparatory Strings. Way to go, Rebekah! You’re making exceptional progress and it shows. Your hard work and perseverance have paid off. We are so very proud of you and your achievement.
Twitter Picture of the Week
This picture that came across my newsfeed recently, purported to be from the sale of surplus merchandise at one of the religious cable networks. It’s another one of those pictures that make you want to go…huh? 
Podcast of the Week
Lauren Rodriguez chats with me on this podcast about the importance and value of social media (blogging, Twitter, Facebook, etc.). Lauren is our webmaster and communications expert at the Baptist Convention of Maryland/Delaware, so everything she’s says is worth hearing and applying. If you’re not involved in all of these things as a church leader, you’re missing tremendous opportunities to connect with and impact the people and prospects at your church. Listen to or download it here.
Church Planting Website of the Week 
Chuck Cruise is church planter/founding pastor of Hanover Fellowship Church in Hanover, Pennsylvania. Chuck came out of Northwest Baptist Church in Reisterstown, Maryland and after completing seminary at Southern in Louisville, returned home to coordinate this church plant with Northwest as its parent church. By all counts, he’s done an incredible job. Check out his website to see what happening there.
Have a great weekend, everybody!
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