elementals: quick reads to sharpen your leadership edge.

3 min

Midrash vs. Therapeutic

When I was pastoring, periodically I would do a message series about relationships and the challenges of living life together—whether it...

2 min

Conflict Avoidance = Innovation Killer

Decades ago, becoming a learning organization was a common call-to-action in organizational development circles. That is, it was...

1 min

What's Wrong with Easter?

So how often do you get to tell the story of someone you know coming back from the dead? And not just sucking air again. Even Lazarus did...

2 min

The Big Issue in Your Church

Before we begin, a quick reality check: all pastors struggle with leadership challenges. In a recent survey, over half U.S. pastors found...

2 min

Risk, Failure...and Recovery

Years ago we used to take our kids to a community pool that had a high diving board. I’m not much of a swimmer; if there was an Olympic...

2 min

Deciding Your Course of Action

From the tribe of Issachar, there were two-hundred leaders of the tribe with their relatives. All these men understood the signs of the...

3 min

The Power of Delegation: Part 2

Becoming a "leader of leaders" requires effective empowerment. If you haven’t read The Power of Delegation: Part 1, check it out here....

3 min

The Power of Delegation: Part 1

Successful leadership of any organization is dependent on the ability to effectively delegate. Good delegation is a defining feature of...

2 min

5 Practices of Innovative Leaders

Organizations have a relatively short shelf life without innovation and, oddly enough, few allot time and resources to imagination and...

3 min

6 Principles for Giving Campaigns

Every church leader has to wrestle with the financial demands of ministry. The apostle Paul was bi-vocational as a tentmaker. But Acts...

2 min

Servanthood = Outward Focus

In our work with Elemental Churches, we identify the 4 critical traits all healthy churches have: Integrity, Passion, Servanthood, and...

2 min

Politics & Pulpits: 6 Questions to Ask

In highly politically-polarized times, church leaders walk a tricky tightrope. Even the most self-aware leaders who don’t want to promote...

2 min

Popsicles & the Church

Back when I was pastoring, I held on to a letter for years that would remind me what was really important for me and my church. A woman...

2 min

Imagining the New Year With Questions

“Our culture is competent to implement almost anything and imagine almost nothing.” ~Walter Brueggemann. The promise of a new year after...

4 min

The Top 4 Predictions for 2021!

The closing of a year typically engenders a reflective look back and some prognostication for the next one. I would prefer to not look...

3 min

The Problem With Shepherds

Think about this: the most important event in human history happens and who learns about it first? Shepherds. Of course. The guys on the...

2 min

Flatlining on the Status Quo

At one point in my pastoring, we purchased a demographic study based on a ten-mile radius of our church. It was filled with extremely...

3 min

And Now For Something Different: Spiritual Conflict

Though I’ve never really spoken about it publicly, the church I pastored had a number of run-ins with disturbed people. When you open...

2 min

Imagination & Change: 3 Big Leadership Questions

According to some neuropsychologists, part of the way our brain functions in order to not burn out is by creating neural pathways so as...

2 min

Covid Contrarians

So how does the Church survive in the time of Covid? One day during a Q&A session with Jesus, this query was raised: “If I am to love my...

2 min

Is It Time For The Searchlight?

Last week I wrote about vulnerability…you can read it here. But I want to hammer on this a little more. And here’s why. I have seen too...

3 min

Vulnerability & Leadership

The organizational behavior philosopher Charles Handy made reference to an exercise known as the Johari Window. The Johari exercise...

2 min

Community in a Time of Covid

About 35 years ago, the Journal of Community Psychology featured a landmark article by David McMillan and David Chavis outlining four...

3 min

We Have the Meats!

Leaders and pastors, have you ever heard this?: “When are we going to get the deep teaching here? When am I going to get some meat?” ...

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THE ELEMENTAL GROUP

elementals: quick reads to sharpen your leadership edge.

Midrash vs. Therapeutic

Conflict Avoidance = Innovation Killer

What's Wrong with Easter?

The Big Issue in Your Church

Risk, Failure...and Recovery

Deciding Your Course of Action

The Power of Delegation: Part 2

The Power of Delegation: Part 1

5 Practices of Innovative Leaders

6 Principles for Giving Campaigns

Servanthood = Outward Focus

Politics & Pulpits: 6 Questions to Ask

Popsicles & the Church

Imagining the New Year With Questions

The Top 4 Predictions for 2021!

The Problem With Shepherds

Flatlining on the Status Quo

And Now For Something Different: Spiritual Conflict

Imagination & Change: 3 Big Leadership Questions

Covid Contrarians

Is It Time For The Searchlight?

Vulnerability & Leadership

Community in a Time of Covid

We Have the Meats!

To receive elementals weekly, subscribe here. To download indepth leadership development booklets for discussions with your teams, click here. Yep, they're free.