S2.E10 - The First Year Of Planting

EE Leaders | Leadership Lessons Season 2 Episode 10 — The First Year of Planting a Church

Andrew Lundy, Solace Church, and Josiah Graves, The Exchange Church, are both pastors of churches planted this past year. They share about what that process has been like and answer a few questions you may have about planting a church. What have been the highlights and the challenges? How do we do conflict well? The difference between expectations of ministry and the realities of ministry. There are lessons worth learning. 

QUOTES: 

“We want to go to those who aren’t coming. We want to see people come into a real life-changing, life-giving relationship with Jesus.”

“When I look back at this year and I see what God’s done, I think a highlight is the way in which  people who were not walking with God have now come back into a relationship with God and are serving in our church.”

“The lesson that I am constantly coming back to is not what I’m doing or how I’m doing it, by why? Why am I doing it? Is this something I’m doing heartily, as unto the Lord?”

“God’s had to rewire how I think. I’m a pastor. I’m feel like I’m doing a lot of paramedic work. We may want to go take the mountain, but our people are all down the hill and they are bruised and injured and hurting. And sometimes before we can do do something, we just need to be and to heal, to preach the gospel to ourselves.”

“It’s not about what we do, it’s about who we are in the process.”

One Piece of Advice | A Willing Vessel

Alex Fuentes, church planter in Tunja, Colombia, shares his one piece of advice: Be a willing vessel, be available for God to use you. We can want a lot of things in ministry, but asking what does God want makes it pretty clear. Listen for and  be led by the Spirit. Ask every day for His guidance, because we are nothing but broken vessels that carry His message.

QUOTES:

“When we place ourselves in His hands and just allow Him to shine through us…allow His Holy Spirit to work through us, that’s what really matters.” -Alex Fuentes

“Allow the Lord to fill you and work through you, to have those spaces for whatever He wants you to do instead of what we want to do.” -Alex Fuentes

“Say OK Lord, where today, what today, ministering in those moments. It allows people to see that this is a work of the Lord.” -Alex Fuentes

Links:

Contact Daniel: daniel@eeleaders.com

Leadership Lessons/One Piece of Advice/Blog/Recommended Books: eeleaders.com

Solus Church: https://www.soluschurch.com

The Exchange Church: http://theexchangechurch.cc

S1.E20 - Mentorship

EE Leaders | Leadership Lessons Season 1 Episode 20 - Mentorship

This week Pastor Daniel talks with Robby Christmas from Family Church in West Palm Beach, Florida about his ministry with their Church Planting Residency Program. This is a leadership pipeline where guys are trained to be church planters, pastors and ministry leaders and then mobilized in teams and sent out to plant churches. In particular, what role does mentoring have in training leaders and what is the benefit of mentoring others? “A mentor is someone who pours into you what God has poured into them,” often through a mentor of their own. Mentors hold you accountable and speak into your life, seeing things you may not be able to see in yourself. It’s all built on a relationship with that person, on true friendship and trust. It takes time. Engage people and ask people about their own life. Robby shares some great stories of finding a mentor and being a mentor and how it can change your life. Find out more about the Church Planting Residency Program at www.familychurchnetwork.com

In this week’s One Piece of Advice, another local pastor, Pastor Andrew Lundy, shares his perspective on mentoring. 

One Piece of Advice | Have a Mentor

Pastor Andrew Lundy, Boca Raton, Florida shares the value of having a coach or a mentor, someone who has walked what you have walked through and is able to walk with you through the challenges and defeats—and the victories, too. Someone to be be a good friend, to remind you of the good news of Jesus. Paul writes in 1 Corinthians 4:15, “For though you have countless guides in Christ, you do not have many fathers. For I became your father in Christ Jesus through the gospel.” No one can replace the value of a spiritual father. “I can learn the strategies, read the books, and know the methods but still be a lonely leader, alone in the journey.” We are taught in Proverbs 11:25 that “he who waters, himself will be watered.” As pastors we are in desperate need of the same ministry that we’re giving to others. So make sure you find that friend, that mentor, someone to remind you that your truest identity is that you are a son of God. 

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Quotes:

“One of the biggest benefits to having a mentor is to help you see blind spots. No matter what kind of leader you are, you have blind spots. Having a mentor helps you grow in ways you might not know you need to grow.” -Robby Christmas

“Relationship equals influence. If you are not connected at the heart level, you’re not going to influence that person.” -Robby Christmas

“Mentoring someone takes time.” -Robby Christmas

“When we care for others, there is something inside of us that clicks and goes, ‘Wow, that was right, that was the right thing to do.’” -Robby Christmas

“If you want to be mentored by someone, first look for someone that loves like Jesus. Then you go out and engage that person. Get on their calendar.” -Robby Christmas

“Look for people who are faithful, available and teachable.” -Robby Christmas

“The more the leadership skills you’re passing on are reproducible, the more influence they’re going to have because that person can easily pass it on to others.” -Robby Christmas

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Links:

Contact Daniel: daniel@eeleaders.com

Leadership Lessons/One Piece of Advice/Blog/Recommended Books: eeleaders.com

S1.E4 - Vision From Jesus

EE Leaders | Leadership Podcast Season 1: Episode 4 - Vision From Jesus

In this episode, Pastor Andrew Lundy, Boca Raton, Florida, talks about vision. How does vision even come about? What does it look like? What do ministry leaders mean when they talk about vision? It is this: “Seeing what God sees—a work of God’s grace. To see what I wouldn’t see otherwise.” In this episode, Andrew explains the pathway—the how—of knowing God’s vision. It starts with Jesus, because God sees all things. The eyes of the Lord are in every place, keeping watch over the evil and the good. (Proverbs 15:3) Vision starts with seeing things from God’s vantage point. God shares the pain of our suffering; He feels it. Then He does something about it. He searches for people to do His work here on earth. For the eyes of the Lord run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to give strong support to those whose heart is blameless[a] toward him. (2 Chronicles 16:9) Then God selects people; He chooses individuals for certain tasks and certain purposes. Jesus chose the 12 disciples. He chooses those who are available for His service. And those He selects, He shows. “He opens our eyes to see what He sees. He gives us a vision of what He sees.” This vision from God planted by God stirs a person’s heart to feel what He feels. He entrusts us with His burdens and develops that stirring into a calling. Then He sends. He takes that burden with a vision and He gives it a mission, a task. This is the thrilling experience of being on that pathway of vision from God through the illuminating work of the Holy Spirit and resulting in praise and glory to God. In this week’s One Piece of Advice, Pastor Jim Gallagher reminds us that it always begins with Jesus.

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One Piece of Advice - Seek Jesus

Pastor Jim Gallagher, Vero Beach, Florida, shares his advice on seeking Jesus. “Long before you were called to be a pastor, you were called to be a Christian.” While there are many struggles that are unique to pastoral ministry, regardless of which area of ministry you are in leadership over, your relationship with Jesus needs to be the primary thing. Measure yourself based on your being a child of God, not on the abundance or lack of fruit being produced in your ministry at any particular time. Make sure you keep your devotional life healthy. Don’t search the scriptures for a sermon illustration, search for how God might want to speak to you. Besides that, keep your relationship with your local community fresh, so that you’re always meeting people and having an opportunity to share the Lord. “Keep following Jesus, keep loving Him until He comes.”

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Quotes:

“God is looking for people—not perfect people, not capable people—but available people and willing people that He can use as vessels to accomplish His purposes.” -Andrew Lundy

“We see the grace of God in selecting empty vessels of normal-ness and weakness to display His awesomeness and HIs power.” -Andrew Lundy

“I’ve heard it said that having a vision without a task is a visionary. Having a task without a vision is drudgery. But a vision with a task makes a missionary.” -Andrew Lundy

“Long before you were called to be a pastor, you were called to be a Christian.” -Jim Gallagher

“Keep following Jesus, keep loving Him until He comes.” -Jim Gallagher

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Links: 

Contact Daniel: daniel@eeleaders.com

Leadership Lessons/One Piece of Advice/Blog/Recommended Books: eeleaders.com