In part 3 of the Springsteen series, we explore another thought from Rick Newman and US News and World Report. Rick’s third observation from the Boss is that he gives the people what they want. Here are Rick’s own words:

Experiments get a more welcome reception when mingled with something familiar. Throughout the show, Springsteen deftly blended unembellished hits such as “Badlands” and “Born to Run,” performed pretty much the way everybody knows them, with darker, topical music; after appeasing his conscience, he quickly reverted to happier songs such as “The Promised Land” (irony intended, I presume) and “Dancing in the Dark.” The result: His message of protest got across without turning anybody off.

I know what you are thinking here. “The church can’t give people what they want. We would compromise or values and morals.” Hmmm, not sure I buy into that objection. To me, it is an issue of relevance.

Someone once said that “The church has historically been answering the questions that nobody is asking.”

Ouch.

Jesus always looked beyond the obvious. He looked into the lives of people. What were they struggling with? What were the things locking them up? What were their dreams?

Somewhere along the way we have to be able to answer the question of what people are looking for. Every year the people of exchange volunteer to work one of the biggest musical event in town. Bluesfest draws people from all over the Midwest. Several thousands come to enjoy some good blues with some great friends. Last year I stood in the middle of the crowd and again had to ask myself:

Is the church being relevant? Are we addressing the questions that these people are struggling with? Is the song we are singing familiar to people outside of Christ?

I never want to stop asking those question. As a church, we better wrestle with it. I am not asking that we compromise the message or the values. I am asking that we look at the questions that people are asking and begin to address those in relevant ways. Jesus did it, why should we do any different?

The heart of Christ beats for those who have yet to know him. Find out what they are asking and you have an inroad to the familiar in their life.

Photo by Sister 72

But encourage one another daily, as long as it is called Today, so that none of you may be hardened by sin’s deceitfulness.  - Heb 3:13

Sin is deceitful.  It lies to me.  Makes me think that I will be better off.  Fills a void that I have.  It encourages me and makes me feel important.  Could it really be that a simple act of encouragement could knock the legs out from under sin?

Imagine a church that is so encouraging that sin gets beat down hard.  Imagine a city where encouragement reigns and darkness is suppressed. Imagine a world where the wealthy are encouraged and the poor are encouraged.  

Shouldn’t the church be the most encouraging place on the planet?

Maybe it is time for a revolution of encouragement.

Who will you encourage today?

———

Photo by More than Corn Here.

Dr. Wayne Cordeiro, Sr Pastor of New Hope Christian Fellowship in Oahu, cranks it out again.

Pastor Wayne authors Mentoring Leaders, a blog for church leaders.  In Cordeiro-esque  fashion, he keeps the articles brief and packed with goodness (like a power-bar for leadership).

Check it out.  You’ll be glad you did.

Thanks Wayne!!

Thanks once again to Rick Newman from U.S. News & World Report for the article on what the Boss can teach CEOs. Crossing it over from Business to church leadership, we explore Rick’s #2 observation: Innovate. In Rick’s own words,

Springsteen’s knack for turning old material into something completely new seems like a magic touch compared with all the lame efforts to create hip, modern variations of old TV shows or movies. Instead of copying success, he creates it all over again.

Can somebody testify? I must admit, when my pal Glen Baldwin offered to take me to my first Springsteen concert a few years ago, I figured I would be watching a washed up old man playing the same tunes for the millionth time so he could get enough money to pay his back taxes (tip of the hat to Willie).

I was wrong. Dead wrong.

The reason people flock to a Springsteen show is that you never know what this cat will do, but you know this: he takes old tunes and makes them new. Brand new.

Read the rest of this entry »

Alright. I am pretty fired up. In the past few weeks I have heard comments from people that get me amped. They all say it in different ways, but it goes something like this:

I am working a ton of hours each week. I have not had a day off since I don’t know when, and I can’t remember my last vacation.

Usually it is said with some pride. “Good-on-me for the hard work. I’m getting it done.” Am I supposed to respond with a pat on the back or some kind of heroic award? Hello McFly, we are killing ourselves. Some of us have jobs that own us. This is not how life was meant to be lived. Don’t get me wrong, I believe that it is a gift of God to enjoy work (Ecclesiastes 3:13), but this is out of control.

Don’t believe me? Get ready to be rocked.

Pastor Darrin Patrick from The Journey in St Louis offers the following statistics, which he gathered from such organizations as Barna, Maranatha Life and Focus on the Family. The following stats concern Pastors:

Read the rest of this entry »

Here is an overview of the Worship Leading Essentials articles:

1. Setting the Base
2. Letting Go
3. Teamwork
4. Putting Together a Song List
5. Spiritual Leadership
6. Skill or Spiritual Maturity?
7. Selecting Musicians
8. Song Transitions
9. Band Conflict
10. Dealing with Criticism
11. Setting Monitors
12. Stage Presence
13. The Art of Invisibility
14. Leading Rehearsals
15. Band or Rotating Musicians?
16. Going from Band to Pool
17. Limit the Gear
18. Rest
19. Life Long Learner
20. It’s Not About the Music

You have to love a guy who has the guts to say “Maybe what we are doing as a church isn’t working so well.” Bill Hybels is the founding Pastor of Willow Creek Community Church in Chicago.  In an honest move, the leadership of Willow has questioned how good they are really doing.

Hear some straight talk from the man himself in this video. It’s worth your time.

For more information, check out the Reveal website.

Technorati Tags: Bill Hybels, Willow Creek, church, God, Chicago

US News and World Report (via MSN) published a great article on what The Boss can teach CEO’s.  I think it is a must-read for church leaders. 

I admit that I am a recent convert to Springsteen.  A friend of mine is a HUGE fan and drug me to my first concert with the Boss a few years ago.  I was hooked.  Talk about a guy full of passion. 

The article breaks down 4 lessons we can learn from The Boss.  I’ll expound on each of them, and how they relate to the church in separate posts.  So, drum-roll please (or as Bruce would say:  “1-2-3-4″).

1. Never let your customers rest.

If you have ever been to a Springsteen show, you know that the man is a powerhouse of energy and might as well be running a marathon.  US News and World Report says:

When Springsteen performs, most of his songs end like this: “1-2-3-4!” That’s because he’s starting the next song before the current one has even ended. The Boss continually races to the back of the stage to change guitars, so there’s no lull in the cadence of the show. In the audience, nobody sits down or gets a breather until the man on stage decides it’s time. By keeping the crowd on its toes, the band keeps demand at a fever pitch . . .

The church has done a pretty sad job at never letting people rest. Somewhere in history, we got lazy.  We decided the church had been innovative enough.  We sat down and said “it has been hard work getting here.”  In the meantime, culture changed and we wondered why customers lost interest.  They lost interest because there were not challenged.  People want to be challenged.  We don’t want to rest.  We want a cause.  We want to be engaged, to do something.  We say of exchange that we are a community of people who follow Christ and serve in his cause.  We never want to rest.  His cause is too great and there is too much to be done. 

Good leaders see further and clearer than others.  Be thinking of the next song before you end the current one.  Continually put vision in front of people. Continue to talk about strategies.   Continue to look over the horizon.

What song are you in and what song is coming next?  As a leader you should be able to answer that with clarity.  Hmm.  I think I have some work to do. 

Check in next time and we will explore what a Sr. Rocker can teach us about innovation.

Technorati Tags: The Boss , Bruce Springsteen , church , leadership , worship leading