Tag: church diversity

Episode #8: Phil EuBank

Episode #8: Phil EuBank

Breakthrough ideas with Phil: 

  • Reaching the lost requires removing every possible barrier of understanding – even some things you love.
  • It’s time to let go of some of these weird practices of the church that have nothing to do with Jesus.
  • Are your worship services evangelistically understandable? If you are not sure, they probably are not.
  • “Thank you for making me not feel stupid.” How to be a church where people can seek God and walk back to him.
  • Inspiring people to trade church the way we want it to become a place where God is moving is a critical job of pastoral leadership.
  • Making it possible to follow Jesus with a few non-essential *(stylistic, personal preference-driven) barriers as possible.
  • Talk about where God is calling you to go and don’t get tired of talking about it. Don’t get bored or give up… persistence toward God’s better future is critical.
  • Find the common ground of a church on mission and filter needed changes through a better future that God has ahead.
  • A unifying direction must be more than a catchphrase or neat sentence but brings a thread of accountability and direction to every part of the organization.
  • Everybody says they want vision but what they don’t realize they mean is that they want their own vision. There is no way to satisfy every expectation only to go where God wants us to go.
  • It’s easy in ministry to get consumed by the activity and lose track of Gods productivity in the lives of people.
  • When there are no stories, either we are not paying attention or what we are doing is not actually working.
  • Without purpose and meaning toward life change – church becomes a hobby and a terrible one at that.
  • When team members are free to share good ideas and share new approaches, they are able to take greater and greater ownership.
  • Time rarely solves the problems on their own… next steps matter more than a statement.
  • Separate the urgent from the important. Not everything that is happing now is important and not everything that is important is happening now.
  • When everything seems urgent, your team cannot easily discern what is actually important.
  • Deciding when you use these essential communication tools can define a clear line between the urgent and the important.

Breakthrough resources from this episode:

God Dreams – Will Mancini

Deep & Wide – Andy Stanley

VOXER – staff communication tool

H3 Leadership – Brad Lomenick

The Problem of God – Mark Clark 

The Reason for God – Tim Keller

Phil EuBank moved to Colorado two and half years ago where he serves as the Lead Pastor of Eastern Hills Community Church. Phil makes sure everyone knows that He has a gorgeous and brilliant wife and 3 really cute kids. He loves seeing people who have given up on God or church unnecessarily coming to a life-changing relationship with Jesus.

Episode #7: Barrett Bowden

Episode #7: Barrett Bowden

Breakthrough ideas with Barrett: 

  • How can a church reach Christians who live in the city, from within the city, not just the suburbs?
  • True fulfillment as a Christ-following leader comes from a deep sense of two key understandings.
  • Why it is important to bring yourself back to your calling as a leader, not someone else’s.
  • It is hard to truly rest if people are constantly in contact, and what to do about it.
  • Every leader needs to know their symptoms of exhaustion and unkempt health.
  • The importance of every small group having direct contact with this person.
  • Marry Biblical Gospel rooted purpose with a vocational dream and people are not just looking for a job after school, they are being sent into a calling.
  • The big problem of never really casting vision beyond week-to-week ministry engagement.
  • How does the horizon storyline work and why is it important?
  • Learn the art of “purposed nothingness” and how this makes room for the Holy Spirit.
  • The one big idea to having a church of deep maturing disciples who are loving caring people reaching the lost.
  • Three things that, together, are the source of life and effectiveness in ministry.

Breakthrough resources from this episode:

Island Community Church

Zeal Without Burnout by Christopher Ash

M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan

God Dreams by Will Mancini

Dangerous Calling by Paul David Tripp

New Morning Mercies by Paul David Tripp

Barrett Bowden is the pastor of Island Community Church, a young and thriving congregation in downtown Memphis. Barrett has a heart for leading the church to invest in its unique, urban context and to cultivate missional leaders with a heart for the nations. Barrett is married to Michelle, an adolescent pediatrician in the Memphis area, and they have one adorable daughter, Caroline Jane.

 

Episode #6: Talbot Davis

Episode #6: Talbot Davis

Breakthrough ideas with Talbot: 

  • Twitter is a great place to improve as a wordsmith because it forces clarity of communication.
  • It is possible for social media to make you a better pastor and leader.
  • Making diversity the cause only results in political correctness, so make Jesus the cause and let diversity be the result.
  • Bringing diversity to staff means writing every job description carefully and hiring intentionally.
  • Knowing who you are as a church, and who you are not, brings incredible focus to a church.
  • The consistency of visionary identity from church leadership brings confidence in missional activity from the body.
  • Setting people up for lots of small wins eventually results in large victory in Jesus.
  • Be clear about your expectations for hiring and set up systems of accountability.
  • Normalize the things of the church that used to be remedial: healing prayers, altar calls, and being awake to the Spirit.
  • There is a difference in being a charismatic church and a church with a lot of charismatic people in it.
  • Processes can hinder leadership; sometimes you just need to take risks on people.
  • When it comes to staff hiring and firing, long hellos and short goodbyes are best.
  • Develop your gifts and hire others that make up for your unavoidable shortcomings.
  • Work every day and you will get better at what you do.

Breakthrough resources from this episode: 

Good Shepherd United Methodist Church

The Storm Before the Calm by Talbot Davis

Head Scratchers by Talbot Davis 

Crash Test Dummies by Talbot Davis

Communicating for a Change by Andy Stanley

Talbot Davis is Pastor of Good Shepherd United Methodist Church, a modern congregation in Charlotte, North Carolina. Talbot helps lead a talented group of pastors and support staff. Talbot makes sure everyone knows that he married well, and now has two adult children. A lifetime of playing tennis consistently shapes how he leads and thinks about the world. Talbot has published five books through Abington Press as resources for both life groups and preachers in training.