Church Life
Top 10 Articles from 2007
This week, as I reflected on Gifted for Leadership's first year, I decided to do a little analysis. I checked back through our "traffic patterns" for the last 12 months to find the most-read articles on the blog. I though you might be interested in this information, as I was, so I've decided to share it with you. Here's a list of the Top 10 most-read articles of 2007, along ...
Is the Church Ready for Iron Ladies?
I have a confession to make, one that I often sheepishly keep to myself: I have very rarely felt discriminated against for being a woman, but often because I am not a certain type of woman.
I stand on the shoulders of giants who labored to make inroads for women's rights, for equal opportunity in our culture, our workforce, our political system, and our churches. ...
RetroWomen: The Rise of Gender Fundamentalism
Earlier this year, I provided a link to a video of a fundamentalist teacher in the UK. His comments about women and what he saw as their God-created role (little more than animals, created to serve and please men) were understandably shocking to many readers. Quite a few of those who responded wondered why I had bothered to draw attention to the perspectives of an isolated ...
Create a Culture of Mentorship
"Mentoring," says the late Fred Smith Sr. in his book Leading with Integrity, "is back in favor again, like a wonderful old story that hasn't been told for so long it sounds new."
Then he succinctly explains the danger of that dynamic.
"In some ways it has taken on the characteristics of a fad; if too much is expected too soon, it will fail." ...
New Conversions or Changed Lives?
This article is Part II. Part I of this article appears here.
Someone once said of William Penn's conversion: "Conversion must not be considered simply as a change of opinion. It penetrated his moral nature: it made him a new man. He was raised into another sphere and consciousness."
I've been thinking about the way that some of us evangelicals report ...
The Gift of Worship
Early in our marriage I gave my wife a terrific anniversary gift: a rain gauge. At least I thought it was a great gift. Susan, after all, is a farmer's daughter and keeps close watch on the weather. I envisioned her delight and nostalgia while tracking our backyard precipitation. I congratulated myself on my creativity.
Guess what? Susan was not impressed: "A ...
Leading Your Leaders
As a leader, it's easy to understand and embrace your responsibility for those entrusted to your leadership. But how often do you think about your responsibility to lead your leaders? Try these 10 strategies for exercising your leadership skills in relationship to those who lead you.
1. Pray for them. This is pretty self-explanatory. Everyone needs prayer, and people ...
Disappointed Women, Angry Men
After our church council made the recent decision not to hold the door open for the women to become elders and deacons (see "Let Men Get the Door" for my first post on this topic), my friend Anne suggested the main reason was because "it is easier to deal with disappointed women than angry men."
While this may seem harsh to say about the decision-making ...
Working Like Unbelievers
In a recent interview with Rebecca Guillory Gilmer, vice president of The Impact Movement and Gifted For Leadership editorial advisor, the editors asked her what she considered the biggest pitfall to leaders in launching a new ministry. Here's what she had to say.
Whenever we launch something - in ministry particular - we tend to say we can do it because "God is ...
Madam President?
We've never been so close to the possibility of electing a female president of the United States. We'll soon see early indicators of whether Hillary Clinton will be among the candidates voters will consider at this time next year. But while this would be a first for the U.S., women certainly have been charged with such influence before.
"Women & Power" ...