Dying to Live! -8 Reasons Some Churches Do Not Grow

#1 – The Vision Is Not Clear - If people don’t know where a church is supposed to be going…then it will attempt to go everywhere and eventually wind up nowhere. (Interesting experiment–ask people this coming Sunday at your church, “What is our vision” and see if people give you the same answers or different ones.

#2 – The Focus Is On Trying To Please Everyone – There is NO church on the planet that will make everyone happy every single week…and…according to the Scriptures that isn’t really supposed to be our obsession. Too many times we become so concerned with offending people that we actually offend Jesus.

#3 – Passionless Leadership – When a leader does what he/she does for a paycheck and not because its their passion…it’s over. I’ve said at this site before…I want difference makers not paycheck takers.

#4 – Manufacturing Energy – If a program is dead in a church…then it needs a funeral and the people need to move on. Investing time, energy and money into something that is dead will not revive it. Celebrate the fact that “that” program had its day…and then move on. AND…quit trying to fire people up over events that you would not attend if you were not on staff.

#5 – Lack of Prayer – Many times we work so hard putting our ideas together than we actually think there is no need for the supernatural power of God to be involved. Prayer should not be the good luck charm that we stick at the beginning or the end of what we do…but rather it should be our constant desperation to see God do the undeniable among us. Intense desperation often brings undeniable revelation!

#6 – Unwillingness To Take Risks – When our focus becomes to play it safe rather than to do whatever it takes to reach people far from God…it’s over. NOWHERE in the Scriptures did God ever ask anyone to do anything that didn’t involved an “oh wow” moment. We’ve GOT to be willing to embrace the uncertain if we want to see the unbelievable.

#7 – Disobedience To The Scriptures – Matthew 28:18-20, Mark 16:15, Luke 24:48, John 20:21, Acts 1:8, II Corinthians 5:16-21, Luke 19:10…I could go on and on…but we MUST understand that Jesus didn’t come to earth, live here for 33 years years, give HIS life for us and then return back to heaven to intercede for us so that we could get in really little circles and talk about ourselves and condemn those who are not as good as us. We are called to REACH PEOPLE FOR GOD–PERIOD!

#8 – Selfish Attitudes – Matthew 20:28 says it all…and if we are going to be more like Jesus we’ve GOT to serve others rather than expecting the church to be our servant all of the time. When a person (or group of people) refuse to embrace that a call to follow Jesus is a call to serve…then we’ve lost sight of who He is and eventually we will make being a Christian all about Jesus following/serving us rather than us taking up our cross and following Him!

Perry Noble www.perrynoble.com

10 Things to Focus on... instead of Quitting!

There will always be days when the voice whispering in your ear telling you to quit will start to become pretty convincing. Research has shown, in ministry, that more people quit or think of quitting on Monday more than any other day of the week, so what are some things we can focus on this Monday instead of giving in to the pressures of walking away?

#1 – He called you…and it wasn’t to get to this place so He can drop you on your face! (Philippians 1:6)

#2 – He WILL build HIS church! (Matthew 16:18)

#3 – He did not necessarily promise to deliver you from the fire…but He did promise to walk with you through it! (Isaiah 43:1-3)

#4 – There is MORE in STORE for your life and ministry! (Hosea 10:12)

#5 – When we obey the voice of God we are unstoppable (Joel 2:11)

#6 – Have courage, be strong, don’t back down from what He has called you to do! (I Corinthians 16:13)

#7 – God didn’t call you because of your greatness but rather because of HIS…and HE’S STILL GREAT despite at times you may feel like you are not! (II Corinthians 4:1)

#8 – “This” problem will NOT destroy you! (II Corinthians 4:8-9)

#9 – STOP comparing yourself to others…the same God who called and empowered them did the same for you! (Galatians 2:8)

#10 – STOP praying for protection…PRAY FOR BOLDNESS!!! (Acts 4:29-31)

Perry Noble-www.perrynoble.com

Life at it's Best--Hebrews 13

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Total Confidence--Hebrews 10

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Summer at Second

Leadership in Ministry: Employees VS Entrepreneurs

Whether we like to admit it or not, a lot of times, the success of a ministry can be determined by the mentality of the minister. Sometimes our biggest problem is us and the way we're thinking and the way we see ourselves.

If you're in ministry, here's what I want to challenge you to find out about yourself: Do you consider yourself to be an employee or an entrepreneur?

If you answer employee, you've just limited yourself to a 'drone.' Someone who obsesses with doing just enough. Someone who is focused on getting by and staying out of trouble. Realize, I'm not referring to an actual employee in the literal sense, because there are many great employees. I'm not saying that it's wrong to submit to authority or be under someone's leaderhsip. However, I'm referring to it as a metaphorical position of a person's mind and how they view themselves in the position God's called them to be in. As a Minister of the Gospel, this mentatlity is a dangerous place to be in.

On the other hand, if you're an entrepreneur, you'll be willing to do whatever needs to be done in order to reach your goals. Your job will never be done because you're wired to accomplish more than you're accomplishing right now, and you want to experience more than you're currently experiencing. If you are an entrepreneur, you're driven and focused to take that next step, whatever that may be.

Entrepreneurs aren't necessarily concerned with the glamorous. They're willing to do what few others are willing to do in order to obtain the results that very few ever experience... even if the job requires you to get a little dirty.

Mike Rowe does a show called "Dirty Jobs." He recently did a show with a Porta-Potty Technician who also happened to be a multi-millionaire. This guy realized at an early age that the human race is never going to say, "Look, we voted and we've decided we're not going to poop anymore." It's never going to stop! So, when he thought about it, there was great job security in Porta-Pottys. Secondly, he understood that he wouldn't really ever have to compete for his job. It's not like there are a lot of people climbing a ladder to try and take his place if he's cleaning and repairing portable poopers every day. So, not only did he decide to be a porta-potty technician, he decided that he was going to be the very best technician the porta-potty world had ever seen! This guy saw great potential in doing something that most people wouldn't ever consider doing, and by doing it, he got to experience incredible success.

You see, he wasn't an employee--he was an entrepreneur! He was willing to go above and beyond. He was willing to do what most people would never do. He didn't do just enough, he was intentional and aggressive in pursuing something that most would try to avoid.

So the questions is... what about you? How would you classify yourself? How do you lead in your organization?

Are you just going to 'follow-the-leader' and 'obey' and 'do what you need to do to keep your head above water' and continue to see the same results over and over... or... are you going to take ownership of your ministry and do whatever it takes to accomplish to goals set by Christ?

Christianity is covered with 'drone' leadership. Yes men. Employees. Not just lazy people or apathetic individuals, but people that do just enough to stay on the payroll and out of trouble.
Just imagine the results the world would see if Ministers changed the mentality behind their methodology and ministries! Revival would cease to be an event that happened in the past and become a legitimate reality for our future.

When we become entrepreneurs, it creates an urgency and aggressiveness inside of us that forces us to be bolder in our efforts to reach people and communities for Christ. It forces us to be fishers of men. It forces us to be like Christ.

Which one will you be today?

What are the Factors that go into a Teenager being DEVOTED?

PARENTS: They are the number one influence in all areas of a teenager's life, but especially with regards to faith. Having committed Christian parents enables a teenager to have a constant source of discipline as well as a model of what the Christian life looks like on a daily basis.

ADULTS: The members of a teenager's church matter, whether they are 'Youth Workers' or not. The support, advice, love and help they offer is essential to the faith development of a teenager. The more of these adults they have, the more likely they are devoted.

PRAYER: This goes a long way beyond simply praying before meals and bedtime. A relationship with poor communication will quickly sour. It's the same with God. The more a student prays the more they are connected and committed to God.

SCRIPTURE: God has chosen to reveal Himself in His Word. In order to know Him you must know the Bible. This is more than just the who, what, when, where, why and how. A developing passion for God's Word reflects a developing passion for God Himself.

VALUE: If a teenager doesn't recognize a need for faith in their everyday life, then they will soon abandon that faith as emerging adults. Holding faith to be important is a very personal decision, yet seeing how valuable it is to others helps instill that same value in the life of a teenager.

BELIEFS: The less doubts a person possesses as a teenager, the less doubts they will possess as an adult. This is true because this isn't about blindly going along with whatever you're told. This is about firmly knowing what you believe and how to back it up with why you believe it.

EXPERIENCES: God is a personal being who lovingly interacts with His people. The more a teenager personally experiences this divine interaction, the more they come to love God and understand what it means to abide in Him for a lifetime.

Dr. Alvin Reid from Southeastern Seminary

This past week, I had the privilege of hanging out with one of the great minds in Student Ministry; Dr. Alvin Reid.

Dr. Reid is the Professor of Evangelism and Student Ministry at Southeastern Seminary and has been pushing Pastors back to the Gospel for decades. If you are looking to go into ministry in the future or just looking to be sharpened in your current ministry position, I would highly recommend Dr. Reid and his team. They do a great job of preparing people to become missional as they lead the next generation to life in Christ.

To view this video from Facebook, please click HERE.

Texas Stadium Implosion: Why is this Sad?

I'm not sure why this is sad... perhaps it's the history, but it is however just another building.

Easter at the Easley House

I love Holidays! There are few things more enjoyable than the excitement of holidays when you have children. My kids get so excited and worked up when it's time to talk about Santa Clause or the Easter Bunny, but this year, Easter has brought a multitude of new discoveries. My children knew this year that we celebrate Easter because of what Jesus did on the cross. They knew that the celebration was because of an empty tomb, and it's cool to see them not only ask these kinds of questions and acknowledge these things... but actually GET that this is what the holiday is all about.

My prayer is that many people this year will come to discover that very same thing. And I'm not only referring to non-believers; I hope that we as believers will recognize the fact that Jesus is just as much alive today as we was on the original Easter Sunday morning! We have a lot to celebrate and much to be thankful for... may we never forget!!!!