It's Okay To Be The Boss pt. 6

Solve Small Problems Before They Turn Into Big Problems

1. Solving a problem after it has already festered and grown large is so much more difficult than preventing that problem in the first place or solving it while it was still small.

2. After solving a performance problem that never had to become so urgent in the first place, the typical manager convinces himself that he definitely doesn't have any more time to do any more managing. The manager goes right back to his hands-off, under managing ways, awaiting the next unnecessary crisis, when he will spring into action once again.

3. In most cases, even long-standing problems will die away under the withering medicine of regular and consistent strong management.

4. It is never helpful to "name" a behavior if you are tying to get someone to change it. Instead, describe the behavior.

5. Always remind employees that rewards are not permanent but contingent on continued good performance.

It's Okay To Be The Boss pt. 5

Do More For Some People And Less For Others

1. One high performing employee is worth more to the business than three or four mediocre employees.

2. If you are the boss, one of the most important parts of your job is taking care of your people.

3. It's critical that employees know that custom deals are not to be taken for granted and always remain contingent on your discretion.

4. Beyond the basic employment deal, employees should know that if they need or want more, they have to earn those rewards through their own hard work.

5. It's important to make sure every employee knows how and why she is earning her rewards and what she needs to do in order to earn more (or less).

It's Okay To Be The Boss pt. 4

I have finished reading this book. It was a great book. It was very helpful to me and to our staff. One of our staff members said they would rank this book in their top ten books that they've ever read. This week, I want to share some more insights from this interesting read.

Track Performance

1. Watch employees work: One of the ways to monitor an employee's performance is with your own eyes.

2. Ask for an account: When you have a one-on-one conversation with those you supervise, ask for an account of what that person has done since your last conversation.

3. Help employees use self-monitoring tools: Ask employees to help you keep track of their actions by using self-monitoring tools like project plans, checklists and activity logs.

4. Review work in progress on a regular basis.

5. Ask around a little: Gather intelligence from customers, vendors, coworkers and other managers about the employee's performance.

Weekend Update

1. This was our first weekend with having four kids in our home! What a blessing!!

2. My wife is such an awesome mom! I'm so blessed to have such a Proverbs 31 woman!

3. I didn't speak at church on Sunday. I stayed home to help my wife out with the kids. She came home from the hospital on Friday, and I wanted to be home to help her on her first weekend with the four kiddos. It was a great bonding time for our family.

4. Chris Smith, our Student Ministries Director, spoke on self-control. I heard the message was great. I can't wait to listen to it online. I'm very grateful for the team that God has placed around me! They are exceptional!

5. Thank you volunteers for your faithfulness to serve week in and week out. YOU ALL ARE PHENOMENAL!

6. We made a huge announcement on Sunday. We are starting a 5th Sunday experience beginning August 24 at 6PM. This experience is going to be called Ignite, and it is geared for College & 20 somethings. All of you college and 20 somethings in the OKC area, get ready for an incredible worship experience geared just for you. Yes, every age group is welcome to attend, but the experience is geared for college & 20 somethings.

7. This coming Sunday our experience times are changing. Our new times are 8:45AM, 10AM, 11:15AM & 12:30PM!

8. Have I mentioned that I'm ready for fantasy football to kickoff!

9. We are beginning a brand new series on Sunday called The Perfect Storm! This series is a must hear series. It could literally revolutionize your life!

10. I'm addicted to life-change! JESUS CHANGING LIVES!

Random Thoughts

1. It's been a crazy, busy week!

2. Please be praying for our Programming Director and one of my closest friends, Brian Rush. His mom passed away early Monday morning. The funeral is today.

3. Watching how strong Brian's faith has been through this very unexpected death of his mother has really encouraged my faith.

4. REALLY, REALLY BIG NEWS! We had a baby boy born on Wednesday afternoon. His name is Case. He was 7 pounds 5 ounces and 19 inches long. Both Case and my sexy wife Tiffany are doing great. I'm bringing them home from the hospital today.

5. I have a SUPER BIG announcement to make this Sunday. All I'm telling you is that you don't want to miss it. I'm very, very EXCITED TO SHARE THIS NEWS WITH YOU! BE THERE!

6. Case is such a handsome baby boy. Now I have four kids.

7. We had four kids in less than five years. My wife is a BAAAD WOMAN! :) YOU GO, TIFFANY! :)

8. Many of you have asked how you could be a blessing to our family during this exciting season. The biggest thing you can do for our family besides lifting us up daily in prayer is to get us a gift card to a restaurant. Tiffany is going to be super busy as she adjusts to taking care of four kids while I'm at work. The last thing I want her thinking about is cooking dinner, and FOLKS, I CAN'T COOK! Plus, my kids are picky eaters (that will change). You can drop the card off at the church office. Thank you so much, church family, for your love and concern. You all are so awesome. I'm honored to be your pastor!

9. We are concluding Juicy Fruit this Sunday with a message on Self Control. Next week, we are beginning a brand new series called The Perfect Storm!

Things That Break My Heart pt. 3

It breaks my heart when families fall apart. I have a huge burden to see Christ followers have strong marriages and a great relationship with their kids and family. I'm very passionate about my own family and want others to experience the joy that I continually experience from having a great marriage and from being a father to my kids. Here are some reasons why this breaks my heart.

1. When I was growing up, my family fell apart. My dad and mom got divorced when I was in high school. This has had a profound affect on my entire family. I'm in tears as I write this right now. It breaks my heart!

2. The kids often times suffer because of the family falling apart.

3. Adults are generally deeply damaged.

4. I know the grass is not greener on the other side of the fence. So many people buy into this lie from the enemy!

Things That Break My Heart pt. 2

People who don't grow spiritually deeply break my heart. I have a real passion to see people become more like Christ. I don't believe it's hard, but it does take surrendering to the work of the Holy Spirit and intentional effort. If you are going to grow spiritually, you must be faithful to church; have a personal daily prayer life and daily time in God's Word; serve others by getting involved in ministry and get serious about doing life together with other Christ followers through a small group (we call them Community Groups at PC). As I study God's Word, I firmly believe that, if people will do all four of these steps at the same time and all the time, they will become more like Christ. Here are some reasons why it breaks my heart when people don't grow spiritually:

1. I understand that there is so much more to being a Christ follower than just going to heaven.

2. They don't experience abundant life.

3. They never experience the freedom that comes from following Christ. There is nothing like being free from sin. There really is real freedom in Christ. Every year I'm more free because I continue to draw closer to Christ! Thank you LORD!

4. They never experience God's best blessings.

5. They are a poor witness to a world who so desperately needs Christ.

6. There life generally stays in shambles in one way or another. IT BREAKS MY HEART!

Things That Break My Heart pt. 1

It deeply breaks my heart when people die without Christ. I have an unstoppable, unmovable and undeniable burden upon my life to reach as many people as possible who don't know Christ. This burden consumes my thoughts night and day. Here are some reasons why this breaks my heart:

1. I believe the Bible is true. I believe that it is God's Word from Genesis to Revelation.

2. There is a real hell to lose and a real heaven to gain.

3. People who don't know Christ will be separated from God’s presence for all of eternity.

4. There is nothing like experiencing God's grace, mercy and forgiveness.

5. People who don't know Christ miss out on an amazing, abundant life that only comes through Christ.

Weekend Update

1. Still no Cooper baby! We are anticipating the arrival of Case any day now! YEA!

2. My wife and I got to go on another date night before the new baby arrives.

3. I am growing closer to God through the Juicy Fruit series.

4. After church, I took my two boys to see Wall-E at the movies. We had a great time together!

5. Tons of people gave their hearts to Christ on Sunday!

6. I have some really bad news to announce to you. We only had 8 parking spaces available in our 11AM experience! This is not a good thing! We don't want our guests to have a hard time finding a parking space!

7. The positive side of this is we are growing in the summer time. We were over 20 percent bigger than the same Sunday last year.

8. Another positive thing is we are changing our experience times by 15 minutes on August 3rd. We need at least 50 of you who attend the 11AM experience to move to the 10AM experience August 3rd. Our new experience times beginning August 3rd are 8:45AM, 10AM, 11:15AM & 12:30PM.

9. The last positive thing is we are adding more parking very soon. We are also building our new 42,000 square foot facility so that we can continue to reach many more people with the good news of Jesus Christ! We are in the process of solving our space problem! THANK YOU, JESUS!

10. Don't miss this Sunday! I have a huge announcement! I mean really, really BIG! It's not quite as big and us adding 42,000 square feet, but it's ALMOST as big. Trust me, you don't want to miss this coming up Sunday. I'm going to let the cat out of the bag! It's big folks, I MEAN REALLY BIG!

Random Thoughts

1. My message preparation was tough this week. I had a hard time focusing. I think some of my problem was the fact that I haven't had a great night of sleep this week. The kids have had a rough week at night, which means Tiffany and I have had a rough week as well.

2. I finally got the message hammered out and to the office on late Thursday afternoon. I usually have it to the office by noon on Thursdays but not yesterday! As usual, I was ministered to in a great way as I studied. This message is going to speak deeply to your heart and to your friends’, neighbors’, family’s and co-workers’ hearts.

3. Recently, some pastors that I know have made some very bad decisions and have had to resign from the church where they were serving. It's reminded me that there is no substitute for integrity. There are no short cuts when it comes to character. I'm highly motivated to love God and love my family with great intensity.

4. Some people think I'm a weird freak about protecting my walk with God, my integrity and my family, but without that, I don't have a ministry. ACTUALLY, I am a WEIRD FREAK! I don't want to be NORMAL! Normal in our society is JACKED UP!

5. We still don't have baby number 4. I can't wait to see what this little guy looks like.

6. Our Director of Operations, Josh Brown, had a baby boy born into the world on Thursday morning. His name is Emmitt David Brown. CONGRATS, BROWN FAMILY! I love you guys!

7. Doing ministry by yourself is for the birds. I thank God constantly for the team that I get to do ministry with!

8. Today is my off day, and I'm excited! I need to rest my brain and my body!

9. See you Sunday! It's going to be a great time in God's presence!

It's Okay To Be The Boss pt. 3

The book talks about seven management myths. I want to share some of them with you today.

1. The Myth of Empowerment: This myth says that the way to empower people is to leave them alone and let them manage themselves.

2. The Myth of Fairness: This myth says that the way to be fair is to treat everybody the same.

3. The Myth of the Nice Guy: This myth says that the only way to be strong is to act like a jerk.

4. The Myth of the Difficult Conversation: This myth says that being hands off is the way to avoid confrontations with employees.

It's Okay To Be The Boss pt. 2

1. Highly engaged managers are rare.

2. Most managers are too hands off.

3. Most managers don't manage others unless they absolutely must.

4. Most managers avoid conflict.

5. Managers who give responsibility without sufficient direction and support are not empowering, they are neglecting those they lead.

It's Okay To Be The Boss pt.1

I'm reading a very interesting book (title is above). This week, I want to share with you some interesting things that I am gleaning from this book.

1. There is an under-management problem not a micromanagement problem in most organizations.

Most managers do not take charge on a day-to-day basis:

A. They fail to spell out expectations every step of the way.

B. They fail to track performance constantly.

C. They fail to correct failure.

D. They fail to reward success.

Weekend Update

1. The biggest thing that stuck out to me about yesterday's message was the statement that faithfulness is the great separator. Isn't that so true? Faithfulness separates the successful and those who fail, the responsible from the irresponsible, the mature from the immature, the commitment-driven from the emotion-driven and the spirit-led from the flesh led!

2. We are changing our experience times by 15 minutes. Our new experience times beginning August 3rd are 8:45AM, 10AM, 11:15AM & 12:30PM.

3. We changed the order of service this Sunday, and we are keeping it this way. We are now receiving God's tithe and our offerings after prayer time. From day one of the church, we have always worshipped God in our giving at the end of the experience. This little change really makes a big difference in the flow of the experience. I'm excited about it!

4. I watched the kids Saturday night, and my wife went out to eat with some girlfriends. I know my hardworking wife needs a break and needs to connect with other ladies without the kids.

5. I read lots of books to the kids, played with them on the floor, chased them around the house and played hide-n-seek with them. Love those precious kids!

6. I grilled out brats this weekend, and then, I ate the leftover brats for lunch on Sunday after church. Mighty tasty!

7. My take away from this Sunday's message was that I want to remain faithful to God, my family and my calling! Faithfulness is so key to a spirit-led life!

8. Folks, start the week off right by reading God's Word, praying, worshipping and allowing God to develop the fruit of the spirit in your life. It will make all the difference in your life!

Friday Random Thoughts

1. Still no fourth baby!

2. My wife and I went on a date last night. This is probably our last date for a little while. The fourth baby will be arriving soon.

3. I sure love my kids. They are stinkin' precious. When I tell my little girl to listen or mind, she always says, "Okay datty!" She melts my heart every time.

4. I have an announcement to make this Sunday at church, so you better be there!

5. People have asked how they can help Tiffany and me with our new baby. The biggest blessing is to get us a gift card to a restaurant because I'm not much of a cook and some of my kids are picky eaters. So cooking us a meal is only good for me and Tiffany but not for our kids. Thanks to all of you for your love and care. YOU'RE AWESOME!

6. This Sunday I'm speaking on faithfulness. This message is going to inspire you to greater heights!

7. Hurry up, football season! I'm waiting patiently!

8. Today is my day off, and I'm going to enjoy my family.

Thursday Thoughts

1. Our fourth baby is coming some time this month.

2. I'm excited to see the little guy, but I'm not looking forward to the crying at night.

3. Sunday's message is about 75 percent done. This morning I will get it 95 percent done and send my notes to the office for the bulletin notes and the PowerPoint.

4. Saturday, I put the final 5 percent touches on Sunday's message.

5. I'm meeting a church planter for lunch today. I love hanging with church planters.

6. I'm meeting with another pastor who took over a church plant this afternoon. This guy is from out of state.

7. I have a huge heart to invest in church planters. Starting a church is no joke! It's not for the faint of heart! You better be called!

8. I've lost 6 or 7 pounds since I started eating better and being more consistent at the gym. Nobody can tell I've lost weight. As a matter of fact, some people have laughed at me and asked me, “Why do you need to lose weight?”

9. I read a book last month called Leader And Self Deception. I highly recommend the book. I made my entire leadership team read the book. Now, I'm making them read It's Okay To Be The Boss.

10. I have to continue to give my team growth opportunities. Growing churches means growing leaders! I'm sure growing tons!

Wednesday Mind Download

1. The speaker at the pastor's meeting I attended yesterday afternoon was very good and inspiring.

2. The message that I'm preparing for Sunday on faithfulness is about 50 percent done.

3. One of my hardest jobs as a leader is building an all-star team around me.

4. One of my greatest payoffs is building an all-star team around me.

5. I'm reading a book called It's Ok To Be The Boss. It's a great book on how there is an epidemic of under management. I may blog some things that I have taken away from this book in a week or so.

6. One thing that I have disagreed with in this book is that you can't be friends with those you lead. It definitely is challenging, but I personally believe you can be a boss, pastor, mentor, coach and friend all at the same time.

Tuesday Ramblings

1. I'm studying for Sunday's message this morning.

2. I have a lunch appointment with a bunch of pastors this afternoon.

3. I'm interviewing a potential staff member later today.

4. Some of our staff are going with me to a special meeting this evening.

5. I'm making a special announcement this Sunday to our church.

6. We have a really cool outreach that we are planning for. Details coming this Sunday as well.

7. This Sunday we are making a minor change to the order of service.

8. As you can tell, I think change is good :)!

9. If you don't embrace change, you are in a world of trouble because everything is changing, INCLUDING YOU!

Weekend Update

1. I'm tired.

2. I say that a lot on Monday mornings.

3. I spoke in my friend’s church, Tommy Sparger, on Sunday. The church is called North Point Church and is located in Springfield, MO. It's a great church lead by an exceptional leader.

4. Shelby Johnson, our Care Director, spoke at People's Church on goodness. I know Shelby did a great job.

5. The NBA is coming to OKC this fall, and I'm pumped about it!

6. It's almost Fantasy Football time. Very excited!

7. My wife didn't have our fourth baby this weekend. I'm glad about that.

8. On Sunday, my little daughter started getting out of bed by herself. She has always called for mom or dad to come get her. She's becoming a big girl now.

9. Not only did she get out of bed by herself, she went to her brother’s room and screamed to wake them up. She was successful!

10. She got out of bed by herself this morning again! OH BOY!

11. I missed being at People's Church on Sunday.

12. I'm looking forward to speaking on the subject of faithfulness this coming up Sunday. JUICY FRUIT has been a great series!

13. I have a busy week ahead.

14. Make it a great Monday! It really is your choice.

Things You May Not Know About Me Pt. 6

26. My other hobbies are listening to preachers, reading blogs (mostly ministry and leadership blogs) and looking at church websites. I know, I'm a pretty boring and lame person.

27. Teaching is probably my top gift. Leadership is probably second.

28. My wife and I were married six years before we had our first baby. We planned to have our first three kids and God planned for us to have our fourth one :)!

29. Besides our staff, all of my closest friends are older than me. I have a young man's body with an old man's mind :)!

30. I was very, very scared to get married and even more scared to be a dad. Outside of Christ, those two things have been the greatest blessings in my life! AWESOME!

Things You May Not Know About Me Pt. 5

21. I played college football on a full scholarship at Arkansas Tech University and at Evangel University.

22. My grandma told me I was going to be a preacher when I was a kid, and I thought she was crazy.

23. My freshman year of college at Arkansas Tech, I majored in communications. I wanted to preach part-time and be a full-time sports broadcaster for ESPN! Of course, God had other plans.

24. I'm a Starbucks fanatic! My favorite drink is a decaf coffee with Splenda and steamed half and half on top! LOVE IT! If you want to know how to bless your pastor, STARBUCKS ALWAYS MAKES ME SMILE!

25. If you got to know me, you would think I was a pretty boring person. My hobbies are working out at the gym, going to Starbucks and reading the newspaper or a book, fantasy football and spending time with my family.

Things You May Not Know About Me Pt. 4

16. My favorite movie of all time is Back to the Future.

17. I like to eat leftovers.

18. I don't like to watch a movie or TV show more than once.....except for Back To The Future.

19. I was voted Prom King my senior year in high school.

20. I was voted Homecoming King my senior in college.