Review:
Lance Witt has been in
Christian ministry for over 30 years – working as a pastor in a small rural
church and in a large mega church. His
book is an honest appraisal of the dangers of ministry he experienced and sees in
others when one does not care for the health of one’s soul and the souls of
those you minister with. He offers wise
counsel that provides yardsticks to measure one’s leadership and harbor lights
to keep leaders on course as they navigate their own life and guide the lives
of those who follow them.
- M.L. Codman-Wilson, Ph.D., 10/4/13
Excerpts:
Pithy Observations:
”Paying attention to your
outer life while your inner life languishes is like getting a face lift when
you have a malignant tumor” (p.36).
“Approval addiction not only
will mess with your motives, it also will hijack your time and emotional
energy” (p.50).
“It is the nature of our
world to be enamored with what’s big. But in the church we should be enamored
with what’s godly” (p. 69).
We are to embrace our
blessedness as children of God; otherwise, we are the victims of identity theft
(when our identity is based on the criticism and flattery of others) (p. 111).
“I’ve experienced plenty of
times when the people [in my ministry] weren’t on my heart, but they were on my
nerves!” (p.165).
“Ministry leaders are usually
better quarterbacks than coaches…While quarterbacks make plays, coaches make
players” (1 Thes.2:11-12). (p. 195).
“Too many of us have the head
of a leader but not the heart of a shepherd…Would the people of your ministry
say that they have a special place in your heart?” (p.165).
When your ministry becomes
your life, you begin “a slow disconnect from Jesus…Jesus is our life…We know we
are heading in the wrong direction when ministry isn’t an honor but a hassle” (p.29, 30).
”Image management is what we
begin to do when our inner world becomes separated from our outer world.” It is
a sign of duplicity (p. 35).
”God’s first priority in my
life is a connected and joyful and refreshed soul” (p. 226).
“At the first hint of
conflict in a team meeting, many people will turtle up” – i.e., withdraw and
not give honest feedback or contrary opinion…”As a leader I must create a safe
environment, infused with trust” (p. 204).
Our private life
“Ministry is a character
profession. I can’t separate my private life from my public leadership.
According to Jesus, it is the holiness of my private life that gives spiritual
power and validation to my public ministry. This raises the stakes for my
personal integrity. I MUST have people in my life who help me stay on track in
my private world… I need many advisors because I have blind spots. I need many
advisors because of my insecurities. I need many advisors, because I can be
self-serving. I need many advisors because I am only a part of the body, not a
whole of the body” (pp. 53, 55).
“One of the crying needs of
ministry leaders today is to give thought to their ways and where they are
headed…If your soul stays on the path it’s on, where will it be ten years from
now? Twenty years from now?..We need to determine the final scene I want (in my
life) and then develop a plot that gets me there” (pp.74-75).
“Stay in touch with your dark
side… I must hold in balance my blessedness and brokenness…God has a long
history of reminding people of their brokenness…We hear a lot today
about…leveraging our strengths and maximizing my potential. But I need to
realize that my potential isn’t all positive. I have the potential to destroy
my marriage. I have potential to divide a church. I have potential to bring
disgrace to the name of Jesus…Staying in touch with my depravity helps foster
humility and nurture dependence…Consider using John Wesley’s questions of
self-examination:
1.
Am I consciously
or unconsciously creating the impression that I am better
than I really am?
2.
Do I exaggerate?
3.
Can I be trusted?
4.
Do I pray about the money I spend?
5.
Am I a slave to dress, friends, work or habits?
6.
When did I last speak to someone else about my faith?
7.
Do I get to bed on time and get up on time?
8.
Am I jealous, touchy, impure, critical, and irritable?
9.
Is there anyone I fear, dislike, criticize, hold a resentment toward, and is
there anything I can do about it? (pp. 153, 154, 155, 160).
Busyness
“It feels so counter
intuitive to say no to good opportunities and legitimate needs…Ask yourself, ‘What
is the higher Yes that will become the filter through which I will make
decisions?’” (p.132, 133-4).
“Through solitude there will
be room in your soul for you to meet God and for him to do the work in you that
he longs to do. Your life does not have an infinite capacity. Solitude creates
capacity for God” (p.138).
“If I am moving at an insane
pace and there is no room in my life for quiet, I will miss God’s voice. And I
will continue on a path of self-deception” (p.
45). “Keeping the Sabbath allows us to
reflect, restore, replenish. Practicing Sabbath is like getting a weekly
perspective adjustment. When I stop and reflect and pray and spend time with
God I’m reminded of what’s most important” (p.
128).
Bless Others
A leader’s gentleness and
graciousness communicates the character of Christ to others. “People are fragile,
delicate, and easily hurt…When I’m emotionally empty or spiritually unhealthy,
I am not gentle. Emotional vitality and spiritual health are like having a good
set of shock absorbers for your soul…They help absorb life’s bumps and pot
holes. But when your shocks are worn out and you hit a pot-hole, you bottom out
and the ride is rough…and you make the ride rough for everybody else in the car”
(pp.173, 174).
“The health and strength of
your spiritual life is tied to humility” (pp.148).
“Part of creating a healthy
team environment is learning to bless people with our words…As Mother Theresa
once said, ‘Kind words can be short and easy to speak, but their echoes are
truly endless’…Your words may be the only encouraging ones some people hear.
You are the voice of God’s grace to those around you” (pp.177, 179).
Create a ministry team
covenant so there are “not colliding expectations,… mistrust, personal ego and
lack of strategic clarity” (p. 202). He
cites the 12 principles of Saddleback’s Leaders’ Covenant.
“We need to communicate value
to our team members – i.e., ‘what matters most is not what we want from
you but what we want for you. We care about your marriage; we care about
your kids; we care about your health; we care about your walk with God; we care
about your rhythm of life. We want you to be at your kid’s soccer games. We
want you to take your vacation time. We want you to have your day off’ (p.188). “Ask
caring questions like: ‘What’s God been teaching you lately?’ Or, ‘How is it
with your soul?’” (p.211).
Ten Commandments of Technology and Team:
1.
“Thou shalt not use email to deliver bad news…We
sit down and have the hard conversation in person” where we can see facial
expression, body language, tone of voice, have dialogue and clarification and
proper response
2.
Thou shalt not put anything in email that you
wouldn’t mind having forwarded… because it probably will be.
3.
Thou shalt not email or chat online during
meetings.
4.
Thou shalt not use bcc (blind carbon copy).
5.
Thou shalt be more personal than professional
– emails need to be more personal than transactional.
6.
Thou shalt keep emails short and to the point.
7.
Thou shalt not text or take calls while in a
conversation or in a meeting.
8.
Thou shalt not email or call a person on their
day off.
9.
Thou shalt use email for prayer and
encouragement.
10. Thou shalt give your phone/email/ Facebook/Twitter/ a Sabbath.
Have a technology Sabbath where you literally and symbolically unplug for a day
(pp.220-222).