Lies The Devil Tells & Five Truths From The Lord

Learn how to avoid mistakes

How To Avoid the devil’s number one lie:

I cannot afford a coach. I have seen this lie paralyze several ministry leaders. However, I have witnessed with my own eyes Senior Pastors who have stepped out in faith and hired me as a leadership coach and the process propelled themselves to the next level…and beyond. The three of us—you, Christ, and me—form a mighty team! Look at the biblical teams that God put together who changed history: Abraham and Sarah, Moses and Aaron, Joshua and Caleb, Deborah and Barak, David and Jonathan, Esther and Mordecai, Jeremiah and Baruch, Mary and Joseph, the apostles, Paul and Silas, Priscilla and Aquila, etc. You can’t afford not to team up! It’s time for progress. It’s time to move forward toward your ministry dreams. It’s time to enjoy being in the ministry again.

FIVE WAYS SENIOR PASTORS WORK

I have identified five ways in which many pastors tend to do ministry. 1. They do everything themselves. That’s how most leaders try to function, especially when the congregation is small (1-800). Eventually realization hits: This is too much work for me! 2. They do nothing at all. This method does not produce the results they are looking for and eventually causes them to go backward. This is too much disappointment! 3. They hire out. Some churches pay others to manage part or the entire load. This choice may work when the economy is flourishing, but in economic downturns, this is expensive. That’s too much money! 4. They delegate everything—even to people who have not been properly trained. This causes their quality and excellence levels to plummet. That’s too much mediocrity! 5. They develop others. Some leaders teach people how to do the task but fail to develop the head and the heart of the leader. That’s too much lost time! Each of these ways of operation has a negative drawback. Obviously, a leader’s focus should be number 5—to develop people into leaders. However, the challenge is having the time, money, and training material. The LQ Academy to the rescue!

Five Lies the Devil Tells Pastors—Five Truths from the Lord

Lie 1 – Numbers don’t matter, God is not into numbers. Truth: The more people attending your church, the more influence, impact, and income you will have to serve your community and region. Lie 2 – Money doesn’t matter. Truth: God gave us money as a tool to help us solve problems. How can you hire new staff without it? How can you provide resources for your members? Lie 3 – The people in your church are stopping you from growing. Truth: As the leader, you must take 100% responsibility for the spiritual, numerical, and financial growth of your church. Lie 4 – Location matters, your geography is stopping you from growing. Truth: Some of the most powerful and largest churches in the world were planted and built in areas smaller and in worse shape than yours. If others have done it…you can too. Lie 5 – I can do it alone, I don’t need training or a coach. Truth: Throughout the book of Proverbs, God instructs His servants to seek wise counsel. Helping successful pastors get out of their own way. Success is delusional and becomes a liability when we need to change and go to the next level…and beyond. Why? The belief systems that got us here are now preventing us from making the changes needed to get us to where we want to go. The higher you go, the more your problems are less spiritual in nature and more leadership, behavioral, and relational. I totally agree with Marshall Goldsmith, popular CEO coach for many Fortune 500 companies, who made this observation: Successful people are incredibly delusional about their achievements. Over 95 percent of members in most successful groups believe that they perform in the top half of their group. While this is statistically ridiculous, it is psychologically real. LQ Solution: TOO MANY LEADERS FOOL THEMSELVES INTO THINKING THEY HAVE FULFILLED THEIR POTENTIAL AND THAT THEIR ORGANIZATIONS ARE RUNNING AS EFFECTIVELY AND EFFICIENTLY AS POSSIBLE. I have come to lean on my “Leadership Prayer” over the years. I offer it to you as a reminder tool as well: “Lord, shrink my ego so I can learn more. When I learn more, I will earn more. Not just money, but more importantly more respect.” I have found that most leaders think they are doing better than they really are. Answer the following questions to see if you are in need of leadership coaching: • Is your organization or ministry experiencing a plateau? Yes / No • Do you have a crystal clear vision for the future and a detailed, written action plan to achieve your vision? Yes / No • Is it difficult to get people to commit to your vision? Yes / No • Do you feel lonely in your position at the top? Yes / No • Have you said or thought, “I can’t get anybody to do anything around here.” Yes / No If you answered yes to two or more of these questions, you need a Leadership Coach. Check Out Our Next Set Of Leadership Videos Here! I hope you have learned a lot from these video series. Please leave us a comment below letting us know what your thoughts are.