The Communication Challenge

One of the most important components of good leadership is also one of the most difficult.  Have you ever heard the expression, “I feel like I’m being treated like a mushroom”?  Mushrooms are fed a lot of “crap” and kept in the dark … obviously not good when it comes to communication. The bottom line [...]

Northeast Pastors’ Summit – Dick Alexander – Part 2 6/2/10

Northeast Pastors’ Summit – Dick Alexander – Part 1 6/2/10

Dick Alexander – Northeast Pastors’ Summit – Part 2

Dick Alexander – Northeast Pastors’ Summit Keynote Speaker

Church Discipline

I’ve talked with many church leaders in my travels and have ongoing contact with many as well. One of the “areas of challenge” that comes up from time to time is what the church leadership should do about divisive people in the church. We’ve managed to document a number of policies and procedures around here [...]

Culture is Critical!

The success or failure of an enterprise is almost entirely dictated by how well the senior leadership of the organization creates a healthy culture. That’s a bold statement, I know, but it’s painfully true. Read on … A while back I wrote a series of blog posts on the topic of Leadership Fundamentals. Basically I [...]

The Fundamentals of Leadership

You know, I’m getting “longer in the tooth” everyday adding more and more years of leadership experience to my resume as I go. I’ve been at it for a very long time. I remember my first “paid” leadership position was at the young age of 18. I was a lead operator on an automated electroplating [...]

Northeast Pastors’ Network

As you know, I am Executive Pastor of Christ’s Church of the Valley here in the suburbs of Philadelphia. Like other churches, we are very serious about reaching people who don’t have a relationship with Jesus in our area. We also feel called to help other Independent Christian Churches (ICC) in our area to do [...]

Should churches require their staffs to tithe?

Not too long ago, the network of church leaders with whom I routinely communicate was discussing the issue of staff member tithing. It’s that time of year! I was surprised by the amount of churches that communicate it as an expectation of staff but don’t check to see if it’s actually happening. I have an [...]

Strategic Planning – Step by Step

Developing a “plan and execute” culture in the local church is critical to success! Here’s a “step by step” description of the process of developing a strategic plan. This can be done in a fairly short time and without much difficulty and cost. Check this out and give it a try! Stakeholder Needs Using numerous [...]

Putting Ourselves Out There

Since the beginning here at CCV, we’ve encouraged our staff to “put themselves out there!” We believe, beyond our own church, we are called to be a resource in our region … the northeast. So, our staff is encouraged to network with other independent Christian churches, making themselves available to share ideas and otherwise be [...]

Leadership Evangelism

I have spoken to and worked with many church leaders over the years, and one of the most common issues they are facing is the challenge of finding leaders to enable and fuel the growth of their ministries. Without a good supply of leaders, a church will find it very difficult to grow, increasing conversions [...]

Setting Priorities – Critically Important Now More Than Ever!

Determining and setting priorities is perhaps one of the most important roles of the leader in today’s church. What should demand the attention of the staff and volunteers and what should be placed on the “back burner?” That is the question. And, with the current economy effecting giving in the church, keeping the priorities straight [...]

Complacency … An Issue for Every Leader

I’m reading a new book … A Sense of Urgency by John Kotter.  So far so good, but the jury is still out.  My attention is easily lost when most books lately are the same old information “re-hashed” by a different author.   Anyway, I was struck by the second chapter … Complacency and False [...]