Friday, March 30, 2012

Assess Your Board

The following statistics are based on a BoardSource Report (2007):
  • Only 5% of nonprofits list fund raising as a "board strength"
  • Nearly 50% of nonprofit board members are 50-64 years old
  • 92% of boards have an external financial audit
  • 87% of nonprofit organizations made governance policy changes
  • 70% of surveyed nonprofits established a policy for board members to review the IRS Form 990

So where do you stand?

Do you even know?


The danger zone is not when you know that you are wrong.  The danger zone is when you do not know if you are wrong.  That's where the real danger lies for any nonprofit board of directors.

You need to know your challenges to face your challenges.  If you do not know them, how do you plan on facing them? Use a proven assessment tool.  Work with nonprofit consultants or business development specialists/ analysts.

Get informed on what you need to get your board back on track.

Wednesday, March 28, 2012

Pursuing the Promises of God

7Be strong and very courageous. Be careful to obey all the law my servant Moses gave you; do not turn from it to the right or to the left, that you may be successful wherever you go.
8Do not let this Book of the Law depart from your mouth; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous and successful.
- Joshua 1:7-8 (NIV)

Joshua was the newly-appointed leader of God's people.  He had a monumental task at hand.  He was facing some serious shoes to fill by replacing Moses.  He needed some guidance.

Moses was dead and gone now.  He was of no help to Joshua anymore.

The people were looking at Joshua as the leader, expecting him to have the plan necessary to get them into the Promised Land.  He couldn't ask any of them.  They were no help to him either.

Joshua got a visit from God.  Sometimes that's all that you need.  God speaks with him and shares some vital words of encouragement for him.  He was in need of those words from God.

Be strong and very courageous . . .

God offers Joshua words of encouragement and shares how he should stick with His Word dailky.  This would help Joshua as a leader.  Let the same be said of you as a Christian leader.  The Word can serve as your support when you have no other help in sight.  Let the Word lead you daily. 
  • Learn from the Word daily. 
  • Live by the Word daily.
  • Lead by the Word daily.
Do not let this Book of the Law depart from your mouth; meditate on it day and night . . .

Sunday, March 25, 2012

Little by Little

Dishonest money dwindles away,
but he who gathers money little by little makes it grow.
- Proverbs 13:11 (NIV)

You have a choice.  You can do things the right way or not.

If you go about things the wrong way, you will see how fast what you have can dwindle away and disappear.  The wrong way has consequences of its own.  The right way always outweighs the wrong way.  Don't get it twisted.

The Bible speaks of exercising patience.  Proverbs keeps speaking about prudence and wisdom.  This verse echoes much of the same line. 

Gathering money little by little requires accumulation.  You may not start with much, but you need to start.  You need to start somewhere.  You need to start with something.  You need to start small.

Don't be afraid if things look tiny at the beginning.  You have to start somewhere to get from zero to something.  Just put it away bit by bit and month after month.  Make it work for you and let it grow.

Friday, March 23, 2012

Pet Projects Present Problems

"The greatest self-delusion is the belief that the outlook for a product improves the more resources are poured into it." - Peter Drucker, Managing for Results


Pet projects present a problem.  You can find yourself pouring good money after bad time after time.  You can lose your mind as you lose your shirt.  That can really shake up your ego, especially if your ego is tied into the project.

Drucker pointed out the failure of the Ford Edsel in Managing for Results.  He considered the automobile "the most publicized American product fiasco." He shared the Edsel as an "investment in managerial ego" amid six other "problem children" mentioned within the eleven major categories of business products.  Forget the Edsel as poor example of American ingenuity.  Think of it as an endeavor in egotism.  Ford kept trying over and over again, but America was not buying the Edsel.

Imagine what would happen if the CEO decided to oversee a project that he felt intimately attached to despite the all of the analysis and findings by the research team.  What would become of the nonprofit that allowed its chairman of the board to serve as the lead on a youth mentoring project without ever having mentored a single soul? Think about how it would be if your pastor decided to run the culinary ministry when he could never manage to boil water without scalding himself.

"Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves." - Philippians 2:3 (NIV)
Ego can cause some real disasters.  It can get us into some territory where we do not belong at all.  Watch yourself before your ego leads you down the wrong road. 

Try reading some of the titles listed below to keep you on track with your goals:





Saturday, March 17, 2012

Writing What You Can



If you have an idea that has not been put in print or published online, you may have the makings of a how-to article ripe for picking over by others.  Build up an arsenal of articles on online article directories and sites like Triond and Bukisa.
  • Use your communication skills to reach broader audiences. 
  • Use technology to assist you in reaching others. 
  • Make your works stand out from the crowd.
Write what you can.  Write all that you can.
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Wednesday, March 14, 2012

Say Something about the Savior

"Let the redeemed of the LORD say so. . ." - Psalm 107:2

We who have been saved by the grace of the Lord need to say so.  We need to share about the Savior and the salvation that He offers us.  We owe Him at least that much for all that He has done for us.

As we move towards Easter and the celebration of the Lord's resurrection, let us recall all that He has offered us through His saving grace.  He has not only risen.  He has bought us with a price through His precious blood.  He has brought us into a right relationship with God.

Say something about the Savior through the way you celebrate His resurrection this year.  Share your testimony with others.  Don't let this year go by with you simply blending in with the world rather than standing out by saying something about the Savior.

Monday, March 12, 2012

Power up Your Presentations

With modern technological advances, Microsoft PowerPoint presentations have become the norm of trainings and conferences.  It is almost a given that someone will pop in their flash drive and fire up a multi-slide presentation for the audience to sit through.  Some people even add the bells and whistles where the text scrolls up into view or fades in and out with music playing in the background or videos embedded here and there.


Power up your presentations with what really matters.  Offer some compelling and interesting content. 









Friday, March 9, 2012

Evangelism is like Fishing

4 When He had stopped speaking, He said to Simon, “Launch out into the deep and let down your nets for a catch.” 5 But Simon answered and said to Him, “Master, we have toiled all night and caught nothing; nevertheless at Your word I will let down the net.” 6 And when they had done this, they caught a great number of fish, and their net was breaking. 7 So they signaled to their partners in the other boat to come and help them. And they came and filled both the boats, so that they began to sink. 8 When Simon Peter saw it, he fell down at Jesus’ knees, saying, “Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, O Lord!” 9 For he and all who were with him were astonished at the catch of fish which they had taken; 10 and so also were James and John, the sons of Zebedee, who were partners with Simon. And Jesus said to Simon, “Do not be afraid. From now on you will catch men.” 11 So when they had brought their boats to land, they forsook all and followed Him. - Luke 5:4-11 (NKJV)


Evangelism is a lot like fishing:
  • You have to go out to bring them in
  • You cannot catch any more than your net can handle
  • You can spend all day out there and never get a nibble
  • You have to exercise patience
  • You can use a lot of bait and lures but never catch many fish
  • Your best option is to get up early and go where the fish are really biting
Get more evangelism tips from Life Path Ministries online.

Wednesday, March 7, 2012

New Pathways to Pioneer

“Don’t be afraid to give up the good to go for the great.” – John D. Rockefeller


Things are good, but we know that they could be better.

Your ministry might be growing, but there also could be some growing discontent that you have not dealt with inside of your ministry or small group.

You could be experiencing a new sense of direction as your people feel a sense of a lack of leadership from you.

You could be on your way to banner year, but at the same time you could also be watching the bottom fall out from under everything that you have built throughout your career.

Don't let things going good allow you to mistake the fact that there could be better things out there.  Do not overlook what you have and what you have to do.  Maintain the proper perspective on both your purpose and the task of pioneering new trails and pathways as a leader.  Moses could have gotten out of Egypt and to the Promised Land if he had just left all of those stiff-necked people behind, huh? Right? Imagine that.