God's in Control

"For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,"declares the LORD.
- Isaiah 55:8 (NIV)

We have to be comfortable with God having the master plan and the big picture. He is omniscient, meaning that He knows all. We may know some know-it-alls, but they don't truly know all like the Lord. The Lord knows all and controls all.  Evil can only do what the Lord allows. Even with the devil being considered the
"prince of the earth," the Holy Spirit still controls and restrains evil from breaking loose.

God has a plan and He is in control.

Accept the fact that God has a plan and he orchestrates and orders His plan according to His ultimate purpose.  We may not have all of what God has prepared revealed to us at the onset.  We have to realize that god is sovereign.  God is in control.  It is His plan.
A man’s heart plans his way, But the LORD directs his steps. - Pro. 16:9 (NKJV)

Flip Your Script

I recently picked up a copy of Raving Fans.  It is the book that falls somewhere in the mix with Blanchard and Bowles other collaborations.  Part of what I discovered was that customers have wants and needs that have to be met and exceeded in order to make them fans.  You truly have to read the book and get an idea for the concept.  However, all who train others on how to deal with and work with customers and vendors should try to flip the script as they teach and train staff and volunteers on serving others. 

What do I mean? Flip the script!

Set up trainings that involve role plays and scenarios based upon actual customer complaints in your industry.  Are you running a volunteer-driven homeless shelter or youth center? Get your staff and volunteers geared up to truly help people by working through some real-life situations.  Try to work in some time where staff and volunteers are imagining things through the eyes of the customer.  Help them to gain insights into how to serve from the heart with real understanding.

What about the script?

Look at the scripted lines of responses in outdated handbooks that most nonprofits and churches have on their shelves.  Walk through your telephone script for soliciting donations for your organization.  Have your staff and volunteers hear it read aloud, and then let them see it acted out.  Next, have them read a printed copy of the script, and then use a red marker to alter the script.  Collect them back and review them together as a team.  See how far off you or your team may be when it comes to customers... I mean fans.

Flip the script

Google All the Way

Google all the way!
Yes, I said: Google all the way!
I mean it.
If you are only using the number one search engine for Internet searches, you are truly under utilizing the behemoth of Internet companies.  The Google machine has ran ahead of most companies in the technology revolution, acquiring smaller companies and integrating all sorts of applications and software. 

I am an avid Google user.  Just as your Macheads swear by Steve Jobs and everything Mac, there are those who cannot live without their Gmail or Chrome.  Some swear by the ease of the applications, whether they have been fully tested or are still in beta.  Daily, I am on Gmail, confirming appointments and meetings on Google Calendar, searching videos and music on YouTube, creating forms and spreadsheets on Google Docs, and I most certainly get the most out of Blogger and Google Analytics with my daily blog.   Google makes much of what used to be tiresome and tedious very easy and accessible.

Explore all of what Google has to offer.  Google's applications rival much of what may be offered for iPhone and Black Berry users.  I am not an big fan of iGoogle.  I must admit that I just haven't taken much time to explore all of its capabilities.  Also, I use Google Buzz but I am still working with Twitter and LinkedIn for my micro-blogging. 

I may have said Google all the way, but I did not say abandon everything else just because Google has a compatible application or program.  Some of your work may still require the usage of Microsoft applications or other proprietary software.

I really just want you to explore what Google has available for FREE or a low cost and see what can save you some unnecessary costs.  In this day and age, trimming costs makes a difference.  Google has solutions that can help businesses small and large, even churches and nonprofits.  Look into it and see what they have to offer.

Fruit as Evidence

Ye shall know them by their fruits.- Matt. 7:16 (KJV)

We are known by what we produce.  The Bible refers to this as our fruit.  Our fruit serves as evidence of our effort.  The fruit shows that we put our best forward and here is what was produced by our faithful and obedient efforts. 

Our fruit is broken down by quantity and quality:

• Quantity: much or little [John 15:5]
• Quality: good or bad [Matthew 7:17-8]

God intends for us to be both faithful and fruitful.

Getting Others on Board

"To be one, ask one!"

(Common slogan related to how one becomes a member of freemasonry)

To get others on board, you need to have a means for connecting people.  The people who you want to get on board and who you really need on board may not be the very same people.  Keep your composure when people sign up but don't show up.  Also, don't write anyone off because they don't get on board on Day One.

Getting others on board will require you to be flexible to a degree.  You may have to keep the door "open" a little longer for others to catch up and jump on board.  Allow people to get on board at various intervals and various places.  When you do that, people can still get on board without feeling left behind.

Mixed Messages

This is what the LORD says: Be fair-minded and just. Do what is right! Help those who have been robbed; rescue them from their oppressors. Quit your evil deeds! Do not mistreat foreigners, orphans, and widows. Stop murdering the innocent!- Jeremiah 22:3 (NLT)

Social justice has long been on the Lord's agenda.  The issue is not whether it is on the Lord's agenda.  The issue today is about what the Lord wants us to do with social justice in an era such as this.  The church needs to be clear about what the Lord is calling it to do in His name for the sake of social justice as much as it is to become clear about what it is not to do in His name regarding it.

The church needs to get clear on what the Lord said about social justice before it gets distracted and detoured with every single need that arises for advocacy opportunities and volunteer sign-ups.  Since Jesus healed a blind man named Bartimeus, are we to only work with those with physical infirmities and disabilities? Or, since the early church sold all of their possessions, are we to condemn the rich for their lifestyles while others in the same congregation live in poverty? We need to get clear on "thus saith the Lord" before we launch out into the wide expanse of social justice without any real mission or ministry.

The Lord gives us exactly what we need to get done what He has destined for us to do.  Every church can't lead every movement for every cause.  If your pastor has a heart for a certain ministry such as prison re-entry or pro-life advocacy, take the time to hear his sincere desire for the ministry and its scriptural rationale.  Get to know what's leading the man of God to see where He's leading your church. 

Let the Word of God and His Spirit clear up some of the mixed messages that exist out there.  Yes, you may seem to hear when you hear about abortion clinics bombed in the name of the Lord.  There is news footage of professing Christians hurling derogatory insults at gay rights activists for their lifestyle choices.  What we have to do is go beyond the surface of the smoke and mirrors of all of that man-made confusion and settle in for a good look at God's Word to see where He wants us headed and what He wants us doing.

Moving Forward as a Team

"Teamwork is not a preference, it is a requirement."

-Coach John Wooden

Losing isn't the worst thing that can happen for a team.  Losing the sense of togetherness and teamwork can be more detrimental to a team than a series of defeats or a losing season.  We need to see how to keep the teamwork as a priority.  Teamwork is about the entire team working as a team.

• Motivate People- Encourage: Get people motivated to work together.  Look into team-building exercises.  Structure fellowship time.  Work in some out-of-the-office activities or outings for the entire team and heir families.
• Maintain Progress- Ensure: With a collective purpose and people motivated to pursue goals together, keep track on progress.  Keep the bottom line in view, but ensure that what your team has set out to do is being worked as a priority.  Saving costs does you no good if it costs you clients and contracts.  See what progress is being made towards goal and record it every step of the way.
• Measure Performance - Evaluate: Work on seeing the bigger picture.  Get beyond your department. See how your team has impacted others.  Take a long, hard look at where you started and where you ended up.  Did you get things done as a team? Evaluate your results and performance. 

Do for others what you would like them to do for you- Matthew 7:12 (NLT)