Category Archives: Leadership

Peak: Lessons for Disciple-Making

Occasionally, a seminal book emerges that challenges our way of thinking and opens up new possibilities. Two books have done that for me in 2016 – Reclaiming Conversation by Sherry Turkle (a book I reviewed in this blog), and Peak by Anders Ericsson. For the last 30 years Ericsson has been studying expert performers and prodigies from scientists, to amazing athletes, to brain surgeons, to Olympian gymnasts, to composers, to fighter pilots. Peak is an easy read with fascinating stories of people like Mozart. The book challenged me in thinking about the way we teach, make disciples, and develop new leaders. The following are my top 5 learnings: Deliberate Practice. Nobody develops extraordinary ability without a tremendous amount of practice Top performers have dedicated a large amount of time to develop their abilities. In fact, they keep seeking to improve even when they reach the top of their field. With deliberate practice, things are. Read more.

Jesus: The Relaxed Leader

One reason to regularly meditate on the life of Jesus is his modeling of mature, Spirit-filled leadership. We see this, for example, in his response to the massive defection of his followers after his bread of life sermon: “Because of this many of his disciples turned back and no longer went with him” (John 6:66). Jesus’ brothers panicked. He had lost thousands of followers and the movement appeared to be on the verge of extinction. They urged him to get to Jerusalem as soon as possible and regain momentum, to make an impression. “Do something. You’re losing everyone – leaders, crowds, disciples. Even we have our doubts!” Jesus, however, remained relaxed. This passage powerfully speaks to me because of how many times I have led out of anxiety and fear, especially in situations where it appeared momentum was waning. Jesus offers us 5 keys to becoming a relaxed leader: 1. Remember the sovereignty of. Read more.

Your Shadow and Your Leadership

The challenge for us as leaders is the self-awareness to discern how our shadow impacts the way we lead– e.g. decision-making, strategic planning, team building, ways we deal with conflict, and transitions. When I first wrote The Emotionally Healthy Leader, I was acutely aware that readers wanted the last four chapters of the book first, i.e. what I call the outer life, the immediate practical helps to improve their leadership. The problem is that all our leadership tasks are informed by who we are, i.e. our inner life. For this reason, the first half of the book is dedicated to unpacking those core issues. And the first inner life issue every leader must confront is his or her shadow. Why? Everyone has a shadow. Shadows are those untamed emotions and behaviors that lie, largely unconscious, beneath the surface of our lives that constitute the damaged versions of who we are. They may be sinful;. Read more.

Where are You on the Wise/Foolish Spectrum?

We classify people in different ways – by race, the language they speak, economic class, age, geography, educational level, even personality type. God classifies people in the book of Proverbs as mockers, fools, or the wise. Where might you be on the Wise/Foolish spectrum today? Mockers (or scoffers) are referred to 17x in Proverbs. They are extremely proud, shameless, and foolish. These are abusers and dictators who throw people away (e.g. Hitler/Stalins). Proverbs acknowledges there are those few “evil” people that, while not beyond redemption, are particularly unteachable. They are the extreme end of the foolish spectrum. Fools (or the simple) are mentioned 65x. This is the great mass of people. These are the naïve, the easily influenced, the impulsive, and the impatient. Fools wander into messes without thinking because they prefer to not do the hard work of thinking things through or asking hard questions. The wise (or prudent) is God’s goal for. Read more.

Spiritual Warfare and EHS

Over the years I have been asked: “Pete, what is your approach to the driving out of demons in the church?” I didn’t know much about deliverance until we planted New Life in the largely immigrant neighborhood of Corona in Queens, NYC (about 1 mile from our present location). The area was well known for drug dealing, homelessness, and poverty. We shared a narrow street with a large mosque, a thriving Jehovah’s Witness congregation, and an active Santeria (voodoo) shop. Within the first few months of launching, we encountered a demon screaming out and disrupting the service at the end of my sermon. Not just once, but twice, and then finally, a third time. To say, “I was over my head,” is an understatement. Nothing in seminary, Inter-Varsity staff, or my previous church involvement had prepared me for something like this. I embarked on a crash course in deliverance. For the next two years, I took courses,. Read more.

New EH Leader Podcast: Clean Fighting in the Church

Nobody likes conflict. Nonetheless, conflict is a very real part of every leader’s ministry. Yet the illusion that “sweeping disagreements under the rug” is to follow Jesus continues to be one of the most destructive myths alive in the church today. We try to fix tension as quickly as possible. Like radioactive waste from a nuclear power plant, if not contained, we fear it might unleash terrible damage. In this podcast, Pete talks about how God intends every conflict to be a disciple-making and culture-shaping opportunity – both for us and those we serve. But it is not easy, revealing our level of self-awareness, our family of origin dynamics, and the depth of our loving union / identity in Christ. Listen in as Pete and Rich conclude with an example of Rich resolving a tension with another staff member, and how the tool, “Clean Fighting,” is regularly utilized to grow people up in maturity. Read more.

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