Never Ever Ever Give Up

“When you feel like giving up, remember why you held on for so long in the first place.” –Unknown

“Our greatest glory is not in never failing, but in rising up every time we fail.” –Ralph Waldo Emerson

“It’s not that I’m so smart, it’s just that I stay with problems longer.” –Albert Einstein

“Being defeated is often temporary, giving up makes it permanent.” –Marilyn Von Savant

“So let’s not get tired of doing what is good. At just the right time we will reap a harvest of blessing if we don’t give up.” Galatians 6:9 (NLT)

Doing good can be tiring. It can be difficult to continue to do what is right. If not, why would Paul warn us to not tire of doing what is right? Doing the right thing can cause others to become jealous of you because of the blessing that comes with it. Doing the right thing can be tough to swallow when co-workers do all the wrong things and still get noticed, while you’re doing the right thing and always getting overlooked. It’s tough because the good thing may not be the “easy” way.
Everyone has thought it at least once in their life—“Should I give up!?” Here are a three things I always remind myself of when I feel like throwing in the towel:

1. Make the most of every opportunity
Life can happen and it’s not always fair, however instead of giving up on your dreams, promises, etc. make the most of every opportunity that comes your way whether it directly affects you or not.

“So be careful how you live. Don’t live like fools, but like those who are wise. Make the most of every opportunity in these evil days.” –Ephesians 5:15-16 (NLT)

2. Keep looking forward
It’s easy to look back and see what you don’t have or how something didn’t happen. Instead of replaying that which has already happened—and you can’t change it anyways—keep looking ahead and what can and will eventually happen.

“No, dear brothers and sisters, I have not achieved it, but I focus on this one thing: Forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead.” –Philippians 3:13 (NLT)

3. Persevere
Perseverance is what you need when you want to quit. When the going gets tough—you get tougher. At the right time—God’s time—it will happen.

“Many of life’s failures are people who did not realize how close they were to success when they gave up.” –Thomas Edison

“We give great honor to those who endure under suffering. For instance, you know about Job, a man of great endurance. You can see how the Lord was kind to him at the end, for the Lord is full of tenderness and mercy.” –James 5:11 (NLT)

PJ
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Vacation Leadership

1. Surround yourself with a phenomenal team.
You must have a competent and capable team. Before I left I knew we wouldn’t miss a beat and that’s exactly why I have the team I have. If I can’t leave without things going smoothly that reflects on my leadership. I should be able to leave at any time and everything goes just as it should. When I came back from Seattle recently not only did my team not miss a beat, they went above and beyond, made decisions and it feels good!

2. Appreciate your team.
While I was away on vacation—I normally try not to think about things at home because I want to focus on my family and building memories—I sent my team a couple texts that let them know I was thinking about them and thanked them for their commitment and hard work. When I got back I thanked each of them for all the specific things they accomplished while I was gone. This builds morale, trust, team and commitment to each other and the vision of the church.

3. Enjoy!
Relax you’re on vacation! As long as you’ve completed all the tasks you were supposed to before you left you need to enjoy your family and not think about things in the office. You need to totally focus on your spouse and/or kids. When it’s all said and done they are what truly matter in life and giving them your full attention by loving on them and creating memories builds the kingdom of God more than we may ever know.

-PJ
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4 Things Learned from Launching a New Campus

Okay, so we just launched our third campus this past weekend. The first one we launched is in northwest Arkansas and they are an awesome group, so if you’re in that area stop by. You can get their information by going to their website at thechurchnwa.com. Back to the campus we just launched. Here are four things that jumped out at me with this launch:

1. There was tons of excitement and anticipation. You could feel a buzz in the atmosphere. Something new is happening and people loved it. There is a lot of awesome stuff that happens at our Seven Hills campus, however you could sense something different at our new Foothill campus. It was almost like a couple who had their first baby. People were beaming with pride (the good kind) for their church and God and excitement for reaching new people.

2. It made people feel good to see leaders they knew. As exciting as a new campus is, I think there is some unknowns that make people feel a little nervous. Is this going to be the same as our Seven Hills campus? Is it going to be strange? How different will it be? Will I know anyone? When I arrived there must have been a dozen families who said something like, “Oh, good, Pastor Justyn’s here!” or “Cool! It’s Pastor Justyn!” It’s not that I’m all the cool. What they were really saying was that they are glad there is some familiarity and the could see the same leadership. It helped tie the two campuses together. Since they saw a couple of the same pastors there, our regular attendees felt more at home.

3. For some reason you could tell that this may be the hotspot for young adults and younger families. Whether it’s the location or the fact that they are part of a smaller community (which is part of a much larger organism) doing something new—there were lots of younger people there. That’s something I’m going to keep my eyes on.

4. In the big scope of things, it really doesn’t take much to excite kids and connect them to Jesus. Right when I arrived a bunch of elementary grade kids came running up to me and said, “Pastor Justyn, this is the coolest place ever—better than our other Kid Nation!” All they had in this massive high school cafeteria was a couple Wii’s, a small stage with two 50” TV’s facing them and a cool Kid Nation banner in between those TV’s. That’s it! And, they thought it was the coolest thing ever. What they loved was the massive space to play around. They were already using their imaginations on what they could do. So, sure enough this weekend coming up, guess what we’re playing? Yep, dodge ball!

What are some things you’ve learned from launching campuses?

PJ
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Lunch with Ryan Malouff

I just had lunch with Ryan Malouff, children’s pastor at The City Church in Seattle. I love him. He’s not only a cool person, but his priorities are amazing and his approach to children’s ministry is so refreshing—it’s simple. He’s got some cool things coming down the pike, which I pray everyone gets. What I took away the most from our lunch meeting was that children’s ministry is all about the local church. We can try all we want to influence other leaders/ministries, but as a children’s pastor we were “hired” to make a difference and impact our church. That’s our first priority. Anything beyond that is gravy.

I also love what he’s doing with “family ministry”. I want to wait until he gets everything written out and shares it himself, but basically family ministry has nothing to do with a position, a gadget, handout or anything tangible. It has everything to do with building relationships with parents and getting them to understand that they are their kid’s greatest “pastor” and plug them into a classroom. It sounds so basic, but just wait until he explains it (or, if he takes a long time—I’ll do it!).

Remember to connect with people often who you feel is doing a better job than you. It challenges, pushes, encourages and makes you better.

PJ
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Blessing the Chanley’s

I’ve never ever done this before and to be honest I’m not sure why I’m doing it now except that I felt compelled by the Holy Spirit to do so. Michael Chanley sent an email recently (read below) and instantly I heard “just do it!” And, no, it wasn’t a NIKE commercial on television that I heard. I knew exactly what needed to be done.

I think Michael and Rose Chanley and their kids are an amazing family. Michael has done much for the kingdom of God, especially in regards to children’s and family ministry. He created www.cmconnect.org, a website dedicated to connecting children’s ministers together to encourage each other and share ideas. I felt that surely there is something we can all do. It hit me that almost anyone could give at least $10-$20 or more to the Chanley’s as a way to say we love you and know that God has incredible things in store for your future.

Will you help us in sewing into the Chanley’s, which in turn benefits the body of Christ? Because I’m a reactor instead of a thinker—that’s why I married my wife—she’s the smart one, I didn’t have all the details together. So, you can either send a check payable to “The Church” with “Chanley” written in the memo line and we will cut him a check at the end of the month or you can get a hold of Michael Chanley yourself and demand he be blessed. Someone told me that we’re in the 21st century and we can use PayPal—hello Justyn—duh! So, if anyone wants to set that up or perhaps Michael has one—that would be great!

I know countless people are in need, but I just felt lead to do this for the Chanley family. I know that as we give generously from our hearts that God will not only bless the Chanley’s, but you will be blessed too! Thanks!

PJ
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The Forgotten Power of Time

Recently, my pastor took myself and another associate pastor out to lunch to pick our brains and have a little fun. Now, I don’t consider myself a clingy or needy leader. In other words I don’t need to have my pastor’s ear every day or have him affirm me every day. I love having the freedom to do what I’ve been called to do, however I also love being poured into.

I’ve noticed a growing trend in church leadership where lead/senior pastors are spending less and less time with their staff for whatever reason. As a staff person I think this is quite the opposite of what should happen. I realize that as churches grow lead pastors are busier, however I also think their time is more valuable and better served invested in the lives of their staff.

The time my pastor spent with me is invaluable. Though I don’t need it every day, it sends a message that I’m valued and causes work productivity to increase. Because let’s be honest, I think we all work better knowing that our leader has our back, acknowledges we’re doing a good job, etc. I think about Jesus and all the time He spent with his disciples while on earth. He realized the power of spending time with his guys. Jesus’ spending time with His 12 disciples was more effective than Him trying to connect with everyone else. It’s the power of multiplication.

Do I understand the responsibilities of a lead pastor? No. I’m not a lead pastor so it’s impossible for me to say that I know what they go through. But, speaking as someone who works with a lead pastor, I understand what spending time means to me mentally, spiritually, etc. I fear that many quality, incredible leaders are leaving their churches because to go elsewhere or start their own church because lead pastors don’t invest enough time into them. I wish that more lead pastors, especially in larger churches would not forget the power of time and relationship. People will give their all for a relationship, but if it’s a business they want, people will detach and will treat it like a job.

So, thank you pastor for giving your time. Those couple hours does more than you’ll probably ever know.

What say you?

PJ
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Forget Creative—Go Simple!

I’m considered one of the creative peeps on staff at our church. We have a handful of us that put our heads together to come up with the next big idea for our church. I love being able to think, take chances and experiment.

I’ve been trying to think of creative ways to draw awareness and make money for scholarships for our annual kids camp called KidFest. Our church is always doing a lot. Sometimes we unintentionally do too much. It so happens that it seems KidFest “competes” with other big events in our church—thus trying to be creative.

My eight-year-old daughter and her friend created a lemonade stand in our front yard and made $26. She enjoyed it so much she began begging if we could do one at church. Finally, this past weekend I agreed. I got the stuff and let a handful of kids run it. By the time the weekend was over they had made almost $800 for KidFest. Did you hear that? They sold Countrytime Lemonade and made $800!

I was taught a valuable lesson this past weekend. Never underestimate that power of simple. Sometimes I feel like we try to be so creative that we forget about the simple things. The best part of the experience was that it was the kid’s idea and they did the whole thing—made lemonade, took money, advertised, etc. Kids come up with some great ideas—let them be creative!

PJ
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Creating Kids Church Magic: You Represent the Church (7/7)

This is the last post in a series of things that I have learned from the life of Jesus and my annual trips to Disneyland!
That’s right! Jesus and Disney in the same sentence!

Disneyland is just a park, but it’s not just a park—it’s Disneyland. Employees are expected to represent the company with pride. Of all the times I have been to Disneyland I cannot remember a time where employees were goofing off in public or misrepresenting the park. I’m sure it has happened, but I haven’t seen it yet. I haven’t seen it because management doesn’t want us to see it. They know that if they want me to return or continue to believe that their park is superior to others then they have to continue to show us by their actions, service and commitment to their missions and values. Whenever they have a costume, nametag or uniform on they represent the ears.

The huge difference with representing Disney and representing the church is that you’re always on duty. We’re always on duty because God is always watching AND people are always watching. I pastor over 900 kids in a church of 3500ish—I never know who’s watching or who I run into. For this reason alone I want to represent my Savior and church well. Jesus knew who sent Him. He knew who He represented. I love that He didn’t compromise His standards or beliefs for the sake of comfort. He represented someone far more superior and holy with eternal ramifications.

How is your representation of Christ? How are you representing Him personally and through your ministry?

PJ
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Creating Kids Church Magic: Eliminate Hassles (6/7)

This whole series is based off of things that I have learned from the life of Jesus and my annual trips to Disneyland!
That’s right! Jesus and Disney in the same sentence!

Maybe it’s just me, but have you ever been to a store, website, process for something that loves to make it difficult? I experience it—as I’m sure you do—almost every day. People love to make things difficult. It’s the one reason why I like the Dyson vacuum commercials with the CEO explaining how they take a product and make it simple, thus the Dyson Ball and that fan without blades—genius!

Every time I go to Disneyland I notice that they try to make things easy and as hassle free as possible (keep in mind they are dealing with hundreds of thousands of people a day sometimes). They created the Fast Pass, provide stroller parking, all the employees whether sweepers or ride conductors can give you information so you’re not constantly hearing “I don’t know” or being passed on, etc and that’s just what I see. It doesn’t include what I’ve heard from ex-employees who have stated that working there is a hassle free environment as well.

The message of Jesus is simple. How much more simple can it get: love God, love people. In its simplistic form that’s all we have to do—simple. Jesus spoke simple words to simple people to make a huge impact.

What can you do to simplify your message to kids so they are really getting it? Hang around groups of kids outside of church (in a non-creepy stalker kind of way). If you have kids, take them to the park and take some notes on how kids interact, what they’re saying, how they relate to each other, etc. How can you simplify practical things? Is it a hassle checking in new families to your kid’s ministry? Is it a hassle getting or receiving information from volunteers? Go through your processes and take the “hassle” out of ministry!

PJ
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Creating Kids Church Magic: Stay Ahead (5/7)

This whole series is based off of things that I have learned from the life of Jesus and my annual trips to Disneyland!
That’s right! Jesus and Disney in the same sentence!

Much of Disney’s success can be attributed to them staying ahead of the curve. In the past that has also lead to some of their worst moments. As I write this today, though, they are on top of their game pumping out movies making hundreds of millions, great cartoons and acquisitions and I love ESPN (they own that too) amongst much more. It’s not uncommon that some of their managers and executives will visit competitors and see what they’re up to making sure that Disney is at least one step ahead.

How does this translate to kid’s church? Well, we don’t compete are not supposed to compete with other churches and we don’t have billions of dollars to innovate. I think we can stay ahead by anticipating the people’s needs. We are in an economic downturn right now, so how can you stay relevant by meeting kid’s needs? Perhaps your area has just experienced a flood, fire or other natural disaster…are you ready to meet those needs by planning ahead. Maybe you haven’t updated your check-in procedure for kids and it’s taking families a long time to check in. How can you speed it up using the resources you currently have or can you purchase a new system? Something I like to do is watch MTV, Disney Channel, Nickelodeon, etc. to stay current or ahead with popular culture. I want to be able to provide an atmosphere, resources and lessons that are relevant and ahead of its time.

What can you do or are you doing to “Stay Ahead”?

PJ
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