Stick Church blog tour

Cover via Amazon

The invitation to join the Sticky Church blog tour has left me feeling a bit like David standing among much taller older brothers. My thanks to Sam(uel) for the opportunity to participate.

My copy of Larry Osborne's Sticky Church contains margin notes and underlines on almost every page, and Chapter 16: Finding and Developing Leaders is no exception. Although the emphasis of this book is on small group leadership, it is clear that a number of principles carry over into other areas of ministry leadership as well. As Osborne says, "Tell me the quality of your leadership, and I'll tell you the quality of your ministry, program, or small group" (p. 123).

One of the greatest challenges to finding and developing quality leaders is that too often the pool is so underpopulated. So what do we do? Do we take the first willing heart even if that person lacks the desired qualifications? Maybe it is better to seek out leaders with years of experience even if it means sacrificing relational connection. I wonder if the Campus Crusade staff at Ohio University were asking the same questions about me the summer before my sophomore year of college.

The first small group I ever led was in the freshman dorm I had lived in the previous year. Experience? Zero. Bible knowledge? Sketchy. Intimidation? Off the charts. But a had a real, growing relationship with Jesus Christ, what I think Osborne means by "spiritual warmth" (p. 124). That and a desire to show a group of freshman guys some of the things I had discovered only a year prior from God's Word shaped my early leadership career.

Should I have been asked at the time to pastor a church? Absolutely not. But in terms of leading a small group "one of the great strengths of [Osborne's] sermon-based small group model is that it demands a less skilled and less biblically literate leader" (p. 125).

Under-qualified leaders can be coached, trained and developed. Others are simply unqualified for leadership and need to be avoided during the selection process. Osborne's advice is to avoid modern-day Pharisee "God-Talkers" (pp. 126-7) and those for whom gray areas are always black and white (pp. 127-8).

Interestingly enough the place to find good potential leaders is not always intuitive. Osborne notes (rightly) that "surprisingly, one of the worst fishing pools for recruiting successful small group leaders is found among those who previously held a leadership position in another church or served in a parachurch ministry" (pp. 129-30, italics mine). Not only does this seem counterintuitive but when the reasons are misunderstood there is great potential for hurt feelings. Leadership selection isn't about making friends, it's about developing quality leaders.

Selection by definition means choosing the best from among a group of potential candidates. Therefore Osborne suggests that the posted sign-up sheet, the bulletin announcement or plea from the pulpit are not necessarily the best recruiting tools (p. 131). Neither is the 30-page job description (p. 132). Instead, "simply tell them what they will be required to do. Then step back and let life happen" (p. 133).

Finding and developing good leaders in ministry is no easy task. I'm thankful for the practical wisdom that Osborne shares not only in this chapter but throughout the book. May God bless those who read and use this book in their own small groups and ministries that we might all become "sticky" and make a greater impact on lives for Jesus Christ.

Be sure to pick up a copy of Sticky Church at your local or online Christian bookstore or enter to win a free copy a reader of this review (see this posting for details).

The Sticky Church blog tour rolls on; check the blog tour schedule hosted by smallgroups.com.

Win This Book

Want to win a copy of Larry Osborne's recent book Sticky Church? Here are a few hoops you will need to jump through; the more hoops, the better you're chances to win.

1) Let me know the you are a subscriber to Returned Sheep (existing subscribers - 1 entry; new subscribers - 2 entries)

2) Read and comment on my August 20, 2009 post on Chapter 16: Finding and Developing Leaders of Osborne's book. (2 entries)

3) Share you're own tip on finding and developing leaders in ministry (not limited to small group ministry). (2 entries)

4) Bonus: Tweet about my post on Twitter (@eric_nygren)

Be sure and check out the rest of the Sticky Church blog tour while you're at it.

Contest ends Monday, August 24, 2009 at 9:00 am (CDT). Winner will be contacted for shipping info sometime early next week.

p.s. - You can read my earlier review on Sticky Church posted here last October.

Book Review: Sticky Church

I knew I wanted to read Larry Osborne's new book Sticky Church as soon as I read the title. I would guess that that every pastor and every church has wrestled with the question about how to get people who visit their church to not only stay but how to get them connected. As Osborne points out we've tried just about everything but we still see too many of our people leaving through the back door.

The solution for Osborne and the folks at North Coast Church was to help people "stick" by getting them to be a part of their small group ministry. But the small groups at NCC were not your typical Bible study group or multiplying cell group. Osborne details the process that led him and his ministry team to focus on Sermon based small groups. As a result, those involved in small groups at NCC were given an opportunity to make application from what they heard the previous Sunday in the context of encouraging, accountable relationships.

I found Osborne's book to be extremely helpful in developing my own vision and strategy for ministry but probably not in the way Osborne would have imagined when writing this book. I pastor a rural church where we don't have small groups--we are a small group. I found many of Osborne's comments and principles to be very relevant to our situation and the ministry we are trusting God to develop. Osborne covers everything from preaching, to church health, to relationships, and leadership training. I imagine the principles I gleaned will be most beneficial to the way I give leadership to the local church.

My copy of Sticky Church is now marked up and well worn. My goal now is to go back through the book so I can process again the principles Osborne has shared. Let me share one principle that I found worth the price of the book (although thanks to the good folks at Zondervan I was given this copy to review for free!)

Just recently my kids have discover the joy of Legos, a toy that was a favorite of mine growing up as well. On pages 79-81 Osborne explains why we see such difficulty among people to "jell" with others when forming new relationship. The answer: people are like Legos. Like the little plastic bricks, there are only so many connectors to go around. When those connectors get filled up we find it difficult to make any new connections. When I read this and Osborne’s further application (you’ll just have to buy the book) I felt that both a light bulb went on and a weight was lifted at the same time. It’s not so much that the church is full of cliques; it’s that many of us already have our connectors filled (p.80). Brilliant!

Even if yours is not a church of small groups, or small groups are not yet on your ministry horizon this book is well worth reading. It will stay on my shelf and deserves a second read. Here’s hoping that the Lord uses this book to help our churches become even “stickier”.

[this review can also be found at librarything.com]