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Recently churches and ministries have been making their resources available for others to download. Here’s a short list of some different websites were you can get some videos, artwork, teaching and other free stuff. 

1. seeds.churchonthemove.com
2. open.lifechurch.tv
3. stufficanuse.com/swag
4. openresources.org

If you know of more sites that are worth checking out be sure and leave a link in the comments section.

The following are some key points from a talk that Andy Stanley gave at the Drive Conference entitled The Opposable Leader: Why organizational tension is essential to progress. 

The idea of this talk is that as a leader, you have to differentiate between tensions your organization will always manage vs. problems that need to be solved.

Every organization has problems that shouldn’t be solved and tensions that shouldn’t be resolved.

• For example: What’s more important, excellence or stewardship?
• If you “resolve” any of those tensions, you will create new tension.
• If you resolve any of those tensions, you create a barrier to progress.
• Progress depends not on the resolution of those tensions, but on the successful management of those tensions.

The role of leadership is to leverage the tension to the benefit of the organization.

• Identify the tensions to be managed in your organization.
• Create terminology. (Tension is something we manage not resolve.)
• Inform your core. (Teach your leaders.)
• Continually give value to both sides. (Example: excellence vs. stewardship)
• Don’t weigh in too heavily based on your personal biases.
• Don’t allow strong personalities to win the day.
• Don’t think in terms of balance. Think rhythm. (Balance is equal amounts all the time. Rhythm understands there is a season for everything.)

Last night I returned home from spending a few days at North Point Community Church attending the Drive Conference. It was amazing, to say the least. I gained a ton of insight and clarity for Kids Ministry and ministry in general. I came back full of vision and direction. I look forward to putting in to practice some of the principles and ideas that I took away. I’ll share some of what I learned in a future post, but in the meantime check out this highlight video below.

DRIVE 2010 Highlight from North Point Media on Vimeo.

Recently my Pastor posted “The Signs of A Great Volunteer” on his blog. I thought I would pass it along. 

1. They love Jesus

2. They love their family

3. They love the local church

4. They love people

5. They know that church is not all about them

6. They come to church asking how can I be a blessing, not just receive a blessing

7. They find an area of ministry and serve faithfully every week

8. They are on time

9. They go the extra mile and will do more than what’s asked of them

10. They find other people who aren’t serving and ask them to join the team

11. They find other people to develop and train in their area of ministry

12. They are passionate about the vision of their local church

13. They stick up for the vision when somebody is complaining

14. They are committed to one church and put down roots

15. They have a great attitude

Check out the original post here.

Plan B by Pete Wilson is a book that helps you gain clear perspective when the circumstances of life become unclear. It addresses the question: “What do you do when God doesn’t show up the way you thought he would?” 

Each of us either have or will experience a time in our life when we must answer this question. Pete Wilson does a great job of using stories from both the Bible and today to unpack how God can use our “plan B situations” as a catalyst for spiritual growth. In addition to Plan B being a great read, it is also a great resource. I believe it is going to bring a lot of hope and healing to a lot of people. Not only will it help the reader deal with their own “plan B situations”, but it will also equip them to help others. 

To learn more about Plan B and Pete Wilson be sure and check out planbook.com.

One of our rockstar volunteers, Mike Koehler, sent me his Top 10 Reasons to be a Kids Ministry Volunteer at People’s Church. Even if you don’t go to People’s Church I think you will agree with some of these reasons for your church as well.   

10. Who needs caffeine on a Sunday morning when you have a room full of 3-year-olds?

9. Six-year-olds never leave you hanging for a high five.

8. Too rushed to wash your hair? That’s why 2 year old room has a bubble machine.

7. The “Round the World” worship song is a great aerobic workout.

6. Gives you a chance to memorize every Veggietales movie - ever.

5. When the kids aren’t looking, you can sneak into the moon-bounce.

4. Some of the kids are old enough to tell you about the days at the Movie Theatre. (We use to meet at the AMC)

3. We know your secret. You’ve always wanted to dress up like Mary and Martha. (An inside joke for one of our volunteers, Brent.)

2. Hugs!

1. Some adult in the future will look back and remember how you changed their life!

Thank you to Mike and to all of our volunteers that change lives every Sunday. 

Check out these two new iPhone Apps that are sure to overload your brain with ministry knowledge.

1. Orange Leaders App - Orange Leaders is a gathering of leaders who are passionate about engaging churches and families to influence the faith and character of the next generation.

Here is what you can do on this app:

• Listen to free podcasts
• Read and comment on blog posts
• Keep up with current news and events
• Interact with all of the tweets coming from @OrangeLeaders
• Watch videos from their site
• You can even order books, CDs, and other resources!

2. Catalyst Leaders App - The core vision of Catalyst is to impact the next generation by shaping leaders in the Church.

Here is what you can do on this app:

• Read articles and follow the Catalyst blog.
• Listen to the Catalyst podcast
• View videos from Catalyst events
• Fully integrated with Twitter, Facebook, and email.

Here are some great blog posts and articles that I’ve come across recently:

• Asking the Right Questions via Andy Stanley
• 5 Tips for Brainstorming via Brad Lomenick
• Required Reading for Creatives & Storytellers via Dan Scott
• Thoughts on Systems via Coach Shef
• What Do You Measure? via Tim Stevens

What book had the greatest influence on your life in 2009? For me it would have to be Wild Goose Chase by Mark Batterson. I read this book last year and it was as if every word was speaking directly to me. It’s on the topic of pursuing God and the first chapter entitled Yawning Angels is worth the purchase price alone. Here is an excerpt from the book:

Celtic Christians had a name for the Holy Spirit–An Geadh-Glas, or ‘the Wild Goose.’ The name hints at mystery. Much like a wild goose, the Spirit of God cannot be tracked or tamed. An element of danger, an air of unpredictability surround Him. And while the name may sound a little sacrilegious, I cannot think of a better description of what it’s like to follow the Spirit through life. I think the Celtic Christians were on to something…

Most of us will have no idea where we are going most of the time. And I know that is unsettling. But circumstantial uncertainty also goes by another name: Adventure.

If you’re looking for a good book I highly recommend this one. You can check out a sample chapter here.

What was one of your favorite books of 2009?