Sometimes we need to switch things up in our weekend services

When was the last time you and your team stopped to ask, “why do we do what we do in our weekend services? Is what we are doing effective at reaching the community, or is it only appealing those who have been here for ages? Do we have traditions that we preform week after week just because we always have? Is our music relevant? Is it dated, is it too loud (loud does not automatically equal good)?”

Don’t get me wrong, traditions are not automatically a bad thing. Older music, loud music, no music, drama, dance, congregational readings, none of these things are good or bad. My point is this, if what you are doing in your services is truly effective at reaching your community as well as feeding those who already attend… great! If not, maybe it is time to change some things. And sometimes you just need to switch things up in order to let some fresh air in.

Following is a recent blog entry from Mark Batterson, (lead pastor at one of the healthiest, fastest growing churches on the planet) regarding this very thing.

Electric Guitars & The Apostle’s Creed

We continued the Sabotage series this weekend. Talking about heresy. I thought you’d enjoy a study I cited. Churches founded before 1945 are more likely to recite creeds as part of worship. That isn’t surprising. But here is the part of the study I loved. Researchers found an inverse proportion between churches that use creeds and those who have electric guitars in their worship bands. We broke the trend this week by reciting the Apostle’s Creed together.

We’re always trying to mix it up and disrupt the routine. We did that this weekend by going into communion with a contemplative reading that was on the screen and coming out of communion reciting the Apostle’s Creed. Pretty cool to hear people not just recite it from left-brain memory but proclaim it because they believe it.

Until next time,

Chris Sonksen

QUOTE OF THE DAY:

If we don’t change, we don’t grow. If we don’t grow, we aren’t really living.

- Gail Sheely

A neglected church disappears

What happens when we stop actively pursuing the kingdom of God?  What happens when we put blinders on, so that we only see our own small life or only the lives of those already in our church? What happens when we no longer see the needs of the world around us? What happens when we no longer care enough about the billions of people who are waiting to hear about Jesus enough to DO SOMETHING ABOUT IT? We are the church. The people who attend our church building each week are only one small part of THE CHURCH! Recently, I came across an article by Craig Brian Larson from PreachingToday.com. It pointedly shows that what is neglected fades away.

Church Disappears One Brick at a Time

Orthodox Church officials in Russia discovered in 2008 that one of their church buildings had disappeared. Poof—gone! The 200-year-old building northeast of Moscow had gone unused for a decade, but the Orthodox Church, which was experiencing growth, was considering reopening the church building, and that’s when they discovered their building wasn’t there.

They had to get to the bottom of this. After investigating the matter, the church officials did not blame aliens from outer space for the missing structure. Rather, they said the perpetrators were villagers from a nearby town, whom they said had taken and sold bricks from the building to a businessman. For each brick, the thieves received one ruble (about 4 cents).

This two-story church facility did not go from being a building to not being a building in one bulldozing stroke. Rather, the bricks were apparently chiseled out one by one by lots of people. In the same way, some churches—built not of bricks but of “living stones,” that is of Christians—are not reduced in one fatal stroke but rather by Christians one by one choosing not to be involved. Each decision means one less living stone. In the end, the church, intended by God to be the display of Christ’s glory, is chiseled away. Conversely, each person who gets involved helps to build a holy temple in the Lord made up of living bricks, where Christ is glorified.


When we choose not to grow we decay. When we do not reach out we shrink in. Choose to care. Choose to grow. The church is not a building; the church is people. People need to hear how much God loves them, and in sharing God’s love God’s church will grow.

Until next time,

Chris Sonksen

QUOTE OF THE DAY:

“So I rebuked the officials and asked them, ‘”Why is the house of God neglected?”‘ . – Nehemiah 13:11a

“Woe to you Pharisees, because you give God a tenth of your mint, rue and all other kinds of garden herbs, but you neglect justice and the love of God. You should have practiced the latter without leaving the former undone.” – Luke 11:42

One of the best ways to reach a community for Christ is to reach out to their physical needs. Over and over again in the Bible we see Christ reaching out to the dirty, the sick, the hungry and the hurting.  We have all heard the saying that “people don’t care how much you know until they know how much you care.”  I know that often we feel overwhelmed by the needs around us, but even the smallest things can make a big difference. And sometimes partnering with the right people will make a huge impact. Below is an article by one of our Celera Coaches, Jason Harper, regarding partnering in order to meet the physical needs of the community.

Beauty: Moving From Hunger to Hope

Last week we had an incredible thing happen. Here is the back story. Over 2 years ago, I shared with Michelle that I wanted to be able to send every Oak Ridge Elementary student home on Friday with enough food to feed their family over the 48 hour weekend. The problem is that 452 students represents approximately 2000 people.

Last Thursday, Michelle was asked to meet with the great folks at the Sacramento Food Bank. These incredible people have shared the same vision but didn’t have the mechanism to disseminate the food. We didn’t have the food. Together, we are stronger.

The beautiful people of Oak Park are often under nourished. We hold in our hand the ability to serve…to give…to go.

We have the ability to do it because it is the right thing with no other motive.

Imagine the impact when we launch this on October 16th. On this day, we will do our first distribution. We need volunteers to have a passion to pursue this monumental feat of sheer logistics.

It is possible.

Just as Jesus partnered with his disciples and a small boy with a lunch in order to feed thousands, so are we often more effective when we parter with those on the same journey. Could Jesus have fed the multitudes with out the help. Absolutely! But he chose to model the art of working together.


Until next time,

Chris Sonksen

QUOTE OF THE DAY:

Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, spoke up, “Here is a boy with five small barley loaves and two small fish…”

Jesus said, “Have the people sit down.” There was plenty of grass in that place, and the men sat down, about five thousand of them. Jesus then took the loaves, gave thanks, and distributed to those who were seated as much as they wanted. He did the same with the fish.

When they had all had enough to eat, he said to his disciples, “Gather the pieces that are left over. Let nothing be wasted.” So they gathered them and filled twelve baskets with the pieces of the five barley loaves left over by those who had eaten.

John 6:8-13

Embrace the “Merlins” God sends your way

God has called us to seek and save the lost. He did not tell us to seek and save those whom you connect with, those whom you are alike, those who are “normal”. He said “the lost”. Will the lost sometime be those whom you connect with, you are alike and are normal? Absolutely! But sometime the lost will be the racially different, the dirty, smelly homeless, the openly gay, or the just plain weird. We do not have the luxury of being selective. Evangelism cannot be selective. We need to open our arms and hearts wide. We need to cast out a bigger net. As fishers of men we need to embrace every soul that God places in our boat. Below is a compelling article by Pastor Clark Cothern that was originally published in Christianity Today. It really makes you stop and think, “who have I tuned off to the gospel because of my cold shoulder?”

Church Shows Love to New Age Visitor

Pastor Clark Cothern tells this story to illustrate how God speaks to us through his Word:
A self-appointed New Age guru glided into our church wearing an outfit that rivaled Merlin the Magician’s best duds. It was 10:55 a.m. and I was changing for a baptism, when a couple of deacons popped their heads in and said, “Pastor, I think we have a situation.”

After explaining who had just entered the sanctuary, they asked, “What do you want us to do?” Underneath their question was this subtext, “Do you want us to throw him out?”

Perfect love casts out fear. That was my first thought.

“Well,” I said while buttoning my robe, “we should demonstrate that we love him and that he’s welcome here.” The second thought that came to mind: For this reason I was born, and for this I came into the world, to testify to the truth. Everyone on the side of truth listens to me.

“Tell you what,” I said, grabbing a towel. “If he’s here seeking truth, let’s let him listen. God’s Word will be proclaimed, and God’s truth will be revealed. If he’s here to make trouble, we’ll know it soon enough. If that’s the case, I’ll warn him once not to disrupt the service, and I’ll politely ask him to stay afterward so we can get to know him better. If he persists in making trouble, then we’ll follow through on our promise to politely remove him. And if that happens, one of you should call the police—just in case.”

The moment I stepped into the baptistery, I looked out and saw that man and began a silent prayer for him to know that he was loved. God’s perfect love was casting out fear—in the messenger.

I found out after the service that one of our elderly members, a gentle fellow named Elmer, had seen the Merlin look-alike walking in and had whispered to his wife, “Oh, good! It looks like we’re going to have a skit today.” He and all the others in the church had smiled graciously and warmly welcomed our guest, Merlin costume and all. That morning our congregation loved that uniquely clad man. He stayed. He listened. He didn’t cause trouble. He heard the gospel. And he even stayed after to discuss the gospel with several of us for nearly an hour.

Those thoughts that rushed into the brain back in the changing room? That was God talking.


Until next time,

Chris Sonksen

QUOTE OF THE DAY:

As Jesus went on from there, he saw a man named Matthew sitting at the tax collector’s booth. “Follow me,” he told him, and Matthew got up and followed him. While Jesus was having dinner at Matthew’s house, many tax collectors and “sinners” came and ate with him and his disciples. When the Pharisees saw this, they asked his disciples, “Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and ’sinners’?” On hearing this, Jesus said, “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. But go and learn what this means: ‘I desire mercy, not sacrifice.’ For I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.” – Matthew 9:9-13

9:9-13

Does your connecting have the right focus?

I recently received this great newsletter from Dan Reiland about connecting to the people visiting your church. As we work to help our churches grow, we must always remember the primary function of the church is, “to seek and save the lost”. Our church should be designed to connect with those who are seeking…

“Connecting In”

When I walk into a new restaurant I can tell within a couple of minutes whether or not I feel a connection. The vibe of the restaurant, from the general atmosphere to the host or hostess, immediately tells me what the experience is likely to be. The actual meal is only part of my connection to a restaurant; the whole experience determines whether or not I’ll come back.

People want that connection, especially when they travel. I know I do. That’s why chain restaurants do so well. Customers have already made a connection, they know they like it, and marketing shows people choose what they are comfortable with, meaning, they choose where they connect. This doesn’t indicate an aversion to risk. As a matter of fact, when I travel, I love to try new places. So I ask the people who are hosting my trip to tell me their favorite place to eat and tell them not to include a chain restaurant. I’m trusting their connection! I recently traveled to LifeChurch.tv in Oklahoma City to meet with some of their key leaders. I traveled with Lance Young, one of the pastors on our team at 12Stone. He lived there for about 3 years while on staff at LifeChurch and so I asked him to drive us to one of his favorite restaurants. We went to The Redrock Canyon Grill. From the moment I walked in, the connection was on. Great service, mixed it up with the server (fun), cool vibe, and the crab cakes were to die for. Here’s the key. I’d go back.

You know where I’m headed, so let’s go there. This idea of connection is the same in your church. Whether you are part of a chain, or mom and pop café, or an independent, people want to connect with your experience or they’re not coming back. And keep in mind, it’s not all about the meal (sermon), it’s the whole experience.

Connection on whose terms?

I think it’s best to set the connection to the environment on their (the guest) terms and set the connection to the church mission on your (church leaders) terms. It’s often done just the opposite in many churches.

Here’s what I mean. When you set the connection based on the new person’s experience, you set the environment to make them feel at home. So we make the space itself feel good, we have a Coffee Shop for the fancy stuff, and free coffee stations too, the aroma is important. The dress is casual, we don’t make visitors stand, we don’t make them were a name tag that says “Hey everybody, look at me, I’m new, I don’t belong here.” They don’t have to do anything, say anything, or commit to anything to come to church. Those are the terms new people love when trying a church. And like a restaurant, they know real fast if they like it or not.

In churches where the environment is set on the church leaders’ terms, the guest is required to embrace any number of things such as dressing a certain way, wear a name badge, sit in a special section, stand up, go to a room, accept a visit, meet the pastor after the service, and the list goes on. All these things can be good, but keep in mind one crucial issue, your guest might not want to!!

Set the guests connection to your church’s mission on your terms. You are not running a cruise ship. It’s not your primary responsibility to create programs to make Christians happy. Regardless of how you say it, your mission is to reach people for Jesus and disciple them in their maturing faith. That’s it. So when people join your church or sign on the dotted line in whatever way you do that, you set the terms. Be bold about the mission and how people connect in.

First Impressions Matter

We know that first impressions make a difference. You can lose people from your church in the parking lot. I don’t mean because it’s so big they literally get lost. If your parking lot is utter chaos and there is no leadership out there, new people, especially people disenfranchised from God and the church are already turned off before then set foot in your door.

At 12Stone Church we have a team of heroes. “Parking Warriors” are the words printed on their shirts. The team is led by amazing men like Jimmy Lastinger, Hector and Louis Morales, Gerald Minor, Dan Shogren, Dan Strader, Jason Frady and others. The whole team is out on the blacktop on all three campuses regardless of whether it’s freezing cold or sweltering hot. They help people get in and out of the lot as easily, safely and quickly as possible. Without them, it doesn’t matter how good the worship experience is!

Perhaps you have plenty of room and easy access in your parking lot. Your ushers, greeters and nursery team complete your first impressions team. Friendly and well trained ushers and greeters who have a heart to serve make a huge difference on whether or not people connect with you and your church.

There is a physical component to first impressions. Buildings, landscaping, and signs make a difference. If a family pulls into your parking lot and the paint on your building is chipped and cracked, the plants are in sad shape and the signage isn’t helpful, you are sending a message. Unfortunately not the message you want to send. You may be a loving church with an incredible vision to reach people for Christ, but they may never give you a chance because you didn’t tend to your first impressions.

Organic or Linear – Which makes for the best connection?

After first impressions, the real connection begins. Once a person has found your church friendly, culturally relevant, and the worship experience has genuine impact in their life, they begin to decide if they will become involved and to what degree. It’s the “What’s next?” question, and the answer must be clear and simple.

You may have a linear approach. Rick Warren launched a brilliant process using a baseball diamond. The people in his church deepen their connection to God and the mission at Saddleback Church around the bases. It’s very linear and very good. Some churches have a linear expression, but with an organic feel like North Point Church led by Andy Stanley. They use their three environments of Foyer, Living Room and Kitchen. With a relational bias they move people toward small groups (the kitchen) where the people grow in their faith. At 12Stone Church, we also have a blend but lean toward a more fluid approach. Our process wraps around the three elements of Inspire, Share, & Give. There are linear pieces such as a “Discover 12Stone” event, and a 4 week class for those who are new in their faith called Day One, but you don’t have to do things in order.

Personally, I think people are more organic in behavior because they like to choose their own path. There must, however, be enough structure to be clear in your answer of the “Next Steps” question. What is most important is that you make your choice of more organic or linear intentionally.

Overall, my advice is to keep it as simple as you can. If your church is smaller, you will likely feel or experience two things. 1. No need for a process of connection. 2. A tendency to over complicate your process. You may not need a formal connection process at your current size, but you will need one. So why not practice now? But keep it simple. If your church is large you will likely feel the pressure of actually making your process work. Don’t give up. There is no perfect process. Just keep working on it and remember that good leadership is more important than which approach you actually choose. Good leadership can make an average system work. Poor leadership can’t make a brilliant process work.

I encourage you to share this article with your team and talk about your process of connection.

Until Next Time,

Chris Sonksen

QUOTES OF THE DAY:

- Communication – the human connection – is the key to personal and career success. – Paul Meyer

- On the Sabbath we went outside the city gate to the river, where we expected to find a place of prayer. We sat down and began to speak to the women who had gathered there. One of those listening was a woman named Lydia, a dealer in purple cloth from the city of Thyatira, who was a worshiper of God. The Lord opened her heart to respond to Paul’s message. – Acts 16:13-14

Choose to trust in the Valley

Have you ever felt as if you were stuck in mud or worse yet, quick sand. I know I have felt that way many times in my life.  Sometimes, processing the emotion tied to these events in our life is challenging. As a pastor I am allowed to feel down,is it ok for others to see this? I say yes and yes. Does that mean when you’re feeling down or stuck you walk around looking like the world is at an end? No. But it does mean that it is alright to let others know that you are human.  On two separate occasions, I came across these two articles. I feel that they tie together beautifully. The first article is by Jud Wilhite and the second is by Bob Gass.

DEPRESSION PRECEDES BREAKTHROUGH

C. H. Spurgeon is one of my favorite dead-guy pastors. He wrote and led in the 19th Century and wrestled with depression most of his life.
I love this insight from him: “This depression comes over me whenever the Lord is preparing a larger blessing for my ministry; the cloud is black before it breaks, and overshadows before it yields its deluge of mercy. Depression has now become to me as a prophet in rough clothing, a John the Baptist, heralding the nearer coming of my Lord’s richer benison.”
Have you ever thought that your depression or struggle could be preparing you for something greater?

- Jud Wilhite

Refuse to Quit

“In 1902, a 28-year-old aspiriring poet received a rejection slip from the editor of the prestigeous “Atlantic Monthly”. Returned with a batch of poems he submitted was a curt note: “Not one worth publishing.”  That poet’s name was Robert Frost.

In 1905, the University of Berne turned down a dissertation by a young Ph.D., calling it “fanciful and irrelevant.”  The name of that physics student was Albert Einstein.

In 1894, a 16-year-old boy found this note from his speech teacher in Harrow, England, attached to his report:”Hopeless…seems incapable of progress.” That boy’s name was Winston Churchhill.

There’s a message here for you. Even when others offer you no hope or encouragement, refuse to quit! Listen to the words of Jacob, who led King David’s army: “Be strong and let us fight bravely…The Lord will do what is good in his sight,” (2 Samuel 10:12 NIV). Jacob knew that as long as you stay on the battlefield, God can give you victory. But if you quit, what more can He do for you?

Never give up when you know you’re right! Believe that all things work together for good if you just persevere. Don’t let the odds discourage you; God’s bigger that all of them! Refuse to let anyone intimidate you, or deter you from your goals! Fight and overcome every limitation! Remember, every winner – every one of them – faced defeat and adversity; and you’re no different.

-Bob Gass

We all get discouraged at times. We may feel blue, down, depressed. Don’t run from it,or ignore it. Embrace it. Let God do His work in you, and your life.

Until next time,

Chris Sonksen

QUOTE OF THE DAY:

Why are you downcast, O my soul?  Why so disturbed within me? Put your hope in God, for I will yet praise him, my Savior and my God. – Psalm 42:11 (NIV)

His Kingdom come. His will be done.

I was recently reminded while reading one of Mark Batterson’s blogs of some fabulous and sometime painful truths. I know that we as pastors (myself included) sometimes have an idea and try to drive it home in our own timing and not allow for God’s timing (or His completely different plan). The phrase “it’s not all about me” comes to mind.

I am also reminded that we are all in this together. There should be no competition between churches. We should be ecstatic when another church grows even if the church is just down the street from ours, and not be jealous or resentful. We should learn to join forces to reach our communities for Christ. Does it really matter whose church a new believer attends as long as they attend one? With that said here is the post from Mark Batterson.

The Stretcher

I tweeted this earlier this week: there is a fine line between “my kingdom come” and “Thy kingdom come.”

Can I be blunt? I think it’s easier for some pastors to pray for a church that is four states away than a church that is four blocks away.

I feel like I’m living in the tension between two verses this week. They are stretching me like one of those medieval torture devices that dislocated the limbs. I think they were actually called The Stretcher. Sorry for the visual image but that is what is happening in my spirit. Two verses are pulling in opposite directions.

How do we “increase” as in I Cor 3:6 and “decrease” as in John 3:30?

I desperately want God to increase NCC as we plant and water, but I also know that I need to decrease like John the Baptist. Bottom line? I want to stay out of the way of what God is doing at NCC. It’s just hard to do both of those things at the same time! Thus the tension. I want us to grow but it cannot be about the numbers.

Word to pastors: it better not be about you. In fact, I think we need to find ways to intentionally decrease. How? For starters, we better not take any credit for what God is doing. God will not be robbed of His glory! Unless the Lord builds the house, we labor in vain! I think one of the greatest dangers that growing churches face is this prideful temptation: “look at us.” Why? Because we’ve been saying “look at me” since we were two years old. That is our default setting. But when we follow Christ there is a paradigm shift: look at Him.

May His Kingdom come. May His will be done.

Until next time,

Chris Sonksen

QUOTE OF THE DAY

I planted the seed, Apollos watered it, but God made it grow. -1 Corinthians 3:6(NIV)

He must become greater; I must become less. – John 3:30(NIV)

Flat growth can be a good thing

I came across this blog entry recently by one of our Celera coaches, Jud Wilhite. As I reflect back on our past year at South Hills, Jud’s words really hit home with me. His is a thought that can be applied to any business or church setting. There is so much negative out their right now; so much that creates fear. I choose to look at what is good…

FLAT IS THE NEW GOOD

It used to be that when revenue or growth was flat or declining in both the for profit and non-profit sector, we’d ask, “What are we missing? What are we doing wrong?”

As a pastor, these were questions I would ask when the indicators of health that we looked at were showing signs of weakness.

But things are different now. Reality is different. It is hard to even know what questions to ask with the economy in the state that it has been in. Your church or your business may be taking a hard economic hit and may be doing everything right. We’re still adjusting to what the new reality will be.

Everything I read about my local economy in Las Vegas says that if we get to the end of 2010 and we are at the same place we were at toward the end of 2009 economically, we should do back flips for joy.

Everything I read about non-profits says that if your giving for 2010 stays at levels even close to 2009 you should be thankful.
Flat is the new good.

Here at South Hills, 2009 was financially a rough year for us. And yet we continue to see God’s blessing. Lives are changed, needs are met, miracles happen. Often it is in these rougher times that we are able to more clearly see God move in amazing and unexpected ways. God is good. I am thankful.

Until next time,

Chris Sonksen

QUOTE OF THE DAY:

“When you are grateful fear disappears and abundance appears”

- Anthony Robbins

Despite the media’s retreat, Convoy of Hope continues to provide aid in Haiti.

I just had the privilege of journeying to Haiti. It was both one of the best and worst trips of my life.  I went there with the knowledge of the devastation caused by the recent earthquake coupled with the absolute poverty on the nation, but even that foreknowledge in no way prepared me for the reality of what I saw.

I went on this journey with a few other pastors in partnership with Convoy of Hope. Thankfully Convoy of Hope was already in place in Haiti when the quake hit, and therefore was able to quickly respond. We had the privilege of helping in food distribution. Thousands of people gathered to receive food, and I was elated to give out the food purchased with the funds our church had raised. We had enough food to feed 18,000 people from that one container. I was feeling pretty good about what we had done.

Then the food ran out.

There were still thousands waiting for food. There was nothing left. And I stood there with this little six year old girl pulling on my pant leg looking for some thing to eat, and I had nothing to give her. I didn’t feel so good anymore. It was numbing to be there. The devastation and death were absolutely unfathomable. Nearly 300,000 have died. Human trafficking and child slavery are rampant. Millions are homeless.

I have come home with renewed determination to make a difference.  And I encourage each of you to respectfully use your positions of leadership and influence to make a difference. Find a way, be creative. I just read this story about a seven-year-old boy in England who has raised more than £60,000 ($110,000) to help the people of Haiti.

“Charlie Simpson was so upset by the devastation wrought by the earthquake that he told his mother he wanted to do anything he could to help. The boy set out to raise £500 for Unicef’s Haiti appeal by riding his bike five miles around his local park – but the schoolboy’s efforts inspired hundreds of people online who donated a total of more than £60,000 in just one day.” source: www.telegraph.co.uk

I am haunted by the image of that little girl pulling on my pant leg. I will do more. I have to. I am reminded of James 2:14-17 which says, “What good is it, my brothers and sisters, if you say you have faith but do not have works? Can faith save you? If a brother or sister is naked and lacks daily food, and one of you says to them, “Go in peace; keep warm and eat your fill,” and yet you do not supply their bodily needs, what is the good of that? So faith by itself, if it has no works, is dead.”

If you already have a trusted place to donate to, fantastic! If not, I urge you to trust Convoy of Hope with your contributions. I completely support Convoy of Hope. I have seen them in action, and I know that 94% of every dollar they bring in goes directly to the people they feed.

www.convoyofhope.org

Until next time,

Chris Sonksen

QUOTE OF THE DAY:

“The purpose of life is to serve and to show compassion and the will to help others.  Only then have we ourselves become true human beings.”

– Albert Schweitzer

One of the hardest things we face as leaders, or as human beings for that matter, is admitting when we are wrong and making the changes needed to correct the failure. In fact, I have never met anyone who likes to let others know when they have messed up. I think it is time we are all more honest about our shortcomings. After all we all mess up sometimes. I mess up, you mess up. We need to stop pretending that we don’t. Yes, this does make us more vulnerable, but it also makes us more approachable. Below is an article from one our Celera Group coaches, Mike Foster, addressing this very point.

WHAT WE CAN LEARN FROM DOMINOS CARDBOARD PIZZA

Domino’s Pizza sucks and they know it. In a recent survey of all the major pizza companies, Dominos tied for worst tasting with Chuck E. Cheese.

So Dominos made the strategic choice to embrace their failure and build on it. They just started running a national campaign stating the troubling facts and they are making a public commitment to rebuild their reputation.

When we fail, been exposed, or hit rock bottom too many peeps will respond with the 3 D’s: Deny, Dismiss, and Downplay.

I also see too many organizations and ministries do the same thing. They drink their own kool aid and have a slice of their own cardboard pizza all the while downplaying their obvious “suckness.”

But People of the Second Chance see it as an amazing opportunity to be honest about our shortcomings. And then like Dominos we listen, reinvent, and make the necessary changes.

Until next time,

Chris Sonksen

QUOTE OF THE DAY:

“My imperfections and failures are as much a blessing from God as my successes and my talents and I lay them both at his feet.”
- Mahatma Gandhi