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church leadership renewing the church

Ideation Experience – Day 1

Yesterday was the first day of the Ideation Experience (http://ideationexperience.leadnet.org). We heard from John Handy, who was formerly a leader at the development division at Mattel toys. Each of the 60 some people here had the chance to give an elevator pitch of our idea and receive some feedback in small groups. This evening we […]

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church leadership united methodist church

New Appointive Year

As of July 1, 2009 I have completed three years under appointment as a United Methodist pastor. At this point my appointment history is pretty simple: July 2006 to present – Appointed to The United Methodist Church of the Resurrection As I begin my fourth year of appointment, I am looking forward to ordination in […]

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fun leadership life

Summer Reading List

One of the things which I relearned on vacation a couple weeks ago is how important it is for me to spend time reading. It is good for my soul. Here is what I have on my summer reading list: Bible Groundswell: Winning in a World Transformed by Social Technologies by Charlene Li and Josh […]

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church leadership ministry

Manifesto for Agile Church Development

While not a software development, I appreciate the agile software development methodology which they use. I recently discovered the Manifesto for Agile Software Development, which is: Individuals and interactions over processes and tools Working software over comprehensive documentation Customer collaboration over contract negotiation Responding to change over following a plan I appreciate these principles and […]

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church leadership renewing the church

Church Planting – What if…

What if entrepreneurial small group leaders were asked to equip others to invite people to Christ and multiply small groups? What if these groups participated in worship and discipleship together? What if these leaders were asked to oversee the networks of small groups which they helped to initiate? What if faithful and effective leaders were […]

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leadership

Church Leadership Lesson from Disney’s Up

My wife, Nicole, and went to see Disney’s Up in RealD 3D. It was a fantastic movie. I laughed, I cried and I connected with the characters. It was my first 3-D movie, as well, and it was very well done. The 3-D added to the experience and was not used gratuitously. Along with enjoying […]

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church leadership ministry renewing the church united methodist church

Internet Campus Pastor – July 1, 2009

One month from today, I will transition from my role as pastor of congregational care to internet campus pastor. Here is the official announcement in the senior pastor’s eNote: Andrew Conard will move from his responsibilities of congregational care for persons whose last names begin with N – R and instead he will focus on […]

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leadership renewing the church united methodist church

40 Days of Prayer for the UMC

I am excited about the upcoming 40 Days of Prayer for the United Methodist Church. This idea was first mentioned by Ben Simpson in An Open Letter to Young United Methodist Leaders. I am excited about this movement because I believe that it will: Bring clarity of God’s vision for individuals and communities Be a […]

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annual conference kansas leadership

Tangible Next Steps for the UMC in Kansas

I am confident and hopeful for the future of the United Methodist Church in Kansas. I have a lot of dreams and visions for what might be possible in the future. I have work to do on bringing them into reality. Here are some tangible next steps that I believe  could be a part of […]

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church leadership renewing the church united methodist church

Invitations to Young Leaders in the UMC

Currently within the United Methodist Church many persons are taking action toward renewal. Together these actions create a movement of change. I have five invitations for you along with links to specific posts which provide additional about each one. I invite you to: Join other young United Methodist leaders in 40 days of prayer beginning on May […]

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leadership ministry renewing the church

What I Learned from the Board of Ordained Ministry

Several weeks ago, I interviewed with the Board of Ordained Ministry in Kansas West and was continued as a provisional member of the conference. This is good news. It means that next year I will be eligible to be fully ordained and have all the rights and responsibilities of a clergy person within the United […]

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annual conference leadership

UMYC Booth at Annual Conference

I reserved a booth at Kansas West Annual Conference for young clergy and have the following ideas… Gathering place for young clergy Distribution of social media guide for UM Young Clergy Distribution of physical copy of 40 days of prayer initiative Share ideas for young clergy gatherings throughout the year Potentially a place to audio […]