leadership

Interview with Eric Ebbinghaus Part 1

5 Questions with Eric Ebbinghaus, Student Ministries Director, Greeley Wesleyan Church

1. How long have you been at Greeley and how did God open that door for you?

We’ve been in Greeley for approximately 1 year this November. Hard to believe it’s already been that long with the way the church has opened up to us and accepted us as one of their own.

God’s grace is amazing. Brandi (my wife) and I found ourselves talking to Pastor Steve Wilson about the position here at a point in our lives where we had just endured 3 years of trying to understand where my exact place in ministry needed to be.

Did I still belong in youth ministry?

Did I still belong in ANY ministry?

Should I take some time away and try some other things?

10 weeks after resignation and finding it nearly impossible to find work of any kind, Pastor Steve made contact again to ask if we might still be interested in making Greeley our home. He flew out to meet us, offered the job and gave us the weekend to think and pray about it. We didn’t need the whole weekend! In fact, after a restless night of sleep, we barely even needed 24 hours! Something Brandi had said earlier in the summer kept coming back to us. She had expressed during the summer that we would make our permanent home here but didn’t know when, and didn’t think it would be right then. Sure enough, she was right. After 11 weeks with no work and 13 weeks without pay, we watched God provide for our family. One year later, we’re more excited about being here than we were when we arrived. If that’s possible :).

2. You were in Missouri for several years. What are some differences between Missouri and Colorado?

The differences are few but they are evident. One such difference is the sheer number of schools we have to work with. In a smaller community and different school system style I had approximately 3 schools with middle school and high school programs to work with. Here I have over a dozen including some separate middle and high schools. Aside from the numerical difference in schools, we’ve got a broader category of schools to choose from. Along with your run of the mill public school system, we have charter schools, which could briefly be described as an experimental public school, prep schools, private schools and a large home-schooled group. While these may not necessarily be MO vs. CO differences, they are certainly identified as differences from one community to the next.

Another is population diversity. Semi-rural/metro St. Louis, Missouri area was predominantly white, with some black and a sprinkling of Latino/Hispanic groups. Greeley is roughly 60% white, 35% Spanish speaking, and a 5% mixture of others. Simply put, the cultural differences are drastically contrasting here, making blending in our programs more of a challenge. Socioeconomic differences are more severe, and while both areas have been hit hard, Greeley’s recession decline has been a bit more hostile than Eastern MO with 45% of homes bought between 2005 and 2009 resulting in foreclosure.

Lastly, and possibly the hardest to swallow as a Christian pastor is, there is no “need” for church here. Confusing? This is the furthest I’ve ever lived from “Bible-belt” (sorry if that sterotype offends) areas. Despite the differences in attitude from Midwestern VS. Western personalities, lie the differences in the influence of the church. Being that this area of the US hasn’t been established as long as those areas further east means the impact of the church has had less time to saturate the area and the church itself wasn’t around when “American Christianity” was at its peak of influence. This could be viewed as both an extreme challenge and a blessing as well. While people’s answer to struggles and depravity is less commonly, “I need to get myself back into church,” the answers more usually revolve around finding ways to get things done on their own or with the help of others rather than enlist in God’s help. We less often see people looking to God for help when they find struggles or are in need, even the needy. It’s not natural, or in the back of the mind. It definitely rings true though that the harvest is plentiful and the workers INDEED are few.

It’s amazing to think that people who live within view of some of the most incredible mountains in North America fail to recognize the existence of the Creative Starter of it all. Oh, did I mention Colorado has mountains? THE mountains?! Living at almost 5,000 feet has definitely been quite a change, more than just geographically.

Parts 2 and 3 to this interview will be up later today.

Eric Ebbinghaus is the Director of Student Ministries at Greeley Wesleyan Church in Greeley, CO.

He blogs at www.ericebbinghaus.com.

Follow him on Twitter.

Check out the church website.

5 Questions with Tim Kirkpatrick

Tim Kirkpatrick has served at churches in Louisiana, Michigan, Australia, and North Carolina. He is currently the Discipleship Pastor at Foster St. Wesleyan Church in Asheboro, NC. Tim helped me review the Ja Lalanne juicer here.

1. What’s your primary goal and responsibility as the Discipleship Pastor at Foster St.?

My responsibility at Foster Street is to create an environment of connectivity in our church. This is primarily done through the implementing of LIFEgroups (small groups) in our adult congregation. The end goal will be people feeling connected to the church, but not tied down to the church. Usually churches are really good at connecting people to their church and thus creating a christian social club. Other churches, like ours, are really good at letting the congregation loose to go out and reach the world. So it is a bit of a balancing act. We noticed, however, many people in the church did not actually know others in the church. One lady, who has attended for 42 years, said she felt like a stranger in her own church. That’s a problem. And we, as the staff, are partially to blame. We realized we needed to create an environment where people feel comfortable, supported and encouraged to dream with the Kingdom in mind; and we are starting to see that happen.

2. What’s your process for choosing the best curriculum for your groups?

There are some GREAT resources out there. It depends on our budget, the topic, the people, etc. We decided to go with North Pointe’s small group DVD curriculum and model to start off with. The reason being is it is safe, practical and simple. We have a diverse congregation and many of our facilitators are at different levels. We are starting everyone off at that same spot, with the same simple curriculum (again the goal isn’t spiritual depth right now, it’s connecting). We’ll gauge where the different groups are near the end of the quarter, reevaluate and over some new and some similar curriculm in the Winter/Spring time. Our desire is for the groups and facilitators to begin to seek out their own topics/curriculum/sermon studies in the future.

3. You served in Louisiana for a while. I think most people assume the work rebuilding New Orleans is complete. How do we fix the church’s ADD when it comes to events like Katrina and the earthquake in Haiti?

Louisiana (and by this I mean the Hurricanes) was both a very hard time and a very rewarding time for me. I was going through some personal turmoil at the time. I almost moved out of LA two weeks before Katrina hit. I could write a book about my 4 months working 12+ hour days providing relief. But I’ll try to stick to the topic.

There are 3 phases to disasters like Katrina/Haiti: 1. Relief, 2. Recovery 3. Rebuilding. Everyone wants to do Relief. It’s sexy, it’s often bloody and messy, and it is visibly/emotionally/physically rewarding. It is needed but it is short-term. The doctor’s leave when the people stop bleeding, (this is also when the money stops coming in, enabling the Church to help). However, recovery and rebuilding are what is necessary for long term sustainability. Recovery will last up to a year or so after the initial 1-6 months of relief. Rebuilding is what can take lifetimes. We still have not rebuilt America after the civil war. Yes buildings are restored, but their is a rift in America (racially and geographically) that still has yet to be rebuilt.

The best way the Church (as a whole and the reader’s church in particular) is to partner with other churches locally and internationally. Build the relationship and be ready. It is hard to be ADD when the relationship is there. You never hear of someone blaming ADD when tragedy strikes close to home and they spring into action. If your church has friends, family, missionaries who are in need in places where disaster strikes; chances are the church was there before Red Cross got there and will be there long after Red Cross leaves. A great example of this is the Wesleyan Church’s connection to La Gonave in Haiti. The relationship is the key.

4. What’s the most rewarding thing about ministry for you?

When people realize God’s grace for the first time, or for the first time in a long time. It breaks my heart in a good way. Seeing that (and sometimes experiencing it myself) always brings a freshness that I never get tired of. I would like to mention another thing. I’m a Christian, as one I do not think we ever stop ministering. However, I am also a pastor whose job is to equip others for ministry. So my job is, as a pastor, an equipper. And the most rewarding part of my job as a pastor is seeing people that I have equipped be fruitful in their own ministries.

5. What are you reading right now? Anything you’d recommend?

Robert Welch’s “Church Administration: Creating Efficiency for Effective Ministry(Amazon link).” I know it sounds dull and my ministry friends have made fun of me for choosing to read this willingly. However, the first 3 chapters alone are worth the whole book. It delves into the different leadership styles of churches and often the different outcomes (good and bad) of those leadership styles. It is helping me plan better by helping me see the consequences of my planning.

I close my endorsement by saying, this will probably be the book I will refer back to (other than the Bible) the most during my ministry. Not only is it that good, it is that practical for everything church related from running finances to planting a church to having proper guidelines for renting out your church for a wedding.

Check out Tim’s Blog.

Follow @tpkirkpatrick on Twitter

Friend him on Facebook.

When the Answer is not the answer

Lets say you’re trying to build a team. You have some young people on the team who are getting some much needed experience. While your team is not enjoying much success you feel that this experience will pay off in the long run. In an effort to be succesful now you bring in two industry veterans who have a track record of not making any teams better and whose presence will stunt the growth of the young people you’ve invested time and money in. This is how the Memphis Grizzlies do business and why they will never be a good(let alone, great) team under the current leadership. Here they have a great young nucleus, but instead of letting them develop over time they decide to bring on Allen Iverson and Zach Randolph, two notorious ball hogs and chemistry killers. I find myself scratching my head over these decisions, but then I remind myself,”This is the Grizzlies.” What’s this got to do with anything useful I might have to say? Too many times, I’ve seen churches, organizations, and universities scrap long range plans by trying to hit a home run with a big name. Again, too many times, no consideration is given to how the new person will fit into the organization. Let’s say you bring in someone to your organization whose been very successful in their area of expertise, but have no idea how to work or deal with the people on your team. That spells disaster faster than you can say “Bad PR.” Even if you’re bringing them in to overhaul a certain area(which may be desperate for it) you’ve got to give consideration to how it affects the entire team, church, organization, etc. Knowing when and how to do all of this is a mark of good(or poor) leadership. End up on the wrong side of these kind of decisions too many times and you could find yourself shopping yourself out to anyone who will take you. Unless, those in authority over you are clueless themselves and have no qualms with you running their organization into the ground. In that case, you’ll enjoy a long run with the Memphis Grizzlies or …um, other organizations I know.

Fantasy Football and Church Leadership

My First Fantasy Football draft I had a specific strategy. I would draft players to fill all my starting positions(Quarterback, 2 Running Backs, 2 Wide Receivers/TightEnds, Defense/Special Teams, and Kicker) before drafting bench players. I would also have a sub for each position. This strategy worked as I won the championship that year. I used the same strategy the next year and made it to the finals. I didn’t tweak the strategy much for several years. My thinking was: it’s more important to draft someone who will actually be scoring points than someone who will be on the bench.

A few years ago, I read a Fantasy Football article that blew this strategy out of the water. The thinking was that it’s better to draft RB’s and WR’s for your bench because, for the most part,(after the top 3 or 4) TE’s, K’s, and Def’s are a dime a dozen. I started drafting these 3 positions in the last 3 rounds and not having a sub for any of them. RB’s and WR’s are liable to score more points or have a breakout season. You can always drop an unproductive RB or WR and pick up a TE, K, or DEF when a bye week hits. I crack up when I see guys draft multiple TE’s, K, and DEF early in drafts while I’m getting productive RB’s and WR’s. Now, what does this have to do with church leadership?

First, there should be no bench players in the church. How are we choosing our leaders and are we putting them in the right place where there strengths will shine through? Or, are we selecting niche leaders instead of strong leaders? Are we putting the person who can weave baskets in leadership simply because we want to find a place for them? Is our church even strategic enough to know what kind of leaders we need and what we’re looking for them to do? Sometimes, we pick leaders because of their last name or who invited them. Are we picking people to fill a spot or we actually looking for those who will contribute to the mission and vision of our church/ministry? Sometimes, I think we are totally unprepared when a new leader emerges. We are not ready to cultivate and empower them for ministry so that initial burst of enthusiasm goes away. We have got be more prepared to harness that enthusiasm and have the strategies in place so leaders/volunteers can find that place where they can serve with passion and purpose. Many people spend their lives going through the motions. The last thing they want to do is volunteer, lead, or serve in a capacity that doesn’t challenge, stretch, and empower them in their faith. So, who are you going to draft and who needs to be removed from your team?

If you liked this post post check out:

1. Your Whole Life is a Fantasy Camp.