The five ‘must do’ things for ministry staff success

Posted on April 22, 2008 by Israel Galindo

Previously we shared some thoughts from Lynn Turner, Associate Pastor of Youth, Career, and Discipleship at the First Baptist Church of Richmond, VA. We asked Lynn to share her thoughts about how to success in ministry with seminarians in my course on “Thriving and Succeeding as a Congregational Ministry Associate.” Here are her thoughts about “The Five ‘Must Do’ Things for Ministry Staff Success”: Continue reading →

Posted in congregational life, leadership, second chair | Tagged , , | Comments Off on The five ‘must do’ things for ministry staff success

Isn’t it obvious?

Posted on April 21, 2008 by Israel Galindo

I recently led another parenting workshop for a group of suburban parents. I’ve been doing this workshop for about fifteen years and it’s gotten to the point that I know when to pause to wait for specific questions. No matter the city or the crowd, when I pause at certain points I can anticipate the questions the parents in the room will ask. This time it was no different. At a certain point in the presentation I just paused and waited. A woman raised her hand and asked the question I anticipated. It’s an interesting phenomenon. Continue reading →

Posted in books, children, personal growth | Tagged , , | Comments Off on Isn’t it obvious?

Reading day (ministry)

Posted on April 17, 2008 by Israel Galindo

Once a month I try to take a reading day at the library, either at my local neighborhood library or the seminary library across campus. Most of my reading on that day consists of pulling journals and periodicals off the shelf to catch up on the most current writing and thinking on areas of interest.

Here are periodicals I’ve found worth consulting to keep up in the area of ministry: Continue reading →

Posted in books, personal growth | Tagged , , , , | Comments Off on Reading day (ministry)

Five hazards for second chair leaders

Posted on April 16, 2008 by Israel Galindo

Previously we shared some thoughts from Lynn Turner, Associate Pastor of Youth, Career, and Discipleship at the First Baptist Church of Richmond, VA. We asked Lynn to share her thoughts about ministry to seminarians in my course on “Thriving and Succeeding as a Congregational Ministry Associate.” Here are her thoughts about “Five Hazards for Second Chair Leaders”: Continue reading →

Posted in congregational life, leadership, second chair | Tagged , , | Comments Off on Five hazards for second chair leaders

What pastors want staff to know

Posted on April 14, 2008 by Israel Galindo

I’m teaching a new course titled “How to Thrive and Succeed as a Congregational Ministry Associate.” The course features a narrative component that consists of visits from “practitioners.” These are ministry associates, “second chair” leaders, currently in congregations. The visitors were at several stages in the trajectory of professional ministry. Some were just starting their first or second years in ministry and some were seasoned veterans with many years of experience. Each was asked to share about their calling and to tell the story of their professional ministry experience. Continue reading →

Posted in leadership, second chair | Tagged , , , | 3 Comments

Posted on April 11, 2008 by Israel Galindo

brooksqt.jpg

Posted in quotes, teaching | Comments Off on

Reading day (education)

Posted on April 10, 2008 by Israel Galindo

Once a month I try to take a reading day at the library, either at my local neighborhood library or the seminary library across campus. Most of my reading on that day consists of pulling journals and periodicals off the shelf to catch up on the most current writing and thinking on areas of interest.

Here are periodicals I’ve found worth consulting to keep up in the field of education: Continue reading →

Posted in books, Christian Education, development theory, personal growth, teaching | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on Reading day (education)

Book review: Understanding the Church, by Vogl and Fish

Posted on April 9, 2008 by Israel Galindo

Well into this side of the millennial threshold, wading through the deepening waters of change, the issue of reexamining the nature and future of the church is foremost on the minds of theologians, church educators, ministers, and denominational leaders. What will the church look like at the midpoint of the next century? Will the structure of the church require change to survive? Will the mission and functions of the church change? Will the institutional church survive its own success or succumb to a structure too rigid to adapt to the winds of change? Continue reading →

Posted in books, congregational life | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

Are humans a “pack animal”?

Posted on April 8, 2008 by Israel Galindo

I finally got around to doing a presentation on “Leadership Lessons from the Dog Whisperer.” It was a fun presentation and seemed well-received. As often happens in plenary presentations participants will focus on the immediate concepts as a frame of reference for discussions. So it was amusing to hear how many dog references were made during the course of the conference.

I started the presentation by framing my playful approach in using the dog whisperer as a corollary to thinking about leadership in congregations from a systems perspective. Continue reading →

Posted in bowen family systems theory, leadership | Tagged , , , , | 4 Comments

Book review: The Craft of Christian Teaching, by Galindo

Posted on April 7, 2008 by Israel Galindo

It has been ten years since my first book was published. It’s still in print and selling well. That’s a rare thing in today’s book publishing business. It’s not unusual to find that a very good book I use for a course text will be out of print the next time I want to use it. So I’m pleased that first book (I have since written fourteen others since, and the new one will be out in the fall) is still around. For its tenth year the publisher has given the book a facelift with a new cover. It’s different, but nice and colorful, though I’m rather fond of the original.

I’m never averse to a little shameless self-promotion, so here’s a review of the book by a former student. Continue reading →

Posted in books, Christian Education, teaching | Tagged , , | Comments Off on Book review: The Craft of Christian Teaching, by Galindo