The Incident

Dateline: January 17, 2008.  The plane was a British Airways Boeing 777 bound for London from Beijing. After eleven hours in the air carrying 152 people, flight #38 was making its final descent into Heathrow Airport. An entirely uneventful flight to this point.

Two miles from the airport, just over 700 feet above a residential neighborhood, the pilots began their slight acceleration to level off its descent – the engines gave out. One engine rolled back to minimum power, then the other. No apparent reason. The plane went strangely silent. The aircraft was losing forward speed too quickly. It became a 350,000-pound rock falling out of the air. It was falling 23 feet every second at 124 miles per hour. Only by sheer luck did the pilots manage to reach a grassy field where the plane hit with an enormous bang. Landing gear separated from the main body. Front wheels broke away as the jet slid to a halt. Only a dozen or so passengers required hospitalization. The worst injury: a broken leg.

The Cause

After many months of frustrating research and investigation, here’s what the experts determined. The flight was a long, very smooth polar flight. The fuel flow became so slow that crystals (small amounts of fuel freezing momentarily) had enough time to sediment and perhaps accumulate somewhere in the fuel tank. Then, during a brief burst of acceleration (like the one on the final approach), the sediment released into the fuel lines causing blockage. The more the pilots tried to accelerate, the greater the loss of power.

The Remedy

In September 2008, the FAA issued a detailed advisory with new procedures for pilots to keep ice from accumulating on polar flights. Investigators figured out some midflight maneuvers to fix the problem. Pilots now take certain steps during the flight to ensure power is not lost when it is needed during the final descent.

The Implication

“The flight was a long, very smooth polar flight.” In times when things seem to be going well, it’s easy to become complacent and drop our guard, allowing the enemy access to our “fuel tank” and deposit ill health, unforgiveness, lack of prayer, apathy (“sediment”). Before long we feel far from God’s power (“blockage”). It’s vital to keep an accountability network (you do have one don’t you?) who will help keep you disciplined through any season as you make your own “mid-flight maneuvers”.

photo #1.  Photo #2.

Your Turn: Think about some “mid-flight maneuvers” a ministry leader can adopt into their ministry “flight plan”. Care to share?

Photo: the_girl

With the aid of my Accountability Network (you do have an Accountability Network, don’t you?), I have been able to institute a few thresholds in my life. Like anybody else, I am a work in process. Here is what I’m working on right now:

I threshold…

…at the cell tower. Check out this post.

…at the door to the bedroom. During the week, I no longer bring in my laptop, iPod Touch, or smart phone into the bedroom as I prepare for sleep. They are off limits. This way, my eyes are no longer peering into a lighted screen just before I start dreaming. I leave electronics behind and embrace needed sleep/rest.

…at the door to the powder room. Each morning, God invites me into the little half bath just off the dining room. This is His time. All I do in the darkness is kneel face-down and listen. No requests. No intercession. No asking. Just listening for that “still small voice.” I leave behind all the activity and embrace God just for who God is. I’m not the only one doing this, by the way. Read here.

…at each conversation with my wife. This one I have to work on a bit harder, but it’s worth it. I’ve known my wife since February of 1980. We’ve been together a long time. It’s very easy for me to take her for granted. So, whenever I am talking to her I try to let everything else go and enter into her eyes. I give her full attention. I leave behind all that consumes me and embrace the wonder of a lady who, for whatever reason, sees value in me.

…at the beginning of worship at my local church. Because I try to make a habit of pouring my life into the lives of others all week, I come to our gatherings in need of corporate worship. Even though there are people to see and talk with at church, when worship begins, I set it all aside and seek to praise the God who, for whatever reason, sees value in me.

I certainly don’t have all the answers. And I struggle at times to keep my thresholds fresh. But those are the 5 key ones for me right now.

Your turn: What are the thresholds that keep you strong in ministry leadership?

…

Warren Bird recently posted a piece over at Leadership network about the power of peer groups. Here’s are some excerpts:

Does peer group involvement makes a difference among pastoral leaders? Yes, according to a major study of several thousand clergy… In academic language: pastoral leaders in peer groups reflect and shape congregations that are participatory, missional, and support their continuing education. Such leaders are also active in their self-development and self-care and are self-differentiated…  (read the entire article here)

That’s what friends are for…

Tell us about your peer group.

I’m not perfect. I know, I know. Hard to believe. But, no, it’s true. I’ve got a stellar list of spectacular slip-ups of which I’m not particularly fond. I trust I’m writing to others who can relate. After all, the Serving Strong ministry is not for the perfect ministry leader.  So I’m going to share with you how I developed my accountability network using the simple tool of Twitter. Here goes:

Thanks to mexicanbeautygiftshop.com

Relationships   First, I started developing relationships. This takes time. It requires retweets (RT), visiting blogs, posting comments, starting conversations. It also means that you remain consistent and honest. It helps to genuinely encourage them, be real, and get involved in the discussion. I have a lot of people I’ve met on Twitter who I have come to truly respect and admire. They show it in their tweet stream, their blog posts, and their encouragement of others.

Life Areas   Next, I looked at my life like eating an orange (one section at a time). I don’t do this all the time because we are all more like eating an apple (biting into the whole). But sometimes it helps to see ourselves with sections such as relational, spiritual, mental, emotional, financial, and physical. After identifying all my life sections, I decided to pick 5 in which I wanted to grow personally or maintain protection.

Commitments   Third, I asked for commitments from a few of the relationships I had developed in step one above. I picked 5 men (it’s important that I pick the same gender) to each represent one of the 5 areas of improvement or protection. I invited them by direct message (DM) to simply receive a short email from me every Friday. If I did what I said I’d do in each of the areas, I pledged to send them a message with “It was a good week” in the subject line. That’s it. No need for my network partners to reply. Just knowing I have to email them with the report is enough accountability for me. I certainly don’t want to say, “It was a bad week.” That would be embarrassing.

Follow Through   As I type this, I am halfway through my first week with my Twitter Accountability Network. And I can say that it’s working beautifully. I feel like these 5 men are a hedge of protection for me. I don’t feel like I’m out there serving God alone. As an added bonus, while pursuing my day I catch myself getting distracted, then remember my Friday email pledge, and get back to focus.

So that’s what I’m doing as part of my discipleship methodology. I encourage you to do something, anything, to help you remain strong and avoid hitting the wall in ministry.

Do you have a form of accountability? What’s it look like?

photo by dragonflaiii

I’m gonna come right out and ask it:

Do you have an accountability partner?

If you don’t have at least one person who is helping you stay on course for personal growth, you are in real danger. Without the help of someone else you run the risk of…

• preaching the same things all the time
• growing in laziness
• jeopardizing your health
• neglecting your kids
• deteriorating your marriage
• committing a moral failure

photo by Eric Chan

We were not meant to serve on our own. God exists in relationship – just look at the Trinity. So, why do you think you can serve in a high burnout vocation like ministry leadership and NOT have someone holding you accountable?

It’s time we did away with the negative connotation that has unfortunately been attached to the word “accountability”. It’s actually a very beautiful expression of how God designed community to operate.

Your Assignment:

1. List 3 people you admire and respect.
2. Pray over them for 2 weeks.
3. At the direction of the Holy Spirit, approach the one you feel is a possible candidate to be your accountability partner.
4. Prayerfully ask them to commit until December 31, 2011.
5. Pick one or two things you want them to hold you accountable for (start small and work up from there).
6. Schedule a regular connection (over coffee, over the phone, or even email).

Now, take a breather and watch the funny side of accountability, by The Skit Guys…

Our kids grew up on a steady diet of Sesame Street. One of the songs that we got to know pretty well went like this:

Who are the people in your neighborhood?

In your neighborhood?

In your neighborhood?

Yes, who are the people in your neighborhood?

The people that you meet each day.

We serve best in community. Ministry leadership cannot be successfully executed lone-ranger style. There are too many pitfalls.  We need a network of others who we know well and meet each day (or on a regular basis). Call it our “Accountability Neighborhood“.

Here’s what my “neighborhood” looks like so far (it’s a work in process): I send a text every Friday to my “Accountability Neighbor” letting him know I’ve succeeded morally that week. I use Covenant Eyes* and the report goes to my wife for review each week. I tell my kids to ask me anytime whether I’ve texted while driving.

Who are the people in your Accountability Neighborhood? What do they help you do better? What do they help you avoid?

*If you’re interested in a special offer on Covenant Eyes, visit their website and enter promo code servingstrong.