Blog
Page: 5
Jesus tells a story of a person who was traveling down from Jerusalem to Jericho. Along the way the person gets attacked, brutally beaten, robbed, and left in a ditch on the side of the road. Three people come across this dying man. The first two, as Jesus tells it, are respectable people in the […]
Since early October we have sought to gather a like-minded network of friends to pause, pay attention, and pray. The 210 Pause. At 2:10 PM each day an alarm chimes on my phone reminding me to turn my attention toward the Lord, to engage in this practice of prayer. I pause and pay attention and pray […]
We are hosting an online event Leadership Development: What Matters Most? next Wednesday over the lunch hour (12-1:30 CT). In preparation for the time, I have been revisiting the Apostle Paul’s stunning words to the Corinthian church. Why? Because years ago Dallas Willard suggested that this is where all discussions, admonitions, strategies, and efforts of Christian leadership […]
I woke up early this morning because I’m worried about Heather. I’ve been reaching out to her for months. I call her my “precious one” and she calls me “her angel.” Heather was in a hard place before COVID. Then she lost her job. And her husband’s work transitioned home. Then her husband was furloughed […]
In 2015 I penned the sentence, “Many Christians are startled and saddened by the degree of aloneness they experience in adulthood,” in our Walking with Others process. The loneliness brought on by this pandemic brings an urgency to the need we feel in running toward people during this season. Few things are more predictive of not finishing well […]
During times of trouble, the church has historically run toward the fire. As you navigate this pandemic and the trials it brings to your everyday life, what does it look like for you to run toward the fire? As a ministry working with Christian leaders, we see it as running toward people. And running toward […]
In early April I repeatedly heard the word “pivot” to describe what we as leaders and organizations needed to be doing to adjust and survive in this global pandemic. I resisted the word. The metaphor is one I understand. I played basketball and could pivot with the best of my teammates. Redirect. Turn. Pass. And […]
Each Tuesday morning we meet as a VP3 team over Zoom. And each Tuesday morning one of us brings a focusing thought. This morning Pam brought a prayer. As we read it aloud to each other, twice through, I think it quieted us and centered us a bit, which is not necessarily easy in this […]
As we come alongside others, we are invited by God to become living reminders of this startling reality––their story is unique and it matters deeply to God and us. I have been reminded recently that meaningful conversation with another must be rooted in a sense of wonder or reverence for the person. Few things are worse […]
I have been in a few conversations recently that have reminded me of the critical importance of paying attention to the way adults learn and grow. From day one this attention to engaging adult learners has always been a distinctive feature of VantagePoint3’s efforts to help men and women deepen and develop in Jesus’ name. […]
This year we celebrate 20 years of ministry at VantagePoint3. Hard to believe. 20 years of helping people get a better vantage point on these three questions: Who is God? Who am I? What am I to do with my life? There is so much for which we as a ministry need to celebrate and […]
Over the past couple weeks, my attention has been grabbed by “a parable” I recently encountered from Alan Hirsch, an author, thought leader, and missional church innovator. When the initial impact of COVID-19 was being felt across North America in March, Hirsch was interviewed about the dynamics of churches not being able to meet […]