Fellowship Preaching/Teaching Leadership Celebrate Recovery Discipleship Small Groups Evangelism Worship Ministry

12 Tips for a Successful Campaign

Life's Healing Choices

40 Days of Love

Building a Better Life

Having lived through 9 campaigns (running point on 5) in my 12 years as Small Group Pastor here at Saddleback, I have discovered that a strategy is only as good as the foundation and follow-through that surrounds it. As they say, the devil is in the details. That's why our Saddleback Church Campaigns come with full instructions on how to run the campaign from start to finish. The instructions explain what types of teams you need to develop in addition to providing a calendar timeline and training DVDs. Here's another thing I've learned: a church-wide campaign will be an exponential experience for any church. It can be exponentially positive or negative, depending on how you approach it. So, based on my experiences (and a few battle scars), here are 12 tips to ensure a positive outcome for your church. 1. What's the Compelling Question? When you run a campaign, you need to know which question the campaign will answer. To give you an example, for our 40 Days of Purpose Campaign the question was, "What on earth am I here for?" The compelling question gives your people a reason to join a small group and attend the corresponding weekend services. It provides your group leaders with motivation to invite others into their small group. Without a compelling question, the congregation won't understand the central theme or the reason for the campaign. 2. Align Children, Student, and Adult Ministries. A lot of churches that run a campaign miss the power of alignment by only doing it for the adults. When your children and student ministries memorize the same Scriptures, read about similar themes, do projects together, and listen to the same weekend message, everyone is on the same page. Discussions naturally flow into the home from parent to child and child to parent. 3. Stick to the Principles and Apply Your Own Methodologies. When aligning your campaigns for children and students, you need to adapt the material to their learning level. So if the adults are memorizing a Scripture, the children may learn part of the same Scripture instead of the whole thing—because that is appropriate for their level. The same principle needs to be applied to your entire church. Weekend messages need to be adapted to your church's context and culture. Small group questions can be adapted to your needs. If your campaign includes a church-wide service project (or a project for individual small groups), it should serve your particular church and community. For example, if your church has a strong presence in the homeless community, then stay true to your culture and serve those same people as part of your campaign. 4. Language Matters. One of the most significant things we learned through recruiting for our Saddleback campaigns is that language matters. Campaign material is delivered through small groups, so it is vital that you have plenty of people ready to "lead" a small group—but "leading" can mean different things to different people. When we asked for Lay Pastors, that didn't work well because people didn't feel they were pastors. We then changed the term to Shepherd Leaders, which failed because they didn't connect with the term "shepherd." Next we tried Small Group Leader, but nobody wanted to be the leader due to perceived inadequacies or lack of time. Then we asked for H.O.S.T.'s. We told people: "If you have a Heart for people, are willing to Open your home, can serve a Snack and Turn on a DVD player—then you can host a group of people." All of a sudden we had plenty of volunteers! Interestingly, we never changed the duties of a small group leader, just the language. It was enough. All of the preconceived notions of what it takes to be a "leader" just fell away. If a Host continues with the group after the campaign, then we enter them into our Small Group Leadership Development Pathway. This pathway then provides them with the relationships and resources to nurture and build their leadership skills.

When Jesus recruit the disciples, it was simply “follow me”. Three years later it was “die for me”. Quite a gap from “follow me” to “Die for me”. Jesus had a process. Our Host strategy isn’t “light” or “not wanting to develop people”, but a starting point—“follow me”. We help a Host discover that they really can be a leader. The problem I have noticed with many churches is they don’t recruit to “follow me” but “Die for me”, leaving many people out of the game. 5. Employ Various Avenues of Learning. The Campaign Strategy takes a common theme and helps people learn that theme through different learning styles. People learn through listening to the weekend services. People learn through discussing topics in their small groups. People learn through doing hands-on projects. People learn through memorizing Scripture. And people learn through reading as they work through the campaign materials in their small groups and on their own. 6. Once a Year Is Enough. I am a college football fan. As much as I love the college football season and hate to see it come to an end, there is something about the wait and anticipation of the next season. If college football was off for a month and then back on, it wouldn't be as good from month to month. Players couldn't prepare, and I just wouldn't look forward to the coming of fall like I do now. It's the same way with campaigns. When you do too many campaigns in a year, two things happen: 1) The volunteers who pulled it off won't be able to manage another campaign so soon, and 2) Your congregation won't experience the anticipation of an upcoming event. 7. Provide a clear start and end date. At Saddleback, our campaigns last 40 days. This is a short enough commitment that most people are willing to make it, but long enough to instill good habits. When you have a clear start and end date, it gives people an end in sight, which means they are more willing to come along for the ride. 8. Expect High Intensity for Staff, Volunteers, and Members. The secret of a successful campaign is sustaining high intensity for 40 days and then backing off to allow staff and volunteers to recover. This recovery time also helps group members to process the experience. Give your small groups time to stabilize. For a campaign to happen successfully, you must clear the calendar for the duration of that campaign. You need to stop programs and events that could be distracting. Sometimes "good" programs can stop "great" things from happening in a campaign. Also, with a campaign comes the beginning of many new groups, which means that afterwards you will need time to assess where those groups are at. Some will continue and some will stop. But without the margin and infrastructure to check in on these groups, you will start a lot of groups and lose the same amount. 9. Remember to Celebrate! Oftentimes churches are great at recruiting and getting things finished for a campaign, but terrible at celebrating a job well done. After the campaign, be sure to hold a celebration and express your gratitude for all of the hard work done by staff and volunteers. Take time to remember and celebrate God's work. Share stories of success and gratitude. When you don't take the time to celebrate, you are increasing the possibility of burnout in your staff and volunteers. In the Bible, we read of many instances when God had people stop and remember the miracles he accomplished. Why? Because he knew people would forget. When you celebrate, you etch God's work on your people's heart. At Saddleback, we often give out little reminders or mementos, such as keychains, so that when people see them, they will be reminded of how God moved. Help your people remember what God has done and celebrate the campaign they put so much time and energy into achieving. 10. Understand the Delivery System—Small Groups. At Saddleback we have two delivery systems: weekend services and small groups (which comes from Acts 5:42). It is a two-punch system to help people not just learn, but also apply the Word of God. Our small groups are the delivery system of all the components of the campaign. Group life is not optional at Saddleback. It is vital. We use a funnel to depict the strategy behind how we apply the five biblical purposes throughout the church:

The weekend service establishes the five biblical purposes through the preaching of the Word.
The CLASS system explains the five biblical purposes.
Small groups give people the opportunity to experience the five biblical purposes (they help you take information and turn it into transformation).
The life of an individual (a Purpose Driven Life) expresses the purposes.

For all of this to work, you need to have some kind of infrastructure in place. An infrastructure helps your new groups not go it alone. At Saddleback, we have Community Leaders who oversee new small groups. What they do is simple—check on the new groups regularly and offer encouragement and prayer. The DVD curriculum provides the material, but the Community Leader gives the moral support. You also need a Leadership Development Pathway in place. Your small group Hosts/leaders need to know where you want them to go. If they continue to lead, what will be their journey and final destination? How will they be trained? Not providing clear direction is like asking someone to come over to your house and only giving them a city, not the address. Also, give your groups a next step. Before you let a group get through a campaign, have them make a decision on what their next step will be. Will they continue to meet, or will they part ways? Around week four of the six-week campaign, we encourage groups to determine what their next study will be. We give them curriculum suggestions and encourage them to get the new material as soon as possible. Very often, just avoiding "down time" can make the difference in whether a group continues or not. 11. Give People an "Out" After the Campaign Is Finished. That may sound odd, but chances are good that even those who drop out will eventually be back in a small group. In a campaign, you need to give people permission to stop their group. Let me be clear: I want every new group to continue, and I want to give them every possible reason to stay together. But I don't want them to feel guilty if their group doesn't continue. Why? Because when they do what you have asked, you need to reward them and thank them, not pour on guilt for not continuing. I have learned when you give people permission to stop meeting at the end of the campaign, they will be there for the next campaign. And during the next campaign, they just might stay with that next group. 12. Budget to Remove Financial Obstacles. When we run a campaign at Saddleback, we pay for everything. We provide the devotional reading books, memory key tags, prayer guides, small group DVDs, and study guides to anyone who joins a small group. If people commit to a small group, we give them everything to make a spiritual impact on them—they just need to join. It's a lot of money up front, but it brings huge dividends on the back side. Invest in your church. It shows your people you not only care about them, but you are also willing to put your money where your heart is.

Recent Articles

Six Ways to Relate Wisely

Pastor, if you stay in ministry for any length of time, you learn this fast: You can preach a strong sermon on Sunday and still blow up your week on Monday because of one tense conversation.Every day you’re planting seeds in relationships. Some are seeds of peace. Some are seeds of conflict. Over time, those seeds grow into a tone in your home, your staff meetings, your board, your volunteer teams, and your whole church culture.James says it plainly: “But the wisdom that comes from heaven is first of all pure; then peace-loving, considerate, submissive, full of mercy and good fruit, impartial and sincere" (James 3:17 NIV).So what does it look like to plant peace when you’re dealing with someone who frustrates you, misunderstands you, or knows exactly how to get under your skin?James gives a kind of “wisdom test” for relationships. Not book smarts. Real-life wisdom. The kind that shows up when you’re tired, stressed, and tempted to react.Here are six marks of wise relationships, with one simple practice for each.1) If I’m wise, I won’t compromise my integrity.James says, “Wisdom . . . is pure” (James 3:17 NIV).That word “pure” is about integrity: clean, dependable, not twisted. And it matters because every relationship runs on trust. When trust breaks, everything gets harder, including communication, teamwork, friendship, and even forgiveness.Wise leadership doesn’t manipulate people. It doesn’t shade the truth. It doesn’t tell a story one way to one person and another way to someone else.Scripture says, “Whoever walks in integrity walks securely” (Proverbs 10:9 NIV).Integrity makes you safe to be around.Try this: Before you speak, ask: Is this true? Is this the whole truth? Is this the kind version of the truth?2) If I’m wise, I won’t antagonize your anger.James says wisdom is “peace-loving” (James 3:17 NIV).Wise people aren’t always looking for a fight. They don’t turn every disagreement into a contest. They work at peace because they know how expensive anger is.Proverbs puts it bluntly: “Avoiding a fight is a mark of honor; only fools insist on quarreling” (Proverbs 20:3 NLT).A lot of conflict isn’t caused by big issues. It’s caused by predictable triggers. The Bible calls it foolish when you know what makes someone angry and you use it anyway.Three common anger-starters to watch for:Comparing: “Why can’t you be like . . . ?”Condemning: “It’s all your fault . . . you always . . . you never . . .”Contradicting: This often looks like correcting every little detail and cutting people off mid-story.Try this: When you feel yourself loading the verbal gun, pause and ask: Am I trying to win, or am I trying to heal?3) If I’m wise, I won’t minimize your feelings.James says wisdom is “considerate” (James 3:17 NIV).Considerate doesn’t mean you agree with every feeling. It means you treat the person as human.One of the quickest ways to damage a relationship is to dismiss emotion:“You shouldn’t feel that way.”“That’s irrational.”“It’s not a big deal.”Proverbs says, “Gentle words are a tree of life; a deceitful tongue crushes the spirit” (Proverbs 15:4 NLT).Wise pastors don’t argue people out of pain. They don’t sermonize in the moment. They listen.Try this:Say, “That makes sense. Tell me more.” (Even if you don’t fully understand yet.)4) If I’m wise, I won’t criticize your suggestions.James uses a word often translated “submissive” (James 3:17 NIV), but the idea is closer to: reasonable, open to discussion, teachable.Wise leaders can learn from anybody. They aren’t instantly defensive. They don’t shut down feedback just because it stings.Scripture says: “Fools think their own way is right, but the wise listen to others” (Proverbs 12:15 NLT).Criticism is part of ministry life. You’ll hear it in the form of staff opinions, volunteer frustrations, family feedback, and congregational expectations.A simple way to handle it:If it’s true, learn from it.If it’s untrue, let it go.Either way, remember God is the final judge of your life.Try this:When someone offers a suggestion, say, “Help me understand what you’re seeing.”5) If I’m wise, I won’t emphasize your mistakes.James says wisdom is “full of mercy” (James 3:17 NIV).Mercy is giving people what they need, not what they deserve.Wise people don’t pounce on every failure. They don’t keep score. They don’t keep a file drawer of past mistakes to pull out during the next argument.Proverbs says: “Whoever would foster love covers over an offense, but whoever repeats the matter separates close friends” (Proverbs 17:9 NIV).Ministry gives you plenty of opportunities to practice mercy: miscommunication, volunteer dropouts, emotional blowups, clumsy decisions, and imperfect sermons.Mercy doesn’t mean “no standards.” It means you correct without humiliating.Try this:If you need to address a mistake, name the issue without naming the person as “the problem.”6) If I’m wise, I won’t disguise my weaknesses.James says wisdom is “impartial and sincere” (James 3:17 NIV).The opposite of sincerity is hypocrisy, or wearing a mask.Wise people don’t have to look perfect. They don’t pretend they have it all together. They don’t act holy in public and brittle at home.And here’s the irony: Pretending to be strong doesn’t make you trustworthy; it makes you distant.Proverbs says, “Whoever conceals their sins does not prosper, but the one who confesses and renounces them finds mercy” (Proverbs 28:13 NIV).This doesn’t mean you confess everything to everyone. It does mean you stop performing. You lead like a real person who is still growing.Try this:In a safe relationship, practice one honest sentence: “Here’s where I’m struggling right now.”A simple next step: Take the wisdom test this week.James isn’t describing wisdom to impress you. He’s describing it to help you become more like Jesus.Pick one relationship that has been tense lately, at home, on staff, with a volunteer, or with someone who drains you.Then ask:“Where am I being unwise?”“Which of these six marks of wise relationships do I need to practice this week?”When you plant seeds of peace, you don’t just avoid conflict.You reap something better: a harvest of goodness.

5 Reasons Church Covenants Work

Commitments are the secret sauce of spiritual growth. Think back to the key times of growth in your own spiritual journey, and you'll likely be pointing to times of commitment. For example:The moment you gave your life to Christ.The day you decided to get baptized.The season when you began reading your Bible regularly.If you want to see your congregation grow closer to Jesus, you need to help them make commitments to the purposes of God. At Saddleback, we’ve done that through a series of covenants where people commit to church membership, maturity, ministry, and missions. Spiritual Growth Begins with CommitmentSpiritual growth isn’t automatic. You can grow old without growing up. Growth is a product of commitment. Without commitments, we live in perpetual immaturity. Think about the growth that comes after you accept your first job, or when you get married. You grow up, too, when you have children. No one is ever “ready” for marriage or children. You get ready after you’ve made those commitments. The same is true in our relationship with God. That’s why, during my years pastoring Saddleback, we didn’t work toward spiritual commitments. We worked from spiritual commitments. That means we started with whatever commitments people had already made. Here’s what that can look like:When a person makes a commitment to Christ, we lead them toward baptism. Then it’s time for the membership class. In CLASS 101, new members sign a covenant where they commit to:Protect the unity of the church.Share the responsibility of the church.Serve the ministry of the church.Support the testimony of the church. Then those commitments lead to the commitments in the discipleship, ministry, and missions covenants. Why Covenants WorkThe most important part of a wedding ceremony isn’t the moment the bride walks down the aisle. It’s not when the pastor says the groom may kiss the bride. The most important part is when the man and woman exchange vows and make commitments to one another before witnesses. The same is true for church covenants. At Saddleback, our membership, maturity, ministry, and missions covenants are the most important parts of our CLASS system.Here’s why those covenants are so important. 1. We become what we’re committed to.Our lives are a sum of the commitments we make. Sit down with someone and ask them what they’re committed to today, and you’ll know the contours of the rest of their lives (assuming those commitments don’t change). Commitments establish a person’s character. That means the key to leading people to grow spiritually is helping them commit to the disciplines that help Christians grow—such as commitments to worship, build meaningful relationships, read the Bible, pray, serve, and share the Good News. 2. Commitments define churches. Your church isn’t defined by its programs or the building it meets in or the pastor’s preaching. What really defines a church is the commitments the people in it make together.A motto Saddleback has lived out for decades has been, “A great commitment to the Great Commandment and the Great Commission grows a great church.” During my years as pastor there, that commitment shaped every decision we made.3. People want to be committed to something that brings significance. I always told people in our membership class at Saddleback that they couldn’t do anything more important with their lives than join the church, grow in maturity, get involved in ministry, and begin fulfilling their mission in the world. Those investments would outlast anything else they might do in life. People want to give their lives to something important. They long for their lives to count. Intuitively, they know nothing else fits the bill—not their careers, not their hobbies, and not even their families. As a pastor, you have an opportunity to show people a commitment worth giving their lives to. 4. If you don’t ask, others will.Everyone seems to ask for commitments these days. Travel sports leagues want families to commit. Employers are pushing for more commitment. If you’re not asking the people in your church to make commitments, their schedules will get packed with everything else. As a pastor, part of your job is to guide people toward making the right commitments—ones that help them live out God’s purposes for their lives.5. Covenants clarify vision and values.When your church’s members sign on to your church covenant, they know your vision and values. The covenant reinforces the mission and values that drive your church—and ensures that new members understand them and will work toward them in the future.To learn more about how your church can use covenants to drive spiritual growth, check out the CLASS materials.

Learn From Failure

Every pastor makes mistakes; every pastor has defeats. Mistakes are a part of life. Sadly, so is sin. Not even a pastor can escape Romans 3:23: “All of us have sinned and fallen short of God’s glory” (CEV). None of us are perfect. The difference between successful and unsuccessful leaders isn’t that the successful people don’t fail. The difference is that successful leaders learn from their failures. I heard a story years ago about a young man who asked an executive, “What is the secret of success?” “The secret of success is the right decisions,” the executive responded.  “How do you make the right decisions?” “By experience.” “How do you get experience?” “By making mistakes.” I always told my staff at Saddleback to call failure an education. We did more things that didn’t work than did. That means I had a highly educated staff! But the important part was we weren’t afraid to admit our mistakes and learn from them. The road to success is paved with failure. But what’s critical is this: We need to learn from those failures. You can read a good example of learning from failures in Joshua 7. After the Israelites’ great victory at Jericho, they came to the little town of Ai.   The Israelites had just taken on the greatest, most fortified city in the land—and had a resounding military victory. Then they got a little cocky and presumed upon God’s grace. Joshua sent only about 3,000 troops into the town to capture it—and his soldiers were defeated.  But take note of how Joshua responded. He threw himself onto the ground and prayed, and God told him he needed to take care of a problem in the community. A man named Achan had taken some spoils of war when God had clearly told them not to; the entire camp was suffering because of Achan’s sin.  God told Joshua to act, and that’s exactly what he did. Joshua could have defended Achan and refused to confront his sin. Instead, he admitted that Israel had sin in the camp.  He allowed himself to be corrected by his defeat—and that’s a mark of a great leader.  Pastor, be big enough to admit your error. The real mark of leadership is the willingness to say to your people in your church, “I was wrong. I made a mistake.” But do you know what’s better than learning from your mistakes? Learning from the mistakes of others. It’s wise to learn from experience, but it’s wiser to learn from the experiences of others. We don’t have time to make all the mistakes ourselves. Of course, that means learning from people you know. When you see people failing, talk with them. Ask questions about what they’ve learned—and be alert to what they may still have to learn.  And do these things too: Read biographies. Be teachable. Pray for insight. Always be on the lookout for people who have failed and recovered.  Whatever you do, be corrected by your defeats and learn from the mistakes of others so you won’t have to make all of the mistakes yourself.

How to Find Joy in Your Relationships

Relationships are at the heart of every ministry. Whether those relationships are with your family, your congregation, or your community, you’ll be miserable in life and ministry if your relationships aren’t healthy. God wants us to enjoy the people in our lives. In the book of Philippians, Paul models four principles to help us find joy in our relationships. Be grateful for the good in people. “I thank my God for all the memories I have of you” (Philippians 1:3 GW). Paul focused on the good memories instead of the bad ones. And if you recall in Acts 16, you’ll remember the bad memories Paul could have focused on while he was in Philippi, but didn’t. He was arrested, whipped, humiliated, and thrown in prison. While in prison, there was an earthquake. Then the Roman officials in the town asked him to leave. Paul had a rough time in Philippi, but he chose to focus on what he was grateful for. To follow Paul’s example, we don’t need to deny the hurts in our lives. Neither do we need to excuse the weaknesses of others. Instead, focus on the good and emphasize the strengths of other people. Practice positive praying. “In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy” (Philippians 1:4 NIV). Praying positively for people will change both your attitude and the other person’s. People may resist our advice, spurn our appeals, reject our suggestions, and not accept our help, but they are powerless against our prayers. In Philippians 1:9-11 (NIV), Paul models four specific ways we can pray positively for others. Pray they will grow in love. “Your love may abound.” (This phrase means to overflow, like a tidal wave.) Pray they make wise choices. “Discern what is best.” Pray they will do the right thing. “Be pure and blameless.” Pray they will live for God’s glory. “The fruit of righteousness.” Most of us are good at praying for people in crisis, but let’s commit to praying specifically and regularly for people who may struggle in these four areas. Doing so will transform our relationships with them. Be patient with people’s progress. “God is the one who began this good work in you, and I am certain that he won't stop before it is complete on the day that Christ Jesus returns” (Philippians 1:6 CEV). Paul looked at people’s future, not just their past. He looked at their potential and was patient with their progress. Mankind is a great starter but a bad finisher. Man leaves unfinished symphonies, unfinished buildings, unfinished books, and unfinished projects. Man doesn’t always finish what he starts, but God always finishes what he starts. We should model God’s patience with people’s progress. To enjoy people, we must give them room to grow and develop, just as God does with us. Love people from the heart. “God knows how much I love you and long for you with the tender compassion of Christ Jesus” (Philippians 1:8 NLT). Loving people begins with understanding why they act the way they do. You can’t love people you don’t understand. If you care, you’ll be aware. You get understanding by asking questions and then listening to the responses. Understanding people helps you love them better, but it still doesn’t get you to the love Paul described in Philippians 1:8. Paul said he loved the church of Philippi “with the tender compassion of Christ Jesus” (NLT). Only Jesus—working through you—can love people like that. God’s love isn’t something you can force. It’s a gift that you get as you let the Holy Spirit work through you. “God has poured out his love into our hearts by means of the Holy Spirit, who is God's gift to us” (Romans 5:5 GNT). Life is too short to not enjoy the people in your life. If you don’t learn to enjoy those who God has placed in your life, you will be miserable. That’s why you need to learn how to respond to them the way Jesus did.

At Pastors.com, our passion is to have healthy pastors leading healthy churches for the global glory of God.