This week I will spend the better part of a morning reviewing major personal and ministry goals from the past three months and evaluating what I should focus on over the upcoming three months. I make these plans in theological pencil, recognizing that God riules over every detail in both the short and long term ““ I am desperate to avoid presumption (James 13-17). At the same time, I want to be wise and intentional about the life and ministry God has entrusted to me as a stewardship. So what will I do this Thursday morning in evaluation and planning.

Pray. This is more than an obligatory beginning step; it is a cry to an almighty God from a desperate heart that is deeply affected by His merciful grace, seeking wisdom and leadership from the one who is all-knowing. I dare not plan without a spirit of dependency, and dependency is deepened when I humble my heart in prayer.

Review my long-range goals. I base these on the providential roles I have (husband, father, pastor, etc), as well as key verses that describe God’s desires for me inch of these roles. Some of my roles have been broken down into additional categories (i.e., pastor: teacher, shepherd, staff supervisor, etc.). I often find myself revising these long-term goals, seeking greater clarity insight of providential circumstances, better understanding gained through the study of Scripture, the passing of time and gaining specific experience. My aim is to to be practical in how I apply God’s word in each of the roles God has blessed me.

Review my annual goals.  Each year I have tried to think through what I can discern as being the most significant way I could make practical progress in my long-range goals within the span of the next year.  I may make some adjustments here also. Again, I am aware that I am unaware of what may happen over the next year and how my life and circumstances can be rerouted within a moment”™s notice. But, I still have a sense in my heart that it is more faithful before God to be intentional (as far as it is up to me) with my efforts than to merely be reactive with how I spend my days.

Review the past quarter’s goals and progress. Every three months I look at my annual goals and ask what appears to be most important and achievable within the next three months. My aim here is to simply be purposeful in evaluating whether I am on the right track and how I am using my time.  Each quarter”™s goals provide me with a specific focus that actually helps to drive what I tend to focus on each week and each day. I actually review these quarterly goals on a weekly basis and determine what I will do in a given week to accomplish them. This Thursday I will evaluate how things have progressed over the past few months. I write down my evaluations, what went well, where the key weaknesses are, and what adjustments need to be made. I try to be brutally honest with myself here.

Brainstorm goals for the upcoming quarter. I will most likely list as many as I can think of. However, I will narrow down, re-write, and settle on about four to six major goals over all. In my experience, more than this is rarely achievable. I would rather be focused on a few major issues and accomplish them well than spread thin over many objectives, accomplishing only a little in each.

Evaluate my weekly schedule. I have a general plan of how I will spend the majority of my time each week. For example, I generally set aside all day Wednesday for concentrated study in preparation for Sunday; Saturday mornings I try to focus on writing the sermon for Sunday. Monday mornings are given to time with the staff. Tuesdays and Thursdays are focused on ministry tasks, discipleship meetings, and serving the needs of the flock. Friday is my day off, etc. I will evaluate whether my current approach is the most effective way to organize my week.

Review these goals with others. I have chosen a number of people with whom I will share these quarterly goals. I want their input as to whether I am aiming to accomplish too much or perhaps too little. Do these goals seem the right place to pour my energies, or should I reconsider some issues and why. I need the accountability and appreciate the honest evaluation.

Plug the goals into my task management software. I use OmniFocus for managing my weekly planning and daily tasks. It is an electronic application of David Allen”™s principles in his book Getting Things Done. So, when I sit down at my desk each day, I have a confidence on where I need to start and what I should focus upon each day.

Pray. I may plan my way, but I am very aware that God directs my every step. I submit my plans to His beautiful sovereignty. He may choose to rewrite everything in the blink of an eye. I may find out one month in that I have planned the wrong things to focus upon. So I do prayerfully and humbly submit everything to God”™s ultimate direction. I am His slave and am ready to move as He directs.

So pray for me this Thursday morning as I pray and think about how to best serve God, my family, my church family, my neighbors, our community, and our culture at large. I want to be fruitful for His glory.

Michael Hyatt”™s article on Quarterly Planning stimulated my thinking on this subject and I have adapted some of his thoughts to my life and circumstances.

Cap-Review: The Glory of God from Bret Capranica on Vimeo.

An Ordinary Pastor’s Brief Review of The Glory of God:

Christopher W. Morgan and Robert A. Peterson have blessed the church with a helpful volume in Crossway”™s “Theology in Community” series, entitled, The Glory of God.  The aim of the book is to ask and answer the question, “what does the Bible teach” about God”™s glory (20).  The editors seek a two pronged attack in achieving their aim.  Chapters 1-6 seek to “help us glorify God in our minds by focusing on biblical and theological truths related to his glory.  Chapters 7 and 8 help us rejoice in our hearts as they illuminate how these truths about God”™s glory shape our view and approach to the church, pastoral ministry, and missions” (21).  Nine different authors, all instructors at theological institutions, contribute to the volume.  The audience is intended to be college and seminary students and those pastors with such training (14).

The book is arranged by addressing the subject of God”™s glory historically, then from the perspective of the Old Testament, New Testament, the Synoptic Gospels/Acts/General Epistles, John”™s Gospel/Revelation, and Paul”™s Epistles.  The book then contains a chapter on the overall theology of God”™s glory, and concludes with chapters on pastoral and missional implications of God”™s glory.

I found the structure and arrangement of the book helpful.  Moving from an historical sweep to looking at how God”™s glory is described in detail from the Old Testament through the emphases in various New Testament genre, then to a more global evaluation of the biblical material, ending with more practical implications was a logical way to study the subject.  Most chapters were carefully arranged, giving an excellent synopsis of the content in the final paragraph.

The most striking chapters for me included Nichols”™ opening chapter discussing God”™s glory both “past and present.”  He analyzed how the glory of God was central within the theological emphasis of Hans Urs von Balthasar, a Roman Catholic, the more Reformed perspective of John Piper and Jonathan Edwards, and then a Dispensationalist, Charles Ryrie.  Nichols comments regarding John Piper were more a rehearsal of Jonathan Edwards”™ material than Piper”™s.  The chapter was a track of historical perspective I did not readily expect.  With Rome”™s divergent gospel, I wondered how von Balthasar”™s understanding of God”™s glory was differentiated from that of Edwards and Ryrie.  The section on Ryrie was brief and left me wanting more detail on how Dispensationalism uniquely stressed the glory of God.

The strongest chapters were those by Mellick and Morgan.  Mellick covered the glory of God in the Synoptic Gospels, Acts, and the General Epistles.  His chapter was a thorough overview of these biblical sections. Morgan”™s overview of an overall theology of God”™s glory was an excellent example of how one can derive theological conclusions from exegetical study.

The weaker portions of the book for me included the less than systematically arranged chapter by Gaffin on the glory of God in Paul.  While thorough, it appeared more scattered in its arrangement and proved more difficult to follow his train of thought and how, from Pauline material, he inductively arrived at his conclusions.

The final chapter, on the missional implications of God”™s glory, was also not as strong as the majority of the book.  While most chapters made their case from a biblical starting point, Jennings seems preoccupied with pointing to supposed secular foundations behind biblical texts.  He seemed to suggest that being missional begins by understanding other religious traditions and how those traditions provided a foundation for what the biblical authors said concerning the glory of God.  I found him less convincing than other contributors to the book.

The book is written by a group of theological scholars which brought a high degree of biblical stability and clarity to each chapter.  I found my heart yearning for more detail on the implications of what these author”™s unveiled.  The book definitely nails it”™s first objective in answering the question as to what the Bible says about God”™s glory, but could be much stronger in fulfilling its second aim in inspiring the heart to greater affection for the glory of God.  Perhaps having an active pastor contribute a chapter would have helped.  In fact, the heart was hit best when the authors quoted a pastoral theologian like Jonathan Edwards and John Piper.

Overall, this is an excellent resource to make your way through in setting a thoroughly biblical framework for understanding the glory of God.

Over a year ago, I wrote a post describing my office and study.  Since then I have transitioned into a new local church ministry and have had to rethink how I would set up my study and how I would function at my church office ““ or whether these would be one and the same.  The previous article discussed essentials for a pastor”™s study. In this one I want to think through the benefits and drawbacks of having a study primarily at the church or at home.

For some this is not an issue. Either the church does not provide a place for a study (especially for church planters), or someone does not have the space at home for a study.  I have served four churches in my almost 23 years of pastoral ministry.  In two of the churches I kept the totality of my study at the office the church provided me. I did not have any place in the homes I lived in for a separate study.  In the last two churches, I have maintained both a home and a church-based office and study.  Even with very young children (and at times, a lot of them), I”™ve found it most helpful for me to do the bulk of my serious Bible study, thinking work, and sermon preparation at home.  For meetings, planning, administrative work, etc., I love using my church office.  Here”™s a look at the benefits and drawbacks of keeping the bulk of my study at home.

Benefits

• Concentration. Years ago, I heard John Piper in a Q & A session indicate that he kept his study at the church for a few months, but found out that it didn”™t work for him to concentrate and so he moved it to his home.  I have found it easier to have uninterrupted concentration at home as opposed to the church office. At my office, I want to be accessible. I rarely close my door and want to be available to staff and others.  I don”™t say “˜no”™ well when someone wants my input or help on something. So, if I kept my entire library at the office and did the majority of my study there, I would be less productive in terms of sermon preparation, critical thinking, and Bible study.

Yes, I have three little kids and a very productive wife at home. In California, we had four children 3 years and under in the home and I still found it easier to concentrate at home than at the office.  In my current home, I have an unfinished basement (one of the blessings of living in the Midwest).  We threw some cheap carpet on the floor and I built shelves for my books.  While I can hear the walking and talking of the natives above me (my children) ““ and though my youngest likes to get into the pots and pans directly above my desk ““ I can still turn on some classical music to compete and find it easier to concentrate.

• Space for my library.  I have a growing personal library and find it easier to house it in my basement than at the office.  In my previous ministry, I did not have a place to put up extensive book shelves so my library was at the church. At times this was problematic because I still studied at home but the bulk of my library was elsewhere.

• Easier to help with Family. I commute upstairs to have lunch or dinner with the family. Kel can run a quick errand while the kids are napping and I am in the study ““ though this is rare.  I also take about a half day each Saturday to prepare my Sunday sermon(s).  The commute is great. When I”™m finished with the sermon, I simply go upstairs to spend the rest of the day with the family.

Drawbacks

• My family is a precious temptation. I love my wife and kids and when they”™re playing upstairs, my heart wants to go play too. When they are upset, I want to know why.

• My work can be a distraction. When I”™ve blocked out time to spend with the family, knowing that my work is just below creates a mental wrestling match. It can be difficult to disengage my mind from my study when I have not physically relocated myself to a different place.

• Accessibility. Maintaining 2 separate locations always creates the problem of forgetting something at one when you need it at another. I also have to be quite proactive in planning my time and what I want to accomplish at each office.

• Mindset. If you don”™t have the proper mindset and set-up, keeping a home office may make you feel too much like you are at home and not work. I don”™t do “entertainment” in my office. I have a TV, but rarely use it except to review a DVD or catch a quick glance at the news. My home office is a place set up for work and that”™s what I do there. I don”™t go into my home office on my day off.  It”™s not a place I play with the kids (generally). It is a place I try to keep an atmosphere of study and concentration.  Mixing much else into the use of the space becomes a distraction.

So, for now I am very blessed to have a great place to meet with people and engage with ministry at our church”™s facility. And I”™m blessed to have a spot at home that allows me to study with concentration.

On Friday, I”™ll post a video tour of both my church and home offices and give some of the rationale behind the set-up of each.

The previous post looked at the background, reasons, and benefits of having a weekly planning or review in order to focus on priorities in life. In this final post, I want to look at when you should do the review, what I do, and some things to watch out for.

When

Some of the principles that should govern when you do your weekly review are:

“¢ Toward the end of your work week so you can look back on what was effective, how the next week will be affected by the previous week, what needs to be adjusted, and what needs to be followed up.
“¢ Close to the beginning of your new work week. More than likely, your brain needs a break from the activity of the week. But before you begin a new one, your mind needs to gain an overall perspective of what”™s ahead. Pick an in-between time ““ where you”™ve had the opportunity to get away from the previous week and when you can mentally set the agenda for the next.

For me this is Saturday morning. Friday is my day off and I typically block the day for family activities and rest. I don”™t want to think and plan on that day ““ I want to decompress and enjoy my family. So planning on Friday would simply be exhausting and frustrating. Sunday is filled with ministry opportunities. The morning is focused on preparing to preach and teach, the afternoon generally consists of lunch with church members and preparation for our evening gathering. I also often meet with a group of men to discuss Sunday”™s sermon(s) at the end of the day, so Sunday is no day to plan. Further, I need my next week set before I go to church on Sunday. Inevitably, I will have conversations with people who I will want to get together in the next week. I need to make sure my priorities have been planned before I say “yes” to these requests.

Saturday morning is perfect. Generally, I can get up at a decent time (not as early as the rest of the week, and not as late as Friday). After a time of prayer and reading, my mind is ready to engage in thinking of the next week. Typically, my only other significant agenda item on Saturday is writing my sermon for Sunday. Clearing my mind of all the things that need to be done in the week ahead, gives me a clarity and freedom to focus on preparing my sermon. So, each Saturday, typically from about 8:00 a.m. to 9:00 a.m., I do my weekly review and planning.

How Long?

As I just mentioned, my time generally takes around an hour. Sometimes it is more and sometimes it is less. Any time I miss a weekly review (rare), the next review takes longer. More stuff has accumulated that needs to be done, more notes need to be re-digested and followed up on ““ so I will spend and hour and a half to two hours. On the whole, one hour is sufficient if I am consistent in my weekly review.

What do I do?

Here”™s my list ““ similar to David Allen”™s and Michael Hyatt”™s. I have this list set up in my task management system (Omni-Focus). I pull it up and allow it to govern my weekly review.

1. Collect everything and act on it 2 min or less. This is a David Allen fundamental principle. You really need to get his book to understand this. Essentially, papers, notes, books ““ stuff that does not require immediate attention, but will if I neglect it, gets thrown into my bottom right desk drawer at home. That drawer is my “in-box.” I don”™t like an in-box on top of my desk ““ its”™ too distracting and will draw me away from what I need to work on. So I put it in the drawer. My first step is to empty that drawer onto the top of my desk. I also look around my office, in the flaps of my Bible, through my wallet, etc., for any receipts, papers, books, cups, trash, etc. From the top to the bottom, I begin working through the pile. I use the FAT method. I may File it ““ Act on it (which may mean do it or schedule it) or Trash it. If I can act on the issue in front of me in 2 minutes or less, I do it right them. Otherwise I either file it away in long term files, or in my tickler system (that”™s probably another post ““ or read Allen”™s book).

2. Process notes from the week. I use a Moleskine notebook to keep notes in throughout the week. I can write more quickly than I can type on an iPad or iPhone and in some meetings, jotting down quick notes is easier than bringing using something electronic. So I flip through the notes from the week and act on the issues in there. They may be appointments to set, tasks to put in my management system, contact information to put in my address book, etc.  I also use Evernote for electronic note-taking. It is at this time, I pull it up and review the notes from the week and plan any tasks or update information.

3. Review previous calendar, note adjustments, or what needs to be followed up this week. I regret it when I don”™t do this. Usually there is a meeting that I need to follow up on or perhaps an appointment that reminded me that I should send a thank you note. I can also look at how I planned my week and think through how it really ended up. This will help me adjust for the next week.

4. Review/Set Upcoming calendar. I have a general plan for a typical work flow for my week (again, this would be another post). I know which day I will give to study, meetings, day off, when I will exercise, etc. This governs the general plan I have for each week. I follow David Allen“™s advice here and only put things on the calendar that are hard and fast appointments. My administrative assistant knows that where there are blank spots, she has freedom to set appointments. This means that I need to block of time for family, study and a few blocks for concentrated task time.

5. Review Action lists/Weekly/Monthly/Quarterly lists. I have a series of tasks that I want/need to do each week ““ planning time with the kids on my day off, reviewing my calendar with Kelly, copying and sending my sermon for certain folks at church, etc. I have certain tasks I want to make sure I have covered each month and each quarter. I review these lists to see that they have been accomplished and if not, what need to be put on the list to do this next week.

6. Review Someday/Maybe and Waiting For Lists. David Allen suggests that you get everything out of your head ““ especially those projects that you can”™t do now, but might do in the future. So, I keep a list of ideas and projects that will need some time and attention in the future. I review these each week and determine if they now need some action. This may also include tasks that have been delegated to others to follow up on.

7. Review roles & projects and set next actions. Here is where Franklin Covey“™s influence comes in. I have identified the primary roles I providentially play: Christian, husband, father, family member, neighbor, Friend, teacher, overseer, Shepherd. I have thought through the Scripture”™s explicit statements regarding these roles and have written out some steps and long-term goals associated with each. These are my big rocks. Reviewing these roles helps me to consider what needs to be done this week to move them forward and give attention to them. They are my priorities. I also review particular projects (these are more than likely associated with my roles) and assign tasks and appointments that are the very next actions necessary to complete these projects. In addition to an electronic list of these projects, I have a physical manila folder for each of them. In that folder are papers, notes, brainstorms, and plans for these projects.

8. Clean Computers/Sync Phones/Task Manager. By this time, everything is put away and my head is empty of upcoming plans and tasks (its all in my computer, in a file, on my calendar, etc.). I then clean off my computer screens, sync my iPhone and iPad, and sync my task management systems with all of electronic devices.

By the end of this process, I”™m prepared for another week.

Beware

Here are a few thoughts to make sure you give some thought to for a weekly planning time to be most effective:

“¢ Put your weekly planning time down on your calendar. It is a high priority appointment. If you don”™t schedule it, you will likely ignore it.
“¢ Communicate with others when you will plan. It helps them with their expectations of you and your schedule. Your family needs to know when this typically happens ““ you”™ll be surprised at the effect it has.
“¢ Approach your planning methodically. That”™s why I have a list ““ so I don”™t miss something. I need the weekly reminder.
“¢ Don”™t rush it. In a pinch I will minimally set my calendar for the next week and jot down tasks. That”™s better than nothing ““ but not most helpful. Having a methodical, unhurried time to think and plan, even if only for one hour a week, helps to genuinely clear your head and put things into a system that will readily remind you of what you need to do.
“¢ Trust God”™s sovereignty. I”™m mindful that my best laid plans are regularly rearranged by God”™s providence. No problem. I find it generally helpful to have a plan ““ when the changes come, I find that previous regularity has minimized the negative impact these abnormal changes bring.

Those are my present thoughts on how I work my weekly planning ““ and they are regularly changing and being enhanced. What are yours?

One of the most helpful tools in my time management arsenal has been the weekly review or weekly planning. That is, taking a set amount of time with a prescribed list of actions that help me think through what needs to be done according to priority during the next week. Today and Friday, I will describe this process ““ from its background to its purpose, benefits, timing, problems, and details.

Background

I was first exposed to the idea of a structured time weekly planning after attending a Franklin Covey workshop on time management. As I look back and prior to what I do now, I did try to plan out my week each week. Out of necessity and from too many weeks of being frustrated that I was never accomplishing what was most important, I would generally try to come up with some sort of schedule. However, after going through Covey”™s approach to thinking through my various roles in life and being intentional about how I would act on those important roles in the next week, I began to become much more purposeful in my weekly planning.

In the Covey seminar, we were asked to schedule a 20 minute time each week where we would review our personal mission statement, roles in life, and long-term goals. Based on these, I would put on my schedule and task list what I would do in the next week to enhance those roles and move my goals forward.

Then came David Allen”™s Getting Things Done. Covey was good for me in thinking long-term. Allen”™s book was a gold mine for me thinking through the nuts and bolts of organizing ideas into projects and making goals much more concrete. He also suggests a time to plan out your week. His description was much more concrete for me than Covey’s ““ he provided a list of things to do during that weekly review. I began with his list and have modified it since.

Michael Hyatt is another influential voice when it comes to the weekly review. I discovered his blog while searching for time management ideas. His post on the weekly review was a good modification of David Allen”™s list and served me well in enhancing my own approach.

CJ Mahaney also influenced me. I heard him make a statement in an interview to the effect of, “every week I am going to disappoint someone by saying “˜no”™ to their request for my time ““ I need to have a good reason why.” He also suggested taking some time each week to think through roles and goals and plan the week on purpose. He also posted an excellent series of articles on pastoral productivity.

All of these influences continue to mold my approach to managing my time.

Why Plan Weekly?

Let me just bullet-point a few reasons that tend to motivate me to plan weekly:

“¢ So I can lead and not merely react. I”™m in a leadership roll ““ I need to give some direction to the issues under my oversight. When I don”™t plan ahead, I put myself in a position to merely react, and not lead.
“¢ I need to tie my week to what is most important. When I don”™t plan, I react to what is most urgent. Covey”™s time matrix is so helpful in pointing out the issues of the urgent and the important. Covey also illustrated this so well with the “Big Rocks/Little Rocks” concepts. If you plan your most important priorities, others smaller issues will find their way around them. If you simply respond to the smaller issues, you will never fit the more important but perhaps less immediately urgent issues into your schedule.
“¢ Weekly planning helps me keep up with stuff. David Allen helped clean my desk and manage my files. Papers, receipts, files, notes, are all dealt with in one way or another each week.
“¢ I clear my head. This is another helpful David Allen suggestion. I can take the notes from the week, the issues running around in my head, the papers that need to be filed and I can spend an intentional time putting these into a system that will hold them, manage them, and remind me of them when and where I need them.

Benefits

The benefits are obviously tied to the reasons behind planning weekly ““ but here are a few more thoughts on how planning weekly helps me:
“¢ I feel much more prepared to begin the week ““ prepared to address what is most important.
“¢ I am more confident that what I am doing will have long term benefit and is not merely a short-term reaction that will have little lasting value.
“¢ I have more confidence in what I say “˜no”™ to. I”™m not good at saying “˜no.”™ I”™m too much of a people pleaser ““ and I love to help in areas people desire my involvement. But saying “˜yes”™ to everything usually means that some of the more important areas of life and ministry get squeezed out.
“¢ Planning minimizes the affects of the spontaneous. Life happens, and it doesn”™t always work according to my plan. No problem. The reality is that a lack of planning guarantees that I will live by the urgent. It is fascinating to see how the issues of urgency tend to diminish the more proactive I am in planning. Also, if I have been regularly living in a way that is more purposeful, when the inevitable spontaneous issues pop up, their affects in pulling me away to the necessary distractions are not as great. The more you live intentionally the less the urgent becomes a distraction ““ the more I can confidently handle the spontaneous.
“¢ I find myself accomplishing the right things ““ not just doing good things.

On Friday, I”™ll post on when I do my weekly planning, how long it takes, issues to beware of, and a list of what I do each week.

I began using my iPad to preach in October of 2010. Actually, I have used my iPad since I bought it for some teaching, preaching, and other messages.  I used it to speak and sing at several funerals. I”™ve used it at a wedding.  But in my regular preaching, I”™ve used the iPad every week since late October 2010. No regrets thus far. No debilitating challenges. While there are some potential drawbacks, none have been significant enough to outweigh some of the benefits.

Benefits

No More Paper & Printers. I typically bought a specially cut and weighted paper on which I printed my sermons.  The paper was perfectly suited for the laser printer I used, and was the perfect weight and thickness for my preferences in using paper notes in preaching.  I didn”™t have to fold an 8 ½ by 11 sheet in two, creating more bulk. No cutting required.  With my 6 x 9 sheet, I could use a larger font (14) and suitably indent sentences without creating too many pages or having to use larger sized paper.

But no more. No more laser ink cartridges. No more screaming in agony when half-way through printing a sermon the cartridge begin to quit. No more purchasing the paper; nothing more to file afterwards.  I greatly prefer the electronic means to the paper pushing.

Less Mess & Bulk. Early in my ministry I carried my notes loose in my Bible. No problem as long as you keep the pages numbered in case they get out of order. Loose leaf notes may be fine assuming you have a tall enough pulpit to put your notes above your Bible or setting your notes to the side of your Bible, a wide enough pulpit with a bottom lip, and only a slight angle to keep pages from slipping down.  To avoid all of that, I began using a 3 ring binder.  This meant getting a hole-punch set to use for the sized notes I would bring to the pulpit or buying pre-punched paper.  The binder I preferred, though fairly small, still created a bit more bulk to carry around and was not always advantageous for preaching in different pulpits of different sizes. With the iPad, no binder, no bulk (especially with the iPad 2), and no need to mess with paper notes.

Smaller Pulpit Footprint. I like a Bible that has a good sized print (larger than a 10 pt font) and is arranged by verse rather than paragraph. My eyes do not have to strain in finding a reference in the midst of a paragraph.  That means that the Bible I typically take into the pulpit is not a compact size. I wanted a Bible that I could lay down beside or above my sermon notes and use easily without having to squint or bend down to catch where a verse reference was.  Combine such a Bible with a binder for my notes, and I have a larger footprint required for ease of preaching.  Not every pulpit allows for that much space.  In fact, it became problematic when using a music stand.  When needing to turn pages, I would have to keep one side of my notes on top of one of the flaps of my Bible or move the notes if using the Bible to navigate to another reference.  If not using a binder, I would still need to deal with where to put a page of notes once I had completed it ““ moving it underneath the flap of my Bible ““ more paper futzing.

No more.  No more page turning. No more wide-spread footprint for both Bible and notes.  The iPad is a perfect size for me visually and if I use a paper Bible, I rarely have any space issues.  Currently, I use a single-column 11 point ESV Bible. It has more bulk than I prefer, but I prefer the page and verse lay-out for preaching.  I have a fairly small pulpit space for placement of any notes, but putting my bible to the side of my iPad seems to fit perfectly and is less bulky or awkward to use even when preaching from a music stand.

Future Reference & Review. I have all of my sermons at my finger-tips with my iPad.  I didn”™t realize how helpful this was until I began using my iPad.  All of the sudden, while in a meeting with someone and we were discussing a sermon, I could immediately pull it up and refer back to a point I had made. On Sunday evenings, I have a sermon review time with a number of men from our church.  Since I preach twice most Sunday”™s I can bring up each of the sermons quickly for reference.  In staff meetings each week, we review the sermons from Sunday ““ how helpful to have each of them at my finger-tips.

One Stop Shop. While I have not yet been brave enough to do it, I don”™t even really need to bring a paper Bible with me.  With iOS”™s quick app switching, I can move between Bible and notes fairly easily.  Looking up a passage is just about as quick and sometimes faster than using a paper Bible. This would mean that the only thing I have with me in the pulpit is my iPad. I like the thought of having only one thin object with me, containing all my notes as well as the entire Bible.

Drawbacks

No Handwritten Notes. Often, even after printing my notes on paper, I would review my sermon and think of something I should note in the margin.  That”™s not as easy to do on the iPad.  However, I can and do actually add quick notes.  Because I use iBooks, I can leave a note attached to a particular spot in my manuscript.  When I get to that point, a simple tap brings up the additional note.  Not as easy as a hand-written note.

Shut-down Threat. Any time technology is used, the fear of it failing is real.  I haven”™t had any problems with my iPad.  It has never frozen on me. The iBooks app has never shut down on me and the battery is so long-lasting, I can go up with only ½ a charge (I rarely do) and have confidence that my long sermon will still not drain the battery.

Possible Glare or Glow. With the lights shining down on our pulpit, the possibility of glare increases when using the iPad. I generally turn up the brightness all the way when I preach on Sunday morning. No real problems.  On Sunday evening, I am generally preaching down on the floor rather than on the platform and the lights are not nearly as bright. The back-lighting of the iPad then creates a bit of an angelic glow on my face.  Depending on the angle, someone might actually see the glow of the iPad in my glasses ““ giving me eyes of glowing fire, or perhaps distracting glare.

Potential Formatting Issues. I have tried using a number of platforms and apps from which to preach using the iPad.  I have used a pdf of my manuscript which perfectly mirrors the formatting of the notes I create from my desktop.  However, the default view of the pdf is not actual size so I generally need to increase the size.  You can pinch and pull the document to resize it, but then you lose the capability to tap or swipe to easily turn the page.  I have printed my notes into HTML and used a third-party software to turn my notes into an epub document.  This can work well, but takes a bit more time and effort than I think should be necessary.  My current process is to use Apple”™s Pages word processor that quickly imports my document into an epub format to use in iBooks.  However, some of the formatting (some indentation features and any special formatting issues like headers or footers) do not transfer.  I assume this will get better over time, but I have adjusted how I put my notes together.

If you are REALLY into using the iPad from which to preach, you may want to consider this nifty pulpit made for gadget-geek pastors (pictured above) like those of you reading (and writing) this post.

On Friday, I’ll post some of the details on how I go about using the iPad for sermons.

See iPad and Pastoral Ministry: An Update-Part 1.

Here are 3 additional ways I use the iPad in pastoral ministry:

4.  Ultra-portability of Information.

From all the documents I need in any given day, to all of my e-mail, notes, and internet capability, I am finding this aspect of portability to be one of the greatest benefits of the iPad.  I would much rather pull out my iPad to edit documents while travelling (by air, car, etc.).  All of my tasks, weather forecasts, maps, video, articles to read and mark-up, contacts, etc. are with me wherever I can take my iPad.  The footprint is small and is super easy to access. The only reason I use a desktop or laptop is for major formatting issues.  With the ability to synchronize any document over the internet, I can access all the same information from any electronic platform I choose (phone, desktop, laptop, iPad).

For documents, I use DocsToGo.  It will synchronize material from my Dropbox account or from GoogleDocs.  So, when in a staff or elders”™ meeting, I bring only my iPad.  I can bring up our agendas, take notes on them (sometimes using a blue-tooth enabled keyboard), and have them saved and all the documents synchronized, again, accessible from just about any device I may have with me. Using the iPad for meetings has decreased the folders, papers, laptop footprint, and necessary cables to bring along with me.  With the iPad 2 capability to mirror the display, I can quickly connect it to a projector or TV and display any content needed for others in the group to view.

I also use GoodReader and iAnnotate to mark-up pdf documents.  GoodReader synchronizes with my DropBox account, so, once again, I have easy access to just about any document I may need.

I even now use the iPad to preach.  I”™ll give you another post on just how I do that ““ pretty simple and I”™ve loved using it.

5.  Consolidation of gadgets.

I have read the reports on why Kindle”™s remain popular.  Primarily people want a dedicated reader without the possibility of distraction from e-mail and the internet.  Maybe. But the reality is that if you are too undisciplined to keep reading and your mind is dying to know what your Facebooks friends are doing, you are just about as likely to whip out your smartphone.

Honestly, I would rather not carry another gadget.  While on a recent trip, I used my iPad to read, check mail, follow and update Twitter, check on some notes, edit two sermons, read the news, keep up with the local weather, find contacts, read my Bible, do some quick and simple math calculations, take notes during a seminar, make appointments on my calendar, and keep up with important tasks. One device.  One easily accessible, ultra-portable device. Just one. I love that.

6.  Future communications options.

E-mail is a given on the iPad.  I “˜ve yet to use any real telecommunications on it.  Facetime and Skype are available, and I could easy plug in my iPhone ear buds to use them.  I”™ve continued to use my iPhone for both phone and video communications.  This could change with the iPad 2″™s front and rear-facing camera.  Because I have 3G capability on my iPhone, I have yet to spend the extra cash for a 3G iPad. So the phone is the only other gadget I use and it is primarily for communication.

I am finding the iPad (both first and second generations) a great device to use in the regularities of life and pastoral ministry.

What should an ordinary pastor glean from how the President”™s office was organized and functioned?

The pastorate is not a political machine like the White House, so many issues are simply inappropriate and unnecessary.  But I can find a number of helpful points to consider when thinking through how a pastor should think about how to make the best use of his time.

• A pastor can”™t run ministry on his own, but needs key and capable people to rely upon.  The biblical principle of eldership indicates that no one man should be directing the affairs of the church. Qualified and capable men who can collectively oversee the church”™s ministry are needed.  Ephesians 4:11-16 is a great picture of every part of the body doing its share, with pastors assuming one key role ““ that of equipping others to carry out the ministry.
• We need some regular (daily, weekly, monthly, quarterly, annual) time to think, write, plan, pray, and rest.  Otherwise, a pastor”™s time will be reactive rather than proactive; he will lose focus on what is most important for the whole of the church because he is caught up in putting out immediate fires, and he will mentally and emotionally wear himself out from trying to keep up with every conceivable issue beyond his control.
• Trust and focus are key commodities in how we work with staff around us.
• Written plans culled and vetted by key staff as opposed to spur-of-the-moment conversations with innumerable personalities provides a more proactive, and thoughtful approach to advancing ministry objectives.  Ministry needs to be thought through. What are the biblical parameters and implications of our actions ““ how will people be affected ““ how will Christ be exalted?
• We should spend tremendous time on fewer things.  Mere busyness does not mean or guarantee effectiveness.  Biblical priorities should dominate the daily schedule.
• Communication is always an essential issue and with more means of media at our fingertips, more thought needs to be given to what and how we are communicating.
• We should aim for achieving key ministry objectives that are most helpful to the church and advancing the gospel, not merely creating a buzz of activity.
• Pastors should zealously prepare not only for preaching, but for meetings and ministry events.
• Rather than reacting to appointments and in-box minutiae, pastors would do well to proactively use their time.

These seem obvious and there is much more that could be said about how an ordinary pastor makes wise use of his time. My notes here are a simple reflection inspired from the Nixon lecture.  I can attest that unless intentionally pursued, the urgent will drown out the essential.  The pastorate is a different animal from the presidency, yet, effectively using our time in leading an organization of people has a number of fundamental similarities regardless of the venue.

Regardless of what you think of our President’s policies, Barak Obama‘s team is doing an excellent job in its use of media, particularly social media. Technology is enhancing how we communicate our messages and priorities, and the Obama White House has a firm handle on how to do it well.  From the first days after his election and as the President-elect, Barak Obama began weekly video addresses (in addition to the old-guard radio address), and a series of video posts from various internal groups working on policy issues.  They are always enhancing how they use media to connect with people. Media tends to connect people in a more personal way and not merely in a starched policy manner.

In fact, one of the ways the White House is utilizing media well, is to bring the public inside the secured walls of the White House and show them how people and the process work.  An excellent illustration of this was the 2011 State of the Union.  In addition to a brief video on how the speech was constructed, the White House, for the first time, included enhanced on-line media (like a power-point presentation), chats, use of Twitter, and live online interviews with the President after the speech.  I’ve seen few public sector organizations work this well on connecting people more personally.

There is much modern church ministry can learn from the rapid growth of technology. While the message is most important and should be the laser-like focus of leaders and members alike, technology has provided unprecedented ways to publicly broadcast our message.  From the use of Twitter and Facebook to quickly inform church members of prayer needs or immediate announcements, to weekly e-mail blasts that can bring the entire church around specific ministry events, to a church’s web-site and publishing its sermons literally across the world, or regular video highlights that may give people insight into a ministry going on in a church of which they had little information about previously.

Media can be a spiritually devastating distraction also.  Too many today want quick sound-bites that require little thought and high emotional impact. Yet, God gave us a deep and profound book in which we need to think carefully about and linger long and prayerfully over.  Personal, face-to-face conversation is much more important and effective in communicating truth than a mere 140 characters of information or shortened links to more spots on the web.  John Piper gave an excellent challenge last week about distracting yourself from your e-reader with a concentration on Bible apps – a conversation that we would not have had ten (maybe even five) years ago.  Modern media, like food, money, facilities, old-style print publications, cars, etc., can have a dumbing down effect on how we think and meditate on deep and profound subjects.  But it doesn’t have to be that way.

How can Christians and local churches make the most of modern media opportunities?  I certainly do not have significant answers, but am trying to think significantly about this subject.  I am told that I can reach out to 95% of the members of my church in one single e-mail.  I am regularly meeting people who have first thoroughly visited our church’s web-site and my personal blog before than have personally visited our church’s worship service.  I am amazed at how I can connect people to what goes on in our family in more personal ways.  It is facinanting to watch Christians across the globe pray for the release of a persecuted Christian in Afghanastan over the weekend.  I am humbled by a group of people who pray for me while I study each week, who I try to keep connected through a weekly e-mail and twitter.  I’m amazed that a mission team from our church will be trained by people in Prauge via Skype.  I am challenged by how many are following my sermon outline (particularly young children) more significantly by a simple use of power-point slides. I’m thankful that we can now publish the lyrics to each week’s songs on our web-site and allow people to meditate on them before we gather to sing them.  The uses go on and on – and we are not even using technology all that well.

What should we beware of?  How can utilize it more effectively? Technology is only going to grow and we ordinary pastors and ordinary churches need to act on the opportunities, and deliberately hold ourselves accountable regarding the dangers.

How do you think churches could best leverage technology? What do you think are some of the most subtle dangers to beware of?

The Capranica has been silent for a number of weeks.  That’s not necessarily new, though August and September were banner months for readership.  As most will know, our family just moved from the desert of Southern California to tundra of the Kansas City, Missouri area.  We now live in Lee’s Summit, a suburb of Kansas City, and I recently became the Pastor-Teacher of Summit Woods Baptist Church.  Yesterday was my third week in the pulpit and I commence my fourth week in the office today.  The transition was quick and relatively easy as far as moves go.  The kids have adjusted well and we are all adjusting from the normal November 90″™s in Hemet to the normal 40 and 50 degree weather for Kansas City.  We’re bracing for the fun stuff on its way.

Our transition was, as most issues in life are, a learning experience for us.  The lessons that come to mind are ones not necessarily attached to moving to a new ministry assignment – several are essential for the normality of life.  Yet, moving your family across the country (or further) is no normal time.  Though we are still in the beginning stages, here’s a few thoughts on what I have found helpful during the transition:

1.  Spend encouraging time with good friends before leaving. We made it a point to sped some wonderful fellowship time with people who were close to us before we left (though we were unable to see everyone).  We treasure every one of those conversations – every meal – every moment we had with such precious friends.  We had rich times of conversation with neighbors, friends from church, and family.  We left on one of the most positive notes possible.

2.  Arrive early enough to settle the family. A very good friend who has been in pastoral ministry for many years encouraged me to move to our new ministry as soon as possible, at least a few weeks before I was to start my pastoral ministry (our elders exhorted me to do this also). He encouraged me not to immediately work on setting up my office and library, but immediately invest myself in setting up our home.  I cannot tell you how helpful this was to our family.  When I began my first day at the church office, we had unpacked almost every box, put up almost every picture, set up all the furniture, and finalized all the details associated with a move to another city and state.  I had little family stress on my mind and my wife was able to begin some form of a regular schedule for our kids.  The bulk of settling into the house was not laid on my wife”™s shoulders and it allowed me to begin at the church with nothing on my conscience associated with the move or an unsettled family.  I was also able to attend church with my family for a few weeks before I had any pastoral responsibilities or expectations.  It was a really rich and blessed time for us.  Both my family and my church benefitted from this.

3.  Plan your preaching calendar quickly. One of my first priorities in my first week of ministry at the church was to plan out the next three months of preaching and review it with our elders and staff.  I received valuable feedback and had a lot of fruitful conversation about what would serve our church well in the opening weeks of my preaching ministry.  This helped me to get into a regular flow of study and exposition quickly and have little stress in planning week to week what I would be addressing.

4.  Be proactive with whom you will meet. I have had some of the sweetest meetings with brothers and sisters in our church during my first few weeks of ministry.  In the weeks leading up to our move and my beginning, I had been thinking about and planning who I could begin developing good relationships with.  Some of these were people who perhaps had some reservations about my leadership and were uncertain about the transition (all very normal stuff).  Some were simply faithful, stalwarts within the congregation who have provided me with such helpful historical information and practical suggestions in getting started.  I’ve been blessed with phenomenal conversations and the beginnings of excellent relationships.  I have learned so much about our church in just three short week because of initiating some of these meetings.

5.  Spend time listening and learning. My wife and I are visiting a different Adult Bible Fellowship class every week, a different Life Group every month, and I’m participating in – not teaching – our men’s Bible study each Wednesday.  I am enjoying it immensely.  I purposefully do not say a whole lot in these groups but instead I listen to the conversation, hear how people interact with one another, and see the valuable leaders and teachers God has given Summit Woods.  What a joy to see all of this taking place.

6.  Take your day off and invest it in your family. It would be very easy for me to work non-stop at the very beginning of this ministry.  But my family, my church, and I need me to stop.  I take off every Friday and keep my phone on my nightstand, avoid my home study, and spend time relaxing with the family.  We play together, have every meal together, and rest.  Nothing much more than that.  It clears my head for the weekend, allows me undistracted time with my wife and kids, and time to decompress from a very full previous week.

7.  Keep a rigorous and regular schedule. The rest of the week I engage in a very rigorous schedule.  I generally sit down on a Saturday morning and plan out my general schedule for the week – when I will study, who I should see, meetings I will be involved in, etc.  If I were purely reactive to the week, I would accomplish few of my God-given priorities.  Each day is full and the regularity of the schedule (as much as is providentially possible) is a benefit to my family.  I try to be home at a regular time most evenings.  I try to be proactive in the time I will spend at home and in the office.

8.  Linger long at church on the Lord’s Day. I love getting to church early to visit with people and I love the conversations with people afterward.  I am usually one of the last to leave simply because I so value the ministry and fellowship with God’s people on the Lord’s Day.  I can answer immediate questions that arose from the sermon, pray with someone who has a need, plan a time to visit with another who needs more extended time of conversation and generally be available to people.  This is really valuable, fruitful ministry time that has helped to get to know the flock quickly.

9.  Enjoy extended conversations with elders and staff. I tend to be a very driven person, having a good idea of what needs to be accomplished each day, but I have so enjoyed the off-the-cuff extended conversations with staff members and elders during each day or after a meeting.  We are getting to know one another well and our talks on personal life and church ministry have grown my love for each one of them.

10.  Don’t neglect your quiet time with the Lord. With a rush of issues in beginning a new ministry, it is easy to neglect personal time in God”™s Word and prayer.  I could easily begin my day thinking through issues and planning for more meetings, but I need the regular recalibration and soul-refreshing time of quiet prayer over and thoughtful reflection on the Word.  Even though some of the late nights make for short nights, spending time in prayer and in the word has been vital to my soul’s not being overwhelmed with the immense task and needs in front of me.

I have so enjoyed the first month of our transition to Lee’s Summit.  Summit Woods is a blessing to be a part of and our family is overjoyed to be a part of this ministry.