Tag: Leadership

Ancient Lessons From Aristotle: Connecting with Online Audiences in a Covid-19 World

The world seems to be stalled at the intersection of pandemonium and chaos.

Caught off guard, nobody seemed to have a contingency plan to mitigate a global pandemic. So in Spring 2020 the world scrambled to assemble protocols and systems to accomplish things many human beings have not had to deal with in their generation. We’ve grown accustomed to YouTube videos going viral, usually of some trivial amusement, like a cat playing chopsticks on the piano. We were not prepared to deal with an actual life-threatening virus (Covid-19) going viral, spreading disease and mayhem around the world.

Reader Note: This post was made during the Spring 2020 Global Covid-19 Pandemic, and is targeted for ministers and speakers or anyone who is delivering online video messages to connect with people experiencing isolation due to shelter in place orders or quarantines.

This is especially true for churches and pastors who are used to having a literal platform to stand on with a nearby audience to preach to. All that changed in a moment when governors across the United States and authorities around the world issued edicts to shelter in place, outlawing gatherings of any kind. This was not an attack on religion or First Amendment rights, but an issue of public safety. Most churches readily complied, and within a few hours were devising new methods to communicate and continue to engage their faith community.

When it comes to making significant leadership decisions that involve extensive changes and effort, many pastors and church leaders historically take a “wait and see” approach. Change is hard and often painful, especially for groups of people known for their propensity to cling to traditions, ancient or modern. Motivation for real and substantive change requires a sense of urgency to help people move from where they are to where they need to be. The ultimate sense of urgency brought about by the Coronavirus Crisis and subsequent government officials’ lockdown orders in states and municipalities created an immediate sense of urgency.

Organizational change generally requires a systematic process that involves a coalition of people who can intelligently answer the “why?” and the “when?” questions that present the compelling reason for change in the first place. For many churches, debate is all that ever takes place, leading to procrastination and stagnation as the world changes around them, and leaves them arguing about insignificant relics of the past, like replacing the pews with chairs, or style of worship, or even service times. All that changed when pastors were forced by reasons of public safety to find a different way to do church. We simply could not do “business as usual” for the foreseeable future. 

So without wasting time debating the “why?” or the “when?,” churches sprinted in an effort to discover answers to the “what?” and “how?.” They quickly pivoted toward online delivery systems and other creative ways of doing and being the church. Pastors who had never dreamed of streaming their services on Facebook, or lacked the equipment and resources for doing livestreaming or preparing a video, discovered that someone in the congregation with a smartphone could effectively use that tool to accomplish the task. There are a multitude of ways to take church online, from the simple smartphone to a million-dollar state of the art audio/visual system with all the latest HD cameras, bells, and whistles. But at the end of the day, it all boils down to this:

How do you effectively pivot from communicating with a live audience to simply speaking into a faceless camera in an empty room?

If you listened closely, you could hear echoes of the past back to a time when churches were forced to go underground, literally or figuratively, because of a different kind of government edict. And if you took a moment to explore back even farther than the history of that echo, you would discover an unlikely source of inspiration for the connection and communication challenges of today in the writings of Aristotle (384-322 BC), a disciple of Plato. His thoughts on the art of persuasion, what we usually refer to as rhetoric, might shed some ancient light to illuminate and enhance how we communicate with a virtual online audience in today’s pandemic panicked world.

Aristotle’s Rules of Rhetoric have been taught to speakers, politicians, lawyers, and preachers for thousands of years. Using the Greek words of Logos (logic), Pathos (emotion), Ethos (ethics or trust), and Kairos (a moment in time), he proposed a logical way to persuade or win an argument. When we stand or sit to speak to our audience, we certainly don’t want to take on the tone of an argument. That is what politicians do. But we do want to be persuasive.

Also bear in mind that Aristotle’s use of those words does not necessarily align with the New Testament Greek use of the words. For example, pathos occurs three times in the NT, with the connotation of sinful desire (Rom. 1:26; Col. 3:5; 1 Thess. 4:5). But the word itself is the basis for English words like empathy and pathetic, which convey a feeling or emotion, good or bad. And the writer of Hebrews uses a similar word, sumpatheo. Hebrews 4:15 describes how Jesus was touched by “the feeling of our infirmities” (KJV), in contrast with Aristotle’s mythical Greek gods, whom he believed could never be compared with humans.

The simple concepts of logic, trust, emotions, and timing provide us with guidance as we communicate in this crisis, and plan our communication strategy. Virtually every communication and conversation, especially those being broadcast or livestreamed, should combine elements of rhetoric, and be recognized as Crucial Conversations, defined by the authors of the book by the same name, as “high stakes, high emotions, and diverse opinions.”[1]

Having been afforded the opportunity a few years ago to attend a two day Crucial Conversations training workshop, I learned the importance of their first rule, “Lead with the heart.” Thus, I place pathos as self-awareness and awareness of the emotions and feelings of others, as the first consideration of any crucial conversation.

Pastors can be themselves. They should lead with their hearts in the current crisis, but make calm decisions using their heads so that the resulting actions (hands) will produce positive outcomes. In simplistic terms, I am suggesting the below graphic model might help you as a template or matrix for what you say and how you say it. So, with appreciation to Aristotle, I’d propose that you consider these thoughts as a potential matrix or lens as you create online content:

Lead with the heart:  Pathos/Emotions (Heart)

  • Gospel = “Good News” that God is still in control!
  • Be pastoral – be a shepherd
  • Be warm and empathetic: “Jesus wept”
  • Smile & be vulnerable
  • Look into the camera
  • Visualize you are speaking to a large crowd, but focused on a single attentive young person who is looking to you for answers to their persistent questions
  • Consider the feelings of your audience, their pain, anxiety, fears, or grief
  • Recognize some may feel guilty because they are OK, still have their jobs, etc.
  • Don’t minimize their fears
  • Be kind
  • Model and propose generosity
  • Don’t add to their shame
  • Point them to the love of God
  • Tell uplifting stories from your own faith community and from elsewhere
  • How are we impacting our neighbors?

Be Biblical:  Logos/Logic (Head)

  • Speak truth in loving ways
  • Don’t claim to be an expert
  • Don’t try to answer every question
  • Direct them to a community group
  • Check your facts
  • Emphasize Christ’s Sufficiency and God’s attributes
  • Remain Gospel-focused
  • Point them to Jesus
  • Direct them to Scripture
  • Ask them to consider the “why” question of their life: “Why am I here on earth?”
  • Lead them to a decision: “What about you?” “How will you respond?” but don’t coerce
  • Application for today, show them the steps for helping themselves, then helping others
  • Keep the community and broader community in focus
  • Direct them to resources for further study

Speak with confidence:  Ethos/Ethics/Integrity (Hands)

  • Rely on the Holy Spirit
  • Be yourself
  • Practice your message in front of the mirror, record it on your phone video and playback or ask for someone in your home to watch at a safe distance (But don’t increase home tensions if you are in isolation together!)
  • Be positive
  • Be calm
  • Be encouraging
  • Focus on hope and faith
  • Cast vision, not stones
  • “This shall pass”
  • Leave them with something to believe in
  • Leave them with something to do
  • You may not be able to solve the world’s problems, but what is one thing you can do today?

Consider the timing:  Kairos/Timing (Horology = Clocks/Schedule)

  • Remember what is happening in their world
  • Keep it short & simple
  • Slow down
  • We are all mortal, but we all have this Kairos moment today
  • Destiny
  • Think “is this tweetable?”
  • Consider your team’s time, and express appreciation
  • Examples from history of people who made it through tough times
  • Remember both the “here and now” and the “then and there”
  • Encourage them to take time for spiritual disciplines and Sabbath
  • Stay connected
  • Pray

Feel free to share and add your own thoughts in the comments section. You can decide what is right, wrong, missing, or confusing about what I have written. But hopefully it will provide a lens for some of you to sharpen your communication strategy in these crucial days. How will you lead with your heart, head, and hands?

Remember, Jesus has placed you in this time of history for this purpose: to communicate His love and a certain future to an uncertain world. You have a destiny. You can do it. Jesus is enough. I am cheering you on.

Below is a graphic showing my rendition of Aristotle’s main components in the art of gaining favor with an audience and leading them toward engagement toward you and your message:

[1] Patterson, Kerry, eds. Crucial Conversations: Tools For Talking When Stakes Are High. New York : McGraw-Hill, 2012. Print, various pages.

Abraham Lincoln: Humble and Meek

Abraham Lincoln Statue
Abraham Lincoln Statue

Today we celebrate the 206th birthday of my favorite president, Abraham Lincoln. Born in a humble Kentucky log cabin, humility characterized the life of the tall, lanky, awkward-looking man. Yet perhaps meekness, often defined as “strength under control,” is a better word to describe his character. He leveraged his strength as a wrestler and a fighter by channeling those energies into educating himself and becoming a successful attorney. Legal battles turned to political battles and as President he had to battle the personal demons of self-doubt and clouds of depression, while being demonized by a hostile press and political enemies who loathed the backwoods country lawyer.

He led our nation during its greatest crisis to overcome our greatest national shame. Though a fighter, he led in his characteristic humble and meek style, enlisting his political adversaries into a “team of rivals” to win them over and help save the Union. Rather than taking a swing at those who opposed him or his ideas, he resolved to stand firm in his convictions, while listening to and engaging his opponents in dialogue. He once said, “Be sure you put your feet in the right place, then stand firm.” While standing firm, his self-effacing humor and ability to spin a yarn broke down defenses and built bridges.

One of my favorite Lincoln quotes is from the final paragraph of his Second Inaugural Address, delivered a few days before his tragic assassination: “With malice toward none, with charity for all, with firmness in the right as God gives us to see the right, let us strive on to finish the work we are in, to bind up the nation’s wounds, to care for him who shall have borne the battle and for his widow and his orphan, to do all which may achieve and cherish a just and lasting peace among ourselves and with all nations.”

We can only imagine how much faster the process of healing our nation and reconstruction of The South might have taken place had Lincoln been able to serve out his second term of office. Perhaps we might have been spared some of the long and agonizing delays in the process of racial reconciliation and civil rights that continues in our nation and around the world to this very day.

But one thing is certain. Lincoln left his mark and made a difference in this world that is still recognized and appreciated today. His legacy is felt by all who work toward achieving and cherishing, “a just and lasting peace among ourselves and with all nations.”

Echoes of Lincoln’s hundred and fifty year old words are heard whenever a voice is raised to oppose injustice, whenever the chains are released from a soul rescued from human trafficking, whenever the lever is raised on a water pump to improve the health of a community, whenever a door of opportunity opens for a child born in poverty, and wherever freedom reigns so people have the right to lift their voice in praise to their Creator.  Quite an accomplishment for such a meek and humble man!

Crossing the Gap

Crossing The Gap - Caterpillar“It requires courage to cross the gap from where you are, to where you want to be.”

“Donnie, the neighbor called and our cows are in their pasture.” That meant round up time for this young cowboy. And it was not a welcome call. Getting those critters back to their home pasture often proved to be an exercise in futility. Growing up on a farm, I never saw a fence our cattle could not eventually find a way through. After all, fences break and the electricity sometimes goes off.

But there exists a sure way to stop them from seeking greener pastures that works in certain situations. For some reason, cows are afraid of crossing a gap or slotted surface. That’s why you’ll see cattle guards on bridges or crossings in cattle country – just slotted planks with space between them that keep them safely within the boundaries of where they are supposed to be. They take the place of a gate that would need to be open and shut every time a vehicle or person passed through. Sometimes even lines painted on pavement serve the purpose. Even though there would be little actual danger from them jumping or trotting across, they stay put because cattle somehow perceive danger in crossing that obstacle, even if the grass is greener on the other side.

In contrast, the above photo I took shows a caterpillar crossing a gap in the concrete on his way to who knows where. He was making good time, and the gap did not slow him down one bit. Relatively speaking, the gap in the concrete was larger to him than the gap a cow sees in a cattle guard. No matter to the caterpillar. Whether guided by instinct or a simple need to find something to eat far from the barren pavement, the caterpillar did not mind crossing the gap.

It got me to thinking. Am I more like cattle, or more like caterpillars? I’m glad it’s not completely an either/or proposition because frankly I would not care to be either one. Yet how often am I hindered or stopped altogether by some gap in the road that distracts me from my true destination? While I’m not suggesting a reckless strategy, how often does fear of the unknown keep me from moving forward?

How about you?  Are you known for prudence and counting the cost, or do people see you as an adventurer, undaunted by gaps in the concrete, clouds in the sky, or rain in the forecast? More importantly, how does God see you, and how do you view yourself?

Prudence and counting the cost are both biblical virtues. However, an excess of caution can lead to a shortage of progress. An object at rest tends to stay at rest. To move forward requires some risk, but do you want to spend the rest of your life resting where you are—especially if God has given you a vision for something more? What will happen if you stay where you are? What might occur if you venture forth and cross the gap between where you are where you want to be?  What would it take to make a decision to cross the gap and venture ahead? What would it take to bridge the gap once you decide to do so?

It requires courage to bridge the gap from where you are to where you want to be. My wife, Jodi knows this. She excels at life coaching where she helps people cross crucial gaps because she has done so herself. My heart will be swelling with pride as I watch her at commencement exercises this weekend at the Assemblies of God Theological Seminary in Springfield, MO. Because I know as she crosses the line to receive her doctoral diploma, this accomplishment occured because she courageously crossed many gaps to get to this point.

Don & Jodi Wedding Cake 6-8-74 PSWe married as teenagers, and she worked full time as a dental assistant so I could finish Bible college and enter the ministry. With her many gifts and skills, not to mention her winning personality, she could have had a career of her own. Instead, she chose the career of staying at home and being a mother to our three children and helper to me as an unpaid assistant pastor. Her imprint is clearly seen on our children’s lives, and the lives of hundreds of others to this day through her life, ministry, coaching, and writing for The Seattle Times and her new highly acclaimed book, The Jesus-Hearted Woman.

How did she get from where she was to where she is today? After our children were off on their own, she courageously accepted a call to serve as leader of our network’s ministry to women. Then, without a college degree of her own, she began a decade long journey filled with books, classes, papers, lectures, books and more books to read in pursuit of those degrees. And she did so with disctinction, having been chosen among her fellow seminarians to be one of the commencement speakers.Don & Jodi Detrick 5-2-13 lower res

She will be crossing the line this weekend as Rev. Jodi Detrick, D.Min. with a 4.0 GPA in her doctoral classes. She crossed a lot of gaps to get from where she was to where she is today. Gender gaps, educational gaps, economic gaps, and age gaps did not deter her. She enjoys coaching others who benefit from her own experience of gap crossing. And if you notice, as she takes her place with her fellow graduates this weekend, you’ll see me smiling broadly. I couldn’t be more proud.

Teams and Teamwork, Part Four – Energy & Empowerment

teamwork with graphicI’ve worked with some great team leaders who energized and empowered their teams. I’ve also worked with some who seemed to be aloof, seldom scheduled team meetings or gave direction, and knew how to suck the energy out of the room whenever we did have a meeting. I’ve also been a team leader, and although my intentions were always to energize and empower, I am certain I fell short on many occasions as tunnel vision, deadlines, and distractions got in my way.

Today Michael Hyatt posted some excellent observations on, “5 Ways to Energize Your Team.”[1] Michael has a way of succinctly stating the obvious in a fresh manner, so I am listing his five points and will close with a couple of thoughts:

  1. Assume others are smart and working hard.
  2. Listen intently and ask thoughtful questions.
  3. Acknowledge the sacrifices others have made on your behalf.
  4. Express gratitude for their effort and their results.
  5. Remind them why their work is so important and the difference they are making.

Number one above helps us avoid the fundamental attribution error that occurs whenever we assume our own intentions and actions are good even though circumstances may cause us to be a little off our game (we are smart and working hard), but erroneously assume that others are just slacking off.

Number two is essential for a collaborative environment where people are free to share ideas without judgment. Some people never speak because they know no one is listening. The team loses whenever that occurs. We encourage the hearts of our team members when they know they and their ideas are honored, listened to, and respected.

Number three and four seem to go together. Success is seldom a solo accomplishment. Everyone appreciates a little appreciation, and team leaders need the humility and ability to share the wins by shining the spotlight on the team. Leaders also need to acknowledge what is going on behind the scenes, and how some team members may persevere and discover crucial solutions that could be hidden in obscurity if they are not prone to sing their own praises. For a team leader to keep silent or take credit is a sure way to breed resentment and change the dynamic from team to group of rivals.

Number five is all about the mission, and keeping the purpose in view at all times. Jesus encouraged the hearts of his team members (disciples) in each of these ways. It would be a good Bible study to discover the specific references in the Gospels where he modeled these five behaviors. Here’s one example: “For whoever does the will of my Father in heaven is my brother and sister and mother.” (Matthew 12:50 NIV) Leadership requires discipleship, which requires follower-ship. As we follow Christ, we will learn better ways to equip and empower our teams and in the process make and become better disciples.

Teams and Teamwork, Part Three

teamwork with graphicWe’ve been talking about teamwork, specifically how working as a team makes harvest possible from a spiritual perspective. To a certain extent, the harvest is the bottom line for the farmer, and it is also true in the church. All of our efforts at cultivating, sowing, and tending a crop are in vain if there is no harvest. Jesus made his purpose clear: “to seek and save the lost.” (Luke 19:10) In church teams, our ultimate mission and purpose must be in alignment with Jesus’ mission and purpose. And do you remember the importance of prioritizing purpose from the Leadership Network report on church teams mentioned in the last post in this series?

Here is another excerpt from my upcoming book, Growing Disciples Organically: The Jesus Method of Spiritual Formation. In it I discuss these principles and also share more about my neighbors, Granny and Gramps Plake.

A harvest is always anticipated. No one plants a crop and expects it to fail. The investment is too great. The Bible uses the metaphor of fruit to describe intentionality. “Be fruitful, and multiply,” God told Adam and Eve (Genesis 1:32). Jesus called us to “go, and bring forth fruit” (John 15:16). “The fruit of the Spirit” (Galatians 5:22) describes the qualities of maturation that result from organic growth.

Blank white book w/pathWhen it comes to spiritual formation, we should expect to become fruitful followers of Jesus. At any given point in time, an organism is either dying, declining, living, growing, or thriving. The same is true for our spiritual growth. Where do you see yourself in that continuum? What would it take to change? How can you engage more fully in your own spiritual formation so you can expect to be a participant in the harvest?

Obedience to Jesus Christ opens the door for growth, and obedience often means working to bring in the harvest. It is understood that proper nourishment, cultivation, and environment are all necessary for sustained growth at every stage of development. Faith, life, and community lead to fruit, the organic result for harvest. When this is not the case, or when growth is stunted, it’s time to get back to basics. The writer of Hebrews spoke to this issue:

In fact, though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you the elementary truths of God’s word all over again. You need milk, not solid food! Anyone who lives on milk, being still an infant, is not acquainted with the teaching about righteousness. But solid food is for the mature, who by constant use have trained themselves to distinguish good from evil. (Hebrews 5:12–14)

Spiritual formation and the resulting harvest have a lot to do with sowing and reaping. If you don’t invest much on the sowing end of things, you won’t reap much of a harvest. But even a small investment can reap great dividends if we invest in the right things.

Granny and Gramps, mentioned earlier, knew the value of investment in things that truly matter. While you’d never have known it by looking at their humble home and surroundings, they were storing up eternal treasures by investing in people. They raised many of their own grandchildren whose parents had died, and their kindness extended beyond their family to neighbors and even strangers who were welcomed to partake of Granny’s meals.

Granny and Gramps were a team during nearly seventy years of marriage, up until the end of their lives. Everyone thought that Gramps would go first, even though he eventually gave up his smoking habit. But somewhat surprisingly, the spry and seemingly healthy Granny ended up in the hospital and then an extended-care facility because of congestive heart failure. I visited and prayed with them often, and was there the day Granny went to heaven. Grief-stricken Gramps went home and the next morning a grandson found him slumped over in a chair with a smile on his face. Their separation had not been long, as both were reunited at the feet of their Savior. At their combined memorial service, hundreds of relatives, friends, and neighbors paid tribute to this humble couple who teamed up to make a difference in the lives of others. (From Chapter 13: Teamwork Makes Harvest Possible, Growing Disciples Organically: The Jesus Method of Spiritual Formation, Deep River Books, ©2013 Don Detrick)

Teams and Teamwork, Part Two

teamwork with graphicIn my last post I mentioned the new report authored by Warren Byrd and Ryan Hartwig from Leadership Network and Azusa Pacific University showing the results of surveying 125 church teams last year. You will find a link in the last post to access the report. I found particularly interesting their number one suggestion for strengthening your team: “Clarify the team’s specific purpose–making sure it is distinct from simply providing general leadership to the church–and increase the challenge of that purpose.”

Why do you exist? What are you doing? These are the two questions every team must consider. The first is the question of purpose, and the second is the question of mission. When you discover the answer to those questions as a team, you have unlocked the power of multiplication exponentially. Two people working together can ultimately accomplish things it would be impossible for one person to achieve alone. This is a biblical principle: “Two people are better off than one, for they can help each other succeed.” (Ecclesiastes 4:9 New Living Translation) Depending upon the task, the team effect is multiplied by the combined efforts of the group.

As a boy growing up on the farm, I often helped elderly neighbors accomplish tasks they could not have accomplished on their own. The following is story from my upcoming book, Growing Disciples Organically:

Members of agricultural communities join together to bring in the harvest. This is a time-honored core value that recognizes the importance of teamwork and synergy, that the combined effort of the whole, working together, is greater than the sum of the parts working individually. Farmers were community organizers long before the term was popularized by politicians.

Blank white book w/pathAs a boy, I have fond memories of helping my elderly neighbor, Grandpa Plake, bring in his hay. I started when I was about ten years old, and continued to work with him until I graduated from high school. Although we were not related, everyone in our neighborhood called these dear folks Grandpa, or “Gramps” and Granny Plake.

“Now Donnie, I’ll tell you what, Mr. Man, we’ve got to get all this hay baled and put up in the barn” he would say as he tried to start his ancient orange Allis Chalmers tractor. “I’ll be needing it to feed the cows come winter.”

Actually, his words were more of a wheeze than anything else, the result of a lifetime of smoking Camel cigarettes. Gramps was a skinny beanpole of a weathered old man, his face as wrinkled as the bark on an ancient oak. He would give you the shirt off his back if he thought you needed it, and I enjoyed helping him (although I sometimes wonder how much help I really was, because the eighty-pound bales weighed almost as much as I did when I began working with him). The sweat poured from our brows as we worked together to get the job done. There is no way I could have done the work by myself, especially at the age of ten. Gramps could never have done it alone either. I think I provided him the moral support and companionship that made it possible. Together, we always brought in the hay. Granny would fix us a big meal at lunch, and we would say grace, honoring the Lord for his provision and another year of harvest. (From Chapter 13: Teamwork Makes Harvest Possible, Growing Disciples Organically: The Jesus Method of Spiritual Formation, Deep River Books, ©2013 Don Detrick)

In my next post I’ll share a bit more about teamwork and the rest of the story about Granny and Gramps Plake.