John Maxwell is credited with saying, “Culture eats vision for lunch.” He may have been quoting someone else (if so, let me know and attribution will be given!). Whoever said it, they got it right. No matter how grand your vision, organizational culture can crush it. This was first evident to me...
My friend Steve Parr (along with Tom Crites) has written a helpful book addressing the issue of why some young adults stay – and others stray – from church participation and/or Christian commitment when they leave home. The book is based on a research project which involved data gathering and...
It’s been my privilege and delight to spend the past several days working with a Gateway team of students and faculty in partnership with the IMB and national personnel in South Asia. God is moving in many places around the world and it was good to join him – and see him – at work.
A few weeks ago, Phil Kell, the President of the Baptist Foundation of California made a presentation on estate planning during a Doctor of Ministry seminar at Gateway. It was insightful, practical, and stimulating. It reminded me of the tremendous ministry resource the Foundation is for those...
At the Southern Baptist Convention in Birmingham this week, Southern Baptists are focusing on three cultural issues – leadership diversity, women in ministry, and preventing sexual abuse. Gateway has been a forerunner on all these issues. We have been – for more than 30 years &ndash...
A new church staff role has emerged at Vision Church in Atlanta, Georgia. Let’s hope it’s not the start of a trend. If it is, Gateway will have to sit this one out. Rev. Lakara Foster has joined the ministerial staff of Vision Church as their new medium. In her role, she communicates with the dead.
When we rebranded as Gateway Seminary, we knew it would take a while for the new name to become better known than our old one. We chose a generic name we could use anywhere/anytime, replacing being identified with one of the ten most famous landmarks in the world (which shall remain unnamed to...
Early in my tenure, I spied a seminary maintenance supervisor coming through the doors at graduation. I was surprised to see him in a coat and tie at a more formal event and asked, “Do you have a student-friend who is graduating?” When he told me “No,” I said, “Oh, I was just surprised to see...
My recent blogs on our confusion about declaring and defending the gospel prompted one supporter to write me back. While he applauded my overall point, he opined some Christians – even pastors - seem to be confused about the simplicity of the gospel. He referenced a recent memorial service, led...
From time to time, we hear people lament the shortage of and issue a call for more statesmen-like leadership in our denomination. We recently lost a person who modeled that kind of leadership which motivated me to think about what makes a person a statesman or stateswoman.