What makes a good leader? Or a great leader? On my bookshelf I have scores of books on leadership. Some are written by business leaders. Others are written by theologians. Most of the books have to do with leadership in the church. The authors are well known and well respected -- people like Robert Clinton, Stephen R. Covey, John Maxwell, Bill Hybels, Norma Cook Everist, just to mention a few. But the one book I turn to most in my leadership quest is
Jack De Vries was hired on by the Christian Reformed Churches of Australia and began his work as Ministry Training Coordinator in January 2008. In 2012 this role shifted to that of Ministry Development Coach.
Jack came from Canada where he pastored three Christian Reformed churches: Alliston CRC, Alliston, Ontario(1983-87), a church plant:...
Jack De Vries was hired on by the Christian Reformed Churches of Australia and began his work as Ministry Training Coordinator in January 2008. In 2012 this role shifted to that of Ministry Development Coach.
Jack came from Canada where he pastored three Christian Reformed churches: Alliston CRC, Alliston, Ontario(1983-87), a church plant: New Life Community Church, Pickering, Ontario(1987-95), and Bethel CRC, Listowel, Ontario (1995-2007). Jack is a graduate of Calvin Theological Seminary (Master of Divinity - 1983) and Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary (Doctor of Ministry - 2003) Jack and his wife Jeannie currently live in Petrie, a northern suburb of Brisbane in Queensland. They attend and are members of Bray Park Community Church. They have four adult children and seven grandchildren living in the USA and Canada.
In Isaiah 58:11 we read: "The LORD will guide you always; he will satisfy your needs in a sun-scorched land and will strengthen your frame. You will be like a well-watered garden, like a spring whose waters never fail." Australia has seen times of drought and floods. There is another type of drought in Australia; there is a spiritual drought. But God promises to provide refreshing rain, a never ending supply of refreshing water. The water he provides will satisfy the needs of all Australians. As we take up the missional vision God has given us we extend the life changing invitation of Jesus: "Come! Whoever is thirsty, come, and take the free gift of the water of life!" (Revelation 22:17)
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I found myself In The Chute this past few days. Not sure if the chute refers to a parachute or waterslide chute -- but in any case, there was lots of momentum. Close to 150 men and women gathered in Melbourne for the National In The Chute church planting conference put on by The Geneva Push. I was truly heartened by seeing so many young couples attending this conference. Some came to be assessed as church planters. Others came to explore where God is leading.
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"If I could have only one novel on a desert island, this book would give me family, faith, and hope." So writes F. LaGard Smith, author of The Daily Bible. I bought this novel some years back, but only a couple of weeks did I pick it up, to read it. Well, I not only read this book, I devoured it. It is such a great read.
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The vision to grow numerically and multiply within Australia is becoming a reality. The CRC churches have not seen its membership over 9000 members for 13 years. But the decline is reversing. This past year, according to CRCA statistics, the CRCA has grown by 4.8%. Just imagine! The CRCA has not seen growth like this for almost 50 years -- five decades!
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What makes a good sermon? How do you know if you are effective as a preacher? How can we raise the bar as ministers of the Word? What can churches do to increase sermon effectiveness? These kinds of questions were asked at the recent meeting of Classis Queensland. If we are serious as pastors to increase the overall health of our churches, one of the very best places to begin is with the Word being preached. Good sermons are not automatic; it takes much effort on behalf of every servant of the Word. And one way to improve sermon effectiveness is intentionally receiving listener feedback.
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