The Catalyst Leader: 8 Essentials for Becoming a Change Maker is an incredible resource for leaders who want to rise up and take charge. In this book, Brad Lomenick gives eight essentials for being an influential leader. We had a chance to chat with Brad about his book, as well as his vision for young leaders.

1. What is The Catalyst Leader about?

The Catalyst Leader lays out the eight essential traits one must develop to become a change maker and, ultimately, a Catalyst Leader. I hope this book will provide practical leadership answers for a new generation of aspiring leaders who are looking for answers and solutions, not just leadership theory. It’s a practical guide for leading now and leading well—a leadership handbook for the next generation of leaders. The book presents the key essentials that I believe will define our generation’s ability to influence over the next 20–25 years, laying out what it means to be a Catalyst in this generation. The Catalyst Leader is packed with a combination of candid interviews with thought leaders, research with the core leadership community, and overall leadership best practices. A rising generation of leaders needs to be equipped for the task of leadership.

2. Talk about your passion for leaders.
 
I have a deep passion for helping leaders lead well. It’s what drives me. At Catalyst, we are crazy about gathering, inspiring, and releasing the next wave of leaders who love Jesus and have a burden to be Catalysts in their communities and culture. I believe it’s my stewardship and my responsibility to help these leaders do their jobs well all over the country, and I’m incredibly optimistic about the next wave of leaders who are now stepping into leadership roles. It’s a generation of leaders willing to work their guts outs for something bigger than themselves, willing to work together to accomplish the big vision. This book is about the broader Catalyst movement.

3. What can leaders expect from the book?

The Catalyst Leader provides practical help for all leaders at any stage of their leadership journey, defining what it means to be a Catalyst in this generation and inspiring us all to be true change makers wherever we lead. I believe the book is defining, practical, inspiring, and timely. It provides perspective and practical application that leaders can put into practice immediately. I hope the book is a kick in the pants, a punch in the gut, and a pat on the back. Both challenging and encouraging.

4. Do the leadership essentials in The Catalyst Leader apply differently for older leaders and younger leaders?

The eight essentials for becoming a change maker are applicable to every leader, young or old. But there are some specific responsibilities that younger leaders have to take on, such as the notion that they are called but not yet equipped. This is not as true for older leaders. Also, the way a younger leader views legacy is different.

5. When you look five to ten years down the road, what is your hope for The Catalyst Leader?

I want to see our generation finish well. I want this book to be a timeless resource for a whole new generation of leaders. I hope to see churches, organizations, businesses, nonprofits, and teams use this resource for equipping their leaders. I want to see hundreds of thousands of leaders all over the world leading now, and leading well. My hope is that The Catalyst Leader will create change makers who saturate all areas of our culture, and that a leadership revolution will begin. Ultimately, I want to see the leadership culture transformed.

Download The Catalyst Leader: 8 Essentials for Becoming a Change Maker on Vyrso today!

As John Maxwell is famous for saying, “Everything rises and falls on leadership.” One of the most important factors in the long-term success of your organization is the leadership you develop from within its ranks. A great leader makes other great leaders.  Maybe you’ve wondered how to begin raising up leaders from within your organization. You’re in luck. We have a list.

 1.) Value people over products

People matter. Only two things last forever: the Word of God and the souls of men. (click to tweet) It may feel counterintuitive, but acting in the best interests of your people is also in the best interests of your organization. All people, especially the talented ones, long to be valued as individuals, as human beings, not just as units of human resources. All people, especially the talented ones, will sense if you do not value them, and they will leave. And the talented ones will leave fast.

 2.) Stop telling people what to do

Let’s face it: some of the people who report to you have skills that you do not. Whether you manage employees or volunteers, the formula is the same. You’re going to get better results when, rather than dictating specific actions, you can establish vision and trust the skills on your team. The Harvard Business Review recently published an excellent article that explains this idea in depth. The bottom line: trust breeds initiative.

3.) Don’t be shy about mistakes

Things are going to go wrong. As young leaders take initiative, young leaders will make mistakes. Count on it. If you’re hoping to create a place without mistakes, best to create it without leaders, without people at all. Any initiative you have created with trust will be quickly squashed with a zero-tolerance policy on mistakes. This means you cannot freak out when things go wrong. Even big things.

If you’d like to read more, we have a huge collection of leadership books here at Vyrso, and many of them are on sale at the moment. You can browse through the entire collection of 400-plus resources, but I would draw your attention to these titles as personal favorites of mine.

Become a Coaching Leader: The Proven System for Building Your Own Team of Champions by Daniel S. Harkavy

•  This book will help you develop a lifestyle that will make you magnetic to people of high character.

Leveraging Your Leadership Style by John Jackson & Lorrain Bosse-Smith

•  Leadership development never required a cookie cutter. Every leader is different, and this book will help you appreciate diversity.

The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership by John Maxwell

•  It’s a classic because it’s exceptional. If you’ve never read John Maxwell, start here.

Washington: A Legacy of Leadership by Paul S. Vickery

• Good leaders learn from one another. George Washington is one of history’s greatest leaders. There are many leadership lessons to be gleaned from a study of his life.

Leadership can be intimidating. There are always ways that we can grow as leaders, but sometimes we aren’t sure exactly how to grow and improve. Luckily, there are plenty of experienced leaders we can learn from. Here are eight tips on becoming a better leader, from some of Vyrso’s most popular authors:

1. “Leaders who follow the example and teachings of Jesus will lead first as servants.” –C. Gene Wilkes, Jesus on Leadership

2. “All effective leadership in the church begins with God’s call, God’s people, and a vision of God’s reign.” –Lovett H. Weems Jr., Church Leadership: Revised Edition

3. “If you really want to become the kind of leader that people want to follow, you will have to settle the issue of servant-hood.” –John C. Maxwell, Real Leadership: The 101 Collection

4. “When the right leader is prepared, then God can use him or her for His purposes. Our job is to prepare; His job is to use us where and when He needs us.” —Hans Finzel, The Top Ten Leadership Commandments 

5. “One of the best weapons leaders have to combat a tendency toward arrogance is to keep in mind a clear picture of Jesus kneeling to wash the feet of his disciples.” —Bob Briner, The Leadership Lessons of Jesus

6. “Secure leaders will not be threatened by attracting capable followers to the organization. They understand that the value their employees add propels them forward in difficult circumstances.”
—Ron Hunter Jr., Toy Box Leadership: Leadership Lessons from the Toys You Loved as a Child

7. “Leadership begins with the heart, not the head. It flourishes with a meaningful relationship, not more regulations.” —John C. Maxwell, Leadership 101: What Every Leader Needs to Know

8. “Leading out of security, rather than insecurity, is essential to leaving a positive leadership legacy.” —Jeff Lorg, The Character of Leadership: Nine Qualities that Define Great Leaders

Check out some of these titles today, and begin your journey to more effective leadership.

Today’s guest post is from Bethany Jett, author of The Cinderella Rule. Bethany is not only a writer and speaker, but also a Bible study leader, cheerleading coach, and mother of three adorable little boys. 

In a world where gender roles are taboo and the reward for teen pregnancy is a reality show, it’s no wonder there is so much confusion when it comes to dating. Who should be the first person to make a move? Where did chivalry crawl off to die?

To make it to engagement unscathed, young women need to know God’s thoughts on confidence, modesty, love, and sex. The Cinderella Rule sets guidelines for how to navigate the dating world, using the Bible as a lamp.

Dating is a time during which girls should be pursued, not the pursuer; the treasure, not the seeker; the gift, not the receiver. The Cinderella Rule teaches how much access a guy should be given at each stage of the dating relationship.

“I love you” doesn’t mean sex is an option, and a sparkly diamond isn’t an invitation to live together? What would happen if guys actually had to work to impress girls? What if girls truly believed how much God loved them, instead of replacing him with a guy’s physical affection?

It’s all about the access.

Girls, guard your hearts. Just because you’re dating a guy doesn’t mean he gets full access to your spirit. He hasn’t earned that trust yet. And until he is committed to you—and by committed I mean married—he doesn’t get full access to your body, either.

The Cinderella Rule shows girls where to set boundaries, and when to lift them, at every step along the dating route. Complete with chapters on how to qualify a guy, when to break up, and everything from kissing to sex, it’s an excellent source for young women searching for answers, and parents who want to guide them down the path of purity.

The Cinderella Rule is designed to be read individually or with a small group (discussion questions included). At BethanyJett.com, find bonus material and an eight-week study guide complete with author video introductions for each week.

Download Bethany’s debut book, The Cinderella Rule, today!

The late Brennan Manning, someone who had nothing to prove, like he had been convicted guilty and released anyway. Some would say that he lived like all believers should. Along the way, Manning, ordained as a Franciscan priest, played mentor to some of the generation’s most prominent songwriters—Toby Mac, Rich Mullins, Matthew Perryman Jones, and Warren Barfield.

Manning had his critics—grace always makes a scandal—but he never failed to challenge complacent faith. Here are some examples:

“The greatest single cause of atheism in the world today is Christians who acknowledge Jesus with their lips and walk out the door and deny Him by their lifestyle.” —Ragamuffin Gospel

This line from Ragamuffin Gospel, arguably the most famous sentence Manning ever penned, appeared as part of the prelude to the dc Talk song “What If I Stumble?” Its sentiment is echoed throughout Manning’s autobiography, All Is Grace.

“There are two visions of life, two kinds of people. The first sees life as a possession to be carefully guarded. They are called settlers. The second sees life as a wild, fantastic, explosive gift. They are called pioneers. —The Relentless Tenderness of Jesus

In the Relentless Tenderness of Jesus explores the intersection of identity and appearance.

“Healing becomes the opportunity to pass off to another human being what I have received from the Lord Jesus; namely His unconditional acceptance of me as I am, not as I should be.” —The Furious Longing of God

The institutional church was not friendly to Brennan Manning. Manning’s critics often outnumbered his readers, but he remained unflappable—perhaps because he understood God’s intense love for him, as much as any human could. He wrote The Furious Longing of God late in his life. Sin gave Brennan Manning many scars, but Jesus wore them.

Tullian Tchividjian summed it up best as he eulogized Manning  in the Christian Post:  “Theologically quirky and personally idiosyncratic, he was nevertheless a broken man on a passionate mission to remind Christians of the truth that while our sin reaches far, God’s grace reaches farther.”

In the time when Jesus walked through the Middle East, the custom of washing feet was common. Bowls of water and towels were the welcome mats of those days. Servants would render this simple and humble service—washing people’s dirty feet. But if there was no servant present, the host would often take on the foot washing.

As Jesus and his followers gathered for what would become known as the Last Supper (John 13:1–17), there was no one present to wash feet. One by one the disciples walked past the bowl and towel—no one offered to take on this role. Even though they had already experienced Jesus’ humble and servant-like leadership style, it didn’t occur to any of them to wash their fellow guests’ feet—not even their savior’s feet.

Instead, they remained with their dirty and sweaty feet, even during dinner. In the middle of the meal, Jesus got up from the table, got down on the ground, and washed their feet. The one who had created them was scrubbing their filthy feet. God’s own son, whom they should have been serving, was cleaning off their sweat and dirt.

Jesus was making a huge statement to his disciples, by getting down on his hands and knees, and washing the dirt from their feet. He showed that those who follow the crucified and risen Savior are called to offer humble service in the name of the one who bore the nails for them. Serving is foundational to our calling. To lead like Jesus is to take up the cross daily, to dip our hands in the water, wash the dirty feet, and serve as he did.

“The hands that washed the disciples’ feet would soon be nailed to a cross. This ultimate act of service and love cost Jesus his life. Our Lord was willing to get his hands dirty and bloody to show us what a true leader looks like.” —Kevin G. Harney, Leadership from the Inside Out: Examining the Inner Life of a Healthy Church Leader

Service isn’t always the most enjoyable or easy. It’s easier to keep our hands clean than to let them build up with calluses and dirt. Service is a very important aspect of leadership. As Jesus said after washing his disciples’ feet, “Truly, truly, I say to you, a servant is not greater than his master, nor is a messenger greater than the one who sent him. If you know these things, blessed are you if you do them” (John 13:15–17).

Kevin G. Harney has written several books on how to be an effective yet humble leader. Check out some of his resources on Vyrso today:

• Organic Outreach for Ordinary People: Sharing Good News Naturally
• Organic Outreach for Churches: Infusing Evangelistic Passion in Your Local Congregation
• Leadership from the Inside Out: Examining the Inner Life of a Healthy Church Leader

Today’s guest post is from Rich Melheim, author of Holding Your Family Together. Rich speaks in 50–75 cities each year on parenting issues, and has been featured on CNN, WNBC, and over 50 other networks from coast to coast.

Dr. Rich Melheim describes the day he died as the best day of his life. His heart stopped after a stent operation to balloon up an 80% blocked coronary artery. Ever since they resuscitated him, Dr. Rich has been on a mission to hold families together in a world that tears them apart.

In Holding Your Family Together, Dr. Rich uses humor, stories, practical parenting tips, and deep research to develop five simple faith practices that parents can do every night to raise godly, faithful, and resilient children.

The enriching nightly rituals (“enrichuals”) include:

1. SHARING your highs and lows
2. READING a Bible verse or story
3. TALKING about how the Bible reading might relate to your highs and lows
4. PRAYING for one another’s highs and lows
5. BLESSING one another

When done over time, these tips, called the FAITH5, can enrich communication, deepen understanding, aid sleep, and promote mental, physical, and spiritual health.

Researched in 100 cities in the US, Australia, India, and Korea, the book takes readers on an enjoyable tour through the psychology, sociology, neurology, and theology of being the church every night in every home.

The epilogue, “Why Night Time Is the Right Time,” delves into the latest research on sleep, arguing that the best time to engage in faith talk and caring conversations with a child is “when you lie down and when you rise.” Contrary to popular thought, the brain does not sleep when you sleep—rather, it enters its most efficient meaning-making and problem-solving modes of the day.

Dr. Rich says, “If you plant God’s Word into the nightly rituals, and connect it with the highs and lows of the day, the Holy Spirit can be singing to their hearts all night long!”

Holding Your Family Together includes links to FAITH5.org, where you’ll find Rich’s teaching, video interviews of families who have tested the principles, Bible songs in American Sign Language, and free home journal pages.

Draw closer to your family and to God—start reading Holding Your Family Together today.

Want to draw closer to your spouse and God? Faithlife is hosting a reading group based on best-selling authors Bill and Pam Farrel’s devotional A Couple’s Journey with God. Bill and Pam provide 58 short daily devotionals designed to bring busy couples closer to each other and Christ.

During the 58 days, you’ll be entertained by relatable stories, challenged to deepen your marriage, and encouraged to connect your love to God’s wisdom.

By following the Faithlife book group, you’ll also gain access to exclusive notes, discussion questions, and interviews with the authors. You can join in the conversation by asking your own questions and posting notes. Reading begins April 23, 2013.

To gain access to all of Faithlife’s features, such as Community Notes, purchase the book on Vyrso. Use coupon code JOURNEY at checkout to save 25%.

About the authors: Pam and Bill Farrel have been married for 33 years, worked in ministry for over 25 years, and written over 38 books. They have devoted their lives to helping couples build stronger bonds with each other and with Christ. They want to connect love and wisdom in order to build happy, unbreakable marriages.

Download A Couple’s Journey with God, and join the Faithlife group now! 

Today’s guest post is by Gregory W. Slayton, author of the national bestseller Be a Better Dad Today: Ten Tools Every Father Needs, which is going into its forth printing this month by Regal (BeABetterDadToday.com). He and his wife are giving all royalties to fatherhood and family charities, including the  Fellowship of Fathers Foundation.

How many fathers live within a 10-mile radius of your church? At least hundreds, probably thousands, and perhaps tens of thousands.

How many of those dads self-identify as needing help on the fatherhood front? If you live in a typical American neighborhood, it’s likely that as many as 80% of the dads in your area would admit that they need help (and as my research team likes to say, “the other 20% are lying”). You might be surprised, but of those 80%, as many as 75% have no idea where to go for help on fatherhood.

What does that mean? It means that there is a HUGE unmet need in your community that your church is uniquely positioned to meet if it wants more men and fathers in its congregation.

In North America, an estimated 80 million men are fathers or grandfathers, or will be fathers in the next five years. If you do the math, that’s 49 million men in North America who are looking for fatherhood help but don’t know where to go for it.

With all due respect for the moms and youngsters who provide the backbone for so many churches today, the old adage is still true: “Strong men—strong church; weak men—weak church; no men—no church.” And that is why the Fellowship of Fathers Foundation (a US 501c3 nonprofit charity) has launched the FIREUP Fathers Program for Father’s Day 2013: to help churches across America and Canada fire up the men in their pews (and the thousands who are not) for better fatherhood, family, and faith.

The FIREUP Fathers Program will help your church or faith-based organization draw men from your local community to your congregation for a Father’s Day celebration. We use local newspaper and web advertising, as well as word of mouth and personal invite cards. Then we help your group ensure a successful Father’s Day celebration, and provide a mechanism to get attendees to join Fatherhood Fellowships—men’s Bible studies geared toward fathers—in their local neighborhoods. That’s where they meet with other men to explore God’s Word together and encourage one another to grow in fatherhood, family, and faith. It’s Jesus’ original model—and it still works today.

We tested the concept last year at a church in Long Island, and it worked beautifully. To quote Pastor Joe Cortale, “The FIREUP Program was the best thing we’ve ever done for Father’s Day . . . by far.” Pastor Joe’s church had twice as many men as a normal Father’s Day service—and many of those men got involved in Fatherhood Fellowships. Why not involve your church this Father’s Day?

If you’d like to learn more, check out FireUpFathers.com. Please take a moment to send this article to your pastor, priest, or men’s ministry leader. We are looking for 1,000 partners this year, and our goal is to help churches across North America fire up 100,000 men for fatherhood, family and faith.

Are you in? Time to fire up!

“So Jesus said to the Jews who had believed him, ‘If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples, and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.’” —John 8:31

We know that we are disciples of Christ, yet sometimes it’s difficult to define exactly what that means, and how it plays into evangelism. In Gospel-Centered Discipleship, Jonathan Dodson writes, “Jesus puts the gospel first, which leads to making and maturing disciples. He does not call people to evangelize first, making discipleship an optional second. Both evangelism and discipleship are gospel motivated.” Disciples are who we are, and evangelism is part of our roles as disciples. Being a disciple should be our identity, with commitment to God and evangelism being our role. Evangelism only lasts while we are here on earth, while our identity as disciples lasts forever. Our lives consist of both leading and following, all while keeping the gospel at the center. Jesus commands us to follow him, yet in the process we’re to bring others to follow him, too.

A disciple of Jesus is someone who learns the Gospel and communicates it to others. We see this in Jesus’ ministry on earth. Jesus proclaimed the same Gospel to his disciples and to crowds of nonbelievers. They weren’t learning how to be leaders; they were being taught the truths of the Gospel, which in turn filled them with a passion to lead for Christ’s sake.

“Disciples are gospel people who introduce and reintroduce themselves and others to the person and power of Jesus over and over again. A disciple of Jesus never stops learning the gospel, relating in the gospel, and communicating the gospel.” –Jonathan K. Dodson, Gospel-Centered Discipleship

As disciples, we should be constantly learning. We’ll never leave our role as students and become solely teachers of the gospel. And through our teaching, God brings us through experiences that challenge us and convict us to become even more knowledgeable. It’s a constant process of growing and refining, while leading up other disciples in the process.

Want to learn more about discipleship? Check out these resources on Vyrso:

• Gospel-Centered Discipleship
• Transformational Discipleship: How People Really Grow
• Mere Discipleship: Radical Christianity in a Rebellious World
• Breaking the Discipleship Code: Becoming a Missional Follower of Jesus