Core Ministry Values

At the core of my ministry lies a set of convictions summarizing my understanding
of the Biblical teachings on ministry and life.

I Must Nurture Intimacy With God: if I do not act out of a vibrant
spirituality, then I labor in vain. I must regularly:

1. Pray:
   both with my spirit and with understanding
2. Read
   His Word: for personal growth in addition to ministry tasks
3. Attend
   Corporate Worship: participating regardless of my emotional state
4. Meet
   With a Small Group of Fellow-Believers: for accountability and encouragement.

I Must Cultivate My Character: who I am is more important that
what I do. Character is a broad topic, but I consider these qualities
to be central:

1. Honesty: neither telling lies nor slanting truth
2. Consistency:
   acting on what I profess to believe in public and private
3. Courage:
   disregarding personal consequences when facing moral choices
4. Hard
   Work: doing the best I can do because God is always my boss
5. Fiscal
   Responsibility: living within my means, being generous, saving for the
   future

I Must Build My Marriage
is to be a friend and a partner in ministry. Plus, I will be married after
I retire. I ignore that fact at my peril.

I Must Hone My Skills: God deserves the very best I have to offer.
Therefore I read widely and wisely, and I earnestly desire book, conference,
and other resource recommendations from those I esteem. My goal is to
master the essentials of my profession. At present, I understand those
essentials to be:

1. Spiritual
   Discipline: learning to live a Godward life
2. Hermeneutics:
   learning to interpret the Bible responsibly
3. Leadership:
   learning to help others act effectively
4. Communication:
   learning to articulate ideas persuasively
5. Marketing:
   learning to intrigue others with Christ and His Church

I Must Maintain Healthy Relationships: fundamentally, ministry
is about relationships. As a spiritual leader, I accept responsibility
for the health of the relationships I am involved with and will work to
deepen them.

I Must Rigorously Analyze My Beliefs: beliefs drive behavior.
I have a tremendous capacity for intellectual laziness and self-deception.
I must read the most challenging works and talk with the most challenging
people to test my ideas for truth.