A good environment certainly makes it easier to grow. But whether you’re in a good environment or not, you can learn and improve where you are.

It seems the older you get, the more life comes into focus.

No matter where you are in your leadership journey, never forget that what got you to where you are won't get you to the next level.

There is something to be said about a pastor and a church that develop a missions statement and the people take ownership of it. They get their identity, purpose, and energy from the unique place their church is to be in that community.

Sometimes we hold on to our possessions because we fear we might run out - life seems scarce. But when we believe that giving is the way to live, we will produce more in the future - life seems abundant.

Most people use two totally different sets of criteria for judging themselves versus others. We tend to judge others according to their actions. It's very cut-and-dried. However, we judge ourselves by our intentions. Even if we do the wrong thing, if we believe our motives were good, we let ourselves off the hook. And we are often willing to do that over and over before requiring ourselves to change.

if you don't have peace, it isn't because someone took it from you; you gave it away. You cannot always control what happens to you, but you can control what happens in you.